Thornton Academy, Preparing Students for a Changing World Since 1811, Saco Maine

Academic Program

Course Descriptions
(PDF)

Nontraditional Study

Resources

Thornton Academy
438 Main St.
Saco, Maine, 04072
(207) 282-3361

Student Services

Guidance & Counseling
When you enter Thornton, you will be assigned a guidance counselor, who will remain your counselor until you graduate. You are strongly encouraged to talk regularly with your counselor about your academic and personal progress. The Guidance Office is located in the Main Building.

Your counselor can assist you in a number of ways. For one, he or she can help you register for the courses described in this catalog. Your counselor can help you determine your academic strengths and weaknesses so that you choose the courses that best fit your needs, abilities and future plans. Your counselor is also available to help you analyze test results and to discuss your academic progress.

Career exploration is another of your counselor's services. The office has a wealth of information about careers, as well as special computer programs to help you determine which careers you might enjoy most. If college or vocational training is needed for the careers that interest you, then your counselor can help you find the colleges or vocational centers that best meet your needs. Completing applications and financial aid forms can also be made easier with your counselor's help.

You may also turn to your counselor for help with personal problems. Your counselor is ready to listen. He or she can also refer you to others who may be able to serve your needs. Thornton has a number of support services for students. Please feel free to ask for help when you need it.

The Guidance Office is also open to your parents, who may call for appointments to discuss your progress or any other matters. Appointments can be made between 7:45 a.m. and 2 p.m. by calling 282-3361. During the summer, the office can be reached between 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to schedule appointments.

Academic Help
If you are concerned about your academic performance, see your guidance counselor. Your teachers or parents may also refer you to the Guidance Office if they think you need more help.

Your guidance counselor may suggest interventions or alternative actions to be tried before a referral is made for other services. Special education referrals may be initiated by your guidance counselor, your parent, or yourself. Referrals must include all alternative actions that have been considered or attempted and the reasons why they were rejected. Once a referral is accepted, evaluations are recommended and must be approved by your parents. Upon completion of evaluations, a Pupil Evaluation Team meeting is scheduled. At that meeting, an Individual Education Plan is developed for students who are identified as having a disability that is adversely impacting his or her ability to learn.

If you are not identified as a special education student, the team will still provide you with a plan to assist your academic needs. This team approach is yet another way Thornton Academy helps you get the attention you need to succeed.

Health Services
The school nurse is available to answer any personal or general questions about health or to help if you become ill during school or have an accident on school grounds. The nurse is there to promote your physical and emotional well-being, so please take advantage of her services. She also has many free health pamphlets and information that you may take for private reading or as research for a class.

She arranges for free sports physicals to be given on campus to sophomores, juniors and seniors once a year in May. Finally, the nurse keeps track of all student immunizations required by Maine law. If you are missing any immunizations, the nurse will inform you. Once informed, you must have them completed or you may be excluded from school.

Attendance
Regular daily attendance is essential to a successful school experience. Please be sure you read the attendance policies listed in the Student Handbook, because poor attendance can have an effect on credits earned. If you have questions about any policy, visit the Submaster's Office in the Main Building.

Library-Media Center
The Mary Weymouth Hyde Library with its skylights, seating capacity and location across from the dining commons is a popular place for students to study and explore the world of electronic information. Knowing how to find information is one of the most important skills you will learn in school. One of Thornton's goals is to help you acquire the skills necessary to complete classroom-related projects and to be a lifelong learner.

Through both formal and informal instruction, you will learn to develop a search strategy and to use a variety of computerized tools to gather information. One such tool is our on-line public access catalog (OPAC). It provides an index to the print and nonprint resources located in the library and may be searched by author, title, subject, series or a key word.

You can also use library computers for word processing or to access the Internet. Using the Newsbank database you can review full-text articles from 500 newspapers, 250 magazines and journals, and the major newswire services.

Other links you can explore include Mainecat and Ursus, the online catalogs for Maine public and university libraries, respectively.

The library also subscribes to more than 80 magazines and five newspapers.

Library staff can help you learn how to access the information you need — from electronic databases to microfiche readers/printers.

Library hours are 7:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. from Monday to Friday.

Alumni & Community Relations
The Finance & Community Relations Office helps publicize the special events and regular activities of your club, sport or group, and it announces achievements by individual students.

It also keeps in contact with Thornton's alumni. Visit the office and review TA's archives dating back to the 1800s.