Frequently Asked Questions

The 109 members of our faculty are passionate, creative, and highly-qualified educators. All teachers at TASIS Dorado are certified, including Assistant Teachers. Many possess Master’s and Doctoral degrees or are in the process of achieving them. Our faculty love children and are excited about teaching!

First, the TASIS Dorado campus is a place of beauty. Surrounded by nature and embraced by architecture that echoes a Spanish mission style, students and faculty find inspiration and are focused on pursuing academic and personal excellence. The school has a state-of-the-art theater, 4 science labs, a STEAM Fab Lab, spacious classrooms, 3 basketball courts, 4 tennis courts, a soccer field, and a half-size Olympic pool, among other resources. In 2009, we added 8 new classrooms as well as two fully renovated science laboratories. To support our new Innovation Sciences Program, we have added a spacious classroom next to the existing STEAM Fab Lab.

Entering the Sabanera community is carefully monitored. During the school day, there are only two access points to the TASIS Dorado campus, which are closely supervised by security guards. All visitors must check-in and receive a pass. Furthermore, more than 50 surveillance cameras record all areas of the campus and are monitored by our security team.

VAPA stands for “Visual and Performing Arts.” All students have classes in Art, Music, and Theater Arts, led by master teacher-practitioners. The arts are a vital part of each student’s day as they learn to both create and appreciate beauty. Plays and other performances are a regular element of many core classes.

Yes! We offer our elementary students a wide range of enriching opportunities after school. Each trimester, students have various options related to visual and performing arts, athletics, and academics. For example, past offerings have included ceramics, hip-hop dance, yoga, choir, volleyball, judo, basketball, and Spanish reinforcement. Our students truly look forward to these unique, dynamic learning opportunities!

TASIS Dorado approaches technology integration with a primary focus on how digital tools can be leveraged to elevate each learning opportunity. We focus on using technology to promote higher-level thinking, engaged learning, and authentic connections. Our Upper School (6-12) students bring their own devices while at the elementary level, we provide Chromebooks in every classroom. Students at all grade levels and in every subject are utilizing Google Apps for Education, Google Classroom, and other Web 2.0 sites as valuable educational tools. Furthermore, our first through fifth-grade classrooms have 75” digital SMART boards to increase hands-on interaction during lessons. To support our high level of technology integration, we have established a modern network infrastructure that supports close to two thousand internet connections on a daily basis. Overall, TASIS Dorado has taken a progressive approach to seamless technology integration as we prepare our 21st-century learners for their future.

Yes! TASIS Dorado believes that travel enriches the educational experience. Our relationship with TASIS Switzerland and TASIS England allows students the opportunity to experience an exchange semester or to participate in their many summer program offerings.

For middle school students, curriculum-related travel opportunities include a 6th-grade trip to Space Camp and a 7th-grade trip to Washington, D.C.

For high school students, travel opportunities range from a trip to Spain through the Spanish Department, a Marine Biology trip to Belize, and a teacher-led international trip to various countries. Through the newly created Leadership Academy, high school students also have the opportunity to travel to Europe to attend the EF Global Leadership Summit.

Destinations vary from year to year.

We offer 30 AP courses, available from Grades 9-12. We also offer an enriched math program and Nivel Avanzado courses in the secondary division of TASIS Dorado. The vast majority of our students score a 3 or higher on the end-of-year AP exams.

The AP curriculum allows high school students to study college-level material and take achievement exams that afford them the possibility of receiving college credit for their studies. At TASIS Dorado, students can elect to take Advanced Placement (AP) courses in the specific areas in which they are passionate and committed to doing the required additional work. For example, not all students take AP Biology. This flexibility allows our students to customize their transcript of coursework.

The International Baccalaureate Programs (IB) are an alternative approach to curriculum and instruction. The emphasis is on the integration of subject areas and all students are expected to participate in the full curriculum. Both the AP and IB programs prepare students very well for college. For more information, check out each program’s website.

Our College Counseling Team works closely with students in the process of college and career planning. Beginning in Grade 9, students are educated about the college admissions process. Over time, they receive personal mentoring about testing and decisions regarding extracurriculars and course selection, all the way through the actual application season in 12th grade. Lectures, seminars, and college visits are regularly facilitated on campus regarding these and other personal growth topics.

Over 65% of our students participate in the athletic program. TASIS Dorado is proud to belong to two competitive, interscholastic leagues; the Puerto Rico High School Athletic Alliance for Grades 7-12 and L.A.M.E.P.I. for Grades 4-6. We compete in 8 different sports across those grade levels and even have non-traditional sports offerings including Judo and Fencing. For students in Grade 1-3, TASIS Dorado offers Volleyball and Basketball both as clinics and competitive teams. The mission of the athletic program is for our student-athletes to develop skills and character traits that will prepare them for life. Our athletic program is proud that we currently have nine student-athletes playing at the college/university level.

TASIS Dorado offers a multitude of special programs integrated into our curriculum that enrich learning and provide memorable experiences for our students. 

• Thematic Weeks culminate areas of study in our content-rich curriculum. In Communities of the World cultural topics across the globe are researched, debated, and celebrated. Students share findings about different peoples and regions. We celebrate creative expression through our Young Authors program in the lower school and Novel Voices and TD Creates in the upper school. Math, Science, Spanish and French and Italian also take center stage during their special weeks. 

• STEAM Fab Lab: Students of all ages get to work in this exciting space where they can design, build, engineer, and learn to use specialized equipment, including 3D printers and laser cutters. 

• Greenhouse & Bee Project: TASIS Dorado equips students to cultivate and protect our earth. 

• Exploration Days (Middle School) and Exploration Week (High School) are signature programs at TASIS Dorado, offering exciting learning experiences beyond the classroom. 

• Leadership Weeks culminate the graduation experience for our students in Grades 8 & 12, honoring their accomplishments and creating unique capstone experiences in their education. Events include speakers who have made a great impact in their communities, panel discussions with graduates for dialogs on relevant topics, hands-on activities that introduce new technologies, and adventurous field trips designed to strengthen class unity and create wonderful memories.

TASIS Dorado has a robust Counseling Department, whose six counselors meet regularly with students. In addition to formal meeting times, counselors frequently visit classrooms to observe student interactions, suggest activities or interventions, guide advisory periods and create activities to help students manage stress, encourage positive responses to challenges, and develop effective mindsets.

As a college preparatory school with a rigorous, academic program, TASIS Dorado seeks to serve our students’ needs well. Congruent with our mission to develop well-rounded citizens, our Wellness Program presents a proactive, focused and energized response to the challenges today’s youth face. Our program concentrates on developing in all our students a strong and positive sense of self; thoughtful, problem-solving decision making; a mindful approach to the challenges they face; the need for strength of character; well-balanced nutrition; and the importance of making healthy choices. We are in the planning stages for dedicated facilities to better articulate an integrated approach to enriching not only our minds and bodies, but also our hearts and souls. More questions? Feel free to contact us!

Each summer, we take the opportunity to reflect and recharge after the school year. As part of our reflection process, we identify new areas of growth and enhancement. Most recently, TASIS Dorado has added a variety of new programs at both the Elementary and Secondary levels.

At the Elementary level, new opportunities include an expanded Innovative Sciences program, an aged-based Leadership Academy and program, and updated Puerto Rico history and culture units of study.

At the Secondary level, new opportunities include project-based learning, Leadership Academy, and new courses such as Organic Chemistry, Fab Lab Physical Computing, Pre AP English, Enriched Spanish, Economics & Personal Finance, and Computer Science for Middle School.

Learn more about our new programs starting in 2021-2022.