Growth, Service, & Purpose

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As the school stands on the precipice of its second century, Villa Academy looks ahead to an exciting future. Guided by our inspired mission, Villa’s Board of Trustees approved the following plan in support of the school’s immediate and future needs.

Growth, Service, & Purpose will engage the entire Villa community—students, faculty, staff, families, and graduates—as we deliberately embrace and intentionally live our mission.

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IDENTITY & PROGRAM Villa Academy will define, refine, and clearly articulate its curricular and co-curricular program in order to fully deliver upon its mission. In doing so, Villa will become the independent school destination for inquirybased, whole child “education of the heart” in the greater Seattle area.

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DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION, JUSTICE, & BELONGING (DEIJB) Villa Academy will be a community that celebrates, honors, and reflects the rich diversity of the greater Seattle area across its students, families, faculty and staff. The school strives to facilitate a culture of genuine belonging at Villa.

STEWARDSHIP Villa Academy will steward its resources to ensure the school’s long-term sustainability and growth, inspiring the community to further invest in supporting the school and future generations of Villa students.

VILLA ACADEMY’S STRATEGIC PLANNING TASK FORCE ▸ Kirk Davis, Task Force Chair, Trustee

▸ Liz Willis, PhD, Head of School

▸ Alesia Degwitz de Romero, Trustee

▸ Kelly Brackett, Director of Development

▸ Titania Limanardja, Trustee

▸ Emma Hodgson, Director of Student Experience

▸ Ryan McAninch, Trustee

▸ Tristan Reid, Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

▸ Sarah Merriman, Trustee ▸ Robin Waterman, Trustee

IDENTITY & PROGRAM: OUR WHY Villa Academy will define, refine, and clearly articulate its curricular and cocurricular program in order to fully deliver upon its transformative, inspiring mission.

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We believe that students are best served when they are actively engaged in the process of learning, thereby developing the skills needed to synthesize,interpret, and evaluate information. By developing and delivering a program that clearly reflects our commitment to inquiry-based learning, Villa will demonstrate the Cabrinian tradition of “education of the heart”: preparing students intellectually, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.

HOW? • Dynamic and comprehensive inquiry- and standards-based curriculum.

• Differentiated opportunities for stretch and challenge for all students.

• Elevated commitment to experiential learning as an everyday practice.

• Enhanced professional development in support of Villa’s mission and strategic plan.

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As an inclusive independent school community that prepares students for lives of service and purpose, we are called to demonstrate our commitment to increasing diversity, equity, inclusion, justice and belonging in the school, across all constituencies. Research shows that school belonging is a critical component of student wellness and a precursor to academic achievement; thus, Villa’s DEIJB work is essential to ensure all students, families, faculty, and staff thrive, meet their full potential, and prepare for their futures.

HOW? • E xperience of authentic belonging across all community members— students, families, faculty, and staff.

• Research and development of transportation options to expand the geographic reach of the school beyond northeast Seattle.

• Increased financial assistance offerings.

• Community education that fosters ongoing reflection and study of social justice issues, identity, and cultural humility.

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Villa Academy will be a community that celebrates, honors, and reflects the rich diversity of the greater Seattle area across its students, families, faculty and staff.

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DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION, JUSTICE, & BELONGING (DEIJB): OUR WHY

OUR MISSION: Villa Academy is an inclusive independent school community dedicated to developing the whole child in the Cabrinian tradition of “education of the heart.” Through dynamic, inquiry-based learning, Villa Academy students become active agents of their own intellectual growth in preparation for lives of service and purpose.

HEAD OF SCHOOL

Liz Willis, PhD

STEWARDSHIP: OUR WHY

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We are both responsive and proactive in our prudent, strategic stewardship of each one of our resources. Villa will live our mission in the present while simultaneously safeguarding our future, positioning the school to thrive for generations to come.

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Villa Academy will steward its resources to ensure the school’s long-term sustainability and growth, inspiring the community to further invest in supporting current and future generations of Villa students.

HOW? • Achieve our long-range goals for enrollment and tuition, financial assistance, campus upgrades, and program priorities.

DIRECTOR OF PRESCHOOL & EARLY ELEMENTARY GRADES

Julie Thenell Grasseschi

DIRECTOR OF INTERMEDIATE GRADES

Michelle Lorda Sullivan

• Support our talented workforce through compensation, professional growth, and retention plans.

• Assess our campus-wide facility needs and develop a refreshed, sustainable plan.

• Further live our commitment to Cabrinian educational values through responsible stewardship of the environment.

DIRECTOR OF MIDDLE SCHOOL

Matthew McAuliffe

AT A G L A N C E : 31-ACRE LAKEFRONT CAMPUS Villa is the only independent school in the city of Seattle nurturing the holistic development of children: mind, body, and spirit.

Dedicated to inquiry-driven, student-centered academic excellence, Villa simultaneously tends to whole child growth and integrated health, informed by clear and compelling research on the powerful influence of nature, spirituality, and social-emotional intelligence on academic thriving. Our empowered students become stewards of their lives, caretakers of their mental and social wellbeing, and custodians of the environment.

• A large, lush campus where students can explore and learn in an enriching and natural environment.

• Expansive facilities include a gym, an all-weather multisport turf field overlooking Lake Washington, theatre, art studio, music room, and makerspace.

• Science at Villa is hands-on!

Throughout the year, we incorporate Villa’s expansive campus as an outdoor learning lab, where the garden, orchards, woodlands, and other resources enhance learning in all science topics.

PRESCHOOL - 8 TH GRADE • Our dynamic, inquiry-based learning approach is both a student-centered teaching method and learning process.

• Villa’s low student-to-teacher ratio facilitates personalized attention and educational differentiation.

• Students contribute to their educations through pursuing their interests, their curiosities, and their thoughts on best strategies for problem-solving; they are given daily opportunities to share “voice and choice.”

• Intentional scaffolding from Preschool through 8th grade enables our students to grow in authenticity, leadership, independence,and selfadvocacy.

• Our social justice-informed curriculum prepares students for a world beyond Villa Academy.

A COMMUNITY OF BELONGING • We are an inclusive, equitable learning, and social environment where we welcome and celebrate diversity.

• Our empowered students become stewards of their lives, champions of academic growth, attentive to their mental and social wellbeing, and caretakers of the environment.

• 30+ sports, clubs, and activities invite students to explore their interests and passions, find balance, and create meaningful connections.

• Financial assistance, opportunities, and support are available to our students and families.

BE KNOWN. BE CHALLENGED. BELONG.