Counterpane's mission is to assist the development of students as academically and creatively engaged, community-sensitive, responsible people who know themselves well. Our success in this mission is more of a function of the self-discipline and the attitude of the student than of the student's "intelligence quotient." Understanding the following points is crucial to success in this environment:
Initiative - Students must understand themselves to be the driving force behind their intellectual growth. Counterpane teachers and staff are facilitators for students' intellectual pursuits; they are not the source of initiative, which must come from within each student.
Self-discipline - Self-discipline, not teacher imposed discipline, is the sure sign of a maturing learner. Each student will be given the freedom he/she earns or the structure he/she needs to fulfill the responsibilities to the best of his/her individual ability.
Academic Progress - Academic progress is monitored by the teacher but is driven by the individual student. A student's progress from one level to the next is based on academic readiness, not chronological age or "seat time." Upper School students may complete their transcript work in three years, four years, or five years. Counterpane refuses to advance or graduate a student who has not proven academic readiness by an end-of-course grade of at least "75" in all college preparatory work.[ ->]