he world today is more T connected than ever; courtesy of technology and globalization. People are not confined to just their homeland but have an opportunity to go globetrotting physically as well as virtually. High school students’ families can choose a world class school in the southern United States for an opportunity to graduate from an accredited high school will open doors to universities across the U.S. Educating responsible citizens of the world is the mission of The Capitol School.. The six buildings on the campus of Alabama’s International School resonate with the voices of some of the 87 nationalities of students enrolled from across the world. The campus is located in historic Tuscaloosa around Capitol Park. One of the school’s buildings dates to 1818 – the year Alabama was granted statehood on Dec. 14 by the U.S. Congress. The Founders When Dr. Barbara Rountree was a Professor at the University of Alabama, she dreamed of a school where faculty could put into practice the latest research on the best ways to help students learn. Meanwhile, a teacher in a local public school, Margaret Brown Hill, created a model classroom for her students using best practices from research. She was recognized as “Teacher of the Year” for her innovative and engaging teaching and serving as a mentor to interns from The University of Alabama. Together, the two realized their dreams in 1993 and founded The Capitol School as a private school with 46 students in kindergarten through fifth grade. Today, the school enrolls 175 students, from prekindergarten through high school graduation and continues to incorporate the newest and most effective means of teaching students. Since then, Dr. Rountree has been serving as the school’s Director. Her remarkable team of faculty members is led by Mrs. Hill who have created a supportive and successful learning environment. The Capitol School has made a mark in academic circles, garnering accolades as a model school for 27 years. For her out-of-the-box thinking, Dr. Rountree was named one of Edutopia magazines’ ‘Daring Dozen’, an honor given to those who are reshaping the future of education. In 2018, Dr. Rountree was inducted into the Alabama Education Hall of Fame. Mrs. Hill has been named “Teacher of the Year” twice in her career. Distinctive Feature The Capitol School is a multiple ability school. Faculty believe that each student has multiple intelligence and should have opportunities to learn in all of these areas. The school bases its The Capitol School A Multiple Intelligence School philosophy of learning on the Multiple Intelligences Theory developed by Harvard professor, Dr. Howard Gardner. At The Capitol School, teaching is tailored to meet individualized needs and the teachers ask, ‘How is this child smart?’ instead of ‘How smart is this child?’ Teachers use various methods to assess a student’s progress and to report the progress to their parents. These may include progress reports, narratives, checklists, portfolios, and video portfolios. Quarterly reports are provided to parents in October, December, March and May. A typical school day for High School students starts at 8:30 a.m. with a 7 period day of core and elective classes ending at 3:30 p.m. Music, Violin, Piano and Art classes are offered. The study of world languages is key at The Capitol School. Students study Spanish, German and Mandarin from ages 3 – 18 through daily lessons with native-speaking teachers. After-school sports include cross country, volleyball, bowling, tennis, golf, and a new soccer team forming. Clubs such as Math Club, Key Club, National Honor Society Club and Robotics Club meet weekly. Spanish, German, Spelling and Geography competitions are held annually. Students participate in weekly meetings with the school’s counselor and Scholar Support Meetings take place in small groups for peer interactions and encouragement. High school students age 15 and older participate in 02| MM | 2019 01| MM | 2019 Alabama’s Dual Enrollment/Dual Credit Program, which allows students to take college courses while in high school. Students with a 3.0 GPA may begin college classes at 10th grade with EARLY COLLEGE at The University of Alabama, a top 50 public university in the U.S. To learn more about Dual Enrollment, visit https://uaearlycollege.ua.edu English support is provided for students who have just moved to Alabama. Students participate in German and Spanish state competitions with public and private schools from across the state. ‘Linguists around the world concur that the earlier you learn a language, the better,’ Dr. Rountree says. It is the only PK-12 World Language program in Alabama. Celebrating Diversity Through the years, students from 87 countries have attended Capitol School classes, and the faculty recruited from across the globe. That diversity is celebrated annually with an International Festival where families host booths to share their heritage. They display flags, maps, artifacts, toys and favorite foods from their home country. Students of all ages learn about the cultures of fellow students in the school. One of five Capitol School students or their parents were born outside the U.S. “Educating responsible citizens of the world.”