CLAIRBOURN SCHOOL - San Gabriel, California
OUR STANDPOINT
PURPOSE: The purpose of Clairbourn School shall be to demonstrate in a practical way the unlimited nature of all true instruction through educational opportunities which are harmonious with the teachings of Christian Science and in accordance with accepted professional standards of educational excellence.
PREMISE: The achievement of this purpose is formulated on the following collective premise:
- That any student who is receptive to instruction can experience success in proportion to his/her receptivity and application.
- That the best education is one that assists the student in acquiring basic study habits, including active listening, critical thinking, disciplined effort, and obedience to Principle.
- That the joy of learning is enhanced and enriched through the use of variety, creativity, and self-expression in developing essential physical, mental, and social skills.
- That the gift of understanding carries with it certain moral and spiritual obligations to mankind for its constructive use in a way that fosters noble ambition, unselfed service, and world brotherhood.
- That a deep respect and reverence for God as an active power in human affairs provides the foundation for strength, courage, integrity, humility, and compassion, and leads to an establishment of sound Christian character and a respect for the convictions of others.
- That the education of children is a shared responsibility between the school and the family, requiring the school to carry forward its instructional program in a way that preserves, supports, and enriches the basic family unit of which the student is a member.
- That the protection and preservation of our democratic form of government requires an alert, informed, and active citizenry anchored in a love of country, appreciation of heritage and a deep respect for law.
 OUR PROGRAM: Clairbourn School has a fine tradition of educational achievement since 1926. During the school year, it enrolls 428 students in grades Preschool through Eight on 8 tree-filled acres in the San Gabriel Valley. Clairbourn's summer programs serve more than 350 students annually.
At Clairbourn, the needs and success of each child are the central concerns. In both its summer programs and during the regular school year, Clairbourn offers a rich diversity of educational experiences in line with current professional teaching practices.
Our goal is to assure that, without using undue pressure, each child is challenged to grow and develop his or her own special strengths and interests, to achieve a high level of competency in the essential skills and areas of knowledge, and to enter adulthood with confidence and high expectations.
The Early Childhood Department covers children in the 3-year olds' program, 4-year olds' Pre-kindergarten program and Kindergarten. The elementary grades are divided into 1st/2nd grade department, 3rd/4th/5th grade department, and 6th/7th/8th department.
Clairbourn's Preschool Program offers an atmosphere that stimulates learning and creates a feeling of success, thus making first school experiences enjoyable and positive. Clairbourn's preschool activities are designed to promote fine and gross motor development and coordination, and to encourage learning by doing.
Our Early Childhood Program is centered around thematic units such as "Harvest" or "Dinosaurs." Daily activities, which emphasize learning to play and work well with others and to follow simple directions, are centered around these themes. The primary focus is on language and concept development, and play is filled with a variety of activities such as blocks, music and movement, art, counting and science activities, stories, and sharing time.
 Special traditions in the Preschool include a Halloween parade, Thanksgiving feast, and Easter hat parade. Students participate in our annual Christmas and Spring all-school musicals.
These primary grades offer a theme-based hands-on learning experience that emphasizes thinking, questioning, observing, and reasoning. Students learn to understand the printed word and how it works primarily through language-based activities in listening, speaking, reading, and writing complemented by a phonics component which provides specific strategies for dealing with written language.
Mathematics concepts and skills are taught through the use of manipulatives, with an emphasis on both problem solving and acquisition of beginning computational skills. Social studies activities develop an awareness of self, family, community, country, and the world, and the relationships between these units. An exciting hands-on science program nurtures children's natural curiosity, emphasizes exploration, observation, logic, classification, and deductive reasoning, and helps students understand the world around them. First and second grade students work weekly with specialists in music, art, library, physical education, and computer.
The primary program strives to provide a wide variety of experiences designed to create an atmosphere in which learning is natural and enjoyable.
The intermediate grades offer a curriculum that emphasizes the process and the development of higher-level thinking skills such as analysis, synthesis and evaluation, original observation and thinking, experiential learning, and academic responsibility. Writing in all subject areas demands that students wrestle with what they are learning and give it meaning. Students read from a wide selection of fine children's literature while continuing to solidify basic decoding and comprehension skills.
Students continue to learn basic math facts and algorithms and use these skills to solve problems; as students move through the grades instruction increasingly emphasizes logical thinking, estimating, probability, and mental math. Each step of the way, the use of manipulatives provides a strong base of concrete experiences before moving into the abstract and symbolic.
Use of a computer becomes an important part of instruction in these grades, with computer lab activities integrated into the regular classroom curriculum. Science exploration and activities are centered around issues of global concern, and fourth and fifth grade students actively participate in the school's annual science fair, Project: STAR.
Social studies activities incorporate a variety of field trips and hands-on experiences. A special feature of fourth grade is a field trip to view history first-hand at the San Gabriel Mission. Fifth graders culminate a social studies/language arts unit based upon Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana with an overnight adventure on a 19th-century sailing ship.
Students in grades three, four, and five have regular specialists-taught instruction in art, music, computer, library, Spanish, French, and physical education.
The hallmarks of Clairbourn's middle school are a strong teaching team of specialists each teaching in his or her own field of expertise who meet bi-weekly to assess individual student progress and needs, and a family atmosphere where teachers and students work together for a shared sense of accomplishment and fun.
In addition to the core subjects of math, English, history, science, and foreign language, students round out their experience through a variety of elective classes in such areas as geography, fine arts, speech and debate, research, drama, music, and computer.
 Technology plays an important part in the middle school curriculum. In addition to regular work in our computer lab, students regularly utilize CD-ROM technology, laser discs, the Internet, and videos for research and instruction. While academics are of utmost importance, practicing values such as cooperation, kindness, self-discipline, and taking personal responsibility are important elements in each student's experience. Frequent communication between teachers, parents, and students helps to promote success.
Students participate in three important curriculum-based trips during their junior high years at Clairbourn. Sixth graders spend three days at the Catalina Island Marine Institute studying marine biology in conjunction with the sixth grade life science program. The seventh grade curriculum covers earth science, and students participate in a week-long geology field study at Joshua Tree National Monument. The eighth grade physical science program is complemented by study of environmental issues including local water use and conservation, which is the emphasis of a week-long trip to Monterey Bay.
In addition to regular classroom work, there are many special opportunities for Clairbourn middle school students. There is an active after-school sports program for both boys and girls, and Student Council provides an opportunity for leadership and service. A community service component in the curriculum requires each seventh and eighth grade student to participate in one of several on-going projects providing service to our local communities.
Clairbourn sponsors two dances each year for seventh and eighth graders from our school and other local private schools, and our seventh and eighth graders are invited to other private school dances. Some seventh and eighth graders elect to participate in a bi-yearly summer field study program to Great Britain or Costa Rica.
Students who successfully complete our program are well prepared for acceptance in fine private and public high schools throughout Southern California.
PROFILE
Community
Location: San Gabriel, California
Service Area: San Gabriel Valley, including Pasadena, San Marino, Arcadia, Sierra Madre, Alhambra, Temple City, Monrovia, West Covina, San Dimas, Glendora, Altadena, La Canada, South Pasadena, Bradbury, San Gabriel, Monterey Park, Glendale, Eagle Rock
School Description
Clairbourn is an independent, Christian-based, preparatory day school for boys and girls, children 3 years old through Eighth Grade.
Enrollment
428 students
Student/teacher ratio: 11 to 1
Average class size: 21
Administration
Dr. Robert W. Nafie, Headmaster
Mrs. Gloria Stahmer, Assistant Head of School
Mrs. Janice Elmore, Business Manager
Mrs. Janna Windsor, Director of Admissions
Mrs. Lynda Beckstrom, Development Director
Mrs. Stacie Blazek, Early Childhood Director
Miss Amy Beckstrom, Middle School Director
Faculty
Full time teachers: 19
Other full time specialists: 8
Part/Full time aides: 7
Memberships
Member of and Accredited by CAIS (California Association of Independent Schools)
Member of NAIS (National Association of Independent Schools)
Member of and Accredited by WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges)
Member of and Accredited by NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children)
Member of Independent Alliance for Minority Affairs
Member of Council for Religion in Independent Schools
Academic Year
Two semesters of 18 weeks each
Report cards sent every 9 weeks
Teacher/Parent Conference 3 times each year
Entrance Requirements
Clairbourn admits students of any race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin. We seek students who acknowledge the value and responsibilities of an independent school education. Other important factors are the student's ability to meet the academic standards and expectations of the school and to be an enthusiastic participant in the many extracurricular activities offered at Clairbourn.
A BRIEF HISTORY
1926 Mr. and Mrs. Arthur K. Borne opened a kindergarten for children of parents interested in Christian Science. In September, the enrollment went from four students to fourteen and the addition of a first grade.
1927 School moved to 1261 San Pasqual with twenty-three children through the third grade.
1928 When nursery and fourth grades were added in September 1928, a larger facility was found at 245 West California Street. The School was known as The Claire Louise Progressive Elementary School. Fifth and sixth grades were soon to follow.
1930-31 Seventh and eighth grades and a four year high school were added and the official name of the school was changed to Clairbourn, which means "Clear Goal".
1931 Clairbourn outgrew its building and an estate of 3.5 acres on Huntington Drive in San Gabriel was leased. A two-story dormitory/classroom/office building was constructed.
1933 Four students were graduated from high school in 1933 and four in 1934.
1935 The first summer session, recreational style, was operated for over sixty youngsters.
1937 Mr. George E. Platt, father of Trustee Mrs. Edwin Gardner, had advanced money without interest to purchase the property and aided in the construction of the building. In 1937, he forgave the outstanding school debt under a Deed of Trust. This Trust provided that Clairbourn School would always be operated in harmony with the teachings of Christian Science.
1939 The high school was discontinued and a nursery school was added.
1953 The Nursery-Kindergarten Building was finished.
1958 Adjacent 5-acre site with its Manor House and swimming pool was purchased. Seventh and eighth grades were added with over 100 students enrolled from nursery through eighth. The orange grove in front of the Manor House was cleared and the present playing field was built.
1965 The Carden Method of Instruction was adopted.
1967 Clairbourn opened its doors to students of other faiths, resulting in a social, religious, and ethnic mix in the student body, while the faculty, staff, and administration remained active Christian Scientists.
1967 Two sister campuses were begun in Redwood City and San Rafael. The Redwood City school soon moved to Cupertino and became The Shepherd School.
1969 Five-room hexagonal classroom building for first and second grades, plus an activity room, was erected and named the Gardner Building.
1977 Multipurpose game court finished in May with the generous help of Mrs. Helen Z. Sanger. East Hall (six classrooms for Junior High) was completed.
1980 Trustees established a Master Plan and, with the help of a team of architects, began to map out a new plan for the campus, combining the original 3.5-acre site with the newer 5-acre site. Carden Method was replaced by curriculum chosen by Administration.
1986 New Library, Art Studio, Music Room were completed along with a renovated infrastructure of new sidewalks, new central lighting system, irrigation system and electrical and gas lines.
1988 Multi Purpose Building was completed in the spring. During a December windstorm, the famous eucalyptus tree in the central quad fell and was replaced by a grove of ginkgo trees.
1989 Trustees authorized a restructuring of Administration, providing for the positions of Assistant Head of School, Director of Business and Finance, and Director of Admissions.
1992 A new facility to house the two fourth grade and two fifth grade classrooms was built. A Director of Development was added to the Administration.
2001 Randall Hall, six classrooms for grades 1 3, and a new developmental play yard were completed. Clairbourn celebrates its 75th Anniversary.
2002 Construction begun on new entry/transportation pavilion and two kindergarten classrooms. Middle School Director was added to the Administration.
2003 Construction completed and new entrance with school reception office opened. Victoria Andrew Hall with two kindergarten classes opened. New Cougar Corner opened. |
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