Courses and Electives

High school course work is measured by credits, at a rate of 1 full-year course equal to 1 credit. The total number of credits required for a high school diploma is 25, distributed as follows:

The remaining 12 credits can be from any area, including coursework in World Languages, Visual or Performing Art, Physical Education, Human Ecology, or Service Learning.

In order to receive credit for a class, a student must earn a letter grade no lower than C-.

Course Offerings

Classes at ASR are designed to connect students with their learning, and to connect that learning to the world at large. Our teachers are keenly aware that they need to provide students with ample opportunity to develop academic skills such as writing, critical thinking, and creative problem solving, thus preparing them for university study and beyond. Our teachers are excited about the subjects they teach, and impart that excitement to our students.

Detailed syllabi from each course are available at the start of each trimester.

Independent Study

For some students, the college preparatory academic curriculum offered by ASR may not be appropriate in its entirety, or in part, and it may be desirable to fashion independent study projects for credit. For other students, their passions may steer them to pursue independent scholarly work in specific subject areas. Independent Study projects can also be used to allow a student to go deeper on different topics, as an "honors" or "advanced level" class.

Such programs may be put together at the discretion of the Educational Services Director, seeking advice and counsel from teachers and counselors. Work should be rigorous and students will be expected to meet or exceed ASR normal classroom standards. A completed, approved proposal is a contract, and once embarked upon, may not be "dropped."

A student may, in a conversation with a teacher, counselor, or administrator, decide that s/he would like to pursue such an option. Great care must be taken to insure that the Independent Study proposal clearly outlines what will be studied, and how progress will be measured. The Proposal will act as the syllabus kept on file for future reference, should questions arise regarding the integrity of the Independent Study project.

Physical Education

Students earn 0.33 credit each term in Physical Education through regular participation in the athletics program which runs three afternoons per week, for a total of 5 hours per week (60 hours per trimester).

Human Ecology

Human Ecology credit is earned at a rate of 0.34 credit per term for the curriculum-driven psycho-educational aspects of the counseling program.

Service Learning

Various types of on- and off-campus community service projects are available to students at ASR, and it is assumed that students will participate actively in these projects to round out their academic and residential life experiences. Some students, under special arrangement, will engage in Service Learning Projects or internships, some of which may generate academic credit. An example of this is when a student — towards the end of his/her program — returns to the ASR Pathways program or a wilderness therapeutic program to do peer mentoring. Such projects are highly individualized and require special planning.

College Courses through Greenfield Community College

Periodically — usually twice a year — Greenfield Community College offers courses on our campus. These are regular college classes, taught by instructors from the college, which are taken for full college credit. The resulting college transcript can be transferred to students' future colleges or universities. The courses offered are always general education classes to increase transferability. Classes offered in the past have included English, Psychology, Political Science, Spanish, Anthropology, and History.