Our Campus

The Columbus School is located on a 21-hectare lot in Alto de Las Palmas at an altitude of 2,520 meters (8,267 feet) above sea level, on the outskirts of Medellín. This privileged location provides a country and natural environment, ideal for all kinds of academic, sports and artistic activities.

The School was designed according to the educational needs of the 21st century, offering our students the opportunity to live in harmony with nature, while being trained with all the benefits of state-of-the-art technology.

Virtual campus tour

Grades Different to K4 and Extemporaneous Admissions

At The Columbus School we have extemporaneous admissions processes for families coming from other countries or cities at times different from the usual registration period.

The extemporaneous process depends on the availability of space in the school year of application.

In order for you to have a more fluid admissions process at The Columbus School, contact:

Admission Department
[email protected]
4033004 – 4033033

* Note: The school reserves the right of admission and does not acquire any type of obligation just for receiving an admissions request.

Columbus Libraries

The Columbus School has two libraries, one for Early Years and Elementary students and one for Middle and High School students. These spaces are designed to foster 21st century skills such as creativity, collaboration, innovation, communication and to promote a love for reading.

Search in Library

The Columbus School Purpose

School Calendar

We are a calendar B school, the SY goes from August to June. There is a 1 week break in October, 2 days off for Thanksgiving, Christmas holidays from around the 15th of Dec to 10th of Jan, 1 week off for Holy Week in March or April and Summer vacations from around the 15th of June to the 10th of August.

Important Dates SY-2023-2024

Click Here

Admissions Philosophy

Admissions at The Columbus School has the purpose of attracting families and students interested in an educational environment that directly involves each student in experiences to achieve their individual potential. The School believes in the importance of an educational philosophy for candidate families that is in harmony with the programs, services and resources offered by the School and is aligned to our TCS purpose.

Students will be admitted based on the availability of space, academic and disciplinary development. With the exception of admissions to K4, all students who wish to enroll at School must demonstrate a level of English determined by the School.

* Note: The school reserves the right of admission and does not acquire any type of obligation just for receiving an admissions request.

Admissions Philosophy

K4 Admissions

K4 Admissions Process

At The Columbus School children begin their first school year when they have turned 4 years old by July 31.

The admissions process for this grade begins 3 years in advance to the year in which the aspiring student will start. To access this process it is a mandatory requirement to attend an Information Meeting for Prospective Parents.

Please contact the Admissions Office for available dates and additional information.

OFFICE HOURS

The Admissions Office will be open to public to receive applications and recommendation letters Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 7:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

* Notes:

The school reserves the right of admission and does not acquire any type of obligation just for receiving an admissions request.
We will not accept extemporaneous applications or families who have not attended the Information Meetings for Prospect Families.
The school year for which you are applying depends on the date of birth of your child. For example if your child is programmed to be born in August, but is born in July, his/her admissions process will begin a year before.

In order for you to have a more fluid admissions process at The Columbus School, here is a checklist that will guide you:

Complete Checklist (Click here)

Admissions Department
[email protected]
4033004 – 4033033

[gdgallery_gallery id_gallery=”15″]

Extemporaneous Admissions

Grades Different to K4 and Extemporaneous Admissions

At The Columbus School we have extemporaneous admissions processes for families coming from other countries or cities at times different from the usual registration period.

The extemporaneous process depends on the availability of space in the school year of application.

Please contact the Admissions Office for more information.

* Note: The school reserves the right of admission and does not acquire any type of obligation just for receiving an admissions request.

In order for you to have a more fluid admissions process at The Columbus School, here is a checklist that will guide you:

Complete Checklist (Click here)

Admissions Department

[email protected]

4033004 – 4033033

[gdgallery_gallery id_gallery=”13″]

Admissions
Information Meetings

Admissions Information Meetings for parents of children that start K4 in August 2023

Dear Prospect Families for SY 2023-2024,

If you have children born between August 1, 2018 and July 31st 2019 and you are interested in visiting our school in order to start an admissions process, please continue checking our website for registrations for Campus visits. There will be meetings between February and May 2020. Limited spaces.

Thank you!

The Secretary of Education of Envigado is responsible for authorizing through a Resolution the annual increase of the school fees.

Columbus Life

TCS offers many co-curricular activities. Some of them complement academic life such as GIN, STEM, COSMUN, DI and TOM.

Columbus Life is the area in charge of our afterschool programs which offer different activities in sports, languages, arts and others.

For K4 to 1st grade classes are offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays depending on the activity selected. Schedules vary: Tuesdays and Thursdays classes are from 2:45 – 4:30 p.m. and Wednesdays classes are from 1:45 – 3:30 p.m. For K4 students these classes are only offered starting on the second semester of the school year.

For students from 2nd to 5th grade, the classes are offered on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 3:15 pm to 4:50 pm and on Wednesday from 2:00 pm to 3:50 pm.

For students from 6th to 12th grade, the classes are offered on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm and on Wednesday from 2:10 pm to 3:50 pm.

Binational games (sports festivals and competitions with other AdvancEd schools in Colombia) and other sports competitions and festivals are always part of our school year ́s program.

For more information click here:

Columbus Life

Classrooms Without Walls

TCS offers field trips in almost every grade level. These are considered valuable educational and social experiences for students. They help to enhance a certain unit of study expose students to different experiences of learning and connects them to the real world.
The objective of Classrooms Without Walls (experiential education program) is to provide a unique learning opportunity for The Columbus School students otherwise not possible in the daily classroom. It is an opportunity to build friendships, develop team building and leadership skills, and travel within and outside of Colombia while participating in enriched activity-based programs.

The trips are organized by TCS in conjunction with a third party provider and faculty use this opportunity to get to know their students outside of a normal academic setting.
None of the Classroom without walls activities are mandatory. These activities have an extra cost.

Exchange Programs

TCS has no mandatory international exchange programs, nevertheless some families decide on their own to leave school for a short period of time (up to 1 year) to do exchange programs with other schools. TCS can keep their spot up to a year according to the Temporary Withdrawal Policy.

Summer Activities and Camps at TCS

Columbus Life offers 3 weeks of different types of activities during the summer for children of all ages. Make sure to ask for the school year ́s offer at the Columbus Life department.

Professional Learning

At TCS we believe in ongoing job-embedded professional learning through the support of coaches and Professional Learning Communities. Lasting impact results when educators engage in practices that focus on collective educator efficacy and learning in collaborative communities. To foster this learning we commit to structures that support collaboration and organize learning opportunities at school to ensure lasting impact. Individuals in leadership roles will attend conferences as needed to further their knowledge to support and train the rest of the staff.

Support for Academic Teaching staff

Coaches

At TCS, we believe that everyone deserves a coach. Therefore, we have Instructional Coaches that support staff in the areas of instruction, literacy, classroom environment, and technology. The coaches support teachers through individual coaching cycles, team coaching cycles, curriculum development and staff development sessions.

Professional Learning Opportunities on campus

Professional Learning Communities

All teachers participate in weekly PLC (Professional Learning Communities) with their team focused on student learning and strategies to support students.

School-hosted professional learning

Each year we host different workshops offered by outside organizations that are open to staff to apply to attend. Some examples of workshops we have hosted are: Cognitive Coaching, WIDA International Institute , Child Protection Level I training, and Restorative Justice Level 1 Training.

Professional Learning Days

Each year we have 8-9 days dedicated to professional learning on campus. On these days, we learn as a staff through workshops aligned to our Strategic Plan, host “Teachers-Teaching-Teachers” workshops and workshops offered by outside organizations.

SUNY Buffalo Master’s Degree>

Staff at TCS can choose to enroll in a Master’s Degree program offered on campus. The program is A Masters of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies Degree from SUNY Buffalo completed over 3 school years. This program is heavily subsidized by TCS and currently costs $250 per course for a total of $2,500 for a Master’s degree (the cost is reviewed on a yearly basis and subject to change).

Professional Learning Opportunities off campus

Staff can apply to attend local conferences or conferences abroad that support their role. However, we limit attendance to conferences as we believe in job-embedded on campus learning.

Online Professional Learning

We encourage staff to pursue learning through webinars and virtual courses. We often have several staff members participate in the same webinar/course and form a learning community to discuss how to apply what they have learned.

Buffalo Masters Program

At The Columbus School the continued professional learning of our staff is important to us. In order to support this learning, we offer a Master’s of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies from The State University of New York (SUNY) College at Buffalo :

This program is appropriate for teachers from K4-12. The program consists of 10 courses (3 credits per course). Within the course of study there is a Master’s Project and Research Course that will be taken. The entire program is available on our campus and can be completed in three years. For more information please see their website: http://igpe.buffalostate.edu/

Some of the courses offered to date have been:

Essential strategies for Educators of American/international schools
ESL in international School Settings
Curriculum and Program Development for the Gifted Individual
Facilitating Group Problem Solving
Foundations of Creative Learning
Instructional Design & Assessment
Learning Styles Methods and Resources
Multimedia for Educators
Principles of Creative Problem Solving
Reading Assessment and Evaluation
The Holistic Curriculum: Teaching to both sides of the brain

The program is substantially subsidized by the School for staff members. In order to begin courses in September of each school year the applicant must first be accepted by SUNY. As a condition of acceptance perspective students must have an English level according to the Common European Framework of B2. Continuity depends upon demand.