Headmaster of Denver Academy Jim Loan looked at his calendar, looked at the school he had helped create and figured this was the right time to step aside.
Loan, 62, who 35 years ago helped found the south Denver private school for children with “learning differences,” will retire in a few days.
“It’s time,” said Loan, who has been headmaster since 1992.
The school has become a haven for students who have had difficulty in other settings. Some have learning disabilities — attention deficit disorder or dyslexia. Others haven’t been able to succeed in traditional schools.
“Denver Academy saves lives,” said Earl Hoellen, whose son struggled through school before he attended DA. His son is now set to graduate from the University of Arizona.
“That is a testament to Jim Loan,” said Hoellen, who is on the school’s board.
Loan was one of those kids decades ago in a small town outside Chicago — a slow reader, bad at math and unable to quickly interpret instruction. A teacher told his mother she shouldn’t expect much from her son.
Yet, Loan learned how to teach himself, went to Carthage College in Wisconsin and became a teacher at an East Los Angeles school that had been taken over by gangs.
In that public school, the methods of Denver Academy were born.
Loan worked to find ways, or, as he says, “the keys,” to unlock the learning in those who have troubles.
Sitting in his office recently, Loan pulled out a folder called the “black book” that he and former colleague Steve Tattum created. It is filled with directions to guide teaching philosophies at DA.
“Our teachers are taught how to reach these kids,” he said. “We’ve synthesized all of these techniques and methodologies created from people like (Jean) Piaget, (William) Glasser, (Maria) Montessori. We pull all of them together and be eclectic.”
The high school has three separate schools: a “core” section where student strengths are identified, a “prep” section to prepare kids for college and a “progressive” section that offers independent or hands-on learning.
“The more creative you can be so every kid can learn, the more successful you will be,” Loan said. “The key to teaching at-risk kids is relationships.”
Tuition is $22,000 a year, and the school has attracted kids from Denver’s most prominent families.
The school’s enrollment has climbed from 50 in 1972 to more than 460 in first through 12th grade. Denver Academy is the largest private school in the country for kids who learn differently.
This year, 57 seniors graduated and 90 percent went on to college.
Class sizes are small — about a dozen students per class. The student-teacher ratio is 7-to-1.
The school in 2000 took over the campus of a century-old hospital for tuberculosis patients. Buildings were remodeled, and classrooms were constructed with students in mind.
Full-spectrum lighting floods the rooms, couches are in the corners and spotlights are trained on teachers whose daily performances help students stay focused.
Now Loan is unsure of what he is going to do. He would like to take the model that he helped develop at Denver Academy across the nation and possibly around the world.
“Here, I have boundaries,” he said. “I look forward to expanding this around the globe.”
Jeremy P. Meyer: 303-954-1367 or jpmeyer@denverpost.com
