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What if there was a middle school where students were asked to care about how their mind works? Where students were asked to wonder out loud. Imagine a place where kids are excited to learn. What if this place allowed students to struggle and helped them view perseverance through struggle as an opportunity for growth?
Research has shown that the attitudes, behavior and achievement of children are enhanced when parents or other caregivers are involved in their children’s education. To that end, IVA has adopted this parent involvement policy in order to promote learning and provide a more positive learning experience for the students of its schools. This policy is incorporated into the the school plan developed pursuant to NCLB, and submitted to the California Department of Education with the LEA’s Consolidated Application.
Parent and Guardian Feedback Although Parent Academies are structured for parents to receive input, the collaborative nature of these meetings generates feedback that the Principal and leadership team integrates into various aspects of the school, from structure of parent conferences to newsletter content to Office Hour and discipline practices. IVA seeks regular and ongoing feedback from parents through these means in addition to an annual family survey. Families can also participate in the school through the PTA or IVA's Stakeholder Engagement Committee.
Parent and Guardian Supportof Students Parent involvement and support plays a critical role at IVA due to the unique educational model of the school. All parents are given information about intellectual virtues, their importance to learning, and how they can play a role in their child’s intellectual character development. Parent Academies are held to assist parents in supporting their student’s experience at IVA and the school will regularly communicate with parents about their student's progress and about school activities through report cards, regular grades, a weekly newsletter and email communication. Learn more about how to "apprentice" your child at IVA in the Parent Resources section of our Curriculum and Instruction page.
Modeling Lifelong Learning - Parent Academies At IVA it is not only the student that gets to take time to think, process, and explore ideas together. IVA offers numerous Parent Academy evenings, in conjunction with our PTA, in order to support growth in and understanding of the practice of intellectual character virtues for our parents and guardians. Based on parent feedback, IVA schedules multiple Parent Academies in the first month of school to help acclimate families with technical questions and big questions about how thinking and learning works at IVA.
In addition, IVA provides Parent Academy nights annually include a focus on:
educational theory and practice;
our Advisory program and helping students towards intellectual exploration;
developmental psychology of our middle school kids and;
mindful parenting.
Our speakers are selected together by the IVA Administration and the PTA and are inspiring and educational nights that shouldn't be missed.
Check out a partial record of our previous nights below:
2020-2021
Understanding Intellectual Virtues & How to Use Them with Our Children :: November 12, 2020
Navigating Middle School Struggle Together :: October 15, 2020
POW (Problem of the Weeks) How Can Parents Help? - PART 1 IVA Parent Academy - Presented by Math Teachers Ms. Cari Noble, Ms. Deborah Chen, and Principal Bryant, September 15, 2016
POW (Problem of the Weeks) How Can Parents Help? - PART 2 IVA Parent Academy - Presented by Math Teachers Ms. Cari Noble, Ms. Deborah Chen, and Principal Bryant, September 15, 2016
Working Together to Develop Powerful Thinkers and Learners Presented by Ron Ritchhart, March 12, 2015
The Challenges and Strengths of an Intellectual Virtues Educational Model IVA Parent Academy - Presented by Dr. Steve Porter, January 22, 2015
Raising Real Kids in a Digital World
IVA PTSA General Meeting - Presented by Certified Simplicity Parenting Coach, Mary van Geffen, November 9, 2017
Math & Science Extended Problem Support IVA Parent Academy - Presented by Ms. Noble, Ms. Chen, Ms. Gordon, Mr. Burns, and Principal Bryant, September 21, 2017
In Long Beach, middle school families have many choices for what high schools they can apply. These choices include almost 40 LBUSD school options, private schools, and one charter school, Intellectual Virtues Academy High School. It takes both knowledge and attention to make the appropriate choice for your child and we want to partner with our IVA families in making this decision. In this webpage we offer more information about IVA High and LBUSD options.
IVA High was established to extend the middle school’s award-winning intellectual virtues model to high school students. IVA High is a fully accredited, tuition-free public high school with a mission to empower students to think well: creatively, critically, and with a capacity for self-growth.
Through project-based learning, IVA High’s learner-centered approach puts students in charge of their education and transforms learning into action. Students are equipped to explore real-life issues to develop the skills to prepare them for our rapidly changing world.
IVA High’s AXS: Advanced and Accelerated Studies program offers rigorous college preparatory classes through Advanced Placement and Honors courses.
Eligible students can participate in our thriving dual enrollment partnership with LBCC. IVA High School offers college level courses on our campus taught by professors from Long Beach City College.
Students have access to employment opportunities through paid internships with community partners.
Diverse course offerings include Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Science and Engineering (STEAM), Advanced Placement/Honors, college prep, and a robust selection of electives and clubs. Students at IVA High co-create their high school experience alongside dedicated staff and find a place to connect, contribute and belong in a vibrant and caring community.
You are invited to learn more and experience the high school firsthand through a school tour and shadow days. Contact the team at IVA High or visit the website to learn more. When you are ready to join the IVA High community, fill out the enrollment information form and a member of the IVA High team will follow up with an enrollment application. For any questions, please call 562.283.4456.
Curious Minds. Empowered Community.
LBUSD
Options
IVA works closely with LBUSD to support the transition of our 8th graders to through the High School Choice Process. IVA students have the same opportunity for admissions to all LBUSD schools as any other student within the LBUSD. Below is helpful information to consider when choosing a high school. If you have any further questions about the 8th grade transition to high school, please contact the High School Choice Helpline at (562) 997-8306.
Comprehensive High Schools vs. Small Thematic High Schools There are 11 schools to choose from within LBUSD: six comprehensive high schools (Cabrillo, Jordan, Lakewood, Millikan, Poly, and Wilson) and five small, thematic high schools (CAMS, McBride, Renaissance, Sato, Browning). Comprehensive high schools typically have a large student population (2,500-4,000 students), offer a wide variety of classes, athletic team programs, and specialized/traditional small learning communities. Attendance boundaries also allow for residential priority, meaning students who apply to schools outside their neighborhood would be put further down the list for admission. Small thematic high schools tend to have smaller student populations (400-1,200 students), offer a limited menu of class options, and limited or no athletic team opportunities. Though this may be the case, there are no attendance boundaries, meaning students who live outside of the region can apply with no priority given to neighborhood families. We strongly encourage our 8th grade families to research thoroughly the right high school for your student.
Pathway Programs All students in LBUSD High Schools belong to a pathway. All comprehensive high schools have pathways that have no criteria and give priority to residential students and pathways that require minimum criteria for acceptance in which most do not give priority to residential students (i.e., Secondary Specialized Programs). All small, thematic schools are seen as Secondary Specialized Programs, which means they too have minimum criteria (except for Renaissance and Browning) and do not offer priority to any residential students. For information on the selection methodology of these options, visit the LBUSD HS Choice webpage.
For more information on the LBUSD HS Choice Process, please visit the LBUSD HS Choice webpage or contact the HS Choice Helpline at (562) 997-8306.
Advisory
Central to IVA's mission to create an atmosphere that inspires growth in the personal qualities of excellent thinkers is a weekly, virtues-based Advisory, in which every student participates.
Throughout the year, groups of around students meet with their assigned advisor, a trained adult mentor who creates opportunities for the practice of intellectual virtues. Curriculum developed for Advisory includes direct instruction in the nine master virtues, methods for self-assessing intellectual character growth, and the opportunity for each student to explore, in depth, a topic of specific and intrinsic interest to him or her.
Devoting time to self-initiated study helps develop students’ natural curiosity, a master virtue, and gives students a practical way to grow in this capacity with their peers. We protect our Advisory hour in order to protect the development of students' curiosity.
Moreover, Advisory offers a safe environment for students to discuss their personal development of intellectual character through the weekly check-ins and conversations. Students are guided to bring what they are curious about to the group for intellectual exploration and play. Advisors teach students how to creating a big how or why question, choose a Thinking Routine or protocol for exploring the question together, and choose a text, which can be a podcast, Ted Talk, video, article, or other reading selection.
Advisories Cultivate Cultures of Thinking
Practices like Advisories create, "... a dynamic group of people who feel that they are learning together and creating something greater than that which any individual might produce. It feels good to be a member of a culture of thinking...A culture of thinking produces the feelings, energy, and even joy that can propel learning forward and motivate us to do what at times can be hard, and challenging mental work." - Ron Ritchhart, Creating Cultures of Thinking
Bring Advisories Home with Family Advisories: Families - try out one of our Family Advisories at home. We "assign" these optional and fun conversation guides occasionally over the holidays. The following examples aim at guiding families to explore what they are curious about together using an Advisory-type approach. Develop a culture of thinking together where you can reflect on and learn about ideas as well as how you approach learning.
These conversations should be fun where intellectual exploration and play combine with the safety of a supportive environment that practices the types of values that IVA has adopted as an organization.
Read About Our Virtues Our co-founder Dr. Jason Baehr has written extensively on each of the intellectual virtues and our faculty and staff as well as our students study the virtues in Advisory. Learn about our bookshelf and resources to learn more here. The selection below comes from Dr. Baehr's virtues implementation guide available online called Cultivating Good Minds. OPEN-MINDEDNESS.pdf
Check our our Advisory in a Minute video to catch a glimpse.
Interested in being an Advisor?
The main purpose of the advisory groups is to further the personalization of IVA’s educational model by having weekly, in-depth check-ins with an adult mentor (the advisor). The overarching goal is for the advisors to get to know their advisees as thinkers and learners and to create opportunities for intellectual exploration and the practice of intellectual virtues. A curriculum developed for advisory groups will help form the texture of these groups. We anticipate that advisory groups will become a safe environment for students to discuss their personal development of intellectual character.
Much of the success of IVA’s Advisory groups depend on securing Advisors who are committed to their own growth in our nine master virtues, who have some insight into the minds of middle school students, and who can foster meaningful conversation amongst the members of their group. Parent and community volunteers help provide adult role models of thinkers and learners at school that represent to our students a greater diversity of adult leaders than our small staff.
Developmental theory suggests that middle school students are in a period of separation from primary adult caregivers (parents, etc.) but remain in dire need of meaningful interaction and emotional connection with adults. With that developmental tension in mind, advisory groups we have realized are one of the most important features of IVA students’ education.
Practically speaking, Advisors will need to commit to:
Required Training: 4-hour training on our first Faculty Academy day in September (potential summer training too)
Weekly Advisory Schedule: each Thursday from 8:20am-9:20am during the school year
Ongoing Training: One Thursday every other month Advisors will meet after school for the hour after school gets out from 1:30pm-2:30pm for discussion and further training.
Training “on the job”: The first four Advisory blocks of the upcoming school year will be conducted in a full school program introducing IVA Values and concepts that will be valuable for creating a safe culture of thinking such as growth mindset and kinds of listeners. Advisors will need to attend these meetings as they are an introduction to concepts and relationships we develop with students.
All Advisors complete an application process, are tested for tuberculosis, and complete a Live Scan (Our office will make arrangements for all of this and the school will pay for the cost of the Live Scan).
