Come & See The Difference
UP Academy is a progressive TK – 8 micro-school that utilizes a concept and project based curriculum to promote whole child growth. Our graduate standards of healthy mind and body, radical autonomy, brave leadership, contributing global citizens, and fearless changemakers allow students to apply the knowledge, skills and concepts they master in school to the real world. Our students develop 21st century skills, a global perspective, and empathetic action in an environment that nurtures creativity and encourages curiosity.
We empower students of all abilities to find strength in their community, believe in the power of their ideas, and influence action in the world around them.
The Founder’s Message
Tanya Sheckley
Founder, President
Thank you for taking the time to learn more about UP Academy. Each day at our school is an exciting new opportunity to enrich the minds of our students, and we hope your child will join us.
UP Academy welcomes students regardless of race, gender, national and ethnic origin, and is non discriminatory in all our policies. We accept children between the ages of 4 and 14 years old.
Please contact us regarding availability for your child, and to schedule your personal tour of our school. We will be happy to answer your questions and provide additional information about our educational programs.
Kind regards,
Tanya Sheckley
Founder, President, UP Academy
Vision & Mission
Our Mission is to Produce Successful, Independent Children Capable of Reaching Their Ultimate Potential
UP Academy cultivates a generation of creative, curious, free thinking, problem solvers through an education that embraces differing abilities.
Our neuro-development program is transforming inclusion education with an integrated therapeutic method that views both life skills and academic achievement with equal value.
Innovation, Empathy and Strength Drive Everything We Do
UP Academy strives to live our values of innovation, empathy and strength every day through understanding that failure is a part of learning, students need to study things that interest them, and it is our responsibility to do our best to impart the skills necessary for our students to excel in an ever changing world and workforce.
INNOVATION
Up Academy fuses the best of the one room schoolhouse model with today’s technology allowing for student driven curriculum that has boundless possibilities!
EMPATHY
We teach and model that each of us has as unique perspective and experience we should celebrate and learn from. We seek collaboration and understanding to make the world a place that values the positive contributions we can all make.
STRENGTH
Strength encompasses our inner and outer vibrancy. Emotional intelligence, the body’s health, physical strength and mental determination are all are supported by our one-of-a-kind curriculum.
Our Students Find Joy In Learning
UP Academy is a progressive K – 8 lab school in San Mateo, California. We encourage students’ sense of wonder and curiosity by focusing on their academic, emotional and physical growth through differentiated learning and project-based curriculum.
Your child will be encouraged and given the teachings and tools to:
• Excel academically through small mixed age classes and programs
• Discover their innate creativity
• Build empathy and collaboration skills
• Work and play with a variety of students with differing abilities
• Exercise a growth mindset to find solutions to everyday problems
• Display grit and resilience to overcome difficulties
• Gain emotional intelligence through practicing mindfulness and self regulation
The UP Academy Difference
Your Child is Unique. See them Shine.
Our goal is to help students reach their ultimate potential. For some students that’s standing up, it’s learning up, it’s moving up, it’s reaching up. It’s about looking to achieve more and always do your best.
We believe that a good educational model isn’t everyone getting the same thing, it’s everyone getting what they need to be successful.
A philosophy of acceptance and flexibility.
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Every student is capable of incredible things.
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Radical inclusion.
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Students are seen for who they are, supported when they need it and challenged to grow in all the right ways.
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Our community framework sets students up for success.
The modern one room schoolhouse model is based in differentiated learning, project based learning, and collaboration.
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Agency builds when students discover what is most interesting to them in a concept or theme and then have the opportunity to explore further.
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Trimester long projects allow for deep learning and understanding.
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Each student works collaboratively with children of different ages, is encouraged to be an individual learner and gets the support he or she needs at the right moment.
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All of our students work together on projects they help create. Working together with different abilities, strengths and weaknesses builds a growth mindset and creates empathetic action.
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All of our students learn together, learn from each other, solve problems, and collaborate on larger projects together. This model has been proven to ease students’ transitions through grade levels and allow them to learn and work to their full capacity.
Faculty & Staff
Our teachers are what make every day special for our children. Our teachers are creative, understanding, and passionate. They work with families to create every child’s own success story.
+ Brittany Botta, Director of Teaching and Learning
Brittany has been an elementary educator for over six years, with experience in both general and special education. She began her career in New York City teaching at a high performing charter school and has most recently taught in Nashville, Tennessee, at a community school that emphasizes whole child learning with a project-based curriculum. Brittany holds a Masters Degree in Childhood and Special Education from Touro College and has developed curriculum for her students as well as for the Warwick Valley Central School District in Warwick, New York.
Brittany strives to create a joyful classroom community where every child feels loved and celebrated. She believes that all students should have access to an engaging curriculum with authentic learning experiences that foster curiosity. She is excited to be joining UP Academy because of its inclusive environment and its project-based curriculum. Outside of the classroom, Brittany enjoys traveling, Disney, reading, and fitness. She is pursuing her yoga teacher certification and takes pride in bringing yoga and social emotional learning into the classroom.
+ Grace Moen, Elementary Educator
Hello! I’m Grace Moen, a recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin Platteville. At my time at UWP, I studied Elementary Education with minors in Early Childhood Development and German Language. Outside of school, I was also able to teach German, English, and Junior Achievement courses to students of many ages. As my parents would say from the many times I made them play my “students” as a kid, I have always had a love for teaching. However, it wasn’t until my first year of College when I found my passion for helping students grow academically and personally. Another one of my favorite things in life is traveling, so I was able to combine my two passions during my two student teaching placements at the International School of Como in Italy and the Berlin British School in Germany. There I was able to open my mind to completely foreign curriculums and solidify my stance as an educator. Outside of school, I also love hiking, being at the beach, spending time with family, and cooking. I am so excited to be a part of the UP Academy team and hope I can learn just as much as I teach.
+ Jacqueline Moran, Educational Facilitator
Jacqueline is a recent graduate from Saint Mary’s College of California who joined the UP Academy team as an Educational Facilitator. She received a B.S in psychology, a field she has always been passionate about ever since she took AP Psychology in high school. Her interest in education began when she worked in a program called Jumpstart where she helped foster reading comprehension in young preschoolers. Enthusiastic and attentive, she strives to create a safe environment for children while advocating for mental health awareness.
During her free time, Jacqueline enjoys creative writing, drinking boba tea, and expanding her ever-growing library of books and video games.
+ Alexandra Kelly, Elementary Educator Director of Robotics
Alexandra is a passionate educator who has been working with children for the last decade. A Bay Area native, she began her career as a developmental psychology researcher at Harvard University and Boston Children’s Hospital, which inspired her interest in child development and social emotional learning. For the last three years, Alexandra has been an elementary educator at a Bay Area independent school and has taught in both general and special education classrooms. She holds a California teaching credential and a masters degree in elementary education from the University of San Francisco.
Alexandra is passionate about instilling a love of learning in her students by fostering a vibrant and welcoming classroom. She is enthusiastic about developing innovative, interdisciplinary curricula that integrate social emotional learning and equity-based practices. Alexandra helps students develop self-efficacy and agency in the classroom by providing differentiated instruction, individualized resources, and focusing on the development of critical thinking, executive functioning skills, and a growth mindset.
When Alexandra isn’t teaching, you can find her playing board games, reading, or spending time with her two dogs.
+ Irene Yeh, Elementary Educator
Irene is an elementary educator from Taiwan. She received her B.S. in elementary education and Illinois teaching credential from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Irene also holds a master’s degree in Social Sciences and Comparative Education from the University of California, Los Angeles. As an international student and third-cultural kid, Irene has spent the past year researching about the identity of third-cultural kids and how schools can better accommodate them.
Irene aims to create a warm and welcoming classroom community where every child gets to learn and be curious. She is enthusiastic about bringing in what she has learned about third-cultural kids into the classroom, so that students can learn about themselves and about others. Irene is excited to learn about the amazing students at UP Academy, and for the students to learn from her.
Outside of the classroom, Irene loves spending time with friends and enjoys traveling. She loves visiting and learning about new countries and their cultures. Irene has also started playing golf in the past few years, so she likes to visit the golfing range or play a round of golf occasionally.
+ Harold, Canine Ambassador
Harold was a rescue dog who is now a therapy dog! The kids love reading to him and taking “Harold Breaks” to pet the dog and think through a problem. His disability offers the perfect conversation starter to discuss differences and similarities among, people, dogs and everyone! He proves everyday that life is about attitude and doing your best.
Follow Harold on Instagram @haroldonwheels