Enjoy Your Time
There is so much that makes The Leelanau School unique, with our setting on Lake Michigan, being one of only three boarding school in Michigan, and having a long history of experiential education. The following pages will help you dive deeper into what The Leelanau School is all about.
Class work can happen anywhere!
A Better Way to Learn
Hands-On Approach
Teamwork
Lasting Friendships
At Leelanau, our mission is to help students maintain or rediscover their passion for learning and discovery – by respecting their individual strengths.
We can do all this because the Leelanau School is a different kind of school – a private, non-profit organization. While our colleagues in public school environments must contend with larger class sizes and high-stakes standardized testing that forces instructors to teach to the test, our unique position allows us to do things differently.
Winter Term
From trips that open students’ eyes to the world to courses that allow deep exploration or practical life skills – Winter Term is an opportunity for students and staff to make the most of the winter by doing what brings them joy!
COUNCIL
The Leelanau School values the development of the whole person, not just a student’s academic skills.
Over the course of the school year, we participate in a tradition known as Council, which is a way to communicate, connect, and learn about ourselves, each other, and our place in the world.
Afternoon Activity and Athletic Program
Leelanau Athletic Field
Exploratory Leaders
Our Afternoon Activities and Athletics Program is designed to provide students at all levels, abilities, and interests engaging opportunities that foster the development of skills and interests.
We believe fun and diverse extracurricular play an integral part in a well-rounded education and development of a student – even if that means participating in things outside of their comfort zone.
Throughout the school year students participate in one activity per six week session. Activities are held after classes Monday through Thursday for an hour and fifteen minutes and are facilitated by the supportive adults of the Leelanau community.
Parents are constantly amazed to see their children’s self-confidence and sense of belonging soar in our safe and accepting environment.
Greenhouse Class
Everyone has the opportunity to get involved in the school greenhouse, but this class takes students deeper in a discovery of food systems, sustainability, and farm-to-table. Students participate in the growing, harvesting, processing, and even cooking of food from the garden.
Growing Our Food
We believe at the Leelanau School, that knowing how to feed oneself in a healthy, satisfying, and sustainable way is an important life skill. The Leelanau School’s greenhouse and food gardens provide an exciting hands-on environment for students to experience and understand where food comes from and how it is grown.
COMPOSTING
Reducing waste is incredibly important at the Leelanau School. We treasure the natural environment that surrounds our campus and want to pass on it’s stewardship to the next generation. We compost 100% of our kitchen waste and also have composting programs in the residence houses and academic buildings.
Health & Wellness
The Leelanau School feels that students need to develop healthy lifestyles for their lifetimes.
Our overall wellness program is designed around this premise by providing activities and guidance.
Health Services is staffed by a full time coordinator and 4 part time nurses. The nurses are on site every day from 7:30 am until 11:00 pm. We also have a nurse “on call” from 11 pm until 7:30 am. Our residence life faculty works closely with Health Services to ensure students’ health care needs are met. Nurses are available throughout the day to examine students, treat minor maladies, and are present for emergencies. Our medical staff possess active medical certifications and our faculty is certified in basic first aid as well as CPR.
Food & Nutrition
Healthy foods are a daily part of life at Leelanau School.
You won’t find fatty, fried foods in our cafeteria line.
You will find freshly prepared, nutritious and delicious offerings that are locally sourced and prepared on site. Each meal has an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables, a gluten-free entree and we are attentive to those with food allergies and sensitivities.
STUDENT LIFE
At The Leelanau School, we do not define a classroom by four walls. The term “school” on our campus encompasses every aspect of a student’s daily life. Approximately 85% of a boarding school student’s life exists in the unstructured time outside of the class day.
We consider our campus as an active and living learning laboratory where students continually are learning about themselves, about the lives of those around them, learning student skills as pertaining to their own learning styles, as well as the course content during the class day.
A typical day at The Leelanau School is busy and diverse.
8:15 Students are up and ready for their day. The cafe is open for breakfast, offering healthy options to start the day. Students are required to sign in by 8:15.
8:15 – 8:30 Quiet periods and advisory meetings
8:35 – 9:05 Morning Energize. Exercising first thing in the morning is key to an awake mind and body.
9:10 – 10:25 First and Second period class blocks. These alternate during the week.
10:30 – 11:00 Break period. Students use this period to regroup, grab a snack and to seek additional help for their studies.
11:05 – 12:25 Third and Fourth class block
12:30 – 1:00 Lunch! Healthy eating is such an important part of life here at the Leelanau School. We utilize fresh food from our campus greenhouse plus as much locally produced food as possible.
1:05 – 2:25 Fifth & Sixth class block
2:30 – 3:45 Seventh class block or Council period
3:45 Break period. Snack
4:15 – 5:30 Afternoon activities
6:15 – 7:00 Dinner. As with all meals, we integrate our students with the process as part of the healthy living learning process.
7:15 Sign in to Dorm
7:30 – 9:00 Study Hall
9:00 – 9:45 Open Gym
9:45 Call to dorms
