FAQs

Vanguard Academy is a public high school within the Moses Lake School District. Any current eighth or ninth graders in the Moses Lake attendance areas may choose to apply for admission. If desired enrollment exceeds capacity, students will be selected by lottery.

No. Vanguard Academy is a completely new high school model that is personalized, relevant, and emphasizes real-world learning. Vanguard Academy is designed for all students with an interest in engaging in high school through this model. Students will leave Vanguard ready for college, life, work, and more!

Vanguard Academy is planned for 700-900 students and is aimed to supplement the current educational offerings at Moses Lake High School. The new school will offer innovative methods, technologies, and other resources to facilitate a project- and competency-based learning model. This approach is proven to better prepare students for the world beyond high school, giving them the tools to succeed in a trade school, the workforce, or college.

The school board selected the name from a list compiled and voted on by the community. Vanguard speaks to leadership, being forward, and in the front. It also speaks to the concept of the school itself, placing students at the front, leading their own learning.

Because we share transportation services with Moses Lake High School, Vanguard Academy's start and end times will be similar to those at MLHS.  Late afternoon and evening activities will be scheduled throughout the year.

In 2022, Vanguard Academy will start with 400-450 freshman and sophomore students. Over the next two years, sophomores will become juniors and seniors, and additional freshman students will join until the school fills its enrollment of approximately 900 students.

Vanguard will provide an "on-boarding" process for students who arrive mid-year or at any point in their academic career.

Vanguard Academy wants students to pursue their passions. As a result, we understand there might be situations where a student requests to take one class at MLHS. We will do our best to accommodate but cannot guarantee the requests. Possible classes include Choir, Band, JROTC, Ag class (required for FFA participation), and release time for Seminary. While Seminary is highly likely to be accommodated, other classes may be more difficult to accommodate. Again, requests will be considered, however, see below for the limitations that exist. 

Core credits (English, science, math, history) and most electives will be earned at Vanguard.

Situations that might affect a student’s ability to take a class at MLHS:

• Availability in classes at MLHS: Although we try to match students with their class requests, there might not be room in the specific class at MLHS.
• There will be times during the school day when Vanguard students must be at Vanguard. The class at MLHS must not conflict with those specific times.
• MLHS adjusts its master schedule throughout the summer. As such, a Vanguard student will not know for sure if the class they wish to take at MLHS will be available until late August. 
• Class requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Students should indicate the request on their Vanguard Application under the “other important information” section on the form.

The Vanguard day will be defined by flexibility. For 9th and 10th grade students, the schedule will revolve around advisory activities, knowledge acquisition, individual and group exploration and project work, design experiences, and club time.

For the first two years, most core learning will happen through engagement in four or more major inter-disciplinary project-based units as well as a number of shorter, skill-building projects. Students will also participate in clubs and in-school "passion projects." As students reach the junior and senior years, they will have the flexibility to pursue mentorships, internships, and personal projects.

Internships will be supported and facilitated for students at the junior and senior grade levels and will be aligned with each student's individual learning pathway. Students who prefer to not undertake an internship can explore with their Vanguard teachers other ways to achieve their learning goals during these years.

Students learn and work best when they are passionate and interested in what they are doing. Having students explore their interests is an important step in helping them figure out who they are and what kinds of work and learning they will find motivating. Over the course of four years, students will develop many new interests and ideas based on the experiences, explorations, and opportunities they’ve had at Vanguard Academy. While students will be exposed to careers available in Moses Lake and around Washington State, any career path imaginable is possible for students to explore through Vanguard Academy.

At Vanguard Academy, each Advisor’s role is to facilitate and support individual, personalized learning pathways for a group of students. To do this, the Advisors will get to know each student and his or her family well (this includes one-on-one meetings with each student and their family). While Advisors are generally teachers with deep knowledge in specific content areas (science, math, English, etc.) they engage with students collaboratively with other Advisors in their learning groups, drawing upon many disciplines to meet the needs of each student and supporting students in their projects and advisory activities. Ultimately, the success of the students in each learning group is the responsibility of the Advisors in that learning group.

Vanguard Academy takes pride in its strong parent involvement. As the student's primary educators, we understand how integral the family is to the educational process. Parents are members of the learning plan team, along with the student, mentor, and advisor, and assist in the design of their student's learning pathway. As panelists at a student’s exhibition, parents are also involved in assessing their student's work. We invite you to become more involved at Vanguard Academy. Consider leading a Pick Me Up (a whole school morning meeting) or running a workshop related to your career field or interests. Ask your child’s Advisor how you can help.