Coastside Leadership Academy (CLA) is a gender-inclusive, all-girls* mobile microschool rooted in the cycles of joy, curiosity, and growth. Beyond a four-walled classroom, we bring a new educational spin to van life, traveling the Bay Area and learning in the world. CLA students learn in nature, libraries, and community spaces. They practice daily social interactions and learn how to be active members of a community. As a small, supportive community, CLA encourages students to trust their intuition, use their voices, and lead. CLA students reinvent the high school experience and learn through a balance of movement, play, curiosity, and rest. Meaningful and impactful curriculum is co-created with students, with a strong emphasis on learning how to learn in a rapidly changing information age.
The curriculum prioritizes the 21st-century skills of critical thinking, communication, collaboration, media literacy, and leadership within the following integrated themes: Environmental Literacy, Global Awareness, Civic Literacy, Health Literacy, and Financial, Economic, Business, and Entrepreneurial Literacy. The social-emotional learning curriculum cultivates self-awareness and confidence. This balance leads to community-oriented, compassionate, and empowered leaders.
The focus on skills allows students to understand their own learning style, build confidence and resilience, and be adaptable in any environment. A four-day school week, a low-technology environment, combined with a no-homework policy, creates students who rediscover the curiosity and fun of learning, engage in their passions, and fully participate in their lives. CLA is proud to prioritize balance and skills-based learning, leading the shift into a new paradigm of education.
Coastside Leadership Academy is a gender inclusive all girls education program that supports all LGBTQIA+ community members.
*Girls refers to gender-expansive youth: cis girls, trans girls, non-binary youth, gender non-conforming youth, gender queer youth, and any girl-identified youth.
