Student Life

At Renaissance School you’ll find students engaged in classroom discussions, “teaching” math problems to fellow students, performing in impromptu music jams, rehearsing upcoming theater productions, on the sports field at Washington Park, outdoors in science classes, and working on artwork in the beautiful art space “loft” overlooking the downtown area… student life is vibrant!

Lunch

One of the things our students really love is that Renaissance School has lots of lunch options! Renaissance School students in good academic standing enjoy our downtown location during lunch. Popular eateries include The Blue Ridge Country Store, Christian’s Pizza, Chaps, Vita Nova Pizza, Bagby’s, and Maru. Students also love to get a coffee or tea and a snack with friends at Java Java, Mud House, and the Tea Bazaar. There are also seasonal food carts and trucks that make their way to the downtown mall, adding some fun variety. Every other week, we have Chimm Fridays, featuring a rotating Thai menu from music faculty and restaurateur Jay Pun.
Our kitchen is in regular use, with a student refrigerator, stovetop and oven, and multiple microwaves, toasters, kettles and even a coffee maker. Classes and clubs make the most of our kitchen, and the school is often treated to dumplings by the Chinese Culture Club, tortilla de patatas by the Spanish Class, King Cake by the French Class, and many treats by the baking club! Students often bring their own lunch and enjoy it in the lunchroom, or with friends during lunchtime clubs. Renaissance School also has a wonderful rooftop garden tended by faculty and students each year. Fresh Salad Fridays with our own produce is delicious, nutritious, and rewarding!

Daily Assembly

There’s a lot going on at Renaissance School! To keep students and faculty up-to-date, the full school meets each morning at 10:30 in our Assembly Room to cover a wide variety of topics. This includes:

Student announcements about in-school and after-school clubs, and community opportunities such as job postings, internship applications, volunteer requests, and more
Faculty announcements about upcoming special guests in class, reminders about field trips, community opportunities, and special show set-up and rehearsals
Dean announcements about PSATs and AP tests, Ninth Week trip preparation and options, and student surveys
Head of School announcements regarding special visitors, school policies, celebrating college acceptances, and other awards and accolades
In the fall, visiting college admissions personnel talk about their schools’ programs and application process, and field questions from the students on academics, financial aid, and student life
In the winter, Assembly is often the time to host special guests such as visiting lecturers from UVA and around the country, career days with parents discussing their jobs ranging from doctors and lawyers to artists and poets, and local professionals to discuss wellness and community on topics like distracted driving and volunteer opportunities
In the spring, Assembly is taken over by the Juniors and Seniors as they present to the school on the topics of their research for the year for Independent Study and Senior Thesis

One of the benefits of being a smaller school is the chance to meet together each day to discuss the issues and events that are important to us!

Weekly Advisory

High school can be tough, especially for high ability, highly motivated students! At Renaissance School, students choose a faculty advisor to help guide them through their high school years. They select a faculty member they feel comfortable speaking and working with as an advisor. All faculty members serve as advisors and work closely with the Head of School to provide an environment of support and open communication.
Faculty meet with their advisees once a week, often during the after-lunch “ALab” time, or during lunch or a free period. Faculty and advisees can be seen walking through town when the weather is nice, meeting at a coffee shop when it is inclement, or sitting around a table at the school. Faculty can serve as a sounding board on ideas, address questions or concerns, celebrate the little victories, and generally let students know that they are seen and valued at the school, and the lines of communication are always open.

One of the things we cherish about the Renaissance School culture is the open, collaborative relationship between students and faculty. We strive to ensure that students truly feel that faculty are in their corner, encouraging them on to mastery within their fields of interest and developing expertise. We don’t try to coddle and we want students to stretch, but it is always within the context of a relationship of trust.

Community Service

Renaissance School is committed to being a good neighbor, and we do so in many ways!
A service day is a regular part of our Fall Ninth Week trip. One year, we weeded, mulched, and planted bulbs in the street frontage of many of neighbors, including CASA, The Haven, Core Knowledge, Ready Kids, and the Music Resource Center. We received many happy emails the following spring when the bright red and yellow tulips were in bloom! Another year, we conducted a native tree and invasive species observation at a local park to aid in conservation efforts.

We are very happy to participate in the annual Blue Ridge Area Food Bank Neighbors-4-Neighbors School Food Drive each year. We are very proud to be the first place school in four out of the past five years (and second place the other year)!

Our Environmental Science Class partnered with the IX Art Park when their Virginia Native Plant garden was being installed. Students monitored the garden area for many months, observing the pollinators, birds, spiders, and other insects attracted by the new planting, helping to restore biodiversity to the area.

Many of our students are actively involved in community organizations, including Families in Action, Habitat for Humanity, the Charlottesville Marathon, Wild Virginia, People Places, Hope Community Center, the Salvation Army, and many others. We encourage students to get involved and take action on issues they care about and find ways to give back to our neighbors and the community!

Health & Wellness

High school is a time when students have the opportunity to develop habits that will serve them well at college and into adulthood. Renaissance School is firmly committed to supporting and teaching habits that foster good mental, physical, and social health. Throughout the year Renaissance School brings in guests, professionals, and resource agencies to speak to and work with our students about a range of topics of interest to teenagers including self-defense, nutrition, health and development, and stress management.

Biannual Health Course

Renaissance School offers a comprehensive all-school health course. This has included visits from UVA Hospital nutritionists, ACAC physical therapists, Region 10 mental health professionals, SARA specialists on healthy relationships, and other professionals in the fields of not just healthy eating, sleeping, and activity levels, but also how to cultivate good mental health, healthy interactions with technology, social media, healthy relationships and how to get help from local resources. It’s a great course and faculty learn a lot, too!

Self-Defense & Bystander Intervention

The statistics on assault prevalence are sobering. Being prepared and knowing how to react in a dangerous situation can help to prevent becoming a statistic, or witnessing one. We partner with both expert consultants as well as the Charlottesville Police Department to train students on how to protect themselves and how to help others. Self-Defense is a multi-week course that is a spring Arts Practicum option. Bystander Intervention is a one-time workshop that is available to all students.

Physical Activity & ACAC

Physical Activity is a required course at Renaissance School, and is available to students all four years. Our program is focused on personal goal-setting in a tangible way in areas such as strength, endurance, agility, and mindfulness. During the fall and spring, much of this course is spent outside doing activities like training to run a mile or a longer distance, playing basketball or soccer, or outdoor stretching, yoga, and other balance and flexibility practices. In the winter, Renaissance School partners with ACAC to offer strength and circuit training, exercise machines, and swimming. This time begins with goal-setting and conversations with a trainer, and ends with reflection and assessment so that students can observe improved strength, balance, flexibility, speed, stamina and other fitness goals. Physical activity goals are an option in our Summer Workbook and is part of recognizing that high ability students may be both highly athletic and academically gifted, despite pervasive stereotypes to the contrary. Renaissance School has many elite athletes and the Physical Activity class may also be tailored to specifically support their training.
Recognizing the prevalence of eating disorders and body dysmorphia among youth, our physical fitness program focuses on measures that are not body-type dependent such as strength and stamina. Students set individual goals and are not compared against each other or a generic standard.

Intentional Goal-Setting & Reflection

Setting goals, planning the steps to achieve them, and periodic reflection on how the progress is going are just part of the fabric of day-to-day life at Renaissance School. This practice is explicitly part of the Headmaster’s Class curriculum, but it is regularly incorporated into all project-based classes, including studio art, laboratory sciences, Independent Studies, physical activity, College Counseling, and others. Giving students the tools to plan for success is much more empowering than giving them all of the steps to get from Point A to B. Setting their own goals and making their own plans, and reviewing their own progress, is what gives students the confidence to enter college boldly and pursue their larger life goals.

Wellness & Twice Exceptional Students

One of the special considerations at a school for high ability students is that many youth are twice exceptional – both gifted and talented, but also learning how to thrive within the context of other special circumstances that may present challenges. This may also include high ability students who are learning to navigate social structures. Renaissance School faculty work closely with therapists, doctors, tutors, social services, and other professionals, along with families, as part of a team that supports each student as they learn the individual techniques they need to set and reach their goals, no matter what combination of gifts, challenges, talents, and ambitions they have.