NAIS Awards

2007 NAIS Leading Edge Program

Echo Horizon School  was one of 15 schools across the United States honored for "innovation and excellence" in the 2007 NAIS (National Association of Independent Schools) Leading Edge Program. Their focus was on the creation of model programs that could be adapted and customized by other schools to build successful, sustainable learning environments.

Echo Horizon School was recognized in the area of Demographic Sustainability for its submission entitled Unique Elementary School Mainstreams Deaf Students. With 10% of our student population being either deaf or hard of hearing (DHH), Echo Horizon School has won national acclaim for our innovative and proven-effective auditory learning environment and the seamless integration of these students into classrooms with their hearing peers.

NAIS Stories of Excellence: Case Studies of Exemplary Teaching
and Learning with Technology

Echo Horizon School's project entitled Testing the Waters: A Global Exploration of Water Quality was one of 20 papers to be included in the 2007 NAIS Stories of Excellence publication. The Stories of Excellence are intended to serve as role models to inspire others to create their own programs and join in the unfolding story of how schools must keep pace with the changes going on in society and in students' lives, particularly in the area of technology.

Echo Horizon School Director of Technology Elaine Wrenn worked with 6th grade students in an interdisciplinary project that included actual and virtual field trips, scientific probeware, videoconferencing and blogging to collect and analyze real data as students explored issues affecting the world water supply both in their own backyard and in a country on another continent, in this case Peru. At the conclusion of the unit, students used iMovie to create public service announcements to share messages they felt important for people to know about water quality and conservation.