Seacoast Charter School is an arts integrated public elementary charter school. The school was founded with 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades in 2004, beginning with 8 students. In the ensuing years, it has grown to 150 students in grades 1st-7th. We will add 8th grade in 2010. We are poised to grow beyond our goal of 160 students. We are also beginning to look beyond the walls of our school to connect with the community in new and different ways.

Our Mission

The Mission of the Seacoast Charter School is to provide excellence in core academics and the arts while cultivating the individual qualities and strengths of each child. At the Seacoast Charter School, arts and academics go hand in hand. We believe that the arts bring us joy, and when we feel joy, we learn more deeply and effectively. Through a rich and varied arts program, our students learn to look closely, listen carefully, respond thoughtfully and work collaboratively. Opportunities for creative expression and independent thinking are an integral part of our rigorous academic program. The combination of challenging intellectual and artistic endeavors develops our students’ hearts and minds and enables them to live more fully in the world.

Arts Integration

Being an arts integrated school means that we take a different approach to learning, the approach of the artist. We work so that the arts shape the way students take in new information, influence the way they process that information, and determine how they express their understanding. We take the artistic processes in visual art, music, theater, and dance as the model for academic learning. Each student is expected to produce their own work, learn to critique their work and that of others, and grow from the feedback that they receive about their work. As with all true learning, this can be a difficult and frustrating process, so we are careful to support each individual along the way. We have high expectations with a great deal of patience.

At Seacoast Charter School, we foster a school culture that emphasizes responsibility and self-awareness. As we cultivate children’s individual voices, we promote a shared respect for each other, our community and the world around us. Our students develop their communication and leadership skills as they work together to raise questions, solve problems, and build a cohesive, productive learning community. We welcome and rely on family involvement. Children, families, school, and community form an interdependent system, and we value and utilize the tremendous resources available to our students through our parents and the greater community. We support and encourage a strong connection between learning at home and at school, which positively impacts our students’ attitudes and achievements.

Our Charter

This Seacoast Charter School application (established August 2003) is for an elementary and middle school charter school in the Kingston New Hampshire area serving grades 1-7.  We began with grades 3 and 4 and increased grades each year or at an abridged schedule voted by the Board of Trustees. The student enrollment was 40 in year one (two classrooms), and increased up to 150 students (8 classrooms) by the fifth year of operation. Our plan includes one full time teacher for each classroom and a student:teacher ratio of approximately 1:18-1:22 per class.

Click here for the full Charter.

Click here for our Bylaws.

Click here for our Original Charter.