After 20 years, Nantucket Lighthouse School to expand its Rugged Road campus to focus on preschool through 5th grade
Nantucket, Massachusetts — September 26, 2019 — As her first major initiative in her role as Head of School, Christine Braunohler Hanson is taking steps to focus fully on preschool and elementary. Hanson will oversee the reorganization and expansion of the Rugged Road campus to meet the growing demand for preschool as well as the Extended Day program.
5th grade will remain a part of the NLS program as a crucial year for students to prepare for the rigors and responsibilities of middle school. In a related move, the school will phase out 6th, 7th, and 8th grades in the 2020-21 school year. This reorganization consolidates all learning onto one campus. For the last nine years, Nantucket Lighthouse School has operated their Middle School program on satellite campuses.
“After teaching 6th, 7th, and 8th grades for the past nine years, we have learned — and academic research backs us up — that children in the upper middle school are developmentally ready for a larger peer group and more athletic and social activities,” explains Hanson. “It makes sense for us to focus on our roots by meeting the needs of those children who crave an individualized, developmentally appropriate learning environment in their preschool and elementary years.”
“With the recent gift of the adjacent property, we have doubled our lot size and are in the fortunate position to bring every student under one roof,” said Director of Advancement Logan Gomes.
Nantucket Lighthouse School Board of Trustees voted unanimously on September 11th to make the change.
A capital campaign is already underway with architectural plans from Emeritus.
“As a board and as a school community, we are highly committed to strengthen and sustain the school for the next 20 years and beyond,” says Maryann Hedaa, Chair of the Lighthouse School Board of Trustees.
Contact:
Christine Braunohler Hanson
Head of School 508-228-0427
chanson@nantucketlighthouseschool.org
