Four Fold Plan

"Dare to be True" was Dr. Isabelle Buckley's challenge to her students when she founded her namesake school in 1933. It remains the ideal for our students today.

Academic excellence would indeed become a hallmark of her school, but Dr. Buckley was passionate in her conviction that this alone could never be the true measure of a great education. She set out to empower her students with the self-esteem, responsibility and character that would enable them to become the future leaders of our society.

Dr. Buckley's aim was to create an educational experience to develop the "whole child." The result was her visionary 4-Fold Plan of Education, a program designed to instill in each student what she believed to be the essential qualities of the well-rounded individual.

Academic Training
Self-expression through the Arts
Physical Development
Moral Education

Every day at The Buckley School, we draw on this seminal approach to inspire our students to realize their full abilities, to develop strong values, and ultimately, discover how they will each in their own unique way contribute to the community.

It’s easy to focus on a school’s physical structures – but its setting and atmosphere also play a major role in the lives of students. Our private canyon setting makes for a true and peaceful campus where students can simply be students. ”
Larry Dougherty, Head of School