Our History

In 1992, Teresa Herbst created an academic arm of Ski & Snowboard Club Vail called the Vail Valley Academy with six students and five teachers. Expanding on the success of Vail Valley Academy, SSCV and the Eagle County School District created the first public winter sports academy in the country, Vail Ski & Snowboard Academy in 2007. The school itself was initially split between Minturn Middle School (grades 6-8) and Battle Mountain High School (grades 9-12). In 2009, VSSA consolidated to one location, taking over the Minturn Middle School building. In the following years, VSSA added more sports partners, expanding the number of students at the school. VSSA now supports skiing, snowboarding, hockey, swimming, gymnastics, and ice skating. As of 2026, 39 students and alumni have made their national teams, with 24 representing various nations at the five Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games since the school's founding.