OREM -- Though the private college preparatory academy Meridian School in Orem is celebrating 20 years of operation this week, the school's best years may still be ahead of it.

Dan Smith, Meridian's relatively young and energetic new head of school, knows a thing or two about the halls of Meridian, though its location may have moved north in recent years from Provo to Orem. He attended Meridian School for his last two years of high school before enrolling at Brigham Young University and completing graduate work at Columbia University. In just a short amount of time at Meridian, the school's atmosphere and mission made a lasting impression on him.

"It's really interesting," Smith said. "That's what directed me into education in the first place."

Smith taught for about a decade at independent schools on the East Coast before getting an opportunity to return as a alumnus administrator this year.

A smaller institution, with a current enrollment of about 170 students in grades pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, Meridian was created two decades ago when a Waterford private school moved to the Salt Lake City area. Parents and teachers wanted to continue the former school's pattern of academic excellence in Utah County, and created Meridian, said school spokeswoman and faculty member Kris Crowther.

A parent looking for a better opportunity for her children in 2000, Crowther was impressed with Meridian's small class sizes, experienced faculty (many of whom have been professionals in their fields), and students' test scores.

Based on IOWA standardized testing scores, most students at Meridian score the same as children two graders higher in the public school system. On those same tests, some Meridian School eighth-graders achieve scores on par with the first year of college.

"We wanted our child to be more challenged," she said.

All five of Crowther's children now attend Meridian, where she has transitioned from being a parent volunteer to publishing the school's newsletter and Web site. Also a part-time faculty member, Crowther teaches yearbook and journalism courses at the school.

"It got to where I really believed what was happening here. I really wanted to be a part of it," she said.

Smith said that because Meridian, as a private school, can select its students, its teachers and curriculum, that framework gives administrators and faculty the freedom to work with children who are determined and excited about learning.

He said the school doesn't necessarily hand-pick the smartest students, but those that have a hunger and interest in attaining knowledge and won't shirk from working hard.

"Because we are a smaller community with smaller classrooms, as teachers and students, they really develop a strong relationship," Smith said. "Kids can't fall through the cracks."

Josh Crowther, Kris Crowther's oldest child and a senior at Meridian, began taking classes at the school in third grade, and after a two-year hiatus in public school, was eager to return. Because of the school's small class sizes, typically capped at 18 students in grades first through sixth, and in the low 20s for secondary students, he said students get a significant amount of one-on-one time with teachers.

"I don't feel pressured that if I don't understand something, that I can't go after class and make contact with the teacher to get more help," he said.

Ten percent of Meridian's student body is composed of foreign students, mostly from countries in Asia and Central America, who add an uncommon cultural experience to the school.

With that and foreign exchange opportunities, students get in-depth foreign language experience.

"I love it that there is this broad view," Kris Crowther said. "We live in such a homogenous society. I want my kids to see the world, and when they walk into school, they get a taste of that."

But keeping an independent institution like Meridian operating has never been easy. Though the relocation to a newer facility in Orem has helped attract potential students and their families, the current recession has taken a toll on enrollment.

Kris Crowther said families of students have lost jobs and had to move and been unable to continue to send their children to Meridian. Other obstacles have threatened the school, but it continues with its mission to provide the best quality education it can.

"It's been tough, and a struggle," Smith said.

Josh Crowther, who said he hopes to attend Arizona State University in a year, is interested in pursuing a higher education in computer science. He said he has enjoyed his BC calculus course, the second level of AP calculus.

"I'm learning basic programming and just the mathematics behind it all," he said. "It's kind of fueled the fire."

To celebrate Meridian School's 20th anniversary, the school is hosting a dinner and entertainment fundraiser for school founders, students and their families, faculty and alumni on Friday. After the initial 200 tickets were sold out, another 64 were made available. Those were also quickly sold out, Kris Crowther said.

On Saturday, high school-aged students and alumni will participate in homecoming events, including a formal dance.

Josh Crowther said he is looking forward to Saturday's reunion with former students.

"I get to see a lot of old friends," he said. "It's basically like a little family reunion type of thing."

For more information about Meridian School at 280 S. 400 East in Orem, go online to www.meridianschool.org.

Related

• Congrats to Meridian School
• Meridian School gets award