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Bowman School
File:BowmanCampus.jpg The Bowman East campus shown on a map
Location
Main Campus: 4000 Terman Drive High School: 835 Page Mill Road Bowman West: 693 Arastradero Rd Palo Alto , California 94306 United States
Coordinates	37°24′10″N 122°07′40″W / 37.402669558°N 122.12789393°W / 37.402669558; -122.12789393
Information
School type	Private, Montessori
Motto	Discover, Create, Become
Established	1995; 30 years ago
Head of School	Mary Beth Ricks
Grades	12 weeks to 12th grade
Enrollment	300 (maximum allowed with current permit)
Colors	Brown  , Red  , Orange  , Yellow
Nickname	Bowman Bees
Accreditation	AMS, IMC, ACS WASC, Niche
Website	www.bowmanschool.org

Bowman School is an independent, co-educational Montessori school located in Palo Alto, California. It serves students from preschool through grade 12 across three campuses. The school was founded in 1995 as Children's International School (CIS) and adopted its current name in 2003 in honor of Margaret Bowman Ricks, the school’s first Head of School.

Bowman School was founded in 1995 by a group of parents and educators who shared a vision of creating a unique type of education. Their goal was to build a school that emphasized individualized, self-directed learning, while preparing students to engage with a globalized world. Inspired by the Montessori philosophy, the founders opened Bowman’s first classroom at the Cubberley Community Center in Palo Alto, California. The school began modestly, operating out of a single rented room with just 13 students spanning kindergarten through fourth grade.

As interest in the school grew, Bowman expanded to meet the needs of older students. In 1997, the school added a middle school program, officially welcoming students in grades five through eight. This expansion would be the start of a snowballing process in which it would grow and expand to its current size today.

By 2003, Bowman had outgrown its original rented space. Seeking a permanent home that could better support its growing community, the school moved to a dedicated campus, located at 4000 Terman drive. It was at this time that the school adopted the name Bowman International School, in honor of Margaret Bowman Ricks, the first Head of School, whose leadership had been instrumental in shaping the school’s early years.

In 2009, Bowman became a member of the Common Ground Speaker Series, a program that brings leading experts to the Bay Area to speak on topics relevant to parenting and education. That same year, it joined the Small Schools Intermediate League (SSIL), a sports league of small schools in the Bay Area. In 2013, the Palo Alto board authorized Terman middle school to look into buying Bowman's 4000 Terman drive lot. However, the talks were eventually dropped.

In 2018, due to growing demand, Bowman expanded yet again to include a brand-new site. The new facility, known as Bowman West, opened in 2019. It contained a dedicated gymnasium, as well as a theater. This campus also contained the Bowman Kindergarten, as well as the art room and the IDEAlab, a mixed use room for science and technology.

In 2023, Bowman took another major step forward by establishing a high school program, extending its educational model to teach students all the way to 12th grade. To support this expansion, Bowman once again acquired another campus for the high school the following year. This campus, known as Page Mill, opened in mid-2024, and contained a dedicated space for the high school to work, as well as numerous amenities, such as college counseling as well as its own kitchen.

Bowman School follows the Montessori method, which emphasizes hands-on learning in multi-grade classrooms. Each student goes through the curriculum based on their readiness rather than age or grade, allowing for an extremely personalized education. Learning is based on a spiral curriculum, where students revisit old concepts with increasing complexity over time.

Instead of relying on tests or grades, Bowman uses assessments and conferences to track growth. The curriculum includes the core subjects along with world history, geography, languages, and cultural studies. The curriculum also allows students to specialize in one subject as long as they do not fall behind in others.

A notable feature of Bowman’s academic program is its year-round schedule. Instead of following a traditional fixed calendar, Bowman offers a flexible approach that allows students to choose their vacation days according to their individual needs. If a student attends a minimum of 180 days each year, they will fulfill the school’s attendance requirements.

Students in Grades 6–12 may take advantage of off-campus learning through field trips around the Bay Area and beyond, including: Los Angeles, Boston, Washington DC, the Civil Rights Trail (Alabama and Georgia), The Dakotas, Vancouver BC, and various locations across England.

Following the traditional Montessori age divisions, Bowman students are divided among five levels. Children's House includes the traditional preschool and kindergarten levels, Lower Elementary includes grades 1-3, and Upper Elementary includes grades 4-6. The Lower Secondary and Upper Secondary levels correspond to the traditional middle school and high school levels, respectively.

Bowman has received accreditation from the American Montessori Society, International Montessori Council, Western Association of Schools and Colleges, and Niche.

Bowman School operates three campuses: Bowman East, Bowman West, and Page Mill, and recently, a fourth campus named Bayshore dedicated for Preschool and Daycare.

The Bowman East, located at 4000 Terman Drive, is home to the elementary and lower secondary programs. Initially purchased in 2003, the main campus contains grades 1-8. It features a large turf field for sports and school-wide events with an L-shaped building around it. The majority of the building is made of classrooms arranged to support collaborative and independent learning. The building also includes administrative offices for teachers, level leads, the head of school, and several other administrative positions.

The Bowman West campus, located at 693 Arastradero Road, houses the Children's House (preschool and kindergarten). For the other levels, the campus features an IDEALab, used for art, Woodshop, culture, science, and coding, and a gymnasium containing a small theater.

The newly opened Page Mill campus is home to grades 9-12 of Bowman's secondary level. It is smaller than any of the other campuses.

The Bayshore campus is currently still a work in progress. It is expected to host Bowman's Children's House level, which includes preschool and kindergarten.

From grade 5 and onwards, students are encouraged to participate in a sport. Sports at Bowman include: Cross Country, Basketball, Football, Volleyball, Soccer, Bowling, Golf, and Tennis. In 2009, the school joined the Small Schools Intermediate League (SSIL), a sports league of small schools in the Bay Area. Currently, Bowman does not host any sports other than basketball and volleyball.

Bowman started its theater program in 2011. It was originally hosted at the Cubberly Community Center Theater, until Bowman built their Bowman West campus, containing a theater in the gymnasium. The high school plays are now still hosted at the Cubberly Theater

Until 6th grade, students take a unified class, which serves to evaluate their skill and passion for different instruments. From 7th grade and forward, music is optional, but specialized. Music classes from this point onward include subjects such as Marching Band and Orchestra

Bowman students may join certain clubs, which are student founded groups that meet at certain times for many purposes. Some are academic, and some are for entertainment, and play. Examples include Ping Pong, Pokemon, Robotics, and Chess.

Starting in first grade, Bowman School students can go on various trips. Students from first to twelfth grade take annual camping trips with Nature's Classroom Institute, teaching them about nature and the environment, as well as major environmental threats.

When a student reaches sixth grade, they have the option to go on a trip to the city of Los Angeles, where they learn about its history and importance. In seventh grade they have the option of going to Boston and eighth graders to Washington. Ninth graders, being in high school, may go on two trips, one to London and one to Arizona.

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• https://www.bowmanschool.org/