Northwood School school profile 2025-26
Northwood School
92 Northwood Rd.
Lake Placid, NY 12946
p: 518.523.3357
f: 518.523.3405
CEEB: 332760
Gino K. Riffle Head of School
Noël Carmichael
Dean of Faculty and Academic Affairs
F. David McCauley Jr. Director of College Counseling mccauleyd@northwoodschool.org
Tel: 518.302.5119
Student:Faculty Ratio
5:1 with an average class size of 10 Financial Aid
Approximately 66% of students receive financial aid. For the 2025-26 school year, $4,250,000 in financial aid was awarded.
MISSION STATEMENT
Andrea Farrell College Counselor farrella@northwoodschool.org
Tel: 518.523.3357
Simon Shergold College Counselor shergolds@northwoodschool.org
Tel: 518.523.3357
Justin Felhaber ’16 College Counselor felhaberj@northwoodschool.org
Tel: 518.523.3357
Sandra Baker Executive Assistant bakers@northwoodschool.org
Tel: 518.302.5111
Northwood School is accredited by the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) and chartered by the NYS Board of Regents. Northwood School abides by NACAC’s Code of Ethics. Northwood reports all student disciplinary violations where students are separated from campus. All student violations including, but not limited to Honor Code violations that occur during the application and college matriculation processes, will first be reported to colleges by students and 14 days hence, by the College Office.
Northwood School fosters growth in young people so that they may engage their world and lead lives of consequence.
THE SCHOOL
Northwood School, founded in 1905, is an independent, coeducational, boarding and day school located in Lake Placid, NY offering a semester-based college preparatory curriculum for students in grades 9 through 12, plus a post-graduate year. By design, the Northwood educational experience is integrated with the Greater Lake Placid Region and the Adirondack Park.
Northwood’s student body is comprised of 192 students representing 23 US states and 23 countries. Collectively, students speak more than 40 languages at Northwood. Traditionally 80% of students live on campus with the remainder coming from local communities in the Adirondack Park. The Class of 2026 has 73 seniors including 7 post-graduates.
ACADEMIC PROGRAM
Our academic curriculum is based on the traditional, college-prep curriculum, but has intentionally morphed to unique academic options dedicated to place-based educational offerings and Northwood signature programs that align with the school mission to provide student agency and match AP or undergraduate research level of rigor. The Innovation Hub on Main Street in Lake Placid, a 2020 addition to Northwood, is the home to Innovation & Design, Entrepreneurial Studies, Advanced STEM Research, Robotics, and Engineering courses. Remote courses are allowed to complement students’ curricular options and are mainly taken through APEX, Johns Hopkins CTY and UC Scout.
The Peak Pathways Program is a rigorous, year-long independent study emphasizing applied learning and student-driven inquiry. Through personalized projects and mentorship, students connect their passions to real-world contexts, gaining the independence and skills to thrive in college and beyond. Within select individual courses, students will have the opportunity to take on additional work throughout the year to earn honors credit for the course through the Challenge for Honors (CFH). The additional work will cover both the breadth and depth of the subject area.
Northwood Signature Classes
Northwood School’s commitment to excellence in academic programming includes Adirondack Sciences: Rocks, Rivers and Erosive Forces, Integrated Humanities for 9th and 10th grade, Adirondack Living Experience and Wilderness Education and Living Skills.
DUAL ENROLLMENT PROGRAM
Beginning in the 2023-24 academic year, the following are dual enrollment classes between Northwood/Paul Smith’s College carrying a .5 weight: Advanced Biology, Advanced Humanities Research, Advanced Physics: Principles of Engineering, Advanced Psychology and Advanced STEM Research.
ACADEMIC CALENDAR
The school year is divided into two semesters. First semester grades are available January 15th, and mid-terms for the second semester are typically available for the 14th of February. Final grades are available June 15. Until 2022, Northwood used a trimester schedule. Note that students are allowed to take classes during the summer and before the start of the next school year and still receive academic credits for the closing year.
AI AND USE OF AI WRITING ASSISTANTS
Northwood is carefully and thoughtfully creating its policy for ChatGPT and other AI writing tools. At present and until that policy is in place, all student work is to be original and without the use of any AI assistants.
GPA AND CLASS RANK
GPA is determined at the end of each year; it is not cumulative. Honors and AP courses are weighted and receive .25 and .5 respectively. Only courses completed at Northwood are included when calculating GPA. Northwood numerically ranks students.
Advanced Placement® Courses Offered on-campus 2025-26: (5)
AP Calculus AB, AP English Language & Composition, AP English Literature and Composition, AP Statistics and AP US History. Through the Northwood Language Lab, AP French, German and Spanish are offered remotely for the 2025-26 academic year. Enrollment in AP courses is determined by the department and is reserved primarily for juniors and seniors. All AP students are required to take the exam in each course.
Advanced Placement Information:
In 2024-2025, a total of 24 in the Class of 2026 took 35 AP Exams in 7 subject areas.
Number of students taking an AP: 66 % of exams scoring 4 or 5: 51%
Total number of AP tests: 91 % of exams scoring 3 and above: 84%
HONOR COURSES OFFERED (13)
Adirondack Sciences: Rocks, Rivers & Erosive Forces; Algebra 1; Algebra 2; American Literature; Applied Robotics; Biology; Chemistry; French 4; Geometry; Integrated Humanities 1 and 2; Pre-Calculus; Spanish 4.
GRADING SCALE
Northwood uses a four-point system. Honor roll requirements are: Dean’s List
Grades 11 & 12: Minimum weighted GPA of 4.00 with no grade below B+. Grades 9 & 10: Minimum weighted GPA of 3.70 with no grade below B+.
High Honor Roll
Grades 11 & 12: Minimum weighted GPA of 3.70 with no grade below B. Grades 9 & 10: Minimum weighted GPA of 3.30 with no grade below B.
GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
Honor Roll
Grades 11 & 12: Minimum weighted GPA of 3.30 with no grade below B-. Grades 9 & 10: Minimum weighted GPA of 3.00 with no grade below B-.
Students must complete 24 credits of academic work for graduation, including: Humanities (integrated humanities course, each course is 2 credits/year, equivalent to 1 English and 1 Social Science course, 4 credits); English (2); Social Science (3) including U.S. History; World Languages (2); Art (1); Science with lab (3); Math (3); Electives (4) and Co-Curricular Education (4) which may simultaneously provide credit for Arts or Physical Education. Standard enrollment is five courses per semester. Semester and full-year courses are offered, with semester courses earning .5 credit and year-long courses earning 1 credit. Through the end of the Grade 11 year, all students must complete an immersive L.E.A.P. (Learn, Engage, Apply, Perform) class, ranging from “Architecture of the Great Camps in the Adirondack Park” to programs abroad like the “Ecosystem of Kilimanjaro”. All students in all grades participate in the Northwood seminars throughout the school year. These seminars include a rotating focus on student physical and mental wellness, academic mindsets and study skills, interpersonal and self-management skills and meet NYS requirements for Health and Economics. The seminar is led by Northwood faculty as well as external professionals as appropriate. The seminar is designed to prepare students to engage fully with the Northwood curriculum and to have agency over their academic and personal lives.
CO-CURRICULAR PROGRAMS
80% of all students are varsity single-sport athletes who play their sport between 8 and 10 months of the year: Ice Hockey, Alpine Ski, Nordic Ski, Nordic Combined, Biathlon and Soccer. Of those, 20% will go on to play NCAA Division 1 sports and another 70% will compete in intercollegiate Division 2 or 3 programs. The 1980 Olympic Ski, Biathlon, Ski Jump and Hockey venues are the Northwood teams home arenas and facilities. Additionally, crew, lacrosse, track and field, and golf are offered seasonally and compete independently against schools in northern NY and New England.
The School’s club co-curricular programs take full advantage of our location by allowing students to choose from different outdoor activities such as rock-climbing, white-water kayaking, trail biking and hiking and an Adirondack Wilderness experience. 15% of students are members of the Northwood Outing Club. The School’s Robotic team competes regionally, nationally, globally and placed in the 2022 FIRST Robotics global competition in Houston, Texas.
grade distribution chart (2024-2025 course grades earned by the class of 2026)
These grades reflect students who received final letter grades in 2024-2025.
Fine & Performing Arts
Art
*Music
Peak Pathway: Art, Design, & Media
Yearbook Designer and Editor
English
A World Made of Text
Advanced Humanities Research
American Literature
American Studies: Language and Culture
AP English Language and Composition
AP English Literature and Composition
Honors American Literature
*Journalism
Peak Pathway: Humanities Studies
Innovation, Engineering & Entrepreneurship
Honors Applied Robotics
Peak Pathway: Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Peak Pathway: Product Design, Media & Marketing
Languages
Language Lab: American Sign Language 1
Language Lab: American Sign Language 2
Language Lab: French 2
Language Lab: French 3
Language Lab: Honors French 4
Language Lab: German 1
Language Lab: Mandarin Chinese Advanced
Language Lab: Norwegian
Language Lab: Spanish 1
Language Lab: Spanish 2
* Indicates semester elective.
Mathematics
Algebra 2
AP Calculus AB
Calculus
Geometry
Honors Algebra 2
Honors Pre-Calculus
Honors Calculus
Pre-Calculus
Outdoor Education / Sports
Peak Pathway: Recreational
Tourism / Outdoor Leadership
Peak Pathway: Sports Industry
Science
ADK Sciences: Rocks, Rivers and Erosive Forces
Advanced Biology
Advanced Physics: Principles of Engineering
Advanced STEM Research
Applied Physics
Chemistry
Honors Chemistry
Human Biology
Peak Pathway: STEM Studies
Social Science
Advanced Psychology
AP US History
Peak Pathway: Finance & Economics
US History
Totals
Nearly all Northwood School graduates are admitted to one or more institutions. Recent graduates have attended the institutions listed below. Additionally, some students elected to pursue postgraduate study, defer their admission for up to two years accounting for our college bound skiers and men’s ice hockey student athletes.
Allegheny College
Assumption University
Babson College (2)
Bates College (2)
Bentley University (4)
Boston College (6)
Bowdoin College
Brandeis University (2)
Bucknell University
California State University (Dominguez Hills)
Case Western Reserve University
Castleton University (2)
Christopher Newport University
Clark University
Clarkson University (4)
Clemson University
Coastal Carolina University (4)
Colby-Sawyer College
Colgate University
College of the Holy Cross (3)
Colorado State University (Fort Collins)
Columbia University
Concordia University (Montreal) (4)
Connecticut College (3)
Converse University
Cornell University
Creighton University
Denison University
Eastern University
Eckerd College
Elon University
Fairfield University (2)
Farmingdale State College
Franklin & Marshall College
Georgetown University
Gettysburg College (2)
Hamilton College (2)
Hamline University
Harvard University
Hobart and William Smith Colleges (5)
Jacksonville University
Johnson & Wales University (Providence)
Kenyon College
Lafayette College (2)
Lehigh University
Long Island University (Post) (3)
Luther College (3)
Maryville University
McGill University (3)
Merrimack College
Michigan Technological University
Middlebury College (4)
Montana State University
Moore College of Art and Design
Nazareth University (5)
New England College (2)
New York University (3)
North Carolina State University
North Country Community College (2)
Northeastern University
Northwestern University (2)
Nova Southeastern University
Ohio Wesleyan University (3)
Onondaga Community College (2)
Oregon State University (2)
Oregon State University - Cascades
Otis College of Art and Design
Pace University (New York City)
Pacific Lutheran University
Paul Smith’s College (2)
Penn State University (University Park)
Pitzer College
Princeton University
Providence College (3)
Quinnipiac University (2)
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (3)
Rivier University (2)
Rochester Institute of Technology (6)
Rocky Mountain College
Roger Williams University (2)
Rutgers University (New Brunswick)
Saint John Fisher University
Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
Saint Michael’s College (3)
Siena University
Skidmore College
Soka University of America
St George’s, University of London (2)
St Mary’s University
St. John’s University (3)
St. Lawrence University (13)
St. Olaf College
Stanford University
Stony Brook University
Suffolk University
SUNY at New Paltz
SUNY at Purchase College
SUNY Buffalo State University
SUNY College at Cortland (2)
SUNY College at Oswego (4)
SUNY College at Plattsburgh (2)
SUNY College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill
SUNY College of Technology at Canton (3)
SUNY Geneseo (2)
Syracuse University (5)
The Ohio State University (2)
The University of Alabama
The University of Montana (2)
The University of Tampa (2)
Trinity College (2)
Tulane University of Louisiana
Union College (4)
United States Military Academy @ West Point
University at Albany
University of Arizona (2)
University of British Columbia (2)
University of California (Santa Cruz)
University of Connecticut (2)
University of Delaware
University of Denver (2)
University of Massachusetts (Boston)
University of Massachusetts (Lowell)
University of Montreal
University of Nebraska at Omaha (5)
University of New England
University of New Hampshire (4)
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina Wilmington
University of Notre Dame (3)
University of Oregon
University of Ottawa
University of Pittsburgh (2)
University of Rhode Island
University of South Florida
University of Toronto
University of Utah (3)
University of Vermont (11)
University of Virginia (2)
University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
Utica University
Vermont State University
Villanova University
Wagner College
Washington College (2)
Williams College
Yale University