Perkiomen School’s Head of School Mark A. Devey has announced a partnership between Perkiomen School, Pennsburg, Pa., and Leighton School, Shanghai, China.

Leighton School officially opens its doors to its first group of students in the fall of 2022, becoming the flagship campus of American high schools built by Ligao Education Group in Shanghai.

Graduates of the Leighton School, serving students in grades 10-12, will receive a Perkiomen School diploma and will join a network of Perkiomen students and alumni from all over the world.

Leighton School will educate according to Perkiomen School standards, and over time the schools will collaborate on curriculum development, share professional resources, and have a common goal of providing balance in education – striving for academic rigor, fostering strong mental and physical health, and cultivating creative and artistic pursuits.

“When we were approached to guide the development of a new independent school in China, we found that at our core philosophies were very similar,” says Devey. “What Perkiomen values as community aligns beautifully with the values of Leighton School. We feel a common bond. An opportunity like this, to expand possibilities for our students – in both the US and China – speaks to the type of education we are providing. A Perkiomen education is transformational, innovative, global, and diverse, and will prepare our students for their future – a fulfilling life. Leighton is seeking a competitive, engaging academic environment that also greatly values athletics and the arts. Their emphasis on those two areas of school life will set them apart from many Chinese schools.”

Similar to the Entrepreneur, Medical and Artificial Intelligence, and Design Institutes at Perkiomen, Leighton School is developing partnerships with well-known companies and industry professionals to provide unique experiential learning experiences for their students.

One such partnership is between Leighton and DeepBlue Technology, a fast-growing leader in artificial intelligence, to supply their AI Lab with hardware and software, develop curriculum guidance, and support experienced teachers.

Leighton has also partnered with Intel AI for Youth as well as partnered with SLUSH Asia and local Fortune 500 companies for its Business & Entrepreneurship Advanced Learning Lab. Leighton School also plans to develop a Biomedicine Advanced Learning Lab in 2023.

As in the Perkiomen Institutes, where students have worked with St. Luke’s University Health Network, Merck, Medtronic, and Tower Garden, access to professionals and emerging technologies allows students to directly learn about the fields they are interested in, rather than just read about them in a textbook.

This type of education supports students to apply what they are learning now and uncover more about themselves and their role in the world.

Josh Holt, Head of School for Leighton School, feels similarly about the fundamental connection between Perkiomen and Leighton.

“These shared visions of education make the partnership between Perkiomen School and Leighton School a natural fit for expanding top educational opportunities for students around the world,” says Holt. “Leighton School has been an opportunity for my partners and I to develop and open our dream school with innovative educational programs and competitive sports programs. This top college prep high school for young Chinese men and women, also teaches its students to value health and well-being by providing organic dining, mindfulness activities, sports and exercise, and a healthy balance between technology and life, which leads to life-long health and happiness.”

Holt, originally from Texas, holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Hendrix College and graduated from Columbia University’s Teachers College with a Master of Arts in Teaching in 1998. He worked for 13 years as a social studies teacher in public schools in New York and New Orleans. In 2011, he moved into academic leadership in a New England boarding school, before accepting a position as Principal of an American high school in Shanghai in 2013. During his nine years in China, Holt has served as Head of School of three American high schools.

Learn more about the partnership with Leighton School by visiting here.