Academics

    Islesboro Central School (ICS), serving grades K-12, is situated on an island in Penobscot Bay, three miles off the coast of Maine. The island is accessible only by ferry or private boat. Its unique environment and majestic setting make it one of the most beautiful spots on the east coast. 
  
    Islesboro Central School is an academically challenging school with small size and low student-teacher ratio.
Classes are focused, stimulating, and intensive. We offer a magnet school program and this year, multiple families have chosen to attend ICS from the Lincolnville, Camden and Rockland area. Graduates of ICS are well prepared for college and have performed exceptionally well at the undergraduate level. Our graduates succeed as post-secondary scholars and as responsible and informed members of the community.
 
    
ICS enjoys support from the community as most recently demonstrated in the 2010 complete
renovation of our facility. Our School has undergone an eight million dollar renovation with 50% of the costs being covered by the taxpayers and the other 50% covered through
fundraising. At the end of the year-long plus project, we now proudly occupy our newly renovated 'summer cottage' with state-of-the-art facilities for present and future technologies.







Curriculum Highlights
  • ICS students are required to take a minimum of six courses per year.
  • More than 90% of our graduates take at least two years of foreign language and pursue mathematics and science courses all the way through Pre-Calculus and Physics.
  • Our students have the opportunity to enroll in Advanced Placement Calculus; some have participated in additional independent study AP courses in their area of interest.
  • Students have had the option to take select Honors courses.
  • We require one full credit in Fine Arts, which can include Visual Arts, Chorus, or Band.
  • ICS also offers a Horticulture program for high school students. We have many operating greenhouses and a fruit orchard. On top of this, many locally grown vegetables, as well as those grown in the school garden, supplement our school lunch program.
  • There is a curricular emphasis on writing and research skills in all academic disciplines and our high school students consistently score above the state average on the writing portion of the NECAP state tests.
  • Our students take advantage of Maine's colleges Aspirations and E-Academy coursework to support advanced learning and post-secondary levels of education.

Facts and Figures
  • The present high school enrollment is 40 students, 10 in the senior class
  • As a graduation requirement, students complete a portfolio which includes developing a resume, writing a personal statement, samples of exemplary work, four job-shadowing experiences and a minimum of twenty hours of community service.
  • Islesboro Central School recently received the Bronze Award by US News & World Report; of 18,000 schools Nationwide, Islesboro ranks in the top 1,500 receiving recognition as one of the Best Schools in America.

Extra Curricular Activities
  • The current varsity athletic activities offered are: Coed Soccer, Cross-Country, Boys and Girls Basketball, and Ultimate Frisbee. Other extra curricular activities include: Prom, Yearbook, Drama, High School Chorus, High School Band, Cyber Defense, and National Ocean Science Bowl. We are continuing to enhance and broaden our opportunities for K-8 students through mentorship within our varsity programming.

College Matriculation
  • Our graduates have attended: Bridgewater State College, Barnard University, Bowdoin College, Brandies College, Capelio's Academy, Colby College, Elon College, Franklin & Marshall College, George Washington University, Harvard University, Maine Maritime Academy, Massachusetts College of Art, Middlebury College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology, Saint Joseph's College, Skidmore, the United States Coast Guard Academy, the United States Military Academy, the University of Virginia, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, University of Denver and schools within the University of Maine system.

Grading
 
  • Grading at Islesboro Central School is weighted. GPA is recognized as a numerical average. For the positions of Valedictorian and Salutatorian students are selected using GPA. Islesboro Schools grade range is as follows:
        • A =100-93
        • B =92-85
        • C = 84-77
        • D = 76-70
        • F = 69-below
        • High Honors:  No grade below 93.
        • Honors:  No grade below 85.