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B u i l d i n g B oy s , M a k i n g M e n .

P resbyterian D ay S chool

strives to

G lorify G od by developing boys in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men. 1 Corinthians 10:31 and Luke 2:52

P resbyterian D ay S chool

wa s founded in

1949 by Second Presbyterian Church.

3

Admission

PDs Seeks talented boys 4

PDS

is always on the lookout for

great boys who will be a good fit for the school,

and that looking and evaluation process typically takes place many months before the school year begins. The admission process begins the fall before a boy would enter PDS, and it concludes in February. After February the school accepts applications as openings arise.

PDS boys come from many backgrounds and neighborhoods. The 633 boys represent many religious affiliations and backgrounds. They come from Arkansas and Mississippi, Collierville and Eads, Midtown and East Memphis. PDS has grown increasingly diverse racially and ethnically in recent years. Despite this variety of backgrounds, the common denominators are a boy’s strong academic profile and good citizenship.

“We serve boys of above average to gifted intelligence who are most likely to experience success in a rigorous program of scholastic excellence and high achievement,” says Admission Director Jan Conder. “Many families are looking for a school that will challenge their sons academically and will begin a strong educational career trajectory. For others, a crucial factor is our Christian foundation and the values it can instill in a boy during his most formative years.

All parents, though, want a school in which their sons are known, nurtured, and loved, and we do that at PDS.” With tuition over $14,000, there is sometimes a perception that PDS must only serve the upper class. “Our mission is to serve boys who need us and make us a better school, so we offer significant (and confidential) tuition assistance to many families who have the financial need,” says PDS

serves

633

boys

Headmaster Lee Burns. “We are fortunate to have many friends of the school who choose to support our tuition assistance budget that enables bright and talented boys to attend PDS.” About 19% of the boys enrolled at PDS are confidentially receiving some type of tuition assistance.

PDS hosts admission open houses and events every November. Prospective families are invited to attend one and to call the school (842-4600) to get admission materials, schedule a visit, and learn more about PDS. Applications are available online and through the admission office. The school’s admission committee reviews applications, testing, and recommendations, and notifies applicants of admission decisions in mid-February for the following year.

Perhaps the hardest thing about PDS is getting a boy admitted, and approximately 85% of those boys selected for admission enroll at PDS. The school receives more applications than there are spots, and once admitted, very few boys ever leave PDS. The school’s student turnover is 6%, half the average for private schools. Many grades have a waiting list. Most boys begin PDS in prekindergarten (age 3) or junior kindergarten (age 4), but occasional spots open up in the older grades for new boys.

When a boy enrolls at PDS, though, his whole family joins the PDS community. “We ask a lot of our parents, and we want to assure that their values and expectations align with ours,” says Early Childhood Head Debbie Isom. “We are blessed to have parents who are very involved with and supportive of the school we share.”

“Families wanting to know more about PDS for next year should call us as soon as possible,” says Jan Conder. “We love to meet families, tell them about our mission, and see if there is a good match.”

“ I was so anxious about getting my

son into PDS, but the school was so friendly and put me at such ease during the admission process.”

Leigh Ann Rogers Mother of Thomas, Class

in pre-kindergarten (3-year-olds) through the sixth grade and is one of the nation’s largest boys’ elementary school.

of

‘14

5

mission

Building Boys into Scholars & Leaders

6

T

PDS alumni list reads like a who ’ s - who among the Memphis community, and it includes FedEx founder Fred Smith and Autozone founder Pitt Hyde. Our graduates matriculate to many of the nation’s finest universities. In an era when boys are underperforming and disengaging from schools around the country, our boys are excited about learning, developing critical and creative thinking skills, and gaining a vision of what it means to be a man. he

Spend a day at PDS, and you’ll see 633 little boys with big smiles. You may see a boy carrying a violin and shoulder pads, a laptop and a Bible, and a Happygram note from his teacher saying how proud she is of his hard work. You’ll see a school with a dynamic and energetic faculty, facilities that few elementary schools in the country can claim, and classrooms in which boys are actively engaged in the learning process.

Since its founding in 1949, PDS has enjoyed a reputation for academic rigor and high expectations, commitment to Christian teaching, and the celebration and love of boys.

Yet PDS, now among the largest elementary boys’ school in the country with its largest ever enrollment, has refused to rest on its laurels and history, maintaining a creative and thoughtful balance between tradition and innovation.

The PDS

curriculum includes language

“We have a faculty culture of professional growth and research,” says Headmaster Lee Burns, “and we need to understand the skills and values that students and citizens of the 21st century will need.

We cannot assume that teaching, learning, and schools that worked last century are exactly what we need this century. We need to continue to prepare our graduates to be strong students, citizens, and leaders in a changing world.”

“We ask a lot of our boys and give them incredible teachers and learning tools,” says Burns. “We are asking them increasingly to research, evaluate and synthesize information, to think outside the box, to collaborate with their classmates, and to present ideas and projects to others.

We believe it is these skills—more than simply the ability to memorize and recall information—that will best serve our boys.”

The approach excites boys whom researchers say often find their schools dull. “I like it that we didn’t just sit in class and listen to the teacher all day. I was more focused at PDS, and I loved my classes,” says Britt Colcolough ‘06. He also loved his laptop which, as a 6th grader, the school supplies as part of an integrated approach to technology and learning.

arts, math, science, social studies, Bible, Spanish, Mandarin, music, art, study skills, and physical education.

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made the long drive each day to PDS because we wanted our son to “We receive the most rigorous academic preparation he can get in Memphis.

The rigor, expectations, and culture of achievement, though, are balanced by love and nurture in a close-knit community. Our sons, both PDS graduates, are now thriving, thanks in large part to the great preparation they received at PDS. D r . N eal

”

and

J oey B eckford , P arents

of

In recent years, we have given our curriculum a global focus, re-engineered our science program, sought to connect various disciplines and subjects in creative ways, and developed an internationally regarded reading program centered on higher order thinking skills and supported by four full-time reading specialists. We have also been much more intentional about our nature as a boys’ school.

“Boys learn so differently from girls,” says Assistant Headmaster for Teaching and Learning Susan Droke, who also chaired our Committee on Boys, a faculty group charged with considering research on boys ranging from male brain scans to their unique social and emotional needs and patterns. “Our curriculum, teaching methodology, and classroom management are reflections of our research on boys and tailored to what excites and engages them. We are boy specialized, boy-friendly, and boy-themed in ways we could not be if we were coed.”

Despite the rigor and academic standards, PDS focuses on the whole boy. “Our education is about what happens to the heart, soul, mind, and body of each boy. Boys leave PDS with a faith, character, and set of values that are at the core of who they are and that can guide and sustain them for a lifetime,” says Lee Burns.

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A ustin ‘02

and

D ean ‘08

The school’s mission is to glorify God by developing boys in wisdom and stature and favor with God and man. “PDS boys come from a variety of backgrounds, and they all see and feel the love and compassion that Christ modeled for us,” says Burns. Boys study the Bible each year and attend regular chapel services. “We offer them the opportunity to develop a sophisticated Christian worldview, able to see God revealed in the incredible complexity of the universe and in the truth of the Scriptures,” says Burns, himself a graduate of Dartmouth and Harvard and a deacon at Second Presbyterian Church. “Serious scholarship and deep faith fit well with one another, and we embrace both at PDS.” For a school with such a serious and significant mission, the boys are extremely happy. Any visitor will note the happiness and confidence of the boys. They bounce from one class to another with lots of laughter and camaraderie. Fellowship and fun times abound, yet they are extremely wellmannered. “Being in a boys’ school, especially one that celebrates boys so intentionally, frees them up to be themselves, to develop deeper friendships, and to simply enjoy the magical moments of their boyhood,” says Mark Fruitt, Principal of the Elementary Division.

PDS graduates leave the school not only with happy memories, but with a definition and vision of manhood through a program entitled Building Boys, Making Men. In a world with few good answers to the question of what it means to be a man, PDS provides a clear answer to that question.

“To have Godly men and women telling—and showing—my son what being a man entails is an incredible blessing,” says Liz Neel, parent of a PDS alum.

Most PDS graduates matriculate at Memphis University School (MUS) for 7th grade, where PDS alumni typically constitute about half of their 7th grade class. Says MUS Headmaster Ellis Haguewood, “PDS knows boys, and understands how to get the best from them. We would love it if every one of their graduates matriculated at MUS because their students bring with them extraordinary school citizenship and academic excellence. The PDS experience for boys fosters intellectual growth, moral development, and social maturity. If parents want a great elementary school for their sons, they need look no farther than PDS.” Despite its successes, PDS remains hungry and eager to grow and improve. “We set as our benchmark the finest boys’ schools and the leading elementary schools in the country. Those are our standards,” says Burns. “But our true impact is often only discovered years later, when we see and hear about the sort of men, husbands, fathers, and leaders our graduates become.” Judging by the current alumni, PDS has certainly had a profound impact thus far, and it is only likely to deepen.

PDS

offers

37

af ter - school enrichment activities , and

it fields 12 football teams, 20 basketball teams, and 10 soccer teams.

A Single Sex Environment ALLOWS PDS TO BE:

The Boy Specialists M ost

any parent of both a boy

and girl will say ,

“M y

son and

daughter are so different ,”

and then go on to describe how dissimilar their personalities, preferences, play styles, tendencies, and developmental patterns are. Brain research in recent years has confirmed what good teachers have known intuitively for years: the male and female brains have differing structures and process information and events in different ways, and therefore some types of teaching and learning resonate with boys, while others are more effective and engaging for girls. Given these differences, it seems logical that single sex schools can offer a learning environment specialized to either boys or to girls in a way that coed schools simply cannot.

“The problem for boys, especially in elementary school, is that schools are nearly always rigged against them,” says Headmaster Lee Burns. “Most elementary schools were designed by women and are taught by them, and most schools reward the ability to be quiet, sit still, pay attention for long periods of time, and regurgitate information, most of which drives boys crazy. God didn’t design boys to do any of that very well.” Given how most schools reward those things, it is not surprising that boys are dropping out and disengaging from schools in record numbers, and that girls are significantly outperforming boys.

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Boys need something different—and better—from their schools. They need permission to be boys, with all of the energy, exuberance, games, and motion contained therein. They need schools where they can wiggle and move, manipulate objects, have information presented visually, and form teams and play games. They need to read books with themes that excite them (like adventure and heroism). They need technology-rich schools because technology especially engages them. They need the big picture presented first because they are usually deductive learners. They need clear structure and rules, and they need PE every single day. Mostly, they need teachers who are expert at understanding them, and who love them for all of their adventuresome and playful (and sometimes mischievous) spirit.

“After two years of research and reading, we developed a rubric of 67 boy-specific things we can be doing as a school and in our classrooms that will help assure that our boys’ learning is most effective, efficient, and exciting,” says Susan Droke, who chaired our Committee on Boys for two years.

“Teaching methodology is just one part of our uniqueness as a boys’ school,” says Burns. Boys are generally a year or more behind girls in reading and verbal

skills during the elementary years, so PDS hired four reading specialists and developed a unique reading program in which almost half of all reading comprehension is taught in very small groups in which the discussion is intense and the focus is on higher level thinking skills. “We want our boys to be outstanding readers because it is a skill that cuts across every subject. We have turned a relative weakness of boys into a strength,” says Droke. The reading and verbal gap between boys and girls, of course, enables single sex schools to meet both boys and girls exactly where they are as opposed to a compromised place.

The benefits of boys’ schools aren’t just in the core subjects. At PDS, every boy sings in the choir, takes art, and learns to play the violin.

Boys are soloists and actors; they hold all of the leadership positions. “It’s normal and

natural for all the boys to participate in a wide range of activities that, in coed schools, boys often shy away from or expect the girls to assume,” says veteran teacher Teresa Scott. “At PDS, it is as big of a deal to be selected to sing a solo in the Christmas Pageant as it is to be the quarterback of the football team. In both cases, the boys really cheer each other on.”

“I think the boys stay sweet longer because they are just with boys,” says long-time 3rd grade teacher Dabney Millar. “There isn’t as much pressure or confusion about girls, so the boys can just be natural in an environment that is tailored to be especially safe and comfortable for them.”

“The older boys are so much freer here to express their opinions and talk about their feelings than the coed schools where I have worked,” says reading specialist Alice Parker.

“They express a tenderness and a vulnerability that boys so often suppress,” says Chaplain Braxton Brady. “There are a whole lot of heart-to-heart talks at PDS, and I think that they can more fully examine who they are as children of God in a single-sex environment at this age than if we had girls here with them. In the long term, they will be better men, husbands, and fathers because they have been able to more deeply answer the question about the sort of man God intends them to be.”

PDS

ha s graduated over

A signature program of PDS focuses on this question of what it means to be a man. “As one of the largest elementary boys’ school in the country, we have a unique opportunity to give our boys a vision and definition of manhood before they get there and in a way anchored in the Scriptures and informed by leading thinkers and researchers on male issues,” says Burns.

We hope that this program fortifies our boys and helps guide the sort of choices they make in their years after graduation.

This Building Boys, Making Men program answers the question of what it means to be a man with seven virtues, and it includes curricular integration, 6th grade Bible studies on male teenage issues, 5th and 6th grade retreats, parent sessions, and father-son events. The program has received accolades from schools and educators around the world.

“I love PDS and the fact that we are a boys’ school,” says alumnus William Cross ‘05. “There is a camaraderie among boys unlike anything else I have ever experienced. Everything about the school is designed for a boy. How can it get any better for a boy than that?”

3,000

boys ,

most of whom have matriculated to Memphis University School (MUS) for 7th-12th grade.

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PDS Boys and Graduates Make the grade

A Measure of Success

12

PDS

boys achieve at

remark ably high levels

during their PDS years, as well as after their graduation. In all subjects measured by the Educational Records Bureau Test, PDS boys outperform their peers at the country’s leading independent schools in all subjects. This is the country’s toughest and most rigorous comparison group. Additionally, 6th graders have average reading and math levels that exceed that of 9th graders. Strong performances like these could be the envy of many great American schools.

Though, as an independent school, PDS doesn’t build our curriculum around standardized testing, we know these scores are a clear demonstration of excellent teaching and learning and that our boys will be extremely well prepared to thrive at their future schools.

“Boys are graduating from PDS with very strong foundational skills and content knowledge, the traditional and important tools for future scholastic success,” says

T he

average

PDS

Headmaster Lee Burns. “But they are also acquiring vital new 21st century skills: things like creativity, collaboration, critical thinking, and communication. They are exceptionally well prepared in their study habits and foundational skills, but they are also extremely well prepared to think, solve problems and be adaptable learners.”

As has been the case historically, the vast majority of PDS boys matriculate at Memphis University School (MUS), a 7th-12th grade boys’ school with whom PDS has enjoyed a long and close relationship.

In 2010, among a class of 74 6th graders, 69 applied to MUS, all 69 were accepted, and 66 chose to enroll there.

PDS graduates continue to perform at very high levels after their graduation from PDS. Among 7th12th graders, 91% have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher; 65% have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher; and 34% have a cumulative GPA of 4.0 or higher. 82% of them have earned spots on academic honor rolls since PDS.

graduate the

“Such high academic achievements are a testament to excellent teaching and preparation at PDS and their future schools,” says Burns.

The PDS Class of 2004, high school graduates in 2010, earned $5.95 million in merit-based scholarships for college, for an average of about $86,000 per PDS alumnus. 79% of their college applications resulted in acceptances, and they applied to and are matriculating at outstanding colleges around the country. An investment in a PDS education clearly returns significant dividends down the road.

Investing in the early elementary years at PDS isn’t just about the strong academic results. These are the most formative years of a person’s life, when his faith, character and values will be shaped. 97% of our 6th graders report that a relationship with God is

important to them, and 93% report that they have gained a godly vision of manhood at PDS. The PDS lessons and values stick well beyond PDS, as 89% of alumni report that a relationship with God is important to them and that most of them are striving to grow spiritually through Bible study, prayer, and/or church/youth group. 72% of PDS alumni in 7th-12th grade have been elected to leadership positions, and 84% have participated in at least one community service project.

“While we are very pleased and proud of the strong records of our current students and graduates, much of our work at PDS won’t be fully known until we see the sort of leaders, men, husbands and fathers they become,” says Burns.

last six years outperforms the average 6th grader at our nation’s private schools in 93% of all categories.

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Vision and leadership

Headmaster emphasizes innovation He

looks too young to be a headma ster . Following

a national search, he became perhaps

the nation’s youngest headmaster in 2000 at age 31. A decade later, he looks slightly older but still brings remarkable energy, freshness, and vision to one of the most respected elementary schools in the country.

“When we hired Lee Burns, we saw not only his talent, but his potential as well,” says Wilson Orr, who chaired the school’s search process for the Board of Trustees. Says former Board chairman David Shores, “Lee has brought us a national perspective on educational issues, a very high standard of excellence, and a deep heart for the mission and boys of PDS. He’s raised the bar for all of us—from boys to teachers to trustees and parents.”

One of seven children growing up on Lookout Mountain, Burns himself is the product of a boys’ school—the McCallie School in Chattanooga—and he is a committed advocate for them. As a camp

14

counselor to boys and as an older sibling to a learning disabled brother, he discovered a passion for boys and education.

of Jesus Christ,” Lee says. “And I appreciate a school that maintains and integrates the highest standards of scholarship and faithfulness to the Scriptures.”

Burns loves the exuberance of the PDS boys, and he especially enjoys spending time with them, whether on retreats, teaching classes, or meeting individually with boys who may be struggling or in need of special encouragement. He teaches a 6th grade class on global issues, and he is one of the 6th grade seminar teachers on manhood. He has held teaching, coaching, and administrative responsibilities at McCallie and Christ School in North Carolina before joining PDS.

In his ten years at PDS, the school has grown and changed some. “Lee isn’t afraid to insist that we examine traditional assumptions. He isn’t going to let us settle simply for being good when we can be outstanding,” says Elementary Division Principal Mark Fruitt. “He brings vision, passion, and integrity to PDS, and anyone who knows him well knows that he brings an incredible work ethic and commitment to whatever he does.”

“He wants us to work hard and be our very best,” says Garrott Graham ‘06. His standards are high.

Like many boys of PDS, he is sports-minded, though he has led the school in an expansion of its nonathletic extracurricular activities, and he is quick to encourage boys to pursue musical, artistic, and other talents as well as athletic ones. Burns himself is a former All-American tennis player and has won six state championships as a junior player and adult. “He puts his heart and soul into the boys of PDS and the school,” says wife Sarah, a Chattanooga native and graduate of Rhodes. “He loves it and sees it as a calling.” They have three children, Betsy (age 7), Arthur (age 6), and Preston (age 1).

Burns himself is a cum laude graduate of Dartmouth College, and he received his masters’ degree in educational administration from Harvard. He has authored a book on the journey to manhood, made presentations at national and international conferences, and serves as vice-president of a national organization of 200 headmasters.

It is obvious that his faith informs what he does. He is mission and ministry-minded. “I love working at a school that cares about issues of the heart and soul and can model and teach its students about the love

A ll PK-6 th

grade cl a ssrooms are equipped with

digital projectors and SmartBoards, and 650 computers (mostly laptops) are available for student use. 15

Faculty

Outstanding teachers bring talent and nurture

T he

PDS, “the heart and soul of the school,” according to Headmaster Lee Burns, is the faculty and staff.

They are the individuals who teach, inspire, nurture, correct, create, encourage, and model. most precious a sset at

They pray with and for their students, offer hugs and happygrams, and pour out their hearts for their boys.

Full of nurture and love, PDS teachers also bring professionalism, immense talent, high standards, and creativity to the school. As a group, they bring to PDS over 1,000 years of school experience.

Most have an advanced degrees.

They are a good balance of seasoned, veteran teachers and younger teachers more recently trained in their graduate schools. A growing number of the faculty and staff are men.

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They all share a passion for their calling to work at PDS, and they are all immersed in a school that insists on their on-going professional development.

“I have been amazed at the school’s commitment to professional development,” says 2nd grade teacher Sharon McCall, now in her 23rd year at PDS. “As a faculty, we have attended conferences and workshops all over the country and visited some of the country’s leading independent schools.

The faculty culture here is one of commitment to educational research and best practices.”

“The most important investment we can make as a school is in our most important asset, our teachers,” says Burns. “Other schools are envious and amazed to learn about how aggressively we fund professional development.” Each teacher sets professional development goals and has compensation tied to them, and 80% of our teachers have studies at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Though salaries are very competitive, teachers don’t come to PDS to get rich.

“They come because they believe in our mission, because of the love and support of their colleagues, and because they are treated as professionals and stimulated and supported in their on-going growth,” says Assistant Headmaster for Teaching and Learning Susan Droke.

“I love being at a school that cares so much about its teachers and their happiness and growth,” says pre-kindergarten teacher Sandy Kilgore.

“I have grown so much at PDS,” says 1st grade teacher Kim Burns. “There are so many meetings, committees, and task forces that enable us to examine carefully what we do and talk about how we can best serve the boys.”

“Though we are very proud of our tradition at PDS, we know that we can’t teach exactly how we did a generation ago,” says 6th grade teacher Jean Nabers, a 26-year PDS veteran who created her own social studies curriculum with internet resources instead of the textbook she used to use. “Boys love this approach that asks them to be more active researchers, learners, and constructers of meaning. The laptops we give them open up a whole new way of teaching and learning.”

As hard as the teachers work, PDS is not all about curriculum and educational research. Each summer, the faculty and staff all read selected books of the Bible.

One of the school’s institutional goals is for each employee to grow spiritually.

In recent years, all employees have gone on two-day, overnight retreats.

“It’s wonderful to be a part of a school that is so thoughtful about building community,” says Early Childhood Head Debbie Isom. “This is an incredible place to work.” There is even a faculty nursery.

It’s not surprising that the faculty and staff turnover is low and that the school can be so selective in its hiring. The national average of annual teacher turnover is 16% for public schools and 10% for independent schools. PDS is below that.

“Our stability and continuity is a strength, and I wouldn’t trade our faculty and staff for any in the country,” says Lee Burns. And obviously, they wouldn’t trade working at PDS either.

S ince

the summer of

2006, PDS has sent over sixty teachers and administrators to the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

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Quotes about PDS From parents, peers, and boys

“Quotables”

“We truly cannot imagine there could be another elementary school anywhere that could compare to PDS. Each time I walk through the door of PDS, I feel the warmth that surrounds those little boys each day, and it is no wonder they love it so! You have created an environment where boys can be boys, and at the same time you are instilling in them qualities that will sustain them throughout their lives.”

Mary Call and Mott Ford Parents of Molitor ’08, Proctor ‘09 and Call ‘13

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“PDS has given our boys a great foundation academically.

They were well taught, challenged and given the light of love to learn from their teachers and classes. As they were encouraged to see their potential and do their very best in those early years they now continue—most of the time— that goal for themselves. PDS gave our boys and family such a sweet, nurturing community: a place to be themselves, to enjoy boyhood, to wear shorts every day of the year like the coaches, to love music, singing, speeches, science lab, etc.—a safe place to grow up.”

Carol and Jack Stokes Parents of John ’01 and Will ‘03 “The impact that PDS has on its boys is nothing short of remarkable.

Almost 45% of our son’s waking time was spent at PDS, probably creating as much influence in his young life as us. PDS isn’t just teaching boys, but the school is making men: men who will make a positive difference in their families and businesses, and maybe

there are some you have nurtured and indwelt a higher expectation who will influence the world.”

Johnny Pitts Father of Rob ‘03 “The laptops are a great experience for us to learn about technology, have fun, and do work all at the same time. All of the teachers and administrators are very nice and have a good sense of humor.”

Alexander Garner, Class of 2006 “From the beginning of junior kindergarten ‘til the day of graduation, PDS was such a strong and positive influence on my son’s mind, body, and especially his soul. The Godliness and morality that was taught in those early and impressionable years have directed him thorough many hard decisions that teenagers have to make…PDS always looked for his strengths and helped him to put his best foot forward and gave him confidence and conscience and helped him to achieve…Now 12 years after

entering the doors of PDS, not knowing one child or parent, my best friends are the families I met there.

My son is a good student and friend and a kind and thoughtful person.

I give much of the credit for this to the wonderful teachers at PDS who were the best possible examples at the most crucial time of development.”

Gina Webb, mother of Jeffrey, Class of 2001 “PDS is a great asset for our city. Since my own graduation from PDS, the school has continued to build on its tradition of academic and personal excellence, and it is unafraid to make changes that will best serve boys in a changing world.

Barbara and I send our son to PDS because we know he will be extremely well-prepared as a student and citizen of the 21st century.”

Pitt Hyde ‘59 PDS alumnus and parent

“When we moved to Memphis a few years ago, we were more accustomed to coed schools and assumed that

would be our choice for Johnny.

As we learned about all of the advantages of how boys’ schools can specialize in boys, and as we watched Johnny flourish at PDS, we have become passionate advocates for PDS and single-sex education.

We believe so strongly in PDS that we made a long drive each day, past many very fine schools, so he could attend PDS.”

loving his teachers and classes, making good grades, and full of confidence. What a blessing PDS is.”

Susie Andrews Mother of Grayson ‘07 “MUS has deep historical ties with PDS, and we have the greatest respect for Headmaster Lee Burns, the faculty, and the students there. PDS knows boys, and understands how to get the best from them. We would love it if every one of their graduates matriculated at MUS because their students bring with them extraordinary school citizenship and academic excellence. The PDS experience for boys fosters intellectual growth, moral development, and social maturity. If parents want a great elementary school for their sons, they need look no farther than PDS.”

Mimi and Johnny Gibson Parents of Johnny ‘05 “PDS is the best place I know for the training of boys --- spiritually, academically, physically, and socially. This school bears all the marks of God’s blessing.”

Sandy Willson Senior Pastor, Second Presbyterian Church

“A few years ago, we realized our son wasn’t being challenged the way we wanted him to, so we enrolled him at PDS. He is now stretched and challenged academically,

Ellis Haguewood Headmaster, Memphis University School “PDS has its act together. The first time I stepped into the school I knew immediately its focus was young boys and their ultimate happiness

PDS

and success. I saw it in their faces as I moved through the halls, and I felt it as I watched them work in their classrooms. Thoughtfully and cheerfully, PDS challenges boys to think, grow, mature, and look to the future with hope.”

O.J. Morgan Headmaster, The Bright School (Chattanooga) “In my role as president of the National Association of Independent Schools, I visit hundreds of schools around the country and the world. Memphis is blessed with many strong NAIS schools, among the best schools in the country.

After spending two days at PDS, I would observe that the school is a remarkable enterprise for boys, equipping them to be men prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century.”

Pat Bassett President, National Association of Independent Schools

provides af ter - school care until

“PDS knows boys. The school has conducted extensive research into the characteristics of boys and has identified best practices and strategies for teaching boys.”

Lynn Goss Middle School Head, The McCallie School “The extensive publicity about the problems many boys today have in school has been followed by groundbreaking research about how boys learn and how schools that serve only boys can focus all their energies on meeting the developmental needs of boys. As Executive Director of IBSC, I have visited over 100 boys’ schools around the world. During my visit to PDS, I was delighted to see how they have aligned their curriculum and teaching methodology with what current research tells us about how boys best learn. I am grateful for their willingness to share information about their programs to boys’ schools around the world.”

Chris Wadsworth President, International Boys’ Schools Coalition

6:00 p.m. and offers many summer programs.

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4025 Poplar Avenue • Memphis, TN 38111 • www.pdsmemphis.org PDS maintains a nondiscriminatory policy with regard to race, color, and national or ethnic origin.