Colorado Timberline Academy - Review #1

ADHD wasn't even a diagnosis when I went to high school and I certainly have it. The individualized education at CTA not only got me to pass, but to excel. I learned coping skills there that later made me an outstanding student in college, which got me into medical school, and I have had a blessed career as a physician for more than 30 years now. Additionally, I built life-long relationships there that I treasure more than anything. It was the most amazing experience of my life.

There is no one thing I can nail down. That said I really enjoyed being on stage acting in the productions. My two years there is chock-full of incredibly fond memories. The entire experience was truly the best experience of my lifetime.

There is nothing I could have done differently. Whereas the public school system pushed me out for not conforming to their method of teaching, CTA found a way to adapt to me to help me bring out my best. The best advice I have is go there with an open mind, be willing to learn, and let them guide you into becoming the best version of yourself you can be.

I think I have encapsulated that well above. But the interpersonal relationships that I formed there have lasted and are still going strong after 50 years! I can't really say that about college or medical school, so that, in and of itself, it's a very powerful statement. My life likely would not have gotten anywhere without CTA.I also like the Tuesday through Saturday school schedule and the block system. The Sunday Monday weekend really facilitated doing things in town and activities like skiing during times when there were less people present so you could participate more fully. The block system allows you to concentrate on just three classes at a time every day and go very deep.

If the public school system isn't for you, then this place May well be. With the very low teacher to student ratio, come prepared to dive deep do some real work, and learn a ton. Take what you have learned and use it to make the best version of yourself so you can contribute to the world.

The academics were incredibly well-rounded and taught from people who were well studied and presented very interestingly. The last thing it was was lecture, lecture, lecture, and then spit it all back on a test. Many of the classes were integrated into using that knowledge with an application. Additionally, if a group of students were interested in learning something that wasn't offered, they found a way to create a class!I was terrified of math from previous bad experiences and actually learned to not only be good at it, but loved it. Additionally, I took a Layman's Law class that really captured me.

The school was very involved with that. We had a volleyball team that was very active in the community and softball was another big one. Being an outdoor type of school, those of us that were students there were naturally very active and involved in cycling, skiing, kayaking, hiking, etc.

We had a bunch of Creative Kids there and the school made a ton of room for that. I was in three or four major stage Productions. Additionally, there was no holding back of the more musically talented students. We weren't big enough to have a full band or orchestra but those who played were facilitated and encouraged to get better and music was present at multiple activities throughout the year.

There was no lack of extracurricular activities. Many were pursued on our own, and the school facilitated many others like off campus trips, the previous Athletics mentioned, a number of art / creative things like ceramics, stained glass, individual activities that students were interested in like building computers turned into school sanctioned extracurricular activities. The staff were all about encouraging the students to be involved in anything and everything using their knowledge, creativity and interests to further themselves.

When I was a student there, it was awesome! We didn't live in dormitories, we lived in cabins with another roommate. I had one of the larger cabins and had three other roommates. All three of them became lifelong friends, one of them, the very closest thing to a brother I ever had and my lifelong best friend.

The food was always very good. I always had an interest in cooking and the kitchen so I spent a lot of time there and was encouraged by the staff to continue to do so as I enjoyed it so much.

We went to various activities in town, and then local speakers or people from town used to come up to the school to facilitate special activities. We frequently went into town to enjoy time at Coffee shops, restaurants, movie theaters and the like. Durango is an awesome town.

Living with each other 24/7 really puts you in a social pressure cooker. You either learn skills to get along or you learn, the hard way, what doesn't work in relationships! Being an only child, this was actually crucial in helping me build skills in life that really helped me in the work realm and with family life.