Craftsbury Academy

Craftsbury Academy was incorporated in October, 1829. The early school held classes in foreign languages, fine arts, and other liberal arts. The founders intended to support the school with the lease or development of on land belonging to the school, a typical hope of the time. The first building was erected in 1832, a two-story brick structure. This structure became unsound and was replaced by a wood structure in 1868. This building, together with most of the school furniture, was destroyed by fire in 1879. With the insurance money and the subscriptions of the townspeople a new building was erected, designed to accommodate about eighty pupils. A campus structure, Minden Hall, preserves the original name of the town. This building contains the middle school portion of the Craftsbury School System, although many resources are shared with other grade levels. Minden Hall was built in 1988 and has been lightly renovated as part of the much more intensive renovations being done on the older structures on campus. ==Academics==

Craftsbury Schools offers a K-12 education program. The high school program includes instruction in science, social studies, mathematics, and English comparable to neighboring schools, and also offers a range of electives including arts, physical education, and Spanish. In 2012, Craftsbury Academy began a partnership with The Virtual High School, which allows students access to a range of online elective courses. In September classes hike local mountains. In January and February students participate in the Physical Education program, which gives students various options for off-campus physical education opportunities, including ice skating, downhill and cross country skiing, and broom ball. In May and June students participate in Thematics, a hands-on learning program that explores sustainability related themes, such as watersheds and open spaces. Thematics activities include day trips and occasionally overnight experiences. These activities are complemented by school traditions such as Autumnfest, Winter Carnival, and Memorial Day celebrations. Craftsbury Schools typically scores near the state average on standardized testing. A seventh grader won the state spelling bee in 2010 and advanced to the national competition. ==References==