All of our teachers are parent volunteers and come with a variety of educational and professional experiences. Many of our teachers do have a teaching degree but others do not. In all cases, we seek to get to know a parent’s interest and skills before inviting them to teach. Additionally, when one becomes a teacher, they are given a professionally developed curriculum and are trained in how to implement it in their classroom. Our teachers approach their teaching roles the same as paid teachers would, engaging in research and outside development on their own accord, lesson planning, maintaining grade reports, conducting parent-teacher conferences, etc. They do all of this in the professional manner that you would expect from a traditional teaching staff. The Head of School and Dean of Students provide classroom management training and support the teachers in their role. The state of Florida recognizes us as a private school.

No. There are many roles, besides teacher, that make up our school staff and we seek to align the skills each parent brings with the needs of the school. All staff take turns serving as emergency substitute when a teacher is sick or has sick children. This can mean any staff person may need to do some instruction on occasion. We desire that every family at our school be willing to serve in any role out of a servant’s heart and support of our parent-led model.

Trace Academy is a parent-involved school, which allows each family to contribute to their child’s education by serving in a staff role 2 days a week. The decision-making leadership of Trace Academy has 4 components. The Board of Directors, consisting of Trace parents, provides oversight in the direction and philosophy of all aspects of the school. The Management Team, also consisting of Trace parents, serves in the day to day operations of the school. The Head of School (HoS) and Dean of Students (DoS) are the only hired positions and are on campus each weekday. The HoS leads the Management Team and the DoS oversees student behavior and academics. All other positions at the school: teachers, office staff, assistants, etc, are filled by parents.

Yes, we administer the Stanford 10 Achievement Test. This test is one of the ways the school evaluates our achievement of the goal of teaching with academic excellence. Parents will receive a copy of their child’s individual results. Other ways we seek academic excellence include: small class sizes, positive student-teacher relationships, classroom management, teacher professional development, and professionally developed curriculum.

Yes, every Friday, our student body gathers in the auditorium for an assembly. These assemblies provide students an opportunity to culminate student learning in the classroom, practice public speaking, worship, recognize student birthdays and be encouraged in the year’s school theme. In addition, some Fridays the students will participate in “Buddy Time.” This activity encourages students to build relationships across the grade levels. Students are matched up with a buddy of the same gender, but of a different age, to engage in activities such as playing board games or outdoor games, doing an art project, or discussing questions.

Yes. Each classroom contains a copy of the Emergency Procedures Manual which includes emergency procedure protocols for severe weather, lock down, intruder, and fire evacuation. Periodic practice evacuations of the school building are conducted. Additionally, our doors are kept locked at all times during school hours. The building is also equipped with security cameras and monitors.

Uniforms: (costs vary depending on selection). Our uniform provider is Sir Walter Uniforms located at 500 S. Plumosa Street, Merritt Island, FL 32952. The web address is https://store.sirwalteruniforms.com/schools/trace-academy.html

Each student will also need a Friday t-shirt and a field trip t-shirt.

Field Trips: Our students go on a field trip roughly once a month. 7th & 8th Graders go to Tallahassee and Washington, DC on alternating years

Special Events: Camping Trip, Thanksgiving Feast, and Anomalous Day - a school-wide field trip in the Spring.

No. Due to our shortened school day, we are limited in our ability to offer special classes like music, art and PE. While our integral curriculum regularly provides art and music opportunities, we do not offer classes in these subjects. Parents are encouraged to provide these opportunities for their children outside of school hours. That being said, our 4th-8th graders participate in a weekly team building activity which encourages collaboration and problem solving. In addition, our 7th-8th graders have a weekly music lesson which introduces them to playing the ukulele and gives them opportunities to help lead worship at our annual camping trip.

No. We do not have a computer lab nor do we have computers in the classroom. We desire to give technology its proper place for the student: in the home and under the direction and supervision of parents. In addition, we desire to create an environment of enriched literacy and students thrive in a world stocked with raw materials. We also desire that young learners engage with God’s created world as much as possible, rather than mediated and artificially rendered via technology. In 1st-8th grades we offer opportunities to learn typing at home and for the middle-school aged student, through homework, we begin to introduce them to educational platforms in preparation for high school (Power Point, Google Classroom).