Thales Academy

Thales Academy
Thales Academy
	250px
Location
	Raleigh, North Carolina
Information
Type	Private
Religious affiliation(s)	Non-sectarian
Founded	2007
Founder	Robert L. Luddy
Faculty	150
Grades	Pre-K through 12
Number of students	1,400+
Campus	Suburban
Tuition	Pre-K: $4,800/year;; K-5: $5,300/year;; 6-12: $6,000/year
Website	www.thalesacademy.org

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Thales Academy (/ˈθeɪliːz/ THAY-leez; Greek: Θαλῆς (ὁ Μιλήσιος), Thalēs; c. 624 – c. 546 BC) is a network of private community schools located in central North Carolina. The Pre-K-12 college preparatory school is named for the Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus, often credited as the father of Greek Philosophy. As of mid-2015, there are five campus locations in the Raleigh area. Its mission is to provide an affordable, quality education through the use of Direct Instruction and a Classical curriculum for students in Pre-K through the 12th grade to develop skills needed for success in college and career.^[1]

History

Thales Academy, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit school, was established in 2007 by Robert L. Luddy, a North Carolina entrepreneur, educator, philanthropist, and founder and CEO of CaptiveAire Systems. Prior to Thales, Luddy founded Franklin Academy in Wake Forest, one of the state’s largest and best–performing charter schools, and St. Thomas More Academy in Raleigh, an independent Catholic college preparatory school.

Since its founding Thales Academy has opened five locations and two more are in development.^[2]^[3]

Locations

File:Thales Academy building front.jpg

The front side of Thales Academy in Rolesville

Current locations for Thales Academy are Apex (two separate locations for K-5 and JH/HS), Raleigh, Rolesville, and Wake Forest, North Carolina.^[4] The newly constructed, two-story brick buildings consist of approximately 20 classrooms on 34,000 square feet (K-5) or 55,000 square feet (6-12). The buildings feature Greek columns, polished concrete floors, tall ceilings, and painted classical murals in hallways in an effort to encourage a love for learning. Thales K-5 offer playgrounds with artificial turf. Thales junior high and high schools offer full-sized gymnasiums and auditoriums as well as outdoor soccer fields.

Education Methods

For grades K-5, the school uses a methodology known as Direct Instruction (DI). DI uses systematic curriculum design to engage students and retain focus in order to maximize learning in the classroom. In grades 6-12, DI is phased out in favor of classical education that is based around the Socratic Method and the trivium. Direct Instruction is used in the early years to build a strong foundation for the rigorous Classical curriculum used in junior high and high school.

STEM/L.I.T.

Thales Academy High School offers a unique STEM elective track called the Luddy Institute of Technology (L.I.T.). This dual-track curriculum is designed to prepare students for engineering colleges as well as industrial apprenticeships, and is enhanced with coursework on economics and entrepreneurship. In the Engineering College Track, students are prepared for entry into traditional four–year engineering colleges. In the Apprenticeship Track, students follow the same coursework, but starting in the summer of their senior year begin employment as paid apprentices in industry. Their senior year consists of: 1) coursework at Thales, 2) engineering studies at a local community college, and 3) paid on-the-job training at one of the partner companies.

Extracurricular Activities

While the focus of Thales Academy is on academics, the schools offer a variety of academic and athletic after-school activities including: chess and math clubs, Science Olympiad, yearbook, soccer, roller hockey, girls and boys basketball, volleyball, golf, tennis, cross country and others. Offerings vary by school, available facilities, and are dependent on parental involvement.