Riverside School

The Riverside School is dedicated to the ideal that children be involved and enthusiastic participants in their education. We nurture and encourage curiosity, creativity, and individuality, and we instill in students an appreciation for hard work. We believe that children can learn to be strong and effective leaders, and we are committed to developing in our students the skills necessary to take on leadership roles. We believe that students must be aware of and be active in the broader world around them in order to become ethical and compassionate members of society. Support for our students' growth as learners, leaders, and citizens must come from every element of the Riverside community, both in and out of the classroom; therefore, we value and rely on the deep involvement of parents, faculty, staff, and administration in the development of our students.

We believe that a challenging, inspiring and diverse early education leads to future academic achievement and positive adulthood. The Riverside School curriculum integrates; Sciences, Literature, Social Studies, Modern and Classical Languages, Fine Arts, Athletics, and Healthy Living. Teachers model scholarship in their fields and a passion for lifelong learning. Students exercise curiosity, critical thinking, and creativity to take their learning several steps beyond minimal exposure. Through this effort we help students to find delight in the blend of art, academic, physical and social skill development.

Riverside students respect and appreciate the individual qualities of themselves and their peers. Strong, positive character is a trait we believe to be as important to future success as academic achievement. We develop leadership, responsibility, respect, compassion, and individual strengths of each student in various parts of the school day and throughout the academic year. Character building happens in small class discussions, cross-grade interactions, advisory conversations, and opportunities students have to demonstrate diverse talents.

Riverside students understand how to apply their learning and leadership skills outside of the classroom. Student-led assemblies, cross-grade mentoring and daily cooperative school cleanup all help to cement the school community. Service projects and current events discussions help connect the school to the local community, the nation and the world. Students practice community participation and plan to use what they have learned to enhance the world around them.

Riverside's small size and family atmosphere encourage a nurturing community. The Riverside community fosters meaningful relationships between students, teachers and parents through open communication, shared celebration and a common investment in our students. Students take pride and feel ownership for the caring, safe and positive environment.

The Riverside School is governed by its board of trustees, which follows the school's by-laws and best practices suggested by the National Association of Independent Schools. The board employs the head of school, who is responsible for the day to day operational and educational functions of Riverside. Through strong leadership of recent presidents, the board has grown to be comprised of an effective team of individuals with diverse backgrounds and experiences, recently revised the school's policies, and need to draft a long-term financial plan. The board has committees on finance, development, governance, and facilities, which are held accountable to their meeting schedules and goals in order to be effective and alleviate the work of the head of school. The positive and close working relationship of recent board presidents with the head of school has reflected Riverside's strong, supportive community atmosphere.

Riverside was the home of Dudley P. Hall, who built Riverside in 1864. He made his fortune as a lumber baron in Burke before starting a mill in Lyndonville. His portrait hangs in the office of the head of the school. The Riverside house stayed in the Hall family for many generations. Hall's daughter, Mabel, married Charles Walter, and the house was passed on to their daughter, Dorothy Charlotte Walter, who made many changes, including restoring the furnace, digging a well, and rebuilding the foundation. When Dorothy died the house passed to her sister, Elizabeth. Elizabeth left Riverside to her daughter, Annette, whose child, Annie, also spent much time there.

Riverside seeks qualified teachers and staff who demonstrate a deep understanding of how to relate to elementary and middle school students and enjoy working within a dynamic and supportive community. The hiring process at Riverside begins with targeted electronic and print advertisements alerting job seekers to openings at the school, as well as postings here on our website. The head of school uses a rubric to screen all applicants for academic qualifications, and assesses them for personal initiative and leadership qualities. The head of school then convenes an interview committee comprised of current faculty members, trustees, parents, and herself. During the hiring process applicants are asked about flexibility and working within a community of students, faculty, and parents. They are also required to be fingerprinted and to complete a criminal background check. The applicants are instructed in the expectations of their position, especially the need to use their multiple talents to support the team in a small school. As the committee narrows down its choices, finalists are invited to the school to spend a day and to teach a class. We believe it is important for our school community to observe the candidate in this setting, and also for the candidate to see our program in action as the candidate meets students, observes classes, and models teaching.

Our intellectual endeavors across the different disciplines are enhanced by numerous all-school events and traditions. These activities stem from our beliefs about teaching and learning and further support our mission statement by enriching the experience of the students with activities outside the classroom and within the supportive community. For years, students have participated in our annual social studies fair, a tradition that requires students to organize their time and study skills to execute a significant research project and display their learning orally, visually, and in writing. While middle school students show off individually polished work, fourth and fifth graders work as a whole class to demonstrate their learning, and our youngest students visit those displays and look to older students as role models of focused effort and public speaking skills. We place a strong emphasis on the classics, with every student in the middle school taking latin and students in the younger grades studying greek and roman mythology. We compete against high school students in the University of Vermont's Latin Day every year, and we have won first prize seven times. The spring poetry fest celebrates creative writing with multi-age activities that encourage poetic thinking and a "coffee house" event in the barn where students, parents, faculty, and friends share their favorite poems aloud.