The BCD Difference

BCD breaks the boundaries of what you think an independent school might be. Yes, your student will gain an exceptional knowledge base that sets them up for success in career and life, but we take that a step further in ensuring they feel confident, capable, and inspired to use that knowledge for good. Our school experience takes place in an inclusive, intentional environment where lesson-planning is designed for the real-world. This adaptable approach places student learning in the context of current events and world challenges so they gain a deeper understanding of how their education can impact global change.

We believe children thrive when engaged, challenged, and surrounded by peers and teachers who love school. Our research-based curriculum is infused with innovative strategies to support differentiation, skill mastery, hands-on projects, and a love of learning.

We believe that academics are only one piece of school and that students need tools, support, and strategies to learn to problem solve, communicate, create resolutions, think critically, take risks, and fail forward.

We believe small class sizes allow our teachers to truly see, know, and love each student. It is essential in differentiating instruction. Our Board of Trustees mandates that sizes not exceed 18 in the Elementary School or 22 in the Middle School. Preschool classes range from 12-16 students with two full-time teachers.

We believe that a caring and dedicated faculty and staff are the "heart and soul" of our school. Ours share a deep optimism for children and a love of their profession.

We believe in continuous school improvement, and, as such, seek accreditation from organizations that focus on that process. BCD is accredited by the Association of Colorado Independent Schools (ACIS), recognized by the Colorado Department of Education, a member in good standing of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), and an authorized International Baccalaureate (IB) World School. We were the first school in the world to meet the standards of all of these organizations.

We believe our graduates should be socially and academically confident, technologically savvy leaders who are prepared for today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. They should strive to do their best and should act as honest, effective communicators who care about their communities. Our alumni matriculate at a variety of local public and private high schools along with out-of-state boarding schools. They typically enter into honors, AP and pre-IB courses and state that BCD prepared them exceptionally well for the social and academic rigors of high school.

 

We also believe that 3rd party assessment is crucial to the success of our students and our school. Annually, we assess our students to determine the progress they have made, to identify areas of strength and weakness, and to evaluate pieces of our program. We use the Educational Records Bureau’s (ERB) Children’s Progress Academic Assessment (CPAAA) for Kindergarten – 2nd grade and the Comprehensive Testing Program version 4 (CTP 4) for 3rd – 8th grades as our assessment tools. We receive robust score reports on the student, class and school levels, which allow us to evaluate our progress and compare ourselves to leading independent schools throughout the United States.