ACADEMICS
In the shadow of America’s Mountain, Pikes Peak, lies Fountain Valley School (FVS) - a private, co-educational college-preparatory school for boarding and day students in grades 9–12 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Founded in 1930, FVS is located on an 1,100-acre Prairie containing a working ranch and water rights to the American West. With 12 miles of wilderness trails for hiking, biking, and equestrian riding, students utilize the entire FVS campus for hands-on educational purposes and recreation. While attending the leading boarding school in Colorado, FVS students are buoyed by their deep understanding of the American West, politically, environmentally, socially, and culturally, which they use as a lens to understanding their connection to the broader world. Our 240 member student body consists of 70% boarding students from over 25 countries and 30 states. We are located 5 miles from the Colorado Springs Airport and 82 miles from Denver International Airport. Our students and faculty take advantage of living close to a city for off-campus programming and weekend excursions. Our intentionally small classes, with an average 12:1 student to teacher ratio, enable faculty and peers to know your child. FVS students form lifelong friendships with their classmates, dormmates, advisors, teachers, and coaches within a learning community that is equal parts challenge and care. Students are encouraged to explore their academic interests from a broad selection of over 100 courses at the advanced, honors, or college-preparatory levels, with the option to take AP exams each May for juniors and seniors. Our academic skills center provides a two-on-one setting where every student can seek subject-specific support or hone crucial skills of organization and time management as they grow to understand their learning style.
F V S S NA PS HOT
Founded in
1930
5 miles from Colorado Springs 82 miles from Denver
12 miles of wilderness trails for hiking, biking, and equestrian riding
ACADEMICS
We are pleased to extend our classroom experience to our CL ASS OF ‘69 MOUNTAIN CAMPUS, a 40-acre outdoor oasis located just outside of Buena Vista, Colo., a two-hour drive into the Rocky Mountains. In addition to supporting our academic mission of combining a global perspective from the point of view of the American West, the Mountain Campus invites creativity and discovery by bringing our students together in a unique and spectacular setting. At the foothills of the majestic Collegiate Peaks, it is a place for learning, camaraderie, and transformation.
1,100-acre Prairie campus
12 students per class on average
240 students from over 25 countries and 30 states
70% boarding population
AC A D EMI C CURRIC U LU M The curriculum at Fountain Valley School builds on our excellence in teaching and inspiring 1,100-acre landscape. We have designed our four-year curriculum to challenge our students, building essential traits of critical thought, communication, and perspective. Our schedule, divided into extended course blocks, allows students and faculty to journey beyond the superficial while providing space to venture outside of the classroom and take advantage of an experientially rich program set in the foothills of the Rockies.
Students leave FVS prepared and excited to engage in an increasingly complex and demanding world.
TWELFTH GRADE
Capstone
ELEVENTH GRADE
Learning to Lead
TENTH GRADE
Global Societies
NINTH GRADE
The West
SOME U N IQ U E CO U R S E S ENGLISH:
L ANGUAGES:
• Into the Unknown: Literature of Climbing and Mountaineering • Identity in the Digital Age: Media, Culture, Communication • The Western Mystique: Land, People, and Place • Creative Writing
• Introduction to Chinese Culture and Mandarin I • Introduction to Francophone Cultures and French I • Advanced French Language and Culture • Spanish IV: Hispanic History
HISTORY:
• The West and The World • Advanced United States Government & Politics • Honors History of Hate and Tolerance • Economy, Society, and Public Policy • The Population Paradox: Boom, Bust, and Implications for Our World
MATH:
• Financial Math/Economic Reasoning • Functions, Statistics, and Trigonometry • Advanced Calculus BC • Honors Multivariable Calculus • CS 203 Python SCIENCE:
• Ecology • Advanced Environmental Science • Geology • Nuclear Chemistry • Principles of Engineering
ACADEMICS
S IG N AT URE PRO GRAMS 9TH GRADE: THE WEST Inspired by the beauty, wonder, and history of our setting in the shadow of Pikes Peak, the 9th-grade program asks our students to investigate the culture, climate, science, and history of the American West. We aim to give students a framework to understand the world around Fountain Valley School and beyond. • An interdisciplinary approach inspired by the writings of American West historian and novelist Wallace Stegner, who believed that a landscape could inspire humans to their highest calling. • Anchored by our unique 9th-grade Ecology class leveraging the unique setting of our 1,100-acre campus on the American High Plains. The STEM SCHOLAR DIPLOMA is a program designed for interested juniors and seniors looking to dive deeply into a rigorous science-based focus of study. STEM Scholars will work with Science faculty, attend STEM-related events, and culminate their program by creating a final, tangible product and completing a final writing exercise in the fashion of pieces typically published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The program is designed to engage students interested in collegiate and post-collegiate work in the STEM fields. THE GLOBAL SCHOLAR DIPLOMA is available for juniors and seniors interested in learning through experience about human interconnectivity and the impact one has on the world. Our global curriculum looks to cultivate change-seekers who take action in their local communities and the world beyond.
EX P E RI ENTI A L LE ARN IN G
INTERIM EXPEDITIONS For the last 50 years, Interim Expeditions have been a defining experience at Fountain Valley School. Each March, our students depart campus for a week-long global or local experience. Some examples include: • Tall Ships: Voyage of Discovery
Scan to learn more about our Interim Expeditions
ROUND SQUARE EXCHANGE PROGRAM Students are encouraged to experience the world with one of our partner schools in Australia, New Zealand, Peru, South Africa, and more. A student can spend six weeks to a semester living and learning abroad. Round Square sponsors global conferences, virtual postcards, and student exchanges throughout the year.
• Canoeing Utah’s Labyrinth Canyon • Mountain Biking in Moab • Sports on the Front Range • The New South: The Black Experience
& Contemporary Culture • Art Experience in Santa Fe, New Mexico • Service in Puerto Rico: Eye on
the Rainforest
SENIOR CAPSTONE PROJECT All seniors will complete an in-depth research experience (passion project) during their spring semester to demonstrate to FVS faculty and students that they are ready for college. Seniors choose the subject to connect to their lifelong passions or studies ahead.
During the sophomore year, we assign students to one of our two full-time college counselors. Students are also required to take the PSAT and an Introduction to College Process spring course. The planning and advising continue in our Junior College Workshop and Senior College Workshop. Throughout their time at FVS, individual meetings with their college counselor allow each of our students to take an active role in selecting the right college or university for continuing their education.
“
FVS prepared me for college by allowing me to connect with peers from diverse communities and teaching me about the traditions and policies that make up the college experience. Students are at the heart of college counseling at FVS, not prestige or any kind of pressure or assumptions.
Malachi
Fountain Valley School Class of ’23, Harvard University Class of ‘27
Learn more about where our students go after FVS
College Matriculation Sample: American University Bard College Barnard College Boston College Case Western Reserve University Chapman University Colorado College Colorado State University Cornell University Dartmouth College Emory University Hamilton College
Harvard University Johns Hopkins University Lake Forest College Lewis & Clark College Montana State University New York University Northeastern University Northwestern University Occidental College Princeton University Purdue University Reed College
Santa Clara University School of Visual Arts Southern Methodist University Stanford University The University of Alabama The George Washington University Trinity University University of Colorado Boulder University of Puget Sound University of Washington Vassar College Yale University
ACADEMICS
COL LEG E COUNSE LIN G
A D M I S S I ON PRO C E SS
Contact the Admission Office to plan your visit and follow the steps below to apply.
FVS.edu/Admission and 1 Visit complete your Inquiry Form
3
Admission Counselors will arrange an interview (virtual or in-person)
your school tour and register 2 Plan to attend our Admission events
4
Teacher Recommendations
English, and Math) 5 (School, and Transcripts (two full
Complete a Common Application, SAO (Standard Application Online) admission.org, or Gateway to Prep Schools gatewaytoprepschools.com
SSAT Test (optional, required for
6 Summit Scholarship): SSAT.org
years and current year)
Early Action applications are due by Dec. 15 (notification by Feb. 1). Regular applications are due Feb. 1 (notification by March 10). Agreements due by April 10.
Rolling Admission after March 10!
Visit our website for more information on inquiring, applying, financial aid and scholarship programs. 719.391.5251
fountainvalleyschool
fvs.edu/admission
fountainvalleyschool
admission@fvs.edu FVSofColorado
FountainValleySchool