Welcome!

Welcome to Verde Valley School, a leading International Baccalaureate Boarding and Day School for more than 63 years.  We are a school of rich traditions, where our entire community is driven by five guiding principles: Academic Excellence, World Citizenship, Environmental Stewardship, Physical Labor and Service to Others.  Spend time at Verde Valley School and you will find open-minded students from eighteen different nations thriving in a harmonious community.

Academic Excellence: VVS carefully selected the IB Curriculum because of the recognized commitment to excellence, tradition and the natural symmetry with the VVS guiding principles.  Our teachers are the key to our outstanding academic program. Each brings a wide range of educational and life experiences to the classroom and the community. VVS embraces the latest technologies to prepare and support our students as they ready for college and beyond.

World Citizenship: Is it possible for a little school to “change the world?” We think so. From its earliest day. Verde Valley School strives to create an environment where cultural distinctiveness is understood and celebrated rather than merely tolerated. VVS actively seeks students from a wide variety of ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. Further, the experiential learning elements of our program, such as Field Trips, provide opportunities for cultural immersion around the world.  VVS will always be a place where students from all backgrounds feel safe, accepted and valued.

Environmental Stewardship:  As a small school, we understand that VVS has a big impact on the environment. We are not fashionably, green; rather, being conscience of our environmental impact is in the very fabric of our founding. Students lead composting, recycling and alternative energy projects on and off campus. A good portion of the food we serve is produced organically and within a 100-mile radius of our campus.

Physical Labor: Our campus is a small community and we look to one another for mutual support to make VVS thrive. The community ethic, of respecting other people and property, is fundamental to our peaceful co-existence.  Through our “Work Job” program, all members of our community perform tasks, such as recycling or barn duty that are essential to the general operation of our school. The results of our labor are far from material - labor instills responsibility, imparts knowledge, fosters cooperation and reinforces a sense of belonging within our community.

Service to Others: Hamilton Warren founded Verde Valley School to teach “…the great responsibility for your fellow man. Respect his views; have concern for others.”  Verde Valley School students log hundreds of hours supporting communities from Arizona to Mexico to Malawi. The principle is so deeply rooted in our fabric. Alumni often discuss the service habits they established while students at VVS.

I hope by now that you are beginning to understand what over sixty years of VVS alumni already know: This truly is a wonderful place. Please take time to explore our Web site, and visit us on campus when you can. We look forward to welcoming you.

Graham D. Frey
Head of School