Thank you for visiting Gerstell Academy's Upper School. We have developed a uniquely challenging leadership program that will prepare our students to go out in the world to compete and make a positive difference as leaders. Our goals are to equip students with specific leadership skills, ground them in fundamental knowledge, build a mindset of lifelong fitness, and allow them to become functionally fluent in Spanish, the minority language most spoken in the United States.
The leadership program is fully integrated into the interdisciplinary college preparatory curriculum at Gerstell Academy. Simply, everything that happens at Gerstell Academy is viewed from the perspective of leadership development. Each teacher is considered a leadership instructor who uses their expertise in their subject matter as a tool to teach leadership. Public speaking presentations, the study of leadership portraits, reinforcing and helping students to embrace the Gerstell Motto, Principles, and Attributes, while working on interviewing skills and conflict resolution skills occur in every class with the conscious thought of developing each student's leadership potential. In addition, students take a separate leadership class each year that provides specific leadership education and skill development.
The college preparatory curriculum provides a solid foundation of fundamental knowledge while the focus on physical training builds a mindset of lifelong physical fitness. Physical training incorporates both the physical education curriculum as well as the interscholastic athletic program. In physical education students are taught proper nutrition, strength and cardio- vascular training as well as individual and team sports. The athletic program allows for healthy competition on interscholastic athletic teams as well as building leadership skills and school spirit.
Our focus on functional fluency in Spanish allows our students to communicate and understand the world’s Spanish speaking cultures which have become the largest minority language spoken in the United States.
The faculty at Gerstell Academy represents an outstanding group of leaders who are professional educators with a wide spectrum of life and classroom experiences. They bring knowledge and skills from teaching in the classroom as well as working in the public and private sectors.
Please visit our spacious campus and see for yourself how the classrooms, athletic facilities, and campus environment reflect a superior attention to detail and quality. The 250 acre campus consists of the 58,000 square foot Robert E. Smith Hall, housing the Lower School, administrative offices, admissions office, music rooms, library, and computer and science labs. The Paterakis Athletic Center is both an athletic and academic facility that in addition to the six outdoor tennis courts, gymnasium, weight/aerobic room, dance room, multi-purpose room, six locker rooms, and contains nine classrooms and office space for faculty. Note the beautiful synthetic turf field adjacent to the Athletic Center, and the outdoor stadium seating for 1,000 spectators!
Gerstell Academy's Carolyn B. Smith Hall houses our Dining facility which is located adjacent to Robert E. Smith Hall and the Lower School playground. This two-story facility serves as a campus-wide cafeteria on the lower level with the second floor housing office space for faculty and staff, two classrooms, and three science labs for the Middle and Upper School.
The Upper School students in their daily routine utilize all the campus facilities with the majority of their classes in the academic wing of the Paterakis Athletic Center.
This is a very exciting time for Gerstell Academy and we invite you to be a part of it. The faculty, the program, and facilities are focused on developing each student to reach his or her full potential as a leader.
