Departments and Curriculum

Liberty Common High School has a robust computer-science program.

Scholars can expect a rich curriculum in course offerings allowing them to understand and apply office applications, take apart and put together computers, load and configure operating systems, work with computer networks, build well-designed web pages, write computer programs, and take college-level programming classes. They also have the option of joining computer clubs that let them explore computer concepts and learn about cybersecurity.

All Liberty students are exposed to the fundamentals of engineering. The application of scientific and mathematical principles to meritorious social and economic situations draws upon the multiple disciplines taught at Liberty to solve important problems.  Liberty Common High School’s engineering track provides a unique, one-of-a-kind opportunity to master the fundamentals of engineering.  Portions of Liberty’s engineering curriculum were developed by Liberty's professional-engineering instructors in partnership with Colorado State University. 

The engineering faculty at Liberty consists of top instructors whose experience includes advanced degrees, extensive private-sector engineering backgrounds, and proven classroom-teaching history. 

Successful engineering-track graduates of LCHS are prepared and qualified to enter engineering programs at the university level with sufficient background knowledge, project experience and skills to be well ahead of their peers.

Liberty Common High School has a deep commitment to reflective engagement with the classical literary tradition and the life such reflection promotes. Our curriculum fosters careful reading, patient observation, and intelligent expression. By providing historical and canonical context and by inviting serious discussion on the greatest works of literature, Liberty’s English program requires students to grow in skill and understanding.

In concert with Liberty’s emphasis on character education, the study of literature deals directly with the human condition and the importance of moral responsibility. Indeed, the intellectual humility required to submit oneself to the great writers of the past is itself a step toward forming good habits of heart and mind.

Liberty’s English Department offers courses in western literature, British literature, American literature, composition, speech, debate, technical writing, and other electives. The department also offers AP English Literature and Composition and AP English Language and Composition.

The English instructors at LCHS are required to possess and to grow in knowledge and expertise. The combination of excellent faculty and rich curriculum has helped consistently produce top scores on the ACT, SAT, and AP English exams, along with Colorado’s various standardized assessments. More importantly, students graduate from Liberty with knowledge of the classics and high levels of verbal fluency and rhetorical skill. It is our hope that they also depart with greater wisdom, empathy, and good humor.

Liberty Common High School has a deep commitment to the Western methods of intellectual inquiry, and the history/economics department faculty serve as custodians of that esteemed tradition.  Our curriculum cultivates an appreciation for the wisdom, beauty, and truth found in the studies of ancient societies and in our own nation’s past.  As students progress through the coursework in our department, they learn how to demonstrate “mature citizenship” and they learn the fundamentals of how to ensure that scarce resources are allocated justly.  Students develop the capacity to think like historians as they are forced to construct arguments using primary source analysis.  In this process, they learn how to take on the perspectives of others and reason in a serious, principled manner.

The intellectual odyssey upon which our students embark begins in the 7th grade.  At that point, students complete an overview of American and European history concomitant with the Core Knowledge Sequence.  As they move into high school, they explore the principles of Austrian economics and other methods of resource distribution.  As Sophomores, they analyze the impacts of the most transformative ideas in human history.  As juniors, they engage in a deeper analysis of American history, the foundations of American government, and its operation.  As seniors, they can choose to engage in an AP-level macroeconomics course.  Other AP offerings include American history and American government.

Because of the robust Core Knowledge Curriculum offered here at Liberty, because of the ways in which the history content is reinforced by colleagues in the other departments, and because the members of our department pride themselves on being practicing historians, our students exceed the national, state, and district standards on the ACT, the AP exams, and on the SAT.  But more importantly, students graduate from Liberty with an understanding of how a deep understanding of history enriches and improves their lives.  Once they graduate, Liberty students understand how history can console, can inspire, and can provide solutions to many of the problems our modern world faces today.

On Colorado’s standardized-testing assessment, Liberty Common High School’s students have consistently earned scores among the highest in the state for several years running. The LCHS math department maintains a tradition of excellence.

Building upon solid math concepts taught in the elementary grades, our students are years ahead of their peers by the time they enter college.

Our mathematics department offers a comprehensive study of high-school mathematics from Algebra I through Calculus III and Statistics, in addition to a selection of highly specialized electives designed to give students a glimpse past the traditional curriculum. AP courses offered include AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, and AP Statistics.  Concurrent enrollment through Front Range Community College is available for College Algebra, College Trigonometry, and Calculus III.  Our courses emphasize both conceptual understanding as well as procedural fluency of the mathematics being learned.

A major focus is placed on the study of functions throughout the curriculum, especially as they pertain to developing mathematical models to use in problem-solving situations.

Our faculty consists of caring and well-educated individuals who work at aiding students along their journey to master the necessary mathematical concepts and skills necessary to succeed in our technology-based society. The high-quality LCHS instructors have proven classroom track records, private-sector, and real-world professional experience. Their standards are high. Their unparalleled skill in teaching young scholars the logical intricacies of mathematics fosters confidence and ordered thinking.

The Music Program at Liberty Common School is dedicated to offering a wide variety of musical opportunities to students. Our core-music classes explore a wide variety of topics ranging from musical elements, notation, significant composers and their works, and the historical and cultural importance of music. 

As students are exposed to the fine arts in the core curriculum, they are also afforded opportunities to explore their unique skills and talents through additional fine-arts programming. Fifth and sixth graders are invited to choose from band or choir to continue their music education in addition to the core curriculum.

Our junior-high and high school introduces several performing-arts ensembles in which students may elect to participate, including String Orchestra, Intermediate Band, Concert Band, Jazz Ensemble, Choral Ensemble, and Theater.

Students at LCHS are expected to maintain physical fitness and develop healthy habits. Liberty’s Physical Education program provides expert instruction in fitness, conditioning, sports, health, nutrition and dance. The program supports students who participate in LCHS’s multiple competitive sports teams.

LCHS students enjoy physical education through a wide variety of activities.  These activities are either team-oriented or individual-based.  LCHS helps students find activities they enjoy now and throughout their lives.  Skill and health-related components, setting goals, learning rules and sports history are necessary to be a fully educated person.  LCHS’s professional, classroom, physical educators lead students toward a complete education of body, mind, and virtue.

Curriculum Maps

Over the years, many of Liberty’s former students have returned to visit the school remarking on how exceptionally well they were prepared in the scientific disciplines thanks to the rigorous education for which Liberty is well known. A great number of Liberty’s graduates have gone to pursue professions in scientific fields.  Moreover, a large number of parents whose careers are in engineering and the sciences have chosen Liberty Common High School for the education of their own children. These parents are an important part of the close network the school enjoys with scientific leaders and businesses in the Northern Colorado community. As a classical, liberal-arts institution, LCHS gives honored stature to science.  Key scientific contributions and the scientific method are taught to all students throughout high school. LCHS scholars are cognizant of significant scientific achievements in biology, chemistry and physics, especially those that elevate the human condition, promote prosperity and enhance freedom.  Students also understand the limits of science.

The academic and professional experiences obtained by the school’s professional science and engineering instructors are invaluable tools providing added depth and strength to the LCHS science program.

We aim to foster great hearts through the study and practice of art. We see the arts as an ideal venue for students to discover beauty, discern truth, and develop habits of virtue in order to nurture goodness in their hearts.

We approach art education from an academic standpoint to foster great minds. Liberty students study and analyze art history so they can see themselves within a greater context and embrace their cultural inheritance. Lastly, through guided studio practice, students become better craftsmen. Creating art with care allows our students to see the world with “artists’ eyes.”

Fine arts opportunities for 7th–12th graders come in the form of core classes and electives. At Liberty Common High School, students progress through an academically rigorous art program exploring a variety of media including painting, drawing, photography, graphic design, sculpture, and mixed media.