What We Believe
The goal of our school is to promote cooperative learning through integrated thematic centers and traveling portfolios that highlight our student’s strengths and interests while differentiating instruction for all our learners. We want to provide our students the opportunity for risk-taking and peer/teacher feedback to aid in their success.
Our Story
It was the summer of 2007 when our founder, Mrs. Barbara Leto, began her new adventure to become a school building leader. As part of her coursework, she was given an assignment to create a proposal for a new school. Excited by this assignment, Mrs. Leto contacted 3 colleagues with whom she had taught; Mrs. Gallo, Mrs. Bates, and Mrs. Ugbomah. Each were eager to form this team to create their "dream school". They sat around Mrs. Leto's dining room table for the next several months and outlined everything they would want to see in the perfect school......a school they would want to send their own children to.
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When it came time for Mrs. Leto to submit her assignment, her instructors were so impressed that they chose her "dream" to be sent to The Office of New Schools Initiative. From there, the proposal was selected for the next round where Mrs. Leto, Mrs. Gallo, Mrs. Bates, and Mrs. Ugbomah sat in front of a panel of DOE officials to defend their proposal and prove why this school would be the very best. A few weeks after this meeting, Mrs. Leto was notified that her dream school, The Academy for Excellence through the Arts would become a reality! Out of over 600 proposals, only 20 were chosen. This was a major accomplishment.
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More than ten years later, AEA still exemplifies everything that was the very foundation on which it was built. The focus is, and always will be, the children whom we serve each and everyday.
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Thank you, Mrs. Leto, for staying true to your vision and continuing to foster a love for learning in every child.
What We Believe
At The Academy for Excellence through the Arts, our vision is to inspire and cultivate a community of innovative, compassionate, and confident individuals who thrive in both academic and artistic endeavors. We envision a school where every student is empowered to explore their unique talents, think critically, and engage deeply with the world around them. Through a dynamic blend of rigorous academics and an enriching arts curriculum, we aim to foster creativity, collaboration, and a lifelong love of learning.
Curriculum highlights include the Science of Reading literacy program consisting of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Children are immersed in the writing process to encourage students to become life-long learners. Our Envisions Math Program and Amplify Science program offer a hands-on approach using inquiry, discovery and real-life application. Social Studies is taught using primary documents and project-based research through the Passport To Social Studies Curriculum.
​The goal of our school is to promote cooperative learning through integrated centers, socratic seminars and collaborative learning experiences that highlight our student’s strengths and interests while differentiating instruction for all our learners. We want to provide our students the opportunity for risk-taking and peer/teacher feedback to aid in their success. We strive to offer our children an academically rigorous program aligned with the Next Generation Learning Standards. Students participate in class productions, reader’s theater and multicultural celebrations. Our school is unique in that we strive to offer our children an academically rigorous program with a well-balanced Theater Arts program consisting of drama, dance, music, and art.
Our Community Constitution
At The Academy for Excellence through the Arts, we believe that when children are given clear expectations and positive strategies that they can use to self-monitor their behavior there are less incidents of unwanted conduct. As a school, we have a community constitution that includes 4 basic rules.
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We are all responsible for our community and making it a safe and happy place to learn and grow.
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It is our job to make decisions that respect others’ feelings, opinions and ideas.
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The Academy is our home away from home, where we are given the opportunity to achieve to the best of our ability and in turn we extend the same courtesy to all school members.
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We work cooperatively with all our peers for the betterment of our class community and our larger school community.
Our school likes to focus on positive strategies that our children can use to maximize their success. Children’s success lies in great part on a strong home school connection. We make every effort to effectively communicate clear expectations for all children with attainable goals and use reflection and communication as a tool to build community and respect.
