About Aspen Academy

Aspen Academy in Greenwood Village, Colorado, is a national leader in innovative education. Through internationally acclaimed academics and the nation’s first integrated Pre-K through 8th grade leadership and entrepreneurial development program, our students are empowered to lead purposeful and extraordinary lives.

Small classes are led by exceptional, award-winning faculty who provide a foundation of rich academics and a personalized approach to instruction.   

Testimonial from Aspen Academy student about the school being a second home

Aspen Academy's History

Aspen Academy was founded in 2005 by three women dedicated to the idea of providing an educational opportunity where what you know is equally as important as who you are. It was important to our founders that Aspen Academy became a place where when children left at the end of the day, they couldn’t wait to come back in the morning. It was through this vision, the generosity of a group of parents, will, and sheer grit, that Aspen Academy began in a 10'x12’ office in downtown Littleton, Colorado.

School began on August 21, 2005, with 100 students in Pre-Kindergarten through the 4th Grade. Aspen Academy was located in a temporary space, rented for three years. By 2007, enrollment had exceeded the space's capacity, which prompted the purchase of a larger facility. The current site for Aspen Academy was purchased and renovation began.

Over the course of the next eight years, our current site was entirely renovated to include a new gymnasium and fitness center, Pre-Kindergarten through 3rd Grade classroom renovations, the addition of a Professional Development Center for faculty, new sports facilities, gardens, fourteen outdoor labs, ten teaching gardens, security fencing, and most recently, Innovation labs.

In 2009, Bears' Student Enterprises was founded and is an entirely student-managed entity that houses the 8th Graders’ businesses. In 2012, the Aspen Youth Leadership Institute was founded. A comprehensive and sequenced Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade curriculum was developed and has resulted in a daily leadership class for all Aspen Academy students where the focus is on the development of concepts and skills in personal effectiveness, intra- and interpersonal awareness, character and leadership, and financial literacy and entrepreneurship. In 2013, we created a Financial Literacy curriculum written in partnership with the National Financial Literacy Council. In addition, two of our eighth graders received national recognition for their documentary on eating disorders. In 2014, our Head of School was featured in an episode of the PBS Series, “Exceptionary Women.

Now with 400 students, Aspen Academy is the fastest growing private school in the state of Colorado. The scope and complexity of the academic programs in reading, language arts, mathematics, science, social studies, technology, world languages and visual and performing arts, coupled with our demonstrated commitment to character and leadership have continued to evolve and expand over the years while staying true to the school’s mission and vision to edify and inspire students and educators to grow, learn and lead. We strive to be a national leader in innovative and transformative education. The character and accomplishments of Aspen Academy graduates provide powerful testimony to the success of the School’s programs.

COVID-19 Response

In March of 2020, within 12 hours of Governor Jared Polis’ request that schools across Colorado close their campuses, Aspen Academy’s team pivoted its entire learning platform to a digital model and by the next school day (Monday), students were fully engaged in virtual classes. The result: 94% of students met or exceeded grade-level growth for the year in 2019-2020 and again in 2020-2021. The school made massive investments in technology, outdoor classrooms and HVAC to support health and safety of students, faculty and staff and has continued to operate on-campus since August of 2020. 

Transforming Education

The work done at Aspen Academy impacts public schools. Since 2018, Aspen Academy has provided mentoring to public schools and public school administrators and supported 84 Moonshot edVentures Fellows who have impacted more than 15,000 students. 

testimonial from parent about aspen academy caring about the whole person, not just academics.

Meet Our Founders

Founded in 2005 by three women who were concerned that this country's educational system was not keeping pace with global changes, Aspen Academy is the premier independent school for:

  • Next Generation Education
  • Leadership and Entrepreneurial Development
  • Community Strength and Service

We are proud to share that two of our three founders still guide day-to-day operations and share their vision as members of our team. Meet our Founders: Lynda Sailor, Founder and Business & Operations Director (pictured left) and Kristina Scala, Founder, President and Head of School (pictured right).

 

"Everyone is my family here because when you walk in you feel like you are at home and all the teachers want to build a relationship with you."

- Sammie, 8th Grade

"Austyn has so many college offers and I believe we will have more next week as well. We are so thankful for everything that Aspen did to set him up for success. It was the foundation he obtained from Aspen that made the difference."

- Ali F, mother of Austyn ('11) and Ashton ('14)

Transforming Education

Testimonial from aspen academy student about perseverence