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RALPH LELII
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JIM INVERSO
01: J essica Minderjahn ’13, Zoe Silver ’13, and Lauren Dolinsky ’13 were part of the team of students who welcomed new students to campus and helped them move into their dorms. 02: Science teacher Erin Sio helped Dena Kleemeier ’15 and her family to review her registration details. 03: Head of School Nancy Starmer welcomed new families to the George School community during Registration Weekend 2012.
VALERIE JOPLING
Families were encouraged to take part in Skype faculty “chats,” in which teachers talked about particular programs and participants could ask questions. It’s all part of helping prospective families get to know George School and feel part of its community. “Sometimes it’s hard to talk about George School’s intangibles, but it’s easy to experience,” says Jenna. “Families can go to a Chris Odom robotics evening and experience the wonderful controlled chaos. If they are offered admission, they want to come. George School essentially sells itself.” Both interest from and the quality of applicants remained high in 2012-2013. Crossover schools—schools to which George School applicants also applied—continued to include the finest in the nation. George School had no trouble filling all its cohorts of students, in part because lower attrition meant fewer available slots—just 150. These were filled by the end of the school year, with waiting lists at the ready. Financial aid topped $8 million for 2013-2014, helping to meet the need of current families and to attract and enroll impressive new students. According to Christian, “The school is committed to enabling students to return and to being as
diverse as possible.” One sign of that diversity is that George School now includes students from twenty-three states and 26 percent of the U.S. citizens are self-described students of color. The international population represents forty-seven foreign countries. Ultimately, George School’s admission success is the result of a variety of programs old and new. Since 1996 four new Anderson scholars a year, selected for their community involvement and potential for leadership as well as their academic achievement, have added to the richness of the community. More recently, the school has established ties with what Jenna calls “a beautiful community of Vietnamese students. Just four cycles ago we didn’t have a relationship with Vietnam. Now we have twelve students coming from several cities.” “Our name is out there,” she continues. “Really strong students are interested in George School.”
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