A Different Kind of School 

After thirty-six years in education, I can say with confidence that traditional schooling does not work for many children. For students, particularly those with school anxiety, not only is school not working, it makes them and their families miserable. A recent study commissioned by the National Institutes of Health (NIH, 2022) found that school anxiety significantly impacts almost 50% of girls and more than 20% of boys in the United States. School anxiety leads to poor academic performance, reluctance to engage in social activities, work avoidance and even refusal to go to school.

 

We established Galileo Preparatory Academy (GPA) in 2022 to improve education for children who are not thriving in their current schools. We serve learners from many academic, medical and neurodiverse backgrounds in our personalized program. We focus on supporting the child, rather than fitting them into a traditional and rigid system. Traditional schools ask the child to adapt to the environment, instead of adapting the environment to meet the child’s needs.

 

Our learning center has bright colors, comfortable seating and natural light. We eliminate anxiety-inducing norms of traditional school, like raising your hand to go to the bathroom or waiting until a specified time to eat a snack. At GPA, learners work at their own pace with our mastery-based curriculum, so no one in our mixed-age classes knows the academic placement of other students. We are also available year-round to allow students the time needed to regain lost ground or get ahead. We have daily group activities such as outdoor restorative play, enriching projects in the maker’s space and competitive gaming in our eSports studio.

 

GPA’s families are happy. “My son is more supported at GPA than at his previous public school,” said parent Traci Wilbur. “They just get it. The staff is comprised of compassionate experts who are dedicated to making sure that every student succeeds. We couldn’t ask for a better place for our son.”

 

When a child feels safe and supported at GPA, they thrive academically, socially and personally.