Construction begins on 42-acre Tahoe-area private school campus
Business Business |
Special to the Sun
A rendering of an eating area as part of one portion of the multi-building campus next to Martis Valley.
Courtesy Art Zendarski |
TRUCKEE, Calif. — Construction began this month on the new 42-acre campus just outside of Martis Valley that will house Tahoe Expedition Academy and the new +Impact School, both of which offer exciting and innovative education models for grades pre-K through 12.
On May 12, Tahoe Expedition Academy received unanimous approval from the Placer County Planning Commission to build the 42-acre campus on the edge of Martis Valley. The site is located off of Schaffer Mill Road, known as Hopkins Ranch.
The school purchased the site in June, and infrastructure crews mobilized in late June for an early July start.
"It's a good project in the right spot," said Richard Roccucci, chairman of the Placer County Planning Commission. "The project is environmentally sensitive to Martis Valley and the Truckee area, and the school did a great job involving all parties in the planning process."
Tahoe Expedition Academy worked with lead architect Peter Pfau in collaboration with Truckee-based Ward-Young Architecture to design a campus that compliments Martis Valley's natural beauty.
Meanwhile, the new +Impact School was designed and launched by the same team at Tahoe Expedition Academy, which includes Head of School Mark Kushner, a veteran educator and former Stanford professor.
The +Impact School will a forward-thinking model of experiential education for students in grades 9-12.
"Research shows that teenagers are motivated to learn more when there is a sense of meaning and purpose to their work," said Kushner. "At +Impact School, our model is designed to take core academic content and apply it creatively to real world projects that make a larger positive impact on the community and the world at large."
This fall, +Impact School will adopt a learning management system developed by Stanford professors and Facebook engineers. This will enable +Impact School to personalize instruction and enable students to move more quickly toward deeper learning. Visit impactschools.com to learn more.
For students in grades pre-K through 8, Tahoe Expedition Academy will continue with its existing model of expeditionary learning and outdoor adventure to cultivate intellectual growth, curiosity and creativity.
This article was provided on behalf of the private Tahoe Expedition Academy. Visit tahoeexpeditionacademy.org to learn more.
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