Summit Preparatory School vs. Montana Academy

Summit Preparatory School is accredited by the State of Montana, Board of Public Education, the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools (NAAS), and is a Pacific Northwest Association of Independent Schools (PNAIS) candidate school.

The seed for Summit Preparatory School was planted twenty-five years ago at Trinity College in Illinois in conversations between college roommates Rick Johnson and Alexander Habib.

“We always talked about wanting to do something to help kids," said Summit Board Chairman Alexander Habib.

"We started talking about it in college, and over the years just kept the dream alive.” That dream came to fruition in March, 2003 when Summit opened its doors to its first students.

Of the “Special Purpose" schools serving approximately three to five thousand students in Montana, Summit is currently the only school to receive state accreditation.

The Northwest Association of Accredited Schools is one of six similar regional associations in the United States which accredits schools and colleges.

The Northwest region includes Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.

Montana Academy is a therapeutic boarding school, emphasizes both treatment and education.

We endeavor to provide sophisticated clinical expertise in a simple environment.

On a remote Montana ranch, the school combines an emotional growth curriculum designed for psychologically troubled youth with a dual academic program grounded in practical tasks to suit students disenchanted with and disengaged from conventional classrooms.

Experienced clinicians, trained teachers and seasoned outdoorsmen integrate treatment and learning in the classroom, in the kitchen, on the ranch, on the river and around mountain campfires.

Montana Academy aims to teach students whose emotional problems have disrupted learning in both academic content areas and in learning process.

Many troubled students have not yet learned how to learn and flounder in conventional crowded classrooms as a result.

Students at various grade levels and with differing skills work together on core subjects, aided by certified teachers skilled in teaching students of varying abilities and motivations. Students receive personal attention afforded by smaller class sizes.