User:UPSSloan/All Saints Episcopal School

All Saints Episcopal School (ASES) is an independent school in Tyler, Texas

Mission
All Saints Episcopal School, an independent college preparatory school (4K – 12), develops excellence in academics, fine arts, and athletics while encouraging students to achieve their maximum potential within an environment which embraces diversity, fosters leadership, encourages service and nurtures spiritual growth centered upon the basic tenets of the Christian faith.

History
All Saints traces its beginning to the St. Andrews Episcopal Day School which emerged from a church sponsored kindergarten program in 1962. When St. Andrews closed, All Saints Episcopal School emerged as a joint project of two Tyler churches, Christ Episcopal Church and First Christian Church. For most of that time, ASES was housed in basement facilities at Christ Church, but in 1984, by which time the school had grown to include grades Pre-K through 8, a generous gift of 22 acres provided a beautiful setting for the school on Loop 323 in Tyler. That same year, enrollment increased to 242 students, and the school began utilizing a $1.4 million, 33,000 square foot facility.

Through the years, ASES has continued to grow and expand its facilities, programs and student body. A major milestone for the school occurred in the mid-90s when it opened its Upper School. The first senior class graduated in 1997, and the size of the student body tripled to its current size of approximately 700 students.

With wonderful facilities, a commitment to quality academics and programs and its values-based environment, All Saints is poised to continue its expansion and growth to a school of approximately 900 students. Plans for a fine arts facility and a long-awaited chapel are already underway and will complete the current campus master plan.

School Leadership
During the last 20 years, the school has benefited from exceptional leadership. William McGee, who served as Head of School from 1990 until 1998, presided over phenomenal growth. The campus expanded to 150 acres with new middle and upper school buildings, a student center, an administration/media center/library, a sports and multi-purpose center with gymnasium, and a renovated cafeteria. The undeveloped land of the ASES campus became an important environmentally sensitive area for ecological studies and outdoor learning. It also served, and continues to serve, as a buffer for the steadily developing city of Tyler.

From 2000-2004, the school was led by Raymond Johnson. The physical complexion of the campus again changed with the addition of the Mewbourne Hall of Math and Science and the Warmack Tennis Center. Most significantly, however, the academic program was strengthened with the school’s initiatives to become a premier, comprehensive college preparatory school. Additional attention was devoted to developing an administrative structure which would support the expanded community and programs of ASES and planning for the school’s accreditation by the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest (ISAS).

Serving as Headmaster since 2004, Arthur Burke retired from All Saints at the end of the 2009-2010 school year. His tenure has included securing successful accreditation from ISAS. ASES is once again TAPPS State Champs Division 3. This makes five out of the last six years that the school has been recognized as "Best in State" for academics, fine arts, and athletics among schools in its division. Under Art’s guidance, the school has seen the completion of the Mewbourne Stadium and the Bruce G. Brookshire Family Student Activity Center, a 42,000 square foot sports and multipurpose facility. The campus represents an investment of $31 million, most of which has occurred since 1992.

People, Curriculum & Programs
Students For the 2012-2013 academic year, All Saints expects to enroll approximately 700 students. Eighteen percent of these students are receiving financial aid with awards totaling approximately $500,000. Twelve percent of the students represent diverse social, economic, and racial backgrounds. All Saints is the leading college preparatory school in the area. Upon graduation, 100% of its students expect to attend college. In the 2008 - 2009 academic year, 200 Upper School students contributed over 8,100 hours of service to the community, serving local churches, and non-profit organizations.

Faculty In conversation about ASES, the last three Heads of Schools all named the faculty as one of the school’s significant strengths. Currently, there are 94 teachers, all with bachelor’s degrees, 28 with master’s degrees, and two with a Ph.D. The overall student to teacher ratio is 10.8 to 1. The average class size is 16 with a maximum of 22 students per class. Of great emphasis is the support provided by the school for continual professional development among members of the administrative staff and faculty. In the past year, over 85% of the faculty attended a professional conference in their academic area.

Administration The administrative team works collaboratively with the Head of School to assure the smooth running of the day-today programs and external needs of the school. The school’s administrative team includes 12 senior administrators and 18 support staff. The administration includes the Lower, Middle, and Upper School Heads; Directors of Admissions, Development, Operations, Technology, Athletics, and Academic & College Counseling; and a Chaplain.

Parents Throughout its history, ASES has benefited from a very active and loyal parent body. Parent support is seen in many informal ways – volunteer hours, activity planning, and availability for special needs. More structured involvements are organized through the Parents Association (PA). Devoted to supporting the academic and spiritual pillars of All Saints, the PA works hand-in-hand with the Head of School and division heads to provide enrichment activities and events. Throughout the year, parents serve as homeroom and grade level reps, provide support for athletic events, sponsor field days, organize teacher appreciation events, etc. While the nature of the PA’s work is as much friendraising as fundraising, at the end of the year, it is able to purchase for ASES a number of items on the school’s wish list.

Lower School
“Faith Formation” is our Christian Education program for the pre-K– 4th grades. The instructor utilizes the Episcopal Children’s curriculum. The classes focus mainly on the biblical stories and the virtues they teach. We work on living and working together and honoring the differences that make us all special. This is a Christian Formation program that each student participates in each week with his or her class.

Intermediate School
We have Christian Education for the 5th and 6th grades as well. It is a weekly class that focuses on how, as people of God we live and work together in community. At this age level we work on many aspects of social and emotional learning in the context of Christian education. Much of what we use comes from Creating Classrooms and Homes of Virtue from the Center for Spiritual and Ethical Education. The classes are led by the Chaplain along with the staff of Christ Episcopal Church.

Upper School
The Senior Theology class is a yearlong class currently team team-taught by the Chaplain and the Head of Upper School. Senior Theology, literally, is the study of God by 12thgraders. We will approach this study with an exploration of self in order to understand how we are likely to encounter the divine. This study will not only focus on various Christian understandings of God, but will place these understandings within the context of an historical, global, and cultural worldview of the divine. Students will be formed to investigate, responsibly ask questions, and engage Holy Scripture alongside a conversant community. These discussions will inevitably explore the God that continues to create and re-create, even today.

What are the principal qualities that distinguish a school as Episcopal
A Community of Faithfulness Episcopal schools are created to be communities that honor, celebrate and worship God as the center of life.

A Community that models God’s love and grace Episcopal schools model serving God in Christ in all persons, regardless of origin, background, ability or religion; strive for justice and peace among all people; and respect the dignity of every human being through Community Service locally, nationally and internationally.

A Diverse Community Episcopal schools are populated by religious, cultural and economic diversity among their students.

A Multi-faith Community in Worship and Prayer All who attend and work in them – Episcopalians and non-Episcopalians, Christians and non-Christians, people of no faith tradition – attend Weekly Chapel and worship services as they seek clarity about their own beliefs and religions and to honor those traditions more fully and faithfully in their own lives.

A Community of Empowerment Above all, Episcopal schools demonstrate and proclaim the unique worth and beauty of all human beings as creations of a loving, empowering God.

Lower School
The largest of the school’s divisions, Lower School has an enrollment of approximately 275 youngsters. The Early Childhood program provides child-centered instruction for children in 4K, 5K, and Primer (a transition class offered between 5K and first grade). Class sections are limited to 16 children in Early Childhood with a teacher and assistant teacher in each classroom. In Grades 1-4 there are 18 students in each section. An extended day program, Saints Care, is available for children in 4K through second grade, and after school tutorials are available for students in grades 3-8. Early Childhood tuition ranges from $4,800 to $8,000 depending on half-day or full-day option. Lower School tuition is $9,827.

The academic program in Lower School provides instruction in Language Arts (reading, writing , spelling , composition, grammar , vocabulary, literature, and Greek and Latin roots) with differentiated instruction available to students through the school’s Learning Enrichment Center. The Math curriculum helps to develop computation and higher level thinking skills through classroom study and student use of manipulatives. Science study is enriched by lessons presented by the Lower School science specialist and a hands-on approach. The Social Studies curriculum is presented through an integrated, thematic study of Texas, the United States, and the world. Computers, Spanish, French, Art, Music, Physical Education, and Spiritual Development, with its weekly chapel and spiritual curriculum, extend the Lower School offerings. Odyssey of the Mind is also offered, and in recent competition, Lower School students achieved outstanding recognition.

Intermediate and Middle Schools
There are approximately 225 students in the Intermediate (Grades 5-6) and Middle Schools (Grades 7-8). The program encourages students to gain personal and academic independence, experience new challenges in a safe, supportive environment, and develop those strong character and moral traits which will guide them in their development as responsible adults. The curriculum builds upon the instruction in Lower School: English, History, Math, Physical and Life Science, Foreign Language (Spanish and French as well as Language Exploration), Christian Education, Computer Applications, Presentation Skills, Speech, and Health. Elective courses include Art, Choir, Band, and Theater. Tuition for the Intermediate School is $10,727. It is $11,034 for Middle School.

In the 7th and 8th grades the advisory program is added (students meet weekly with their advisor) and cocurricular and extracurricular activities are expanded. Athletics are introduced so that students can play competitively in volleyball, soccer, football, basketball, baseball, softball, golf, tennis, cross country, cheerleading and track and field. A “no cut” policy lets all children participate. There is a Middle School Student Council, and opportunities are provided for students to explore special interests in areas such as art, engineering and band. They are also able to prepare for science fairs, talent searches, and other competitions. One special area of accomplishment is Odyssey of the Mind in which All Saints students received 4th, 8th and 16th overall in the world competition.

Upper School
The breadth of curriculum expands significantly in grades 9–12. While continued attention is devoted to the core subjects, the opportunity to select among Advanced Placement, dual credit and Pre-AP courses provides greater challenge for upper school students. At the same time, the curriculum still addresses the general college bound requirements for all seniors. There is a commitment to religious development; students attend weekly chapel and interact with a very visible and available school chaplain. Seniors are required to complete two semesters of senior theology. Upper School tuition is $11,872.

The Upper School student body is represented by the Student Senate which is governed by student leaders who were elected by their peers. Through these leadership roles, students contribute to the tone for the community, establish a level of trust, define honorable conduct, and establish a level of comfort which adds to the All Saints’ family-like atmosphere.

All Saints definitely upholds its purpose of preparing students forcollege. In a longitudinal study conducted for the last four graduating classes, students have earned an average of a 3.0 GPA after the first year at 4-year institutions of higher education. Students and families appreciate the strong academic and personal preparation inherent in the school’s programs and expectations. The median performance on standardized tests put seniors in the Upper 500’s on the three sections of the SAT. The 53 members of the Class of 2009 earned over $2.5 million dollars in merit-based scholarship.

Varsity Sports
Fall
 * Cheerleaders
 * Cross Country
 * Football
 * Volleyball

Winter
 * Mens Basketball
 * Womens Basketball
 * Mens Soccer
 * Womens Soccer

Spring
 * Baseball
 * Mens Golf
 * Womens Golf
 * Softball
 * Mens Tennis
 * Womens Tennis
 * Mens Track
 * Womens Track

Athletic's Facilities

 * Bruce G. Brookshire Family Student Athletic Complex
 * Davis Sports and Multipurple Center
 * Mewbourne Field and Athletic Complex
 * Trojan Field Baseball and Softball Complex
 * Warmack Tennis Center