Hillsides Education Center

About Hillsides Education Center

The Hillsides Education Center believes in creating lasting change. Success within school and the HEC community is wonderful, but we need to strive for more, helping to create opportunity in the lives of our students. All individuals benefit from setting goals, improving and enhancing personal skill areas, and creating habits of self-reflection. HEC strives to create a school culture of learning, growth, reflection, and individual and community improvement. To accomplish this task, HEC utilizes a Step System called GROWTH, which focuses on skill development.

Skill Development:

The philosophy of skill development is based around the idea that all people benefit from setting goals and can work to improve their skill set. We believe that students make rational decisions based on how they perceive the world and utilize the skils they have available. Students generally do not choose to be "bad", but instead work within the skill set they have available. It is our job as educators at HEC to create learning and opportunity in order to expand the skills of our students, preparing them for the world outside of HEC.

Skills can include academic based skills (or hard skils/cognitive skills), such as reading, writing, and math. In addition, HEC believe social-emotional skills are critical for the success of individuals. These skills have been called "soft skills" or "non-cognitive skills". HEC looks to integrate academic and social-emotional skills within our approach.

Our Goal for Our Students:

It is the goal of HEC to create a student that is Generous, Respectful, and Optimistic. HEC wants students who are Willing to try, have Tenacity, and that are Honest with themselves and others.