DOLLAR ACADEMY - SCOTTISH AND INTERNATIONAL
Scotland's Premier Independent Co-educational Day and Boarding School
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HISTORY Dollar Academy's history ranges from the grandeur of Sir William Playfair's fine 1818 stone architecture to the exotic species of trees in Dollar Academy's grounds dating from the 1830's. Time has never stood still at Dollar Academy, however - from the first, the 1818 Dollar Institution was innovatory in its co-educational boarding. Even that has moved on: those first co-educational boarding pupils would hardly recognise the relaxed 'home from home' atmosphere of the twenty-first century boarding Houses. Dollar Academy is making its name in other areas, too: its developments in Biotechnology, for example, have national status in conjunction with local business and higher education institutions throughout Scotland
LOCATION First impressions of Dollar Academy often centre on the extensive Scottish landscape around the school, the variety and magnificence of both its classical and contemporary buildings, and the openness of its location. Certainly, unlike many Scottish boarding schools Dollar Academy has a real sense of space, set in the small town of Dollar at the foot of the Ochil Hills in Clackmannanshire, Scotland.
There is no sense of isolation, however: Dollar Academy is only twenty minutes east of Stirling. To the south it is less than an hour from the Scottish Capital Edinburgh, and to the west it is a similar distance from Glasgow. Thus Dollar Academy achieves a perfect balance of location: near enough to population centres to enjoy all their attractions, but far enough away to access the Scottish hills and glens, and to enjoy the security of a small country community.
This balancing of complementary factors is found everywhere in the Dollar Academy experience: the balance of ancient and modern; Scottish and international; traditional and innovatory; wide horizons and human scale; boys and girls; infants and seniors, boarding and day pupils... As the premier Scottish independent co-educational boarding school, Dollar Academy has an ethos reflecting traditional Scottish educational concerns: breadth and well-rounded experience.
AN INDEPENDENT SCOTTISH INTERNATIONAL BOARDING SCHOOL Dollar Academy remains conscious of its Scottish roots, and offers a curriculum built on Scottish qualifications. Scottish national culture is fully supported in Dollar Academy, and pupils can try their hands at traditional skills like Scottish country dancing, bagpipe playing and drumming. There is no narrow nationalism about Dollar Academy, however, and there are many international connections throughout the curriculum.
A CO-EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM THAT WORKS Pre-eminent among independent Scottish boarding schools, Dollar Academy has been a Scottish co-educational boarding school from the first, and over the years has developed into the leading independent Scottish co-educational boarding school, with a strong emphasis on co-educational aspects of modern teaching and learning. In today's world, Scottish independent co-educational boarding schools need a solid establishment and a track record of results to ensure future development. Dollar Academy has always been secure in these respects.
SCHOOLS WITHIN A SCHOOL Dollar Academy has three schools: a prep school, a junior school and a senior school. An advantage of the proximity of the senior school and the junior school is that pupils in the senior school can offer support for pupils in the junior school. Indeed all three schools are in close proximity. During non-taught lessons, many Form VI pupils from the senior school come to both prep school and junior school to help with activities. Thus all three schools work in close harmony. Having three schools together is one of the many attractions of Dollar Academy. As pupils move through the schools and enter Form VI they are given the opportunity to become school prefects with more responsibilities, and pupils in both prep and junior schools gain further role models.
BOARDING AT DOLLAR ACADEMY Dollar Academy prides itself on the great care taken to ensure that the lives of day and boarding pupils are fully integrated throughout every activity. Thus boarding and day pupils are mixed throughout every activity. Day pupils are welcomed into boarding Houses, and boarding pupils often visit friends outside Dollar Academy.
Boarding Houses at Dollar Academy offer pupils facilities such as e-mail and telephone for easy communication with home. At weekends boarding pupils may also take weekend leave by arrangement with boarding Houseparents. Great care is taken to ensure that boarding pupils feel both secure and involved in the decisions concerning their lives in their boarding House.
As befits the leader among Scottish boarding schools, Dollar Academy has always had a boarding community and a strong co-educational boarding ethos. Whilst the majority of its boarding pupils are of Scottish origin, a number will come to Dollar Academy from abroad. The success of Dollar Academy's boarding lies not only in the facilities of each boarding House, but in the approach taken to caring for boarding pupils. Significantly, boarding staff are known as 'Houseparents', reflecting the view of boarding pupils as members of an extended family.
FURTHER INFORMATION If you want to read more about Dollar Academy, Scotland's premier independent co-educational day and boarding school, download its prospectus today
