Boarding Schools  Emma Willard School

Emma Willard School www.emmawillard.org

Our stunning collegiate gothic campus, which is on the National Historic Register, hums with the purposeful energy of our unique cosmopolitan community. Girls come to Emma Willard from twenty-two states and thirty-two countries. We are intentionally diverse. It is our belief that surrounding girls 24/7 with role models who are life-long learners are the secret ingredients in a school culture that is affirming and aspirational, global and intimate, joy-filled and girl-centric. Our community is, quite simply, our home; and we live together in ways that permit the safe exploration of necessary risk-taking so important to building resilient young women.

We believe the most promising girls of the 21st century will seek an education that has a noble aim and that allows a traveler to choose her own path. We believe this can and should be true for the journey of every Emma girl. We intend to focus our energy on what we do best—treat each girl as a gifted learner with individual needs and desires. No other boarding school will be able to tell such a comprehensive and compelling story about how every girl leaves ready to serve and shape her world. Furthermore each girl will create her own legacy as her personal educational experience becomes part of the community’s fabric.

 Academics

At Emma, our teachers are here because they want to be here. They are concerned with helping you grow inwardly: finding out what you really love to do and then channeling all the resources of the school toward your success. Emma’s rigorous college preparatory curriculum ensures a strong foundation in all major academic areas in addition to extensive exposure to the arts. We offer a range of courses including: Advanced Placement (AP) preparation in English, Spanish, French, Chinese, statistics, calculus, chemistry, biology, physics, U.S. government, U.S. history, art history, studio art and computer science.

 Special Highlights

Practicum. Practicum is Emma Willard’s independent study program and offers students opportunities to enrich and extend their studies through academic and nonacademic experiences available on and off campus. It provides a student the chance to individualize part of her course schedule through learning that is experiential and self-directed. Internships and courses fall under one of the following categories: arts, career exploration, college courses, community service, language study, phys ed., sports, and music.

Revels. One day in September, the seniors are sequestered on campus and privately audition for their roles. Those roles are kept a secret from the entire school until the first performance (not that it stops us from guessing). Each class puts their own unique twists on the play. Last year, there were monks dancing to Lady Gaga, a vampire lady and lord, grandparents of the manor, Dr. Who, a manor house musician, and a baby jester, along with many other comic twists.

 Top colleges attended by students

Amherst, Brown University, Cornell, Dartmouth, Emory, Tuft, Vanderbilt, Vassar, Wellesley, Yale University

 What the school looks for in students…

“We are looking for smart, hard-working enthusiastic young ladies who are willing to get involved outside the classroom in our arts and athletic programs as well as the extracurricular portions of the school.”