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WELCOME TO
ALVERNO HEIGHTS
ACADEMY
In 1960, Alverno Heights Academy opened our doors
under the guidance of the Sisters of St. Francis. They
chose the name for Mt. La Verna in Italy where St.
Francis of Assisi received the stigmata. In 1972, the name
was changed to Alverno High School to reflect the changing
times of the period. In 1978, a new culture of leadership
entered the school when ownership was transferred to the
Immaculate Heart Community.
Alverno is committed to honoring our past while embracing
our future and has done so by returning to our original
name – Alverno Heights Academy. We continue to be
the institution our founders imagined and the possibilities
ahead are endless. No matter the name or the year, our
greatest achievement is and always will be our students
and over 4,300 alumnae. We invite you to discover the
possibilities and ultimately Be Who You Imagine.

To empower
each young
woman to be
exactly the person
she wants to be.

BENEFITS OF AN ALL-GIRLS’ EDUCATION
Imagine Yourself An Empowered Woman.
Just think: The best AP Calculus student
at Alverno Heights Academy is a young
woman. The lead in the fall play and
president of the school are young women.
Government, STEM, and athletics are
driven by talented young women who see
no limits when it comes to education and
personal accomplishment.
During high school, the self-conscious
teenager can create barriers that keep her
from taking healthy risks and exploring new
opportunities without fear. But imagine
if that young woman saw over and over
again—in classrooms, on the field, in
science labs, and on stage—that a young
woman can do anything. Barriers vanish
and suddenly the sky is the limit.

ACADEMICS
At Alverno Heights Academy, students
develop strong critical thinking skills and
an appreciation for the importance of an
intellectual life. With a full list of academic
offerings, Alverno provides our young women
with the skills to make strong and informed
decisions in their academic, personal, and
professional lives. Our complete college
preparatory curriculum and individualized
approach to each student, coupled with
prepares our young women for admission into
the most selective colleges and universities
around the country. Each student receives
individualized academic and college
counseling based on her particular skills,
strengths, interests, passions, and goals.
Not only are Alverno women prepared for
college but their experiences and academic
preparedness once there set them on a path
for success far beyond the walls of Alverno.
dedicated and committed faculty members
100% acceptance
into four-year
colleges and
universities
Over 25 AP and
Honors Courses

STEM
At Alverno Heights Academy, we
believe that every single student can
benefit from a strong foundation in
science, technology, engineering, and
math. The primary objective of the
STEM program at Alverno is to equip
and prepare students, not just for
admission to outstanding collegiate
programs, but for the demands of these
growing fields beyond the classroom.
Our students enjoy the advantages of
having committed and experienced
teachers, small class sizes, and access
to state-of-the-art equipment through
partnerships with local universities
and corporations.
In addition to over a dozen core classes
across these disciplines, Alverno girls
are no strangers to independent
research in science. Whether in
the classroom, as part of Honors
Independent Research in Science
class, or doing science projects with
Caltech mentors such as SEAL (Solar
Energy Activity Laboratory), iGEM
(Synthetic Biology Research), Pulsar
Search Collaboratory (Astrophysics
Research), Summer Research at Caltech,
the Community Science Academy at
Caltech, or Robotics; students have
numerous opportunities to explore their
scientific interests in class.

ARTS
At Alverno Heights Academy, our goal
is to encourage our young women to
be who they imagine with as much
creativity as possible. Alverno is home
to a breadth of talented artists from
painters to sculptors to dancers to actors
to musicians who express themselves in
classes. Our students see their four years
at Alverno as an opportunity to discover
their voice and their vision.
Visual Arts courses focus on art history,
art critique, and the development of
a personal aesthetic. Students are
encouraged to create innovative and
distinct pieces of work that represent
their personal design aesthetic and
creativity. Throughout their years,
students are inspired to create a
comprehensive body of work that
includes both personal and publicly
displayed pieces.
Performing Arts stages two
performances each year, a play in the fall
and a musical in the spring, and includes
a ComedySportz team. Through our
courses and productions, our students
develop multiple skills including critical
analysis and character development
while being introduced to the history of
performance. Musicians from singers to
instrumentalists find a home at Alverno
in one of our two choirs, Alverno Singers
and Concert Choir.
The art room boasts
a dark room and a
ceramic kiln that is
available for students
enrolled in any of our
art courses
Previous productions
include Legally
Blonde, Beauty and
the Beast, Our Town,
Antigone, and The
Addams Family

ATHLETICS
Athletics is more than just a game at
Alverno Heights Academy. Following
our philosophy and mission of
empowering each young woman,
the athletics program emphasizes
important lifelong lessons that
transcend the playing field/court.
Student athletes learn self-discipline,
teamwork, commitment, and
sportsmanship through participating in
sports, in addition to developing
self-confidence, celebrating success,
and making lasting friendships.
Alverno Athletes compete in cross
country, volleyball, soccer, basketball,
softball, and track and field as a
member of the Horizon League of the
CIF Southern Section. Over the past
few years, Alverno has found great
success across multiple sports while
guaranteeing that all of our students
receive playing time. Branch out and
try a new sport, or perfect the one
you’ve loved for years — either way we
want you to catch the Jaguar Spirit!
t
Over 60% of
students participate
in Alverno Athletics
Nearly 50% of
athletes qualify as
Athletic Scholars

FAITH AT ALVERNO
Alverno Heights Academy strives
to provide open, loving, and sacred
moments, informed by the teachings
of the Catholic tradition and enlivened
by the spirit of our Immaculate Heart
Community sponsors and mindful of
the Franciscan roots of our founders.
Our goal is to help our students learn
what they need to know for life—which
includes opportunities to form and
inform their heart, as well as their minds.
Alverno welcomes all students—no
matter what faith tradition. Through
a collaborative model, students from
all backgrounds come together to
form a solid faith foundation. Alverno’s
Campus Ministry program provides our
community opportunities to experience
their faith through prayer and liturgy,
retreats, and a strong community
service program.
By the time a young woman graduates
from Alverno, she has contributed at
least 140 hours of service to the local
community; however, the majority of
Alverno students complete far more.
4 years of
Theology and
Class Retreats
The Alverno
school community
contributes over
10,000 hours of
service each year

GOVERNMENT
At Alverno Heights Academy, we
believe in the power of our young
women to impact change around the
world. In a time when communities,
corporations, and governments
are calling for innovative, ethical,
intelligent, and creative leaders
Alverno believes treating each young
woman as a leader is more important
than ever. Through a unique student
government program, modeled
after the United States government,
Alverno women experience leadership
through collaboration, organization,
and engagement. Alverno’s
model provides students with the
opportunity to impact change on
campus through campaigns, bill and
resolution writing, constitutional
review, and every day decision
making. Using their voices and the
leadership tools Alverno provides,
these young women are helping to
build Alverno’s legacy today as they
prepare to have a meaningful impact
on the world tomorrow.
Alverno’s
government
includes Federal,
Legislative,
Judicial, and
State branches
More than 50
percent of the
Alverno student
body participates
in government

You are never far
from an Alverno girl.

ALUMNAE
When you think about it, our young
women only spend four short years
at Alverno Heights Academy but
they are an Alverno girl forever. Our
first graduating class from 1964 and
our most recent graduates all share
in a unique sisterhood built on the
experiences, friendships, and lessons
they learned at Alverno. With over
4,300 alumnae around the world
working in professions as artists,
chefs, chemists, CEOs, doctors,
engineers, executive directors, fashion
designers, judges, lawyers, military
personnel, mothers, nurses, police
officers, professors, psychologists,
rocket scientists, social workers,
teachers, veterinarians, and much
more, we could not be more proud.
Our alumnae are leaving a lasting
impact on the world, and as we often
say and hear, “you are never far from
an Alverno girl.”

Be who you imagine.
200 N. Michillinda Ave, Sierra Madre, CA 91024 | (626) 355-3463 | alvernoheightsacademy.org