At Community High, we believe that the student/teacher relationship should be based on friendship and trust. Since our classes are small, and since a student is likely to encounter each of his or her teachers throughout his or her high school career, such relationships grow organically here. We augment these bonds with a mentoring program, modeled on those of many colleges, in which each student has a designated advisor he or she can approach to discuss academic and personal difficulties. It is the mentor’s job to be a student’s advocate, and to insure that no one in our community is marginalized.

College Advising

At CHS, we believe in working closely with each student on his or her transition to life after high school. Director Linda Thornton and Asst. Director Josh Chapman, along with Rick Zeigler, our college consultant, meet with each student repeatedly in their Junior and Senior years to help them select appropriate schools or postgraduate “gap” experiences, and to provide advice on standardized test taking and essay writing strategies. We believe in helping students find paths that make sense for them, culturally, professionally, and personally. Our transcript includes detailed class-by-class evaluations, and we go out of our way to establish relationships with college admissions folks.

College Symposium

In addition to our regular advising program, Community High hosts a College Admissions Symposium each spring, designed to provide students and parents with additional guidance through the college admissions process. We invite folks such as Mike Maxey, the President of Roanoke College, Stuart Trinkle, former Head of Admissions for Hollins University and now a private admissions consultant, and Rick Zeigler, head of college counseling at the prestigious Webb School, to participate in a round table discussion and information session. In this way, we are able to provide our families with a much wider range of perspectives than our faculty can alone.