Why NESA? A Letter from Leadership

Dear Friends,

Welcome to New England School of the Arts (NESA)! We are thrilled and honored to be new partners in the Lebanon, NH and Upper Valley arts and educational community. Our school’s mission is centered in the academic, cultural, social, and intellectual development of our students to become more productive and engaged citizens and artists. At NESA, explicit and enriched connections to the arts are embedded across the curriculum. Through rigorous project and inquiry-based educational learning opportunities, students at NESA navigate the complexities of what it means to be an artist, learner, and life-long developing human being. Using the arts as a vehicle we prepare students for life, work, artistic pursuits, and citizenship. 

Teaching and learning are at the forefront of our day-to-day focus. At NESA, students are provided equitable access to high-quality instruction and rigorous and relevant instructional programs. First-rate content and grade-level aligned curricula and research-based instructional practices in all subject areas with direct connections to the arts are provided to students. Opportunities for all NESA students to explore internship and apprenticeship learning experiences in and out of school with our community partners allow learners to become self-actualized and develop deeper understandings and successful relationships with their families, local communities, and the larger world. These authentic learning experiences and the application of what is learned are essential for students to continually develop expertise and apply their learning throughout life. 

The NESA academic program requires students to be intellectually and emotionally engaged in their own learning. This demands a great deal of planning, coordination, and support on the part of NESA teachers and leadership. NESA’s leadership and instructional team nurtures an instructional program and school culture that is conducive to high quality learning and professional growth. They understand that they must be skilled and enthusiastic moderators of student learning and development. NESA faculty are talented and humble educators and see themselves as learners. They understand the importance of modeling what they want their students and colleagues to do and demonstrate. They support the ongoing growth of students, the organization, and themselves. In short, we at NESA understand that a healthy school and classroom culture is essential to the sustained support and improvement of all learning in a school community.

In these times of ongoing change, our social and technological context is constantly evolving. Education for life, work and citizenship cannot just focus on what is already known and how we live now. We must prepare our students for both the present and the future in which they will navigate and live. There is a wide body of research that demonstrates the importance of a robust arts education and its connection to better outcomes for students in other subjects and in their ability to navigate life, college, and careers. In short, the exposure to and immersion in arts education not only facilitates future success for students, but also makes life much richer and worth living. We welcome you to our wonderful new school in Downtown Lebanon, NH.

With Gratitude,

Jennifer Chambers

Head of School

Carl Chambers

Chief Executive Officer