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We Provide Tailored Education for Tomorrow’s Leaders

🏆#1 Best Private School 8 Years in a row North Coast Reader’s Poll

Meet Our Founders

Dr. Michael Duoto and Jill Duoto

Welcome

Founded in 2002 by Dr. Michael Duoto and Jill Duoto, High Bluff Academy draws on over 30 years of combined experience in international education, spanning countries such as Japan, Singapore, and Brazil. Dr. Michael Duoto, with a PhD in Educational Leadership and certifications as both Principal and Superintendent, has led prestigious schools worldwide, including Singapore American School and the International School of Curitiba. Michael and Jill’s experience spans teaching and administration at schools in the U.S., Japan, Colombia, Bolivia, Singapore and China.

Jill Duoto, the Director of HBA, with a B.A. from UC Berkeley and an M.Ed. from San Diego State University, brings a deep understanding of curriculum and instruction. Together with her staff, they have created a school grounded in leadership, innovation, service and a commitment to excellence in education.

Jill is also the founder of the High Bluff Academy Foundation which is committed to the education of Afghan girls.

HBA Supports Elite Athletes
Advantages of an HBA Education
Brochure Fall 2024
Calendar 2024-2025

Our Mission

To make a meaningful impact at a critical juncture in our students’ development transforming them into confident capable adults.

Our Vision

To foster compassion, responsibility, and academic excellence in every HBA student.

Our Belief

Every student can succeed in rigorous academic courses with small classes and teacher support.

Our Approach

Helping Students Become Confident Learners

Core Values That Define Our Institution

Personalized Learning

We believe every student deserves an education tailored to their strengths. We begin with cognitive testing and use this data to create a personalized classroom experience.

Academic Excellence

We are committed to delivering a rigorous, high-quality education. Through exposure to diverse career options, students are encouraged to explore various fields, gaining clarity on their future goals. By aligning academic skills with individual interests, we help students build personalized resumes that showcase their strengths and accomplishments for competitive college admissions.

Flexibility and Support

We support student athletes with flexible schedules including hybrid learning.
Students can accelerate or remediate classes as needed. We customize our course offerings to meet the needs of English language learners as well as students who need more advanced material or those who need a slower pace.

Supporting The Global Community.

Service to the global community is infused in everything we do at HBA. From the novels they are reading in English to the activities in their daily schedules, HBA teaches responsibility as a world citizen. HBA Kabul provides in-person instruction leading to a high school diploma for Afghan girls who have no other options.

Read our Rave Reviews!

Parent / Guardian

I can’t say enough about this little school. My son takes AP classes here a la carte, and he loves it. The class sizes are so small, the students develop great bonds with one another and the teachers. The students are international, studious, kind and caring. The teachers are just amazing–they have graduate degrees and a huge love of their subject matters and their students. When the local schools closed down on a Friday due to COVID, High Bluff was fully operating on line by Tuesday morning. And they recognized that this was a time that students needed connection and learning more than ever, so they canceled spring break. My son feels completely supported by this school, and looks forward to every class. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth every penny.

Parent / Guardian

I can’t say enough about this little school. My son takes AP classes here a la carte, and he loves it. The class sizes are so small, the students develop great bonds with one another and the teachers. The students are international, studious, kind and caring. The teachers are just amazing–they have graduate degrees and a huge love of their subject matters and their students. When the local schools closed down on a Friday due to COVID, High Bluff was fully operating on line by Tuesday morning. And they recognized that this was a time that students needed connection and learning more than ever, so they canceled spring break. My son feels completely supported by this school, and looks forward to every class. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth every penny.

Parent / Guardian

My daughters experience at High Bluff Academy has been amazing. The teachers are fantastic and offer a level of support that is rare to find. The teachers truly want the students to succeed and make learning interesting and fun, not stressful and overehelming. Jill has created and environment where all students are supported and nurtured to be the best that they can be. They work around the kids schedules at Torrey Pines, which makes it possible for a seamless schedule this further reducing stress. We are truly grateful to Jill and the entire staff for providing a true gift to students.

Parent / Guardian

My son was really struggling at the large public school in our neighborhood. He is very bright but was not able to focus due to the large class size. He had a lot of anxiety about going to school and was not connecting with any of his teachers. He transferred to High Bluff Academy in the beginning of 11th grade and it was the best decision we ever made. He loved all of his teachers and was inspired to work hard and get good grades. The caring, family type atmosphere was very welcoming. Although he had not excelled in math or science at previous schools, he was very inspired by his teachers at High Bluff and now he is a junior in college majoring in Microbiology and wants to go on to a PhD program and become a genetics researcher. I never would have dreamed that his life would turn around so dramatically just by changing schools. His success and self-confidence today would not have been possible without High Bluff Academy.

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Contact Us

  • (858) 509-9101
  • Info@highbluffacademy.com
  • 5531 Cancha de Golf Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92091