About Us

Mission

Our mission is to nurture students to become cultured individuals of exemplary moral character. To this end, we provide an education drawn from the classics and the arts, one steeped in divinely inspired traditional values of the East and West.

Core Values

Traditional Western and Eastern values provide a moral compass for one’s character development. To this end, Northern Academy embraces three principles as guideposts for our progress:

  • Integrity: Strengthening the wholeness of our moral compass by being trustworthy and consistent in thought, word, and deed.
  • Compassion: Nurturing the innate goodness that arises through our acts of kindness, selflessness, and forgiveness, uplifting us all.
  • Resilience: Cultivating the resolve to maintain our courage and diligence in the face of uncertainties, challenges, and setbacks.
Message from the Principal

Dear Parents:

It is an honor to introduce you to Northern Academy. Our leadership team has been working with our outstanding faculty and staff to create a high-quality learning environment for our students. This is done by keeping abreast of current research topics and sustaining rigorous curricula.

Northern offers students a selection of artistic and academic learning paths. No matter which course of study your child chooses, know that the essence of the curricula is a foundation of classical elements combined with fresh ideas and research-based techniques. Students at Northern receive an education that not only provides an accumulation of knowledge, but also explores the core of their character.

Because of the School’s mission to develop your children into well-rounded adults with high moral values, our faculty and staff are required to instill students with values of integrity, resilience, and compassion by demonstrating these principles through their actions and teaching methods. As a parent, you want your child to have the best opportunity for a quality education. Our goal is to meet your expectations and go beyond them. We already know our global world benefits from students who are highly educated in academics, but we also believe human society is further enriched when these young adults can think critically, express compassion and engage in all aspects of their lives with high moral values.

Northern Academy will inspire your child to develop a deep desire and passion for learning about the world and about themselves.

Warm Regards,

Dr. Marilyn Torley, Principal, Ed.D.

  • A unique, carefully planned curriculum and small class size that allow them to engage meaningfully with subjects and fully prepare for college, while helping them become lifelong learners.
  • Extensive artistic electives that provide training that enables students to pursue their artistic goals as well as building their character through the discipline of artistic training.
  • Open to grades 1 through 12
  • A safe environment with an emphasis on moral values and good conduct.
  • Classical curriculum using primary sources
  • A fully integrated health, etiquette and ethics curriculum
  • Boarding and day school options
  • Low student-teacher ratio
  • College counseling and planning for each high school student
  • Private tutoring in all subjects as needed
  • Traditional Chinese culture and Mandarin language classes
  • ESL and tutoring
Purpose of our classical educational program
  • To kindle a renaissance in the fields of knowledge by harmonizing classical Eastern and Western canons and elevating the standard of education.
  • To educate through rich content, character development, and superb technique.
  • To take part in the Great Conversation: the ongoing process, from antiquity to today, of writers and thinkers referencing, building on, and refining the work of those who came before.
Philosophy of Classical Education


Northern Academy incorporates elements of classical education in order to bring humanity to the forefront of our school culture. “Classical,” in the sense of education, refers to using ideas that have withstood the weight of time and endured with excellence and virtue. Derived from the Latin adjective classicus, meaning “of the highest order,” “classical” refers to the insights gained over thousands of years of successes and failures, and putting them to use today. “Classic” derived from another term, the Latin noun classis, means “a fleet of ships”—at that time, humankind’s highest form of naval power. Combining these, Northern Academy’s Classical Education means “a fleet of ships used to cultivate a complete person to the highest degree.”

In essence, we draw our model of Classical Education from Confucius’ “Great Learning” and the Trivium and Quadrivium as outlined by Plato and Aristotle. We embrace character education, not as a means to change the world in the form of social activism, but to embody virtue, excellence, and tranquility as a way of life. As such, we aim for genuine learning—where cognitive skills and academic success are side-effects of rich content and superb technique.

The purpose of education is an enlightened mind. Using the Northern Academy Classical Model, every well-planned course offers the opportunity for students to continue their academic journey from knowledge to wisdom.

(Coming soon…)

We have collaborated with our students and community to establish three significant policies to limit distractions:

  1. We encourage smart use of technology, and limit the use of personal electronic devices on school grounds. (See Electronics Policy.)
  2. In order for our students to have the time to become fully developed people, we discourage intimate relationships. (See Student & Parent Handbook.)
  3. To function effectively, protect its members, and respect their rights, student conduct that may be disruptive, unproductive, unethical, or illegal will not be tolerated. All students must abide by the Student Code of Conduct and violations will be imposed in accordance with the discipline measures indicated in the Code, as well as in the school’s Discipline Policy.
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How to Support

The distinctive values of Northern Academy shape us today and inform our aspirations for tomorrow. Our school is making a positive impact in the local community and beyond. You can be an important part of that change.

What to Support

Areas of Greatest Need
Gifts in this area provide unrestricted support that allows NAA the flexibility to address the most pressing and critical needs of our school. These gifts make an immediate impact and help to keep our campus thriving.

Scholarship and Financial Aid
Gifts in this area provide much-needed resources to ensure that an NAA education remains accessible to all our students.

Student Enrichment
Gifts in this area support current students’ education experience from the classroom to their extracurricular activities. These funds allow for traveling, music and dance concerts, field trips, clubs and more.

Academics
Gifts in this area will provide the resources needed for curriculum development, conference participation, and teachers’ career development.

Ways to Give
Cash Gifts Online
To make a gift by credit card or Paypal, please click “Donate” to make your online donation today!
 
Check or Money Order
If giving by check or money order, please make it payable to Northern Academy of Arts, fill out this form and mail it to:
 
Northern Academy
Office of Development
1 Ashley Avenue

Middletown, NY 10940

Phone
Call 1-845-293-2608 to discuss how to make a gift, where to direct your donation, or any other questions you may have about supporting NAA.

Wire Transfer
To wire transfer funds to NAA, contact the Office of Development at develop@northernacademy.org or 1-845-293-2608 for instructions.

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Tell your friends about NAA and let everyone know you support NAA!