Tara Performing Arts High School

4180 19th St Boulder, CO 80304
www.tarahighschool.org

Quick Facts (26-27)

Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #1 - "The immersion in culture that Tara students experience teaches how interconnected we all are and sets us on paths to becoming global citizens, benefiting not just ourselves but our communities andthe world at large."Alumna, Class of 2017
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #2 - Tara's schoolhouse.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #3 - Our students explore the natural world firsthand, examining real animal specimens in the lab and the field.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #4 - At Tara Performing Arts High School, performance is the lens through which students learn to think, collaborate, and engage with the world. Their production of Shakespeare's As You Like It is just one example of what that looks like in practice.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #5 - Our seniors cap four years of Waldorf-inspired education with a month-long journey through Austria and England, walking through Vienna, London, Stratford, Somerset, and Cornwall. History, art, music, and architecture that they've spent four years studying, finally encountered face to face
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #6 - At Tara, the performing arts shape how students think, collaborate, and show up for one another. This production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel puts all of that on full display - in every voice, every gesture, and every moment shared on stage.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #7 - Our tenth graders venture into the canyon lands of southwestern Colorado with a ten-mile hike into Ute Tribal Park, where the contrast between cowboy culture and the deep spiritual history of the Ancestral Puebloan lands becomes a living lesson.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #8 - Art meets performance at Tara, where students stage Tina Howe's "Museum". This is what learning looks like at Tara.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #9 - At Tara, music history is anything but passive. Students explore Renaissance-era music the best way possible, by performing it together.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #10 - At Tara, the stage is where students learn to think on their feet, read a room, and take creative risks. This production of "Scapino!" -- rooted in the physical comedy of commedia dell'arte -- captures all three.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #11 - Our ninth and eleventh graders travel to New York City as part of their History through Art and History through Music blocks, spending the week visiting museums, galleries and concert halls during the day and Broadway shows at night. They come prepared: the trip is the culmination of classroom study, and that context transforms what they see.
Tara Performing Arts High School Photo #12 - Tara's extended campus, the historic Nomad Playhouse.

Quick Facts (26-27)

School Rankings

Tara Performing Arts High School ranks among the top 20% of private schools in Colorado for:

Category
Attribute

School Facts

Religious Affiliation
Grades Offered
Grades 9-12
Students By Grade
Grade 10 and 12 largest with 16 students each, while Grade 11 is smaller at 9 students.
Year Founded
1994

Student Body

Total Students
55 students
Student Body Type
Co-ed
% Students of Color
11%
State avg.: 25%

Academic Profile

Total Classroom Teachers
15 teachers
Student-Teacher Ratio
4:1
National avg.: 11:1

Tuition & Financial Aid

Admission Deadline
None / Rolling
Yearly Tuition Cost
Tuition Notes
Generous scholarships available!
% on Financial Aid
25%
Acceptance Rate
30%
National avg.: 85%
College Acceptance Rate
90%
Admissions Director
Phillip Alvarez
Application URL

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Sports

School Mascot
Gnome (unofficial)

School Notes

  • Tara students travel the world, perform on stage, and wrestle with big ideas, often all in the same semester.
  • The performing arts sit at the center of our curriculum, not as an extracurricular, but as a lens through which students learn to think, collaborate, and engage with everything around them.
  • Faculty who are genuinely passionate about their subjects, combined with first-hand encounters with culture and history, push that curiosity further. Tara graduates go on to become economists, environmental lawyers, educators, and policy makers.
  • Most of them aren't actors.
  • But they know how to read a room, hold their nerve, and care about the people around them.
  • What you learn at Tara stays with you.
  • Tara's mission is to awaken students' minds and hearts, to foster their sense of connection to each other and the world, to engage them in meaningful work and activities, and to excite them about life itself.
  • Tara is dedicated to providing opportunities for emotional growth and renewal through deep involvement in the performing arts and celebration of the cycle of the festival year. In addition to supporting lively intellectual development through a demanding experiential Waldorf academic curriculum, the school cultivates world citizenship through travel and immersive study. At Tara, students engage in life in full consciousness, free of substance use and addictive distractions, which allows them to be truly present for their education and to participate in artistic process as a way to explore the challenges of living in our complex age.
  • The Tara educational path asks students to step into the light as individuals and to learn to take the kind of risks involved in being fully human.
  • "I came to Tara as a boarding student because of some vague feeling that told me I had found something special. I stayed because it was beyond my wildest dreams of what a school could be. The community welcomed me with open arms and became my family, as I was so far away from my own. Tara has taught me to engage with the world and take responsibility for my learning. It nurtures my creativity, challenges my mind, expands my heart, and strengthens my ideals every day. Most importantly, it has allowed me to discover myself and has given me the tools to mold myself into the person I hope to be." Twelfth grade student
  • Sample of notable school alumni/alumnae:
    • Alumnus 2005 - Graduated with a voracious hunger for knowledge. -
    • Alumnus 2001 - Found the academic subjects enlivening and rigorous. -
Source: Verified school update

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Tara Performing Arts High School cost?
Tara Performing Arts High School's tuition is approximately $31,805 for private students.
What is the acceptance rate of Tara Performing Arts High School?
The acceptance rate of Tara Performing Arts High School is 30%, which is lower than the national average of 88%. Tara Performing Arts High School's acceptance rate is ranked among the top private schools in Colorado with low acceptance rates.
Who are famous alumni from Tara Performing Arts High School?
Tara Performing Arts High School famous alumni include: Alumnus 2005 - Graduated with a voracious hunger for knowledge. and Alumnus 2001 - Found the academic subjects enlivening and rigorous..
What is Tara Performing Arts High School's ranking?
Tara Performing Arts High School ranks among the top 20% of private schools in Colorado for: Lowest average acceptance rates.
When is the application deadline for Tara Performing Arts High School?
The application deadline for Tara Performing Arts High School is rolling (applications are reviewed as they are received year-round).
In what neighborhood is Tara Performing Arts High School located?
Tara Performing Arts High School is located in the Rural North Boulder neighborhood of Boulder, CO. There are 1 other private schools located in Rural North Boulder.

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Did You Know?

The average private school tuition in Boulder, CO is $29,237 for elementary schools and $32,507 for high schools (read more about average private school tuition across the country).
The average acceptance rate in Boulder, CO is 73% (read more about average acceptance rates across the country).

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