What age students can attend VSA?  What grades?

We accept students who are 12 – 17 years old.  Another way we look at it are students who are currently in 7th to 11th grade now (so they will be in 8th – 12th grade next Fall).

Who attends VSA?

Everyone! Our program is perfect for any student interested in extending their learning into the summer and experiencing life on a college campus. Our students are action-oriented, motivated thinkers looking to creatively and freely explore their interests in a setting that is much more than just summer academic experience.

Our students are not interested solely in academics. They also look to the wide variety of evening activities we provide and the diversity of friends they make on campus. Students interact with everyone in the program—from the directors to the RAs to students in other classes—and discover role models and make new friends during their time at GMC! So who comes to Vermont Summer Academy? You do!

Will I get to meet real College faculty?

The Creative Writing course is taught by a member of the English Department.  Other classes will be visited by the faculty or otherwise engaged by the College community.  All the coursework is approved by the Provost.  This is a great program… but it is the full experience, not just the classwork, that makes this such a unique experience.

Is the dorm fun?

Students are matched with roommates based on age and course. We endeavor to have roommates who are the same age but who are in different academic tracks. Students are housed on floors by gender, and staff lives on each floor.

My daughter takes meds.  She is a great kid, but she is a bit introspective and quiet at first.  Is the environment at VSA suited for her?

Yes!  First of all, lots of our students take medications, it is the way of the world these days.  There is no stigma, and it is really no big deal to anybody.  The health director simply dispenses the medications as prescribed and nobody makes an issue of it.  But to answer your larger question, yes, our program is a great locale for students who are quiet, or shy, or introspective, or just a little bit different than the most popular student in their high school.  Our program is more than the academics; it is about community.  Our goal is to give the students the chance to build their own neat little community, that they all participate in and create themselves.  Psychology students will help write the profile of the ‘criminal’ in the crime scene the Forensic Science students solve as part of their final day.  The creative writing students will write up the back story.  They all help pull each other over the finish line, if that makes sense!

Is there lots of homework and tests?  My son has enough stress during the school year to last a lifetime!

There is no homework, no tests, no quizzes… we agree, these students have too much of that during the year.  This program is about fun while learning; it is about exploring or deepening understanding in a new or neat area of study, but really it is about personal development and growth.  That occurs in a warm, safe, welcoming environment just like ours at VSA.  If the students are safe, and having fun, learning will occur in prodigious leaps and bounds.

I’m flying to Green Mountain College, can you pick me up?

Yes, the College offers drivers and vans to pick up and drop off students at Burlington International Airport (BTV) or Albany International Airport (ALB). Burlington is the best airport to get in and out of. Staff members escort students. For those who choose this service, full payment and travel information must be submitted by June 1.

Do you offer financial aid or scholarships?

Unfortunately, no, we do not offer any financial aid or scholarships.  You might try contacting your school, church, or other charitable foundation or group to see if you can find funds.

Can I bring my cell phone, iPod, iPad or laptop?

Students may bring their cell phones; however, we have a strict cell phone use policy, and students must check their phones with the program office when they arrive on Sunday. We do this for two reasons: phone use can be disruptive to the learning environment and can prevent students from connecting with the new friends and mentors around them. Students may take cell phones on all off-campus trips as an extra level of safety. Students and parents may reach each other in the case of an emergency, 24-hours a day, through the program office and security office phone numbers. Students may not bring personal laptops or other devices such as iPads and iPods to the program but may use the campus computers for email and Internet use.