Masters School Profile 2016

49 Clinton Avenue Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522 Phone: 914-479-6400 www.mastersny.org

2016-2017 PROFILE Laura Danforth, Head of School Matthew Ives, Head of Upper School

THE MASTERS SCHOOL

Kathleen Dwyer Woods Director of College Counseling kathi.woods@mastersny.org 914-479-6666

Founded in 1877, The Masters School is a coed independent day and boarding school for students in grades 5-12. The School prides itself on its highly diverse community and a student-centered pedagogy of experiential learning and discussion-based teaching.

Adam Gimple Senior Associate Director of College Counseling adam.gimple@mastersny.org 914-479-6442 Karin Tucker Associate Director of College Counseling karin.tucker@mastersny.org 914-479-6614 CEEB Code: 331635

FACTS AT A GLANCE 500 Students Grades 9-12 149 Boarding Students 134 Seniors Grades are not weighted 60 is passing Students are not ranked Classes are taught on a modified block schedule The school is on a two-semester calendar year 26% of the student body receives financial aid Harkness Teaching Method

UPPER SCHOOL FACULTY 76 Upper School Faculty 45 Master's degrees 7 Ph.D. degrees 3 J.D. degrees 2 M.D. degrees

Following a teaching method known as Harkness, students engage in dynamic debates, while sharpening critical thinking, problem-solving and collaboration skills.

Masters students are well-rounded. A long tradition of community service permeates the School, and many students are deeply involved in issues of social justice. Arts and athletics are equally valued, and it is common for students to appear both on stage and on the playing field.

Masters is located in Westchester County, New York, 20 miles north of New York City. The School’s proximity to New York City allows students to interact with experts in business, the humanities, science and the arts.

Masters students graduate with a strong academic foundation, a real set of life skills, a genuine love of learning and a commitment to Masters’ mission of “being a power for good in the world.”

ACCREDITATION The Masters School is accredited by the Middle States Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges, and by the Regents of the State of New York. However, we do not administer the New York State Regents Exams.

ADVANCED PLACEMENT PROGRAM AP coursework is limited to the 11th and 12th grades, capped at 3 per semester with few exceptions. Students enrolled in AP classes are expected to take the exam. Some students will self-study for exams not offered at Masters.

16 AP Course Offerings: Art History, Biology, Calculus AB & BC, Chemistry, English Language, English Literature, Environmental Science (new 2016), European History, French Language, Music Theory, Physics C, Spanish Language, Statistics, Studio Art, US History Class of 2017 AP Statistics Students Enrolled in AP Classes

AP Tests Taken

Students Scoring 4 or 5

Students Scoring 3 and Above

84

181

79%

92%

GRADUATION CREDIT REQUIREMENTS English (4) | Mathematics (3, through Trigonometry) | Sciences (3, with 2 lab courses) History (3, 1 of U.S. History) | Language (3 years of the same foreign language) Physical Education (4) | Arts (.5) | World Religions (.5) | Health (.25)| Public Speaking (.25)

DISTINCTIVE PROGRAMS A Tradition of Performance With nine official music ensembles and many other student-run and informal music groups, at least five dramatic productions each year, three dance troupes, and a thriving culture of film production, most of our students are on stage or screen over the course of their four years.

A Commitment to Service and Leadership • Masters Interested in Sharing and Helping (MISH) is a thriving service organization that oversees our many class-based, all-school and club-based community service efforts.

• The Ethical Leadership Project introduces students to the vocabulary of ethical leadership and mentors them through a process of self-discovery and growth throughout their years here.

Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) The IEC is a maker space in which students make prototypes of products, work on coding and meet with experts to pitch their ideas for businesses. The IEC is also home to classes such as Design Thinking and Social Entrepreneurship, in which students come to understand the principles of finding inspiration, product/service creation and prototyping in the real world.

GRADE DISTRIBUTION Teaching the Body As Well As the Mind All students are required to participate in three seasons of athletics, dance or musical theater, during their freshman and sophomore year. Seventy percent of juniors and seniors choose to continue to play on a sports team.

The Masters Thesis is a guided, interdisciplinary course for students who want to immerse themselves in a particular area of study. Students produce a paper of publishable quality, as well as a creative project, over the course of their senior year.

Science Research I is a course that introduces students to the practice of science as they learn lab technique and read scholarly papers written by professors in the New York area, who then visit to discuss their research. Science Research II students put what they have learned into practice as they design and execute experiments of their own.

Statistics reflect Grades 9-12 for Classes of 2013-2016.

Grades are not weighted.

25% English History Language Math Science

20% 15% 10% 5% 0

A+

A

A-

B+

B

B-

C+

C

C-

D+

D

D-

F

TEST SCORES Year

Number of Students

Mean SAT (1600)

Mid-50% SAT (1600)

Number of Mean Students ACT

Mid-50% ACT

2016 79

1333

1220-1430

40

29

26-32

2015 70

1278

1170-1390

47

29

26-32

2014 76

1272

1170-1380

34

28

26-32

DIVERSITY

American Studies is a rigorous research and discussion-based course in which students explore American culture as reflected in history and literature.

Harkness table discussions, simulations, field trips, analysis of primary source documents and meetings with experts make this a highly sought after course.

Unknown African Asian Pacific African Islander American Middle Eastern

Masters students hail from:

15

Asian American

31

States Countries

Multi-Racial Domestic Caucasian

Hispanic Caucasian

International

Domestic Students of Color

Note: Diversity data is self-reported.

MATRICULATION American University* Bard College* Barnard College* Bates College* Berklee College of Music Binghamton University Boston College Boston University* Brandeis University Brown University* Bucknell University* University of California at Berkeley* University of California at Los Angeles* Carnegie Mellon University* University of Chicago* Claremont McKenna College Colorado College* Columbia University* Connecticut College Cornell University* Dartmouth College*

University of Delaware* Emerson College* Emory University* Fordham University* Franklin & Marshall College* The George Washington University* Georgetown University* Hamilton College* Harvard University Haverford College Hobart and William Smith Colleges* University of Illinois Ithaca College Johns Hopkins University* Kenyon College Lafayette College* Lehigh University Loyola University Maryland Macalester College Massachusetts Institute of Technology

University of Miami University of Michigan* Middlebury College* Muhlenberg College* New York University* Northeastern University* Northwestern University* Oberlin College* Pennsylvania State University* University of Pennsylvania* Pitzer College Princeton University Purchase College Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute* Rice University University of Richmond* Rochester Institute of Technology* University of Rochester Savannah College of Art and Design Skidmore College* University of Southern California*

Swarthmore College Syracuse University* Trinity College Tufts University* Tulane University* Union College* Vanderbilt University* Vassar College* University of Vermont Villanova University Wake Forest University* Washington University in St. Louis* University of Washington Wesleyan University* College of William and Mary* Williams College University of Wisconsin, Madison* Yale University *At least 4 enrolled from 2011-2016

The Masters School • 2016-2017 Profile • 2