Located in Bellingham, Washington, Whatcom Day is a private PK-8 school with no religious affiliation or outside control over the curriculum. The school was founded in 1988 and now has over 700 alumni many of whom have gone on to attend the top ranked universities in the arts, sciences, engineering and business. Whatcom Day has an academically proven approach to education that is designed to take a child's natural curiosity and direct it toward the Big Ideas and Essential Questions that power life-long learning. The school builds a solid foundation in basic skills AND fosters critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, empathy and compassion, self-confidence, effective communication, citizenship, and scientific expertise, along with cultural and global understanding. Whatcom Day is known regionally for its advanced, college-partnered curriculum development, award winning teachers and staff, excellent overall education and a history of student, faculty and alumni achievement. The average Measures of Academic Progress®* score for Whatcom Day middle school students is typically higher than the national norm for Grade 11 students in reading, math and language. About 80% of middle school students receive credit for high school courses such as Algebra I, Geometry, Spanish I, and Honors Freshman English. *http://www.nwea.org/products-services/computer-based-adaptive-assessments/map