Academics

SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY

The Academy has a current enrollment of 113 students, 81in the Elementary (PreK-6th grades), and 32 in the Jr./Sr. High (7th-12th grades). The student body is comprised of students from the United States, Argentina, Bolivia, China, Columbia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Korea, Panama, South Africa, Venezuela, and the host country, Chile. The instructional staff includes native English-speaking teachers and other teaching staff.

All classes are taught in English except the Spanish language class, which is a requirement for 1st-12th grades.

FACILITIES

Elementary (PreK-6th grades) and Jr. High and Sr. High (7th-12th grades) are housed in separate facilities. In addition to classrooms, the campus facilities include a soccer field and a covered court for sports activities.

CALENDAR

The academic year is comprised of two semesters, August-December and March-June. There are two breaks during the year. After the first semester, a summer vacation (Southern Hemisphere) from mid-December through February. After the second semester and before the next school year, a 3-4 week winter break during the month of July.

CURRICULUM/DIPLOMAS

The educational program is that of a traditional United States school. The language of instruction is English. Instruction is offered in Pre-Kinder through 12th grade, following a North American curriculum. All grades are taught in a traditional classroom setting. On the high school level, core courses and electives are offered to meet normal college entrance requirements. Additional courses can be offered by correspondence, independent study, or electronic media.

Instruction in the Spanish language is required at grade levels 1st-12th with students being grouped according to their ability in the language.  The Spanish curriculum is developed around Chilean history, literature, geography, and customs, but the emphasis is on developing the student's conversational ability.

Although the emphasis in high school is on preparation for entrance to United States colleges or universities, some of our graduates are also admitted to universities in other English-speaking countries or countries of their origin.

Santiago Christian Academy issues diplomas to those who have satisfactorily completed the following minimum requirements:

High School Diploma (22 Credits)

English - 4 credits; Social Studies - 3 credits; Mathematics - 2 credits; Science - 2 credits; Bible - 2 credits; Physical Ed. – 1.6 credits; Spanish (foreign language) – 1.6 credits; Electives - 4

The 22 credits required for graduation is to be considered a minimum.  Those students who are anticipating college should seek to have at least 24 credits on their transcripts with additional work in math and science.  

GRADING 

Grading is based on the traditional United States ‘A’ through ‘F’ system for use on transcripts.   The grading scale is as follows:

Letter A+ A A-
Percent 97-100 93-96 90-92
Grade Pt. 4.0 4.0 3.7
Adv. Gr. Pt. 5.0 5.0 4.7

Letter B+ B B-
Percent 88-89 83-87 80-82
Grade Pt. 3.3 3.0 2.7
Adv. Gr. Pt. 4.3 4.0 3.7

Letter C+ C C-
Percent 78-79 73-77 70-72
Grade Pt. 2.3 2.0 1.7
Adv. Gr. Pt. 3.3 3.0 2.7

Letter D+ D D- F
Percent 68-69 63-67 60-62 0-59
Grade Pt. 1.3 1.0 0.7 0.0
Adv. Gr. Pt. 2.3 2.0 1.7 0.0

STANDARDIZED TESTS ADMINISTERED

Standardized Achievement Tests (Kinder-8th grades) and PSAT (10th-11th grades) are administered annually. Students in grades 11 and 12 may take the SAT or ACT (typically administered at another local private school).

HONOR ROLL

“A Honor Roll” designates students receiving a marking period GPA of 3.75 or higher. 

“A-B Honor Roll” designates students receiving a marking period GPA between 3.25 and 3.74. 

COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES wHere SCA GRADUATES WERE ACCEPTED:

American Musical & Dramatic Academy of New York
Azusa Pacific University
Biola University
Binghamton University
John Brown University
Calvin College
Cedarville College
Central Piedmont Community College
Citrus Community College
Columbia International University
Covenant College
Ecole Hoteliere De Lausanne (Switzerland)
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Greenville College
Hanyang University
Korea University
Korean Aerospace University
Le Cordon Bleu Australia
Liberty University
The Master’s College
Miami University of Ohio
Michigan State University
Northland International University
Penn State University
Point Loma Nazarene University
Seoul National University
Southwestern Assembly of God University
Sungkyunkwan University
United States Military Academy at West Point
University of Chicago
University of Illinois
University of Montevallo
Wheaton College