The King's Academy - Review #2

I decided to go to TKA because of their Conservatory of the Arts and it was the best decision ever. TKA is a perfect mixture of strong academics and extracurriculars, bringing a high-quality education in both. During my 2 years at TKA (Junior and Senior), I participated in many musical theatre shows and also had many AP classes that helped me get into 22 out of 32 colleges I applied to, including Penn State University and Berklee School of Music. The staff that works with international students are the best people in this world. Mrs Lee, Mrs Sowers, and Mrs Howard changed my life for the better and were always supportive. I love the campus and had a blast during my senior trip.

I grew so much and became an adult after. Qualities such as accountability, organization, independence, cleaning, and many others. I became more understanding of other's emotions, especially with my dorm sisters, and we ended up creating bonds that would never be broken. I found a new family that I love and had no idea that was waiting for me.

I would have done nothing differently. But I do have very important advice: GET OFF YOUR PHONE!!!! get off Instagram and TikTok, because nowadays most kids are missing out on the experience I had, especially inside the dorm, because they are so closed in their world of social media, and ego, that they don't bond and experience what I did. I am just so glad and grateful that I was present in the moment and valuing human connection more than being connected online.

The international student department, my dorm, Mrs. Lee and Coach Lee, my Bible teacher Ms. Keeney, my friends, especially the international ones, and the Conservatory with Mr. Schnack, Mrs. Higgins, Mr. G, Mrs. Shane... and so many more!!!!

If you are looking for a dorm, Mrs Lee is my recommendation, BUT only if you are a kind person looking to grow because Mrs. Lee deserves the best!Be respectful with everyone especially the ISP. They are there for you and they want our best.Go hang out at Commons ParkBe open, and friendly. I met the love of my life at TKA, more than 3 years together now and I couldn't be happier.Please remember to shower every day, people around you can't stand someone who doesn't shower every day! (It's the bare minimum)

The academics at TKA are very strong, especially regarding the AP courses. However, it will only be as strong as the student chooses. If a certain student decides not to take any Honours or AP-level courses, it will be more limited and easier. I did love my classes, especially the harder ones since they pushed me to the level of excellence every single day, and they made me learn so much, for example: AP Environmental Science and AP Microeconomics (which I got a 5 in both national exams). Those two classes changed the way I view the world, and until today, I find it so interesting how I can have a conversation about basically anything regarding those topics and it made me more aligned with the financial world and the environment. I would say that the only thing that I experienced that wasn't the best, was that some teachers might not teach something just because is not what they believe, especially regarding science and Christianity. I believe everything should be taught, even if is just a hypothesis, and even if it doesn't align exactly with what the Bible says. Not being taught something means that we don't know how to discern what's true or not, and it made us, the students, feel more distant from the professor's point of view, and not believe in what he was saying. But still, the majority of the teachers are amazing educators, especially Mrs. Cangelosi and Mrs. Mason, who were both respectively my AP Environmental Science and my DE College Algebra/Trigonometry teachers.

I was not part of the Athletics Program but I did have a lot of friends that were part of it and loved it. The best thing in my point of view is that training is every day and very harsh, pushing the athletes to excellence while still expecting them to have an amazing academic year, which is a great preparation for whoever wants to play sports in college. The sports variety is vast and you can find something you will like. The best part about the Athletic Program is the school spirit surrounding it.

The Conservatory was my home while studying at TKA. From acting, vocal, choir, dance, theatre... I was involved in all (except the Visual Arts). The amount of money and resources that are invested into the Smith Family Conservatory of the Arts is amazing, and truly life-changing. What I most like about it is how easy is to be involved with your fellow students while having fun and learning, and how they truly encourage us to be the best version of ourselves and always evolve as performers. I am a performer and I went to college to continue studying Musical Theatre at a professional level, and let me tell you, TKA has a professional level. Without my two years at TKA, I would have not been even half of the performer I am today. Of course, it took a lot of hard work on my part, a lot of things I did on my own, and would've liked more support perhaps, but still, without TKA it would've been way harder. At the end of my senior year, I had been accepted to the best Arts universities in America and the World!!! Including the Berklee Conservatory of Music and Penn State University. The conservatory became a family to me. My advice to any prospective student is, to work hard. Because without your hard work inside and outside the classroom, you will be nothing more than ordinary.

There were a lot of clubs and organizations, that I wanted to be part of, but because I was 100% focused on Musical Theatre and the Conservatory, I did not have enough time to be part of many other things. However, every Sunday with the amazing Ms. Keeney and Mr. Barrantes, we played soccer at the school, with mostly international students, and it was the best. There are a lot of clubs though, and you also have the opportunity to create your own, so it is pretty unique.

Living in the dorm with Mrs Lee and Mr. Lee was magical. I had the best experience living in the dorms, but of course, I have to give credit to my dorm mom Eileen Lee who is truly one of the best people I met in my whole life. She was truly a second mom and I learned so much about God and life with her. I shared the house with 7 girls and it was so fun. Of course, there is always some small trouble when sharing a room, especially a bathroom ahhah. During my first year, I shared a room with an amazing girl (who is now my forever sister) but we both loved showering, so sometimes we had discussions about who was going to shower first, but overall my experience was great. My dorm mom made sure anyone who had any food restriction was included (I am vegan), and even during holidays like Thanksgiving I always felt part of the family. Our house was full of laughter, smiles, hugs, tears of joy, and most importantly Jesus. Mrs Lee brought me to church many times and changed my life.

I did enjoy the diversity of food in the cafeteria, but being a vegan, there were not many plant protein options every day, but I was never hungry. I do believe that lunchtime should be at least 10 minutes longer so I would have extra time to brush my teeth. However lunch time was always a bonding time with my friends that I did not share a class with, bonding over sharing fries or complaining about the lack of healthy options, but overall, at the end of my last year, the food got better. But as a Brazilian, I still can't fathom the fact that in America it's common to have soda in a school cafeteria.

West Palm Beach is beautiful and you never run out of things to do. My dorm sisters, our colleagues, and I loved Rosemary Square walking around Palm Beach, and also picnics at Commons Park, and going to Regal Movie Theatre. Anything from the beach to the mall, to amazing restaurants, you can find all around there. Truly everything I dreamed for my exchange year. Miami and Orlando are also close, and we got to experience so much.

The social life at TKA is different because the school is indeed very strict. But I don't say that negatively. My social life was with my friends and sisters, and my boyfriend, who I met there. We mostly hung out around WPB and I did not go to any parties while I was at TKA, because I was so scared of being expelled (since we signed an honor code that we wouldn't drink or be around people drinking and many other things...) so my social life was more family life, but I loved it. It made me feel safe and truly present in the moment.