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A TEACHER’S GUIDE TO

BLUE RIDGE SCHOOL 2026-2027 EDITION

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

MISSION STATEMENT Blue Ridge School’s faculty specifically focuses on helping boys reach their potential through personalized, structured, innovative learning practices in a college preparatory, all-boarding community.

TEACHING AT BLUE RIDGE SCHOOL IS AN ART AND A SCIENCE. A Teacher’s Guide to Blue Ridge School aims to explain our School’s philosophy and approach to effective teaching and learning while also providing context, helpful advice, and some things to keep in mind while performing the challenging, but eminently rewarding job of being a faculty member at Blue Ridge School. Being a faculty member here at Blue Ridge is a multi-faceted role. It extends beyond the classroom and into the daily lives of the students. This guide is for you. It is part policy manual, as all major academic policies are explained, but with some added context and background. We hope this guide will be helpful to you as you transition to this community!

Sincerely, THE ACADEMIC TEAM Amber Wilkins Assistant Head of School for Instructional Programs Jack Warren Dean of Academics Essence Ellis Registrar/Academic Associate

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

A TEACHER’S GUIDE TO BLUE RIDGE SCHOOL 2026-2027 EDITION History of Blue Ridge School ........................................................ 5

Month by Month Walk Through............................................ 19

Curricular Philosophy............................................................................ 6

What is A Head’s Day?....................................................... 20

Who is “The Blue Ridge Boy” Today? ..................................... 7

What is Study Hall? ............................................................. 20

Execellent Teachers At Blue Ridge School ......................... 8

What is a Command Performance?...................... 20

Relational Learning................. ................................................... 8

The Role of Project Based Learning (PBL)

Student Engagement ......................................................... 8-9

in Our Curriculum ................................................................... 21

Authentic Curriculum............................................................. 9

The Fishburne Learning Center ............................................. 22

Differentiation & Accessibility ....................................... 9

Important Classroom Policies to Know .......................... 23

Clear Communication .......................................................... 9

Technology in Class............................................................... 23

Growth Mindset ................................................................... 8-9

Attendance ................................................................................. 23

How do I Develop My Course .................................................. 10

Reporting Missing Students ......................................... 23

Understanding by Design (UbD).............................10-11

Obtaining Class Coverage .............................................. 23

Scope & Sequence ..........;..................................................... 11

Some Thoughts on Classroom

How Do I Assess My Students? ............................................... 12

Management ................................................................... 24

What Should I Grade? ..........;.............................................. 12

Academic Honesty and Plagiarism .................................... 24

How Do I Keep Grades Fair?........................................... 12

Google Classroom ........................................................................... 25

How Do I Maintain My Gradebook?...........................12

Helping Struggling Students ................................................... 26

How Do I Set up My Gradebook?.............................. 12

Communicating with Parents ................................................. 27

What Should I Include in the Gradebook?...................... 13

Great Comments ..................................................................... 27

Should I Offer Re-Takes?................................................... 13

Professional Development ...................................................... 28

Uncompleted Assignments............................................. 13

Achieving Work Life Balance ................................................ 28

Late Work Policies & Guidance .................................. 14

Self-Reflection Questions ........................................................ 29

How to Think About Homework............................................ 15

Appendices.

2026-2027 Calendar of Events .......................................... 16-17

Code of Conduct ............................................................... 29

Daily/Weekly Class Schedules.................................................... 18

DEIJ Statement .............................................. Back Cover

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

BLUE RIDGE SCHOOL

N 1910 THE BLUE RIDGE INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL OPENED ITS DOORS to students who lived mostly in the immediate vicinity of the campus. In the early twentieth century the area around the school was remote, and its residents were isolated from the rapidly changing world around them. Poor roads and little public support for state funded schools made regular school attendance almost impossible for most of the children in the area. In Greene County 35% of

males of voting age were illiterate, and only 53% of school aged children were actually enrolled in school. When the Blue Ridge Industrial School opened, it was the crown jewel of an extensive network of Episcopal missions throughout several counties on both sides of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Establishing these missions, which provided health care, education, and other basic social services to these remote communities, was the life’s work of Frederick Neve, an Episcopal Priest who arrived in Albemarle County from England in 1888. A reconfigured board of trustees led by Rev. Dudley Boogher To lead the new school, Neve hired George Pickett Mayo,

of Charlottesville, set about deciding the School’s future and

an Episcopal Priest who was instrmental in developing the

weighed three options: shut the school down entirely and sell

school’s vocational curriculum and its original mission, which

the property, become a junior college, or become a new kind

he explained in 1910 as: “To give boys and girls of limited

of boarding school for boys. They settled on the third option

means the opportunity to become practical and efficient men

citing increasing reports from those in their networks that the

and women. Boys will be taught agriculture, fruit growing,

older, traditional boardingschools were focused on becoming

stock and poultry raising. Girls will be taught cooking, sewing,

more and more academically intensive, and were chasing after

and general housework. Our effort will be to fit both boys and

a shrinking group of only the very brightest students. Parents

girls for the ordinary duties of everyday life.” The school was

who wanted a college prep boarding experience for their sons

successful in its first decade, and by 1920 boasted 100 students

but with a “standard” academic experience didn’t have many

and 12 teachers. By the late 1930s, however, the original mission

options.

of the school was becoming increasingly obsolete. Better roads, coupled with improvements to the public education system,

The “New” Blue Ridge School opened on September

and the fact that many families who had once lived around the

14, 1962 with 6 teachers and 66 students in grades 8–10:

school were displaced by the construction of the Shenandoah

43 came from Virginia, 22 were from other southern and

National Park, necessitated that the school change its program.

mid-Atlantic states, and one was from the Panama Canal Zone. The first annual operating budget totaled $124,760.

During the 1940s and 1950s the school transitioned into a new

After a rocky first year, the new school quickly found its

phase, and its student body was composed mainly of boarding

footing under the leadership of Headmaster Hatcher

students from Virginia and the Mid-Atlantic who had been

Williams who was a prolific fundraiser and tireless champion

orphaned, or removed from the custody of their parents, and

of the unique mission of the school: a place where the faculty

had no place to live. School Superintendent Dewey Loving, a

and programs focused on the “average” boy and helped him

graduate of the school, was in regular correspondence with

to unlock his talents and potential. By the end of his tenure

social service departments across the mid-Atlantic who sought

Williams had grown enrollment to nearly 200 and the

a stable placement for one or more of their children. More

endowment to over $1 million.

often than not, they could only pay a fraction of the tuition. In 1947 “Industrial” was removed from the School’s name and the

In its more recent history the School has established

institution became simply Blue Ridge School. By the late 1950s

several marquee, mission aligned programs that continue to

it was no longer financially viable for the Episcopal Church to

distinguish us from our peers and complement our academic

operate the school, and it closed in 1961.

program. In 1993, The Fishburne Learning Center opened with the mission of supporting boys with mild to moderate 2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

New History - continued from page 1 learning differences to give them the support and accommodations needed to be just as successful as

WHAT IS BLUE RIDGE SCHOOL’S PHILOSOPHY?

PERHAPS NOTHING ENCAPSULATES THE BLUE RIDGE SCHOOL mission advantage of the miraculous campus and increase and our core educational philosophy better than the familiar proverb: It takes opportunities for learning and recreation outdoors, a village to raise a child. Our faculty fully embrace relational teaching and learning, engaging and challenging every boy through individualized care and the Outdoor Program was formally launched in support.To best facilitate these relationships, individualize our instruction, 1998 and continues to grow. Most recently the School launched a character education program, a and give each boy opportunities to succeed, no class has more than 15 students, and our average class size is 11. Beyond the classroom, our teachers are deeply highlight of which are grade level Rites of Passage involved in student life. Nearly all live on campus and serve as coaches, Expeditions (ROPES) each spring. advisors, and hall parents. As a result, every Blue Ridge Boy is known not only by his classroom teachers, but by a supportive network of mentors who play to Perhaps the greatest change at Blue Ridge School his strengths and actively develop his growth areas. has been the growing diversity of its student body. any other student in a college prep setting. To take

While never explicitly a “whites only” school, it is

While college readiness is a top priority, it is not the only thing we want for our graduates. Above all else we want them to grow into men of charac-ter who prep school in the south in 1962 outside of the have developed the skills necessary for success in the 21st century. We want context of the ongoing school integration battles our curriculum and programs to produce young men who are confident in their of the era. Blue Ridge School hired its first Black scholastic abilities and who will use them to lead lives of purpose. We do not want graduates who spent high school simply memorizing and repeating a teacher in 1970 and the first Black graduate was a member of the class of 1975. Today, approximately lot of stuff with earning high grades and SAT scores as the ultimate objective. Instead, our curriculum undergoes regular revision and evaluation so that it can a quarter of the student body are students of be effective in achieving six important aims beyond just college readiness. After color and over the last twenty years, the number graduating from Blue Ridge our students will be: of inter-national students has grown to average • Critical thinkers, around one third of the student body and we are • Effective communicators, proud to enroll students from well over a dozen • Artistically literate and appreciative of the visual and performing countries. In 2021, the Board of Trustees adopted arts, a statement of Diversity, Equity, Justice, and • Stewards of the natural environment, Inclusion, to guide the School in the years ahead. • Aware of the diverse cultures, societies, and religions around the globe While the School has witnessed enormous changes • Empowered to live independent and healthy lives. throughout its history, what has always remained A key question for any school to answer about its curriculum is, “What makes constant is a fidelity to its mission, and the success it rigorous?” For far too many schools rigor is defined simply by the volume that its programs have had in transform-ing the of work that students are expected to complete. Blue Ridge School strives to measure the rigor and efficacy of all of our curricular programs by asking lives of many young people for the better. What whether they challenge the young men in our care to meet high, but achievable has made this possible throughout each stage of expectations. In developing our curriculum accordingly we build self-esteem Blue Ridge School’s history have been dedicated through repeated successes in the classroom, on the playing fields, and in the and passionate members of the faculty and staff. arts. The result is that our students begin to realize their true potential and to discover their passions. impossible to understand the founding of a new

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As an all boys school, the Blue Ridge campus is a space in which some of the negative but pervasive versions of masculinity that have resulted in a behavioral health crisis among boys in America today can be forcefully challenged, and in their place students can develop positive, healthy versions of manhood and adulthood that are centered on our School’s Code of Conduct. 6

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WHO IS THE BLUE RIDGE BOY TODAY?

VER THE LAST DECADE, seemingly the toughest question on campus to answer has been: “Who is ‘The Blue Ridge Boy?’” It is a question we discuss internally, and it is one that multiple VAIS accreditation teams and outside marketing professionals have asked us to answer. It’s not an easy question to answer, although certainly not for lack of trying. Why it is so difficult to pin down a quick, easy answer is the fact that the profiles and backgrounds of the boys with whom we work, and who have been successful here, are wide and diverse. Historically there has been an understanding that Blue Ridge School serves students of “average” academic ability. This has always been, and continues to be true. However, ideas about what “average” is, and the connotations that come along with that word, as well as how intelligence is defined and measured, are always changing, and have changed significantly since the school opened. “Average” today does not mean to teachers, parents, and students what it meant in 1962 and it is perhaps no longer the most accurate word to describe our student body. No one who works with our boys would say “they’re just average.” Each one is remarkable in some way. BRS has also been a fantastic school for students who are “below average” academically and for students who far exceed “above average” and have gone on to some of the most elite universities in the country. What they all have in common is that each of these boys benefited from our program, often different aspects of it, and all in different ways, but some combination of the things we do here helped each boy tap into his potential and become a better version of himself. A “Mission Appropriate Blue Ridge Boy,” therefore, is any student who will benefit from our carefully constructed programs in academics, residential life, athletics, the arts, and other co-curricular programs, and who because of those experiences will be set up for academic and social success in college and in life.

“Boys learn best from people with whom they have a personal relationship, people who undeniably want them to succeed.”

— Mr. William “Trip” Darrin, Head of School

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2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

WHAT MAKES EXCELLENT TEACHERS AT BRS? WHILE BRS TEACHERS ARE FROM many backgrounds, and there are many different approaches that have been tremendously successful at Blue Ridge School, there are six consistent themes that emerge when thinking about the most impactful Blue Ridge School teachers: • Relational Learning • Student Engagement • Authentic Curriculum & Instruction • Differentiation & Accessibility • Clear Communication & Organization • Growth Mindset RELATIONAL LEARNING Perhaps the most powerful data to emerge from the numerous studies of boys education over the last twenty years is that boys will learn from teachers who they know care about them and who are invested in their success. They are much less likely to learn when they feel a teacher dislikes them, doesn’t know them, or misunderstands them. Relationships are not just a nice byproduct of teaching, they are the vehicle through which effective instruction is delivered. According to Dr. Michael Reichert, an expert in this field, “Boys experience their teachers before they experience the lessons they teach.” In the largest study about relational teaching in boys’ schools to date, Dr. Reichert concluded that:

“The boys we studied described no single type of ‘effective’ teacher. Some shared stories of being uplifted by their teacher’s humor, passion, and care; others related their positive responses to highly structured, demanding, ‘no nonsense’ teachers …. In sum, the boys in our Teaching Boys study indicated their willingness to engage in classroom work, to suspend prior resistance- to try- for teachers to whom they were able to relate.”

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

It is the responsibility of the teacher to continuously “take the pulse” of, and manage, each relationship with each student; it is the teacher who has the primary responsibility for the maintenance of the relationship, even when the student is “at fault.” There are many strategies for cultivating strong relationships and for repairing relationships when there has been a breach. For a detailed, excellent look at relational teaching and learning in boys schools, it is highly recommended that BRS faculty read: I Can Learn From You: Boys as Relational Learners by Michael Reichert and Richard Hawley (2014). STUDENT ENGAGEMENT Student engagement is perhaps the best measure of our instructional effectiveness. It can be observed in various ways, such as frequent student participation, curious questions, and sustained focus on an assignment. Many methods can cultivate high levels of student engagement, and these are closely tied to other aspects of being an excellent teacher at BRS, including strong relationships and authenticity! Connecting learning to the real world, the present day, and students’

lived experiences will significantly boost their interest and engagement in our classes. When students perceive the value in a subject and sense their teacher’s passion for it, they will readily invest their time and effort. This investment becomes evident through their genuine participation, curiosity, and sustained focus, even when they are not directly graded on these factors. When students are engaged, they can be full participants in our curriculum and achieve the learning goals we set out for them. AUTHENTIC CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION The most effective Blue Ridge School teachers understand that strong relationships and support should be balanced with authentic curriculum and instruction. One of the great strengths of Blue Ridge School’s faculty and curriculum is its ability to spark a newfound interest among many of our students in the subjects we teach. Students, everywhere, but especially at BRS genuinely want to know the reason behind the school work they are asked to complete: “Why are we learning geometry? Why are we learning about the 18th century? Why would anyone read Shakespeare?” Blue Ridge School teachers realize that every year a decent number of their students will show up to class without a pre-existing love for the discipline being taught. It is therefore incumbent on the teacher to demonstrate why the subject is important, worth caring about, and worth putting effort into. To best serve our students, we dedicate time to developing authentic assignments and assessments. One effective instructional method we employ is Project-Based Learning (PBL). Its focus on student-driven inquiry and the creation of an original public product gives students a sense of ownership over their work. When students create high quality, authentic public products, the effectiveness of the teacher’s instruction and curriculum becomes obvious. By concentrating on authentic and challenging problems or questions, PBL has been a highly successful strategy teachers have used to facilitate more engaging, authentic, and student-driven assignments. DIFFERENTIATION & ACCESSIBILITY Great accomplishments at Blue Ridge School, whether in the classroom, on the playing fields, on the stage, etc. are often the result of high

expectations. It is important to set the bar high for our students, athletes, performers, musicians, and student leaders, but simply setting high expectations is easy, and too many schools and teachers pat themselves on the back simply for doing that. What sets Blue Ridge teachers apart and makes them so impactful is that they set high expectations as a first step, but then think deeply about how to scaffold, structure, and support each student so he can meet those expectations and feel confident, rather than fail to meet them and feel demoralized. Great teachers at BRS understand how to address diverse student learners. They use differentiated instruction and support to ensure students meet their lofty goals, designing assignments and assessments to be accessible without modifications or lowering expectations. Teachers should also be aware of students’ learning differences and accommodations to further differentiate instruction and make these high expectations accessible for everyone. While not always evident, BRS students generally want to be challenged and engaged. While they may like the “easy” teacher at the moment, they don’t respect and won’t remember that teacher long term. CLEAR COMMUNICATION & ORGANIZATION Structure and clarity provide the framework within which boys feel secure and ready to learn. Impactful Blue Ridge School teachers maintain well-organized physical and digital classrooms, transparent grading systems, and clear expectations for every assignment. By communicating goals, deadlines, and feedback consistently, teachers reduce student anxiety and model the executive functioning and organizational skills boys need for success in college and beyond. Beyond the classroom, BRS educators communicate proactively with students’ advisors, learning specialists, and parents, building strong partnerships to support every boy’s growth. GROWTH MINDSET Setting aside time to reflect on what has worked well in the classroom and what could be improved upon is a hallmark of great teachers. For some, this reflection happens formally 2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

through journaling, or in meetings with colleagues, for others it’s informal and might happen while driving or going for a jog. The International Boys’ School Coalition conducted a study and released a report about Mastery Teaching in Boys Schools and found that one of the most common themes among those identified as master teachers was that not one of them felt like or believed that he or she was a master teacher. Instead, each of these teachers displayed a commitment to continual evaluation and revision of his or her work and was continually asking the question “How could I make this lesson/assessment/interaction etc. … even better? What works really well in my practice and what would I like to improve?” Actively seeking feedback, pursuing professional learning, and sharing findings with others are hallmarks of excellent teaching and continuous professional growth. This cycle of constant revision and reflection is an important element of growth for any teacher.

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HOW DO I DEVELOP MY COURSE? CREATE A “MISSION STATEMENT” FOR YOUR CLASS A great way to “anchor” your course and determine what to include or omit when planning is to write a class mission statement. A clearly articulated class mission provides an excellent lens through which to evaluate every reading, lesson, and assessment you assign. Mission statements highlight the unique character of our curriculum, emphasizing that Blue Ridge School values deep, meaningful learning far beyond rote memorization. How you frame your class mission directly dictates your daily instruction and assignments. For instance, an English teacher guided by “To develop a love of reading” may select very different texts and projects than one guided by “To develop critical reading skills.” Neither mission statement is necessarily better than another, but a clear mission statement clarifies your core priorities, helping you decide which topics, texts, and assessments will best serve your students A few examples are below: Geometry To help each student to improve his curiosity and ability to be an independent and flexible math student. Modern World History To equip students with the essential skills of historical research and analysis, and a firm grasp of the fundamental themes of history so that they can comprehend past eras, events and peoples. Biology For students to develop the essential skills of a scientist by learning about, and proposing solutions to, critical biological problems and phenomena that are relevant to their lives and communities.

UNDERSTANDING BY DESIGN Blue Ridge teachers and departments have generally found great success in adopting the foundational principles of the “Understanding By Design” (UbD) framework for course development as they create their course, learn-ing goals, and daily lessons. Essentially, UbD is a three step backwards design process: 1. Determine the learning outcomes for your students, then… 2. Determine what is acceptable evidence for these learning outcomes, then… 3. Determine the daily learning activities to achieve these learning outcomes

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

Throughout the course design process, teachers should keep the focus on the “big picture” and on the “enduring understandings.” Some guiding questions to consider in course development are: What should students still know and be able to do years after this course is over? What should students hear, read, view, explore, or otherwise encounter? What knowledge and skills should participants master? Vanderbilt University’s Center for Teaching provides an excellent overview and resources related to Understanding by Design Framework: https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/understanding-by-design/ SCOPE & SEQUENCE DOCUMENTS ARE IMPORTANT for teachers to create and maintain for each of the classes they teach. Scope & Sequence documents should accurately reflect the content and skills taught, methods of assessment used, and the learning goals for the course. Department Chairs are the best resource for helping you to develop and design your courses, and to help you craft a syllabus and should keep a record of every teacher’s scope and sequence. An essential part of scope & sequence documents are tracking the learning goals for your course and aligning your grading practices to those standards. Consider how you will assess and score students understanding based on your learning goals when designing your course.

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2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

HOW DO I ASSESS MY STUDENTS? Assessing student work and assigning letter grades is one of the most challenging aspects of teaching. As educators who believe deeply in building strong relationships, passing a negative grade onto a student can feel awkward and potentially damaging to that relationship. Yet, accurate and specific feedback is one of the most effective drivers of learning, making its delivery both a science and an art! Like many schools, Blue Ridge uses the A-F grading scale to evaluate student work: A (100–90): Superior B (89–80): Good C (79–70): Average D (69–60): Poor F (59 & Below): Insufficient to earn credit In an ideal world, we would simply provide extensive feedback for students to internalize, reflect upon, and use to improve, all for the pure sake of learning. However, we operate in a reality where letter grades carry great significance for students, parents, and college admissions offices. Because of this, it is essential to clearly articulate what letter grades mean in your classroom. You should always be prepared to answer a simple question from students, faculty, or parents: “What do your grades represent?” WHAT SHOULD I GRADE? At Blue Ridge, our goal is for grades to serve as accurate measures of a student’s process, performance, progress, and mastery of key learning outcomes. Effective assessment should be varied, occur at regular intervals, and allow students to demonstrate their mastery of class content and skills. You do not need to grade everything you assign, but the key to assessments is to assess what you value. If you value critical thinking and creativity, but your assessments only ask students to recall memorized information, those assessments do not align with your core goals for the course! HOW DO I KEEP GRADES FAIR? When you’re grading, the main goal is to make sure it actually reflects what your students are learning. Try using a mix of different assessments, things like quizzes, tests, lab work, projects, and presentations. That way, every student gets a chance to practice and show off what they know in a format that works best for them. It’s also worth thinking about soft skills like effort, participation, 12

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

behavior, and group work. While these are definitely important habits that support learning, grading them can get tricky when it comes to fairness and bias. Whenever possible, steer clear of subjective grades that aren’t tied directly to actual learning goals. The same goes for completion grades. They’re fine to use occasionally, but relying on them too much makes it hard to see whether a student really understands the material. Here are some tips to ensure your grades are always accurate, yet fair: • Give timely feedback so students always have an accurate understanding of where they stand. • Use rubrics to ensure clear, objective communication about how student work is evaluated. • Focus on quantifiable measures whenever possible to eliminate personal bias. • Structure your gradebook so a single “bad day” or poor assignment does not disproportionately harm a student’s overall grade. • Use the established discipline system for behavioral issues rather than penalizing students solely through the gradebook. HOW DO I MAINTAIN MY GRADEBOOK? Every teacher is required to maintain an accurate and up-todate gradebook in our student information system, Blackbaud. Grades should be entered within four days of assessment. Larger assignments (such as research papers, major essays, and lab reports) are usually given a little more leeway, but it’s still important that they are promptly entered. Teachers are responsible for posting a minimum of two assignments per week, with a major performance assessment assigned every 2–3 weeks. By the end of the semester, your gradebook should contain at least 30 total grades. HOW DO I SETUP MY GRADEBOOK? Every gradebook must be organized into two distinct categories: 1. Process (Maximum 40% of Final Grade) • Purpose: Formative assignments that support learning and provide actionable feedback. • Examples: Classwork, homework, short essays, responses to guiding questions, daily quizzes. • Grading: Can be graded for accuracy or completion, but

should always include feedback to help students improve ahead of major assessments. 2. Performance (Minimum 60% of Final Grade) Purpose: Summative assessments that evaluate overall mastery of content and skills. Examples: Research papers, major essays, lab reports, presentations, projects, written tests/quizzes. Grading: Graded for accuracy against content standards. This structured framework ensures consistency across all departments while answering the question, “What do our grades mean?” for students and parents. At the same time, it provides faculty with the autonomy needed to accommodate student age, course level, assignment distribution, and individual teaching pedagogy. Because parents and students have real-time access to Blackbaud, keeping these gradebooks clear, current, and accurate is vital.

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WHAT SHOULD I INCLUDE IN THE GRADEBOOK? SHOULD I OFFER RE-TAKES? Many teachers at Blue Ridge School use nuanced approaches to retakes, balancing support for learning with concerns about enabling poor preparation. When managed correctly, retakes can be a powerful learning strategy that ensures valid student understanding and encourages re-engagement with challenging material. At Blue Ridge School, we strongly encourage teachers to provide students with opportunities to revisit topics, re-learn, and take a retake provided you take the following steps: 1. Provide a completely new assessment with different questions that validly measure improved understanding. 2. Offer the retake under the same conditions as the original assessment (ex: if the original assessment had no notes, do the same on the re-take). 3. Mandate that students take concrete steps to improve their understanding before the retake, such as completing missing work, performing test corrections, or attending a meeting period for review. When these steps are followed, students often see retakes as a genuine opportunity for learning improvement. The effort required will be significant enough to discourage initial poor preparation and encourage strong preparation the second time around, which can even lead students to better prepare for future

assessments. WHAT SHOULD I DO WHEN A STUDENT DOESN’T COMPLETE AN ASSIGNMENT? When a student fails to turn in an assignment, it’s important to enter a failing grade and an “M” (for missing) in the gradebook as soon as possible. Students should still have the opportunity to complete the assignment later, but doing this promptly does communicate to the student that the work is missing. However, should you enter in a 50%, or a 0%? This topic often elicits strong opinions from every teacher. While it seems logical that an unsubmitted assignment should receive no credit, a zero on a 100-point scale holds disproportionate power, given that most of the scale represents failing. Both a 50% and a 0% indicate a failing grade and that expectations weren’t met. A few early zeroes can be so demoralizing that students might give up on a class, feeling a rebound is mathematically impossible. To best support student growth over a semester, our grading policies should avoid disproportionately weighting early performance, allowing students ample opportunity to learn and improve. Different approaches may suit various grade levels or classrooms, but we must understand the “zero issue” and its implications. We strive to limit zeroes by utilizing tools like required tutoring or supervised study halls until completion, open communication with advisors and parents, extended support from the Fishburne Learning Center, and the strong relationships and support we offer our students.

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

For further reading and more context about this conversation, see:

Do No Zero Policies Help or Hurt Students? https://www.edutopia.org/article/do-no-zero-policies-help-or-hurt-students (Edutopia) LATE WORK POLICIES AND GUIDANCE At Blue Ridge School, we prioritize student learning and accountability. Our late work policy reflects this by offering more flexibility to younger students to prioritize learning while holding older students to higher accountability. As boarding school educators, we should leverage our strong student relationships, use differentiated instruction, and all the support structures the school offers to ensure our students complete assignments. While we expect teachers to promptly update their gradebook for missing assignments, it’s not enough to just enter a “0” and an “M” and move on, regardless of the grade you teach. Teachers should communicate directly with the student, or they could require a student to attend extra help, or collaborate with the student’s advisor or learning specialist. However, if proactive support isn’t enough, teachers do have some discretion in their late work policies. We require that no teacher implement penalties harsher than those outlined below, though some flexibility is allowed for individual classes. Ninth Grade and Tenth Grade • 10% deduction on the first day overdue. • An additional 10% deduction each subsequent day, down to a 50% floor. • Students are still expected to complete the work, even if several weeks late, at least until the next summative assessmen Eleventh and Twelth Grade • 20% deduction on the first day overdue. • An additional 10% deduction each subsequent day, down to a 0% floor. • Although we allow 11th & 12th grade teachers to give a “0”, we still encourage teachers to accept late work for partial credit at their discretion, at least until the next summative assessment, as assignments may retain learning value.

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HOW TO THINK ABOUT HOMEWORK HOMEWORK, AND WORK OUTSIDE OF THE SCHEDULED CLASS PERIODS, is a vital component of the BRS college-preparatory curriculum. While “busy work” should be avoided, teachers are expected to assign homework most nights. It is not appropriate for a teacher to determine that he or she simply does not believe in homework and therefore will not assign any homework at all. Research indicates that homework significantly benefits high school students when it’s short, frequent, reviews taught concepts, is closely monitored, and its purpose is clearly communicated. Effective homework generally • Reinforce and strengthen skills and content covered during class • Provide students an opportunity to apply what they have learned • Allow students to make a connection between something they have learned and something new • Help students be prepared to get the most out of an upcoming class. GRADE INFLATION Like every school in the United States, the trend at Blue Ridge has been that the average grades in our courses, and our GPAs, are on the rise. The “A” is overwhelmingly the most common grade at Blue Ridge. While this is concerning to some, it should not be viewed as an inherently bad development, and there is no need to suddenly start lowering our grades just for the sake of it. As assessments have changed, particularly with the adoption of some of the ele-ments of project based learning, grading in the traditional sense is a challenge. For example, if you ask students to use self reflection, or self or peer critique as a means of assess-ment it can be a powerful learning tool, but how do you put a mark of “A, B, C” on something like

that? Additionally, with all of the structure and support Blue Ridge School and our faculty provide, it wouldn’t make sense to see large numbers of struggling students and many grades of D and F, like you would at other schools. Increasingly, students and parents are viewing C’s as “bad” grades even though on our scale a C indicates average performance. So, what should be the “average” grade in your class? This is a hard question to answer, and maybe not even the right question to ask! When thinking about the grades in your class, consider these questions: Are your “A” students sufficiently challenged? Or are they just rewarded for turning in complete assignments on time? Are your “D/F” students receiving proper support? Are you providing them with suitable materials and resources for their learning needs? Are you providing all students feedback that is specific, helpful, and actionable? Do all students have sufficient opportunities for improvement? Do your grades accurately capture student performance? Are they overweighting something, or missing something else entirely? END OF SEMESTER ASSESSMENTS At the end of each semester, there will be a unique schedule sent out for the last week of the school year so that you have a longer block with your students to assess them with an end of semester exam. Most teachers opt for a more traditional exam to prepare our students for the kind of high stakes, cumulative exams that still dominate college level instruction. Other teachers opt for more “alternative” assessments, such as final projects, presentations, lab practicals, etc. to allow students to showcase what they know! Regardless, teachers are expected to provide review materials and be available for review sessions leading up to their scheduled exam time. Final exams should count for at least 10% of a student’s grade.

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2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

2026-2027 CALENDAR OF EVENTS S

S 1

1 12

January

December F

November S

October

September

August

1 1

February S

April

March F

S 6

1 7

May S

S 1

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

Campus Event Exams Holidays/Vacations

Saturday Morning Programs (TBD)

DATE

EVENT

TIME

Aug. 12-14

New Faculty Orientation

Aug. 14

Football/ELL Camp/Student Leader Registration

Aug. 17-21

All Faculty Inservice

Aug. 21

Soccer/Honor Council/Disciplinary Council Registration

1-3pm

Aug. 28

New 9th & 10th Grade Orientation Registration

1-3pm

Sept. 2

All student registration

Sept. 3

Opening Day

Sept. 3

Convocation

Sept. 25-28

Fall Long Weekend

Oct. 1-2

Board of Trustees Meeting

Oct. 2-4

Fall Alumni/Homecoming Weekend

Oct. 9-12

ROPES Character Education Trips (underclassmen)

Oct. 16-18

Fall Family Weekend

Nov. 20

Thanksgiving Holiday

begins at 12:00pm

Nov. 29

Thanksgiving Holiday

ends at 7:00pm

Dec. 13

Candlelight Service

5:00pm

Dec. 14-18

Exams

Dec. 18

Christmas Holiday

begins at 12:00pm

Jan. 3

Christmas Holiday

ends at 7:00pm

Jan. 29

Mid-Winter Break

begins at 12:00pm

Jan. 30

118th Blue & White Bash (New York City)

Feb. 1

Mid-Winter Break

ends at 7:00pm

Feb. 26

Spring Break

begins at 12:00pm

Mar. 14

Spring Break

ends at 7:00pm

Mar. 26

Easter Break

begins at 12:00 PM

Mar. 29

Easter Break

ends at 7:00 PM

Apr. 1-2

Board of Trustees Meeting

Apr. 16-18

Spring Family Weekend

Apr. 23-27

ROPES Character Education Trips (12th grade)

May 14

Honors Service

May 20-21

Exams - Senior Class

May 23

Baccalaureate

5:00pm

May 23

Baccalaureate Dinner

6:00pm

May 24

Commencement

9:30am

May 25-27

Exams - Underclassmen

May 28

Underclassmen depart

June 1-2

All Faculty Inservice

June 17-18

Board of Trustee Meeting

1-3pm

11am-3pm TBD

TBD

12:00pm

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DAILY/WEEKLY CLASS SCHEDULE CALENDAR BLUE RIDGE SCHOOL’S WEEKLY ACADEMIC SCHEDULE follows a six week rotating pattern. The idea here is that you don’t teach your sections at the same time, every day, throughout the year. We know that attention spans and energy levels vary at different points of the day, and if you always had the same students during the last period of the day, they might not accomplish as much in your course as you want them to! Thursdays and Fridays are shortened days in which students attend three of their courses (either a combination of periods 1, 2, 3 or 4, 5, 6). Thursdays and Fridays feature longer class periods ideal for labs, projects, or extended hands-on work.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday Rising Bell Breakfast/Check in 7:30 a.m. Period 1 8:15 a.m. Period 2 9:05 a.m. Assemby/Chapel/ 9:55 a.m. Advisory/Hall Meetings Period 3 10:30 a.m. Period 4 11:20 a.m. Lunch 12:05 p.m. Period 5 1:00 p.m. Study Hall 1:50 p.m. Period 6 2:40 p.m. Athletics 4:00 p.m. Dinner 6:00 p.m. Baron Block 7:30 p.m. In Rooms Lights Out Thursday Rising Bell Breakfast/Check in Period 1 Chapel Period 2 Flex Lunch Period 3 Faculty Meetings Athletics Dinner Baron Block In Rooms Lights Out

7:30 8:15 9:40 10:15 11:40 12:25 1:15 2:45 4:00 6:00 7:30

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m.

7:15 8:05 9:35 10:05 11:35 12:25 1:15 2:35 3:30 5:30 6:45 8:30 10:00 10:15

a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m.

7:15 8:05 9:00 9:50 10:20

a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m.

11:15 12:05 1:00 1:45 2:35 3:25 5:30 6:45 8:30 10:00 10:15

a.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m.

Friday Rising Bell Breakfast/Check in Period 4 Assembly Period 5 Period 6 Lunch Flex Athletics Dinner In Rooms Lights Out

7:30 a.m. 8:15 a.m.

9:40 10:15 11:49 1:00 1:50 3:00 6:00

a.m. a.m. a.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m.

7:15 a.m. 8:05 a.m. 9:35 a.m. 10:05 11:35 1:00 1:50 2:35 4:30 6:45 11:15 11:30

a.m. a.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m.

A MONTH BY MONTH WALK THROUGH OF THE SCHOOL YEAR AUGUST Maybe the most exciting time of the year. The energy of returning students seeing their teachers and friends coupled with the excitement of new students and teachers is palpable across campus. The football and soccer teams, student leaders, and students in our ELL camp are the first to arrive. The faculty will have some supervisory duties while these students are here, but it is not yet full blown weekday and weekend duty. A week-long faculty in-service marks the start of the school year for teachers and frenzied planning to get lessons, syllabi, gradebooks, and classrooms set up ensues. SEPTEMBER Classes begin! The first few days of school are like a “test run.” This is a great time to establish strong relationships with your students. Make sure they know you, your expectations, routines, and establish the culture you want in your classroom and other parts of the school. OCTOBER Competes with May for the title of “busiest month.” Classes are in full swing and so is the fall sports season which sometimes results in students missing classes for away games. Grading starts to pile up, the calendar is filling up with things to do, and we are fully in the swing of things! This is the first time we write progress reports for students. A major event is the Fall Family Weekend which is one of several “Command Performances” throughout the year. On Friday morning, family members arrive and have the opportunity to attend classes with their students. On Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, parents will schedule 20 minute meetings with teachers. While these sometimes cause anxiety, it’s almost always unfounded; overwhelmingly par-ents express their deep appreciation and support and often wind up doing most of the talking. Another major event is our underclassmen ROPES trips and senior academic trip, which consist of 4 day character education and academic trips for our students. All teachers have some supervisory duties during this time, and you may even find yourself whitewater rafting with the kids! NOVEMBER November moves quickly as students and faculty start to get excited for upcoming breaks. Seniors start to feel more

pressure during this month as many of them start to submit their applications to college. A seated “Thanksgiving Dinner” with advisees in advance of the holiday break and the hustle and bustle of the month is a nice and timely reminder of why we love the school. DECEMBER Many people’s favorite month on campus. We are in session for only a short window between the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. The “Candlelight Service” on the last Sunday before Christmas Break will put you in the holiday mood. Exams are proctored this month, before heading off for a long, much needed, and well deserved, two week break that kicks off with a faculty/staff Christmas party that never fails to entertain. JANUARY AND FEBRUARY Generally felt to be the hardest months of the school year. The weather can be bad, the days are short and sometimes tempers are too. It is a time of year when it’s especially important to be on the lookout for students and advisees who are feeling depressed or homesick and to pay attention to your own well being and self care. While it can be a challenging time of year there are many great campus happenings: The basketball team enters the busiest part of its season and its successes and home games in Massey Gymnasium are a source of excitement for fans (as are JV and squire games). Buzz starts to build around the school’s annual drama production, and we are always amazed by a few breakout stars who showcase talents we didn’t know they had. Spring Break always arrives just in time in late February and the year is 2/3rds complete. MARCH Everyone arrives back after a long and relaxing spring break. Spring sports get going in full swing. This is the shortest semester and season. There are fewer class days remaining than you think. You’ll need to be flexible as all kinds of special events and athletic travel are scheduled this time of year. This is the season when we have the most teams competing, and probably the most competitions. APRIL Three big events are April highlights. The first is Spring 2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

Parents Weekend, which is another command performance. Attendance in the spring is always lower than in the fall, but the conversations that do take place with parents are just as valuable. The annual ROPES trips happen in April, and a long weekend for Easter is a chance to catch your breath before the sprint to the end of the year is scheduled. MAY It becomes common to hear teachers and students reciting a countdown of how many days are left. Students are approaching the deadlines for big end of year projects, often with fun public presentation components. Seniors are clearly ready to be done with school, but also in a reflective mood and feeling a newfound gratitude as it dawns on them that graduation is imminent. End of year events like underclassmen academic awards, honors service, senior dinner and baccalaureate punctuate the last week of the year. A two day end of year in-service and closing staff party ends the academic year.

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WHAT IS A HEAD’S DAY ? Generally on two school days throughout the year, Head of School Trip Darrin will make a decision to hold a Head’s Day. Students are usually not aware when it will happen although speculation abounds. The announcement, especially when it catches students and faculty by surprise, brings euphoria and is fun to watch. On a Head’s Day all classes are canceled

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

and students can spend the day relaxing or participating in activities we plan for them.

WHAT IS STUDY HALL? From Monday through Wednesday, you’ll supervise a small group of students during the day. This is primarily study time for them to work on homework or meet with teachers and college counselors. While it might be tempting to use this time to print lesson plans or prep for your next block, keep student support at the center of what you’re doing! Active supervision during this block helps students stay on track and get the help they need.

WHAT IS A COMMAND PERFORMANCE? A Command Performance in BRS vocabulary is a campus event that all faculty must attend. Only in extreme circumstances can a “Command Performance” be missed. Some of the major ones throughout the year are: Student Registrations, Faculty In-service, Convocation, Fall and Spring Family Weekensd, ROPES Trips, Honors Service and Baccalaureate, and Graduation.

WHAT IS PROJECT BASED LEARNING (PBL)? PROJECT BASED LEARNING IS AN INSTRUCTIONAL approach that, in addition to covering course content, emphasizes the development of critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication skills. Because all of these traits have been identified as aims for our curriculum, a PBL approach to some units makes sense in all Blue Ridge School classrooms regardless of the department or discipline to complement more traditional instructional approaches like lecture and note-taking. We have seen that PBL facilitates the kind of connections to the real world that will engage students and promote ownership of their learning. Training in Project Based Learning is a regular feature of faculty-wide professional development and it is an expectation that Blue Ridge School teachers engage with this instructional approach. Over the last few years Blue Ridge has partnered with PBL Works, a

national organization, to provide professional development and resources, and a thorough look through the resources on their website is highly encouraged by all BRS teachers: www. pblworks.org. The graphic below displays the seven essential elements of high quality PBL units. Incorporating any one of these elements into a lesson or assessment will help improve student engagement regardless of whether it is part of a full scale PBL unit or not.

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Courtesy: PBLWorks.org

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

THE FISHBURNE LEARNING CENTER HE FISHBURNE LEARNING CENTER (FLC) is a tremendous asset to Blue Ridge School and is one of our signature academic programs. Created in 1993 the FLC works to support students with mild to moderate learning differences so they can be successful in a college prep curriculum and be empowered with the skills and habits necessary for academic success here and in college. The Learning Center is staffed by an expert team of five learning specialists who work directly with small groups of FLC students but who also work directly with teachers. Teamwork, communication, and collaboration between FLC teachers and teachers in other departments is a vitally important element of making this program successful.

STRATEGY LETTERS As an independent school, Blue Ridge is not legally required to follow IEP or 504 plans, however, we do make sure that our students with diagnosed learning differences have a documented set of accommodations to which they are entitled while they are students at Blue Ridge School. For each student enrolled in the FLC, his learning specialist will create an educational plan drawing from the information available from the student’s psychoeducational testing. Parents are required to share this documentation in the enrollment process. The educational plans are all reviewed and approved by the Director of the Fishburne Learning Center and then shared with a student’s teachers so that they have a better understanding of the student’s strengths, weaknesses, and strategies that might be effective. The Strategy Letter is an important document because it is what allows a student to obtain accommodations on standardized tests like the ACT and SAT. Colleges often require these documents from a student’s high school to verify that he is entitled to the requested accommodations. This document is a teacher-friendly, easy to use and easy to reference document about a student. FLC teachers review and update these each year before distributing them to teachers.

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2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

ACCOMMODATIONS While not an exhaustive list, some of the most common accommodations to which FLC students are entitled are: • Extended time on assessments, either 50% or 100%. (It is important to note that there is no such accommodation as “Unlimited Time.” Students also may not work on a test or exam over multiple days unless there are truly extenuating circumstances and this has been approved by the Director of the Learning Center). • An exemption from the foreign language graduation requirement if recommended by an educational psychologist in testing. • Taking tests and/or exams in a small, quiet setting away from distractions, usually in the FLC • Preferential seating in classrooms • The ability to type rather than hand write some or all assignments.

CLASSROOM POLICIES Technology, Attendance, Reporting, Missing Students, Obtaining Class Coverage TECHNOLOGY IN CLASS Cell Phones are, in a way, the new smoking: addictive, antisocial, and not permitted in certain places, chief among those places is the BRS classroom. Our School’s policy is that students turn in their phones to their Hall Parents before the school day begins, so they won’t have access to it in the classroom. While this policy does help with student engagement, the underlying issue is a complex, societal challenge faced by every school. In place of their cell phones, students will inevitably try to use laptops in class inappropriately for texting, gaming, or video watching. Therefore, it’s crucial to only allow laptop use when directly relevant to the assignment. Technology can support learning when used properly, so when laptops are permitted, teachers must set clear expectations for appropriate use and actively monitor student usage. Simply allowing a student to remain on their laptop when the assignment doesn’t require it, without checking in, is unacceptable. RECORDING ATTENDANCE Teachers are required to take daily attendance in each of their classes so that the school can maintain accurate records about student attendance. Teachers use the Student Information System, Blackbaud, to record daily attendance. The school registrar will send an automated reminder out at the end of each academic day to the teachers who forgot. If you get this email, take a moment before going home to record your attendance. WHAT DO I DO IF A STUDENT IS MISSING FROM CLASS? When a student does not appear for your class and you were expecting him it is usually for one of the following reasons: He is in the infirmary, he is away for athletics, or he is away from campus. If you are missing a student you do need to find out and confirm where he is. A first step is to look at Orah to see if a student is off campus or in the infirmary. You can also look through your email to see if a student has been excused from class for any other reason. If not, the next step is to call Cat Dickerson, extension 147, then Courtney Gardner. You can go ahead and start class before making the call but when there’s a natural moment to pause, call someone as soon as possible. Sometimes students are just late for one reason or another and it’s best to wait about 10 minutes before reporting the absence. Please do not send an all faculty email asking if anyone has seen

a particular student. If you are unable to reach any of these folks, continue to call administrators until you get someone on the line. It is important that you get a live person to understand the student is missing so they can initiate the search for the student and ensure their accountability and safety. WHAT DO I DO IF I NEED TO MISS ONE OF MY CLASSES? There will inevitably be times when, for planned or unexpected reasons, you need to miss part or all of a school day. In the event of a sudden emergency that requires your immediate attention, your priority is to address the emergency. You are not expected to prepare lesson plans before leaving. Simply notify Amber Wilkins as soon as possible that you need coverage, and arrangements will be made. Your colleagues will provide supervision and meaningful learning activities for your students. If you know in advance that you will miss a class, you are responsible for arranging coverage with a colleague and providing appropriate lesson plans or instructional materials for your students. Teachers are expected to be thoughtful and judicious when requesting time away from the classroom. Faculty members are allotted two personal 2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

days each year for personal, non-medical appointments and obligations. Requests for personal days must be submitted to Amber Wilkins at least fourteen (14) school days (two weeks) before the requested absence. Requests submitted with fewer than five (5) school days’ notice will be considered emergency requests and will be approved only in extenuating or unforeseen circumstances, at the discretion of the administration. Approval of all personal day requests is subject to administrative discretion and may take into consideration instructional priorities, assessment schedules, school events, and overall staffing needs. The time students spend learning with their own teacher is one of the most valuable resources we have in fulfilling our school’s mission. For that reason, any planned or unplanned absence from a class must be communicated to Amber Wilkins. Missing a class without notifying her is not acceptable.

SOME THOUGHTS ON CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT Our small classes, coupled with high expectations, a focus on relationships, and our school culture generally keep disruptive behavior in classrooms to a minimum. Nevertheless, there will be times when students behave inappropriately during class. The key is to handle the situation without escalating it. It’s important to remember that any confrontation between a student and teacher in a classroom has an audience. Subtle signals to the student about disruptive behavior or a brief conversation in the hallway to re-state your expectations are good first steps. For typical classroom management challenges, your Department Chair or the Dean of Academics, Jack Warren, can provide strategies, advice or support. While there are times when it makes sense to dismiss a student from your classroom, this really should be an action of last resort. If it does happen you should notify Dean of Students, Tony Brown so he can take any necessary follow 24

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

up action. It’s also important to follow up with the student one on one about whatever happened and why. There are some behaviors for which there must be zero tolerance in our classrooms, chief among them is bullying or harassment of one student by another whether verbal or physical. Any instance of this must be reported to the Dean of Students. Students who are tired and fall asleep in class will be a challenge you deal with. Some strategies include asking the student to stand up or to take a walk/get a drink of water, etc. Do your best to maintain a classroom environment that you would be proud of should a colleague, parent, or administrator walk into at any time.

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ACADEMIC HONESTY & PLAGIARISM EARLY IN THE YEAR, STUDENTS SIGN AN HONOR PLEDGE to not to lie, steal, or cheat, nor tolerate such behavior from others. While our students generally uphold this, instances of suspected unauthorized aid (ex: plagiarism, copying) will occur. Taking steps for prevention is the best deterrent. Requiring students to sign the school’s honor pledge on major assignments like tests and exams is a significant deterrent, and many teachers include it directly on their assessments. Clear communication of expectations also helps deter plagiarism. For support in developing plagiarism expectations and discipline-specific considerations, consult Chrisantha Hermanson (Director of Library & Digital Literacy), Jack Warren (Dean of Academics), or your Department Chair. ▲ ADDRESSING SUSPECTED ACADEMIC DISHONESTY When academic dishonesty is suspected, always begin with a direct conversation with the student. For a first offense or genuine confusion, an educational approach is best. Some students may be encountering an Honor Pledge like this for the first time, and may not understand it’s significance. Others may have misunderstood what constitutes plagiarism. Additionally, many of our students are international with different cultural conceptions of plagiarism. Teachers should allow students to correct and resubmit the work in this case as a “warning.” That said, documentation is still important. All plagiarism cases, even those handled with an educational approach, must be documented by informing the Dean of Students, Tony Brown to assess if it should be recorded as an Honor Violation. Hans Hermanson, the Assistant Head of School, can help teachers establish an educational plan to deter continued behavior. This documentation serves two key purposes: it tracks first offenses to prevent habitual dishonesty across classes, and it ensures due process for the student before it’s officially documented as an Honor offense. In cases where Honor violations are documented and addressed through a meeting with their teacher and Hans Hermanson, teachers have some discretion to apply grade penalties. However, these penalties should not exceed 10% for 9th and 10th graders, and not exceed 20% for 11th and 12th graders, as the priority in these cases remains education and learning, not solely punishment.

SUBSEQUENT OFFENSES AND SERIOUS VIOLATIONS If a student plagiarizes again after receiving education and documentation, or if the offense is more blatant or significant (ex: using a phone on an exam), you must involve the Dean of Students, Tony Brown. After your conversation with the student, Tony Brown will determine whether to refer the matter to the Honor Council. If referred, the Honor Council will take jurisdiction, assess the academic dishonesty, and, if confirmed, assign a consequence. If the academic dishonesty is confirmed by the Honor Council, your grade penalty can be more consequential than before, though it should still align with the student’s grade level. For 9th and 10th graders, teachers should still require the student to re-do the assignment (or a similar version) for at least a 50% grade, on the teacher’s timeline. Teachers of 11th and 12th graders are encouraged to follow this model to ensure students still gain educational value from the assignment, but they also have the discretion to simply apply a zero at this point. Your Department Chair may offer further guidance on discipline-specific nuances for grading plagiarism. In all cases, for any grade level, teacher policies regarding academic integrity should be documented on course syllabi provided to students. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE In the past few years, the use of Language Learning Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Gemini is on the rise, creating a significant challenge in accurately assessing a student’s academic integrity. Blue Ridge School is continuously evaluating the educational benefits of AI in the classroom, as well as the risks. For the complete policy, recommended practices, and resources regarding AI, please refer to our AI Policy.

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GOOGLE CLASSROOM GOOGLE CLASSROOM IS THE LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (LMS) for Blue Ridge School teachers. For the sake of consistency, BRS teachers may only use Google Classroom as their LMS. At this time, platforms like Canvas, Moodle, or Blackbaud’s LMS system should not be used. At a minimum teachers should have a Google Classroom page on which they post announcements and class resources like the course syllabus or required readings. The workflow of assigning, reviewing, grading, and returning assignments can all take place within Google Classroom eliminating the need for printing and allowing students to easily submit assignments to you. It also makes it easy to keep track of which students have submitted assignments. If you teach new students, especially in ninth grade, don’t take it for granted that they all know how to use Google Classroom. It would be beneficial to confirm that your students know how to use the platform and all of the features you want them to before assigning work through it. Google Classroom has a feature that allows parents to receive a sum-mary of the announcements and the posts from their child’s teachers’ Google Classroom pages. We encourage you to extend invitations to your students’ parents. While some teachers find it useful to use the Google Classroom gradebook, all official grades must be entered and stored in Blackbaud. Blackbaud is the gradebook of record.

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ACADEMIC HONORS High Honors, Honors and National Honor Society REWARDING STUDENTS for outstanding academic work is an important means to fostering growth. At the end of each semester, students who exhibit outstanding academic achievement are recognized by being named to either High Honors or the Honors . To be named to the High Honors List, students must have no grade lower than 90% and a GPA at or above 3.7. To be named to the Honors List, students must have no grade lower than 83% and a GPA at or above 3.0. The St. George Chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS) recognizes students for scholarship, service, leadership and character. Members of The Order of St. George are outstanding students. The grade point requirement for membership is 3.75 with no grade below 90%. Members of The Order of St. George are also outstanding citizens. Disciplinary records will be reviewed as part of the nomination process. Members of The Order of St. George have an established history of service and leadership by the time they are admitted to The Order. In accordance with the residency requirement of the Constitution of the National Honor Society, students must have attended Blue Ridge School for one year before qualifying for nomination to membership in The Order.

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2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

HOW DO I SUPPORT STUDENTS WHO ARE STRUGGLING? AT SOME POINT, YOU WILL INEVITABLY NOTICE A STUDENT WHO has become disengaged, checked out, or unusually irritable. Navigating these moments can be confounding, but the most important thing to remember is that you do not have to do this work alone. Every student and situation is unique, and Blue Ridge School offers a collaborative network of support. Throughout the year, we hold dedicated “Student Success” sessions during faculty meetings to develop targeted strategies for students who are struggling. When a student’s challenges require immediate attention, we will organize an ad hoc meeting with the relevant team members. Typically, Dean of Academics Jack Warren leads and organizes these meetings, helping teachers identify appropriate resources and strategies beforehand. Common academic interventions include: • Requiring attendance at extra-help meeting periods. • Assigning an evening peer tutor. • Implementing tailored classroom management strategies. In addition to looping in Jack whenever there is a struggle within the classroom, many different colleagues can partner with you to help support the student, depending on the nature of the challenge: Advisor: Almost always the first person in the loop. Advisors maintain regular communication with the boy and his family and hold a holistic view of his overall well-being. Teachers, Coaches, & Hall Parents: Invaluable for determining whether a student’s struggle is isolated to your classroom or occurring across campus. They often possess unique insights or relational leverage that can inform your approach. Student’s Family: Parents and guardians are essential partners who can reinforce support and accountability from home. Fishburne Learning Center (FLC): Director of FLC Maman Cisse and FLC teachers provide specific classroom strategies, learning accommodations, and resources to make instruction more accessible. School Counselor: Liam Coyle provides direct counseling support for students navigating mental health or personal challenges, which are often connected to academic struggles. Student Life & Discipline: Dean of Students Tony Brown and Assistant Head Hans Hermanson assist when behavioral or disciplinary issues arise and should always be contacted if challenges escalate. They are exceptional resources for helping you talk through difficult scenarios with students. Assistant Head Amber Wilkins can provide additional administrative support, family liaison, and guidance on complex cases. She is particularly invaluable in more challenging cases or when interventions are applied and there is no evidence of improvement.

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2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

COMMUNICATING WITH PARENTS Writing Comments for Progress Reports and Report Cards IT IS A REQUIREMENT THAT PARENTS BE KEPT WELL INFORMED of their son’s progress. Once provided with good information, parents can serve a critical support role in the academic growth of their child. Blue Ridge teachers write four formal sets of comments each academic year. At the midpoint of each semester teachers submit progress reports, and at the conclusion of a semester they submit end of semester grades and comments. What follows is an excellent guide on comment writing that was created and shared by the Independent Curriculum Group, and is reproduced here with permission. Adhere to the following recommendations when writing comments: WHAT PARENTS/GUARDIANS WANT TO KNOW • Do you really know my child? • Is my child doing the work? • Is my child behaving properly? • What is my child doing well? • What can my child do to improve? • Parents want to hear more about their child than about your class Limit any description of course content to one or two sentences. THINK • PERFORMANCE (how the student has done) • PROCESS (how well the student has mastered the skills of doing), and • PROGRESS (how the student’s mastery has changed over time relative to expectations) GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR WRITING COMMENTS: Stay away from words that imply something about a child’s emotional state or innate ability: average, brilliant, neurotic. But don’t be afraid to say that you have seen evidence of anxiety, tiredness, or distractedness (but make sure you’ve read anything that may be in the student’s file, which may refer to these). If you are reporting catastrophe, it had better not come as a surprise in your comment: “Bob seems to have skipped a number of classes” or “Bob has done almost none of the assigned work this term” or “I am concerned that Bob seems to have lost a great deal of weight since the year began.” Messages like these should have been conveyed a long time ago. Then you can say it again, but start with, “As we discussed on the telephone recently….” Then say something specific about how you are addressing the dire situation. Avoid an enumeration of test and quiz grades. If you must do this, try to make some generalizations about the kinds of material being tested and what the scores reveal; don’t just write a laundry list. Sometimes one finds oneself with a theme for a set of comments: how the students listen to one another, performance on a particular kind of work that

GOOD COMMENT WORDS & PHRASES • consistent (but give it a context: consistently late, consistent effort, consistent level of achievement; never just a consistent student) • Reticent (but not reticent to speak; reticent implies that already) • Demonstrate (as in “his term paper demonstrated his mastery of …”) • Competence and confidence (a wonderful pair, but go easy with them) • Fine (but beware: although this word means “very good”—as a stamp or coin—to some people, it can mean • “just adequate” to someone else; use it cautiously or perhaps not at all) • Diligent • Hard-working • Thoughtful (but be aware of the difference between thoughtful as • “considerate” and thoughtful as • “inclined to be reflective” or “de monstrating thought”) • Engaged • Active participant in discussion • Active listener • As shown by (that is, give evidence where you can or must) • Haphazard • Shoddy • Reluctant • Tentative • Passionate • Mastery • Eager • Challenging (about material or particular kinds of work) • Intellectually curious • Creative • Anxious to please, eager to please • (but note the difference between anxious—worried—and eager) • (More) attentive (to directions) • Difficulties with conceptual material, abstract material, concrete material • Collaborator or partner or team member (especially when group work is an important aspect of the course) 2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

seems especially revealing, whether students have begun to find their individual voices, or how they have demonstrated some aspect of intellectual curiosity, growth, or maturity. Some of the best comments reveal very clearly the classroom culture of the teacher. Mentions of active listening and specific kinds of contributions to class discussion reveal a room rich in discussion. References to students’ performance as partners demonstrate that collaborative/cooperative learning is going on. Comments can reflect what matters to you about the learning that goes on in your classroom, and how each student is doing with regard to this special value. It’s okay to have values.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Don’t sell yourself out: “Bob is often a leader when the class becomes disrup-tive.” Don’t advertise class problems to parents, as this reflects badly on you.

ACHIEVING WORK LIFE BALANCE

Don’t compare students: “Bob is one of the few truly able students in this class.” But praise is good: “Bob brings a sparkling intellect to our discussions each day.” Do express surprise (positive or negative) or delight, but don’t make it sound as though you had held low expectations: “Bob surprised me with an exam-ination that revealed effective review,” but not “Bob did much better than I might have expected” UNLESS you continue on “considering the haphazard way she had prepared for several earlier quizzes.” The rule of thumb should be that what you write about the student should never be shorter than what you write about the course. Don’t predict, unless you qualify: “Based on the progress he has made thus far, I would expect that Bob will finish this course on a very positive note.” NOT, “I know that Bob will finish in the A range this year.” ▲

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2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

Growth oriented teachers are a hallmark of a great school. Engagement with regular and meaningful professional development is an expectation for each BRS teacher. One of the many benefits of working at BRS is a substantial professional development budget. Professional learning does not need to be a massive undertaking; taking a course online, or reading a book and discussing it with colleagues can be just as impactful as presenting at a global conference. Requests for professional development that require school funds should be submitted to the Dean of Academics who works with the Assistant Head of School to allocate professional development funds. Professional development requests that directly improve student experience in a class or program will be prioritized, relative to cost. ▲

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This work is demanding, and it can be emotionally and physically draining. There are times of the year when you are teaching, coaching, advising, and doing duty, while also trying to balance family, friends, and a personal life too. There are tremendous highs that come with the job, and there are lows. You might feel both emotions over the course of the same day, or even in the same class period. You might feel prolonged versions of either for quite some time. While this is normal, it is important to set boundaries and not take the weight of the world on your shoulders. Your students, colleagues, supervisors, advisees, players, musicians, prefects/proctors, actors, and their parents will come to you with problems and you will do everything in your power to help them, that’s part of why you got into teaching! But sometimes you can’t solve every problem and that can be frustrating or demoralizing. We are not our students’ (or their parents’) friends, however close, positive, and cordial our relations with some of them may be. In the end it is our duty to act in the interest of the student but always in our capacity as teachers. If any situation involving a student makes you feel uncomfortable or is just too much for you alone to handle, take these concerns to a member of the School’s administration, or at least discuss them with an experienced colleague who can offer guidance and advice. It is important to cultivate parts of your life and hobbies that are not directly linked to Blue Ridge School. It’s important to schedule some time away from campus and to set aside some time for yourself. It’s important to be intentional about using the long breaks to relax and recover. You can’t be at your best for your students and colleagues if you’re exhausted, stressed, or frustrated. While these emotions certainly come up for every fac-ulty member throughout the course of a school year—they don’t have to be normal, and if you feel too much of any one of these it’s important to reach out to your support network of colleagues and administrators.▲

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SELF REFLECTION QUESTIONS For Every Blue Ridge School Teacher • Do I know each one of my students, and what am I doing to foster strong, positive relationships that will result in learning? • Is my class rigorous? How do I define rigor in my classroom? • How does what I do in my classroom fit into larger conversations about my discipline and in my field? Am I embracing some current trends, and if so why? Am I cautious about current trends in my field, and if so why? • What would be the most useful professional development I could accomplish this year or next year? • What data do I rely on to make decisions about what to teach and how to teach it? • Am I able to achieve the kind of work/life balance that I need to be most effective? Am I practicing self-care? What obstacles are getting in the way of creating or maintaining balance?

CODE OF CHARACTER VALUES Purpose I will seek to find meaning beyond myself that contributes to the greater good. Discipline I will govern myself in accordance with the habits of a healthy mind, body and spirit. Fortitude I will persevere through adversity and failure while standing up for my beliefs. Citizenship I will value and respect others’ way of being. Knowledge & Wisdom I will actively listen to others and be open to new experiences. Honor I will make my community a better place through my actions.

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK

DEIJ STATEMENT Blue Ridge School is an all-boys boarding school where students thrive in an intentionally diverse community of faculty, staff, and students. Employees and students alike benefit from the experience of learning, living, teaching and working alongside others from a multitude of backgrounds. While remaining an all-boys boarding school, diversity at Blue Ridge School encompasses an array of ethnicities and races, family structures, socio-economic backgrounds, genders, ages, sexual orientation, abilities, countries of origin, native languages, traditions, religions, learning styles and differences and their intersections. To be an inclusive community means that we respect and embrace each person’s values and understand the impact of these values. We recognize that simply existing in a diverse community will not automatically result in the inclusive culture we seek to create. Cultural engagement allows students and faculty to consider different perspectives and enriches both the teaching and learning experience. Cultural engagement also drives innovation and fosters creativity. Therefore, we purposefully promote inclusion across all of our programs and nurture a supportive, encouraging, and affirming environment that celebrates individuality. We seek to help our students become capable and engaged citizens. We are committed to diversity as an immersive experience and encourage challenging conversations that promote growth and learning and that help us achieve our goal of graduating culturally competent students who will be equipped to act as leaders in advancing equity and justice. Ultimately, we endeavor to impart the fundamental truth that every person is valuable and worthy of respect.

2026–2027 TEACHER’S HANDBOOK