The Island School

Overview:

I went to the Island School during my junior year of high school. It is a semester abroad program for high school sophomores and juniors that focuses on four core values: leadership, community, sense of place, and sustainability.

Academics:

Throughout the 100 days the students are on the island, they attend various classes that are similar to high school classes but have a twist to envelope the core values of The Island School. My semester I took an art class, Celestial Navigation (Math), History of the Bahamas (History), Literature of the Sea (English), Human Ecology, Marine Ecology and did a research project called Sustainable Fisheries in South Eleuthera (focusing on how Bahamians use the sea.)

Athletics:

It is not only tough academically, but also physically. During the course of the semester, students prepare for either a half marathon or a 4-mile ocean swim. After picking which track to join at the beginning of the semester, 4-5 mornings of the week for the rest of the semester are dedicated to running or swimming in preparation.

Special Programs

Community Outreach - The students get to work alongside middle school students of Deep Creek Middle School for volunteer hours.
SCUBA - After getting certified during the first week at Island School, students SCUBA dive once a week as part of their Marine Ecology class. Also part of this class is learning to identify 100 different sea creatures.
Kayak - One of the favorite things I loved about Island School: students get to embark on two different kayak trips in groups of 12 students plus a couple of staff members. The first is a 3-day trip that is used to bond the students together during their first weeks of the program. The second is an 8-day trip that includes a 48-hour solo as part of the adventure.
Research - Every student is involved in some sort of research as part of the curriculum through the Cape Eleuthera Institue (a partner and neighbor to the Island School). My semester, I surveyed locals about how and why they used the sea. Others my semester caught and tagged deep water sharks, others studied mangroves, while others studied aquaculture. Each semester has a little bit of variance on their research groups. Find out what the Cape Eleuthera Institute is up to now: http://www.ceibahamas.org/

Other:

Location: Eleuthera, The Bahamas
Number of Students per Semester: 48
For More Information, visit www.islandschool.org