Students are Architects

. . . of their own learning. Through collaboration and experimentation, they come to understand the value of reflection and even failure. They challenge themselves, engage the unfamiliar, and stretch, intellectually and personally.

At The New School, our students master a challenging college-preparatory curriculum. But within that curriculum, they have numerous opportunities, both large and small, to shape the direction of their course of study.

For example, as part of a study they were conducting of Atlanta’s Little 5 Points neighborhood, our students were drawn to the issue of homelessness in Atlanta, which they wanted to explore in greater depth. This led to the Homelessness Project, a month-long study of various aspects of homelessness, both nationally and locally. Students broke into teams to design solutions that grew out of their skills and passions, and then pitched them to a panel of academics, funders, and experts in the field.

In their junior and senior years, our students will have even greater responsibility for shaping the course of their learning, through our entrepreneurship and internship programs.

Students also learn early on at The New School that they are the most important agents of change in their own lives, as they reflect on and revise their work at every stage, and, in close consultation with their instructors, set and track personal and academic goals.