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| College
Enrolled |
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Boston College |
| Home
Town, State (Country) |
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AL |
| Years
Attended Boarding School |
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3 |
| Activities
During Boarding School |
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My last year at ISS, I participated in Cross Country, Girls' Varsity Basketball, Asian Club, African-American Caucus, Student Directed One-Act Plays, Proctor of my dorm wing, and Work Study at the school gymnasium. |
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| 1.) What do you think makes your school unique relative
to other boarding schools?
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| All classes at ISS are very small. The administration make sure the average class size is around 15 per class. As a result, everybody gets the personal attention they need. Also, most of the faculty at ISS live on campus. Thus, you are able to get after school help very easily. If you are willing to learn, they will gladly fulfill your appetite for learning! Finally, our campus is 360 acres and it is right next to a state park. We have a beautiful lake and despite the stress you may experience with the school work, the ISS environment never fails to calm you down. It's always great to sit on a hammock and do your English reading, or grab a blanket and do some homework on the dock or in the dorm circle! |
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| 2.) What was the best thing that happened to you in boarding school? |
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| Living with other people was the best thing about Springs. I have made GREAT friends there including the faculty. I am very close to some of the faculty and I've learned a lot from many of my friends/roommates. They were always there for me, and I'm glad that I was always there for them. |
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| 3.) What might you have done differently during your boarding school experience? |
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| Be social. Don't go back to your room and sit there by yourself. The best thing is to step out of your comfort zone and start meeting people. Find someone you can get along with. |
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| 4.) What did you like most about your school? |
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| Everything! Although challenging, the academics was great; the teachers were more than fabulous, and finally, my classmates were spectacular. |
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| 5.) Do you have any final words of wisdom for visiting or incoming students to your school? |
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| If you're coming to Springs as a boarder, get to know the dorm staff very well. They're approachable and a cool group of people to know. |
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| 1.)
Describe the academics at your school - what did you like most about it? |
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| Small classes were a great aspect for me at Springs. The classes are neither too big nor too small. You are always able to get the personal attention you need, be active, and know what others have to say. Teachers are very accessible and they never look down upon the students. They do not treat students like children, but like young adults. |
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Describe the athletics at your school - what did you like most about it? |
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| Every student balances academics and sports. Athletics is always viewed as an "extracurricular" activity. Therefore, academic teachers will not take sports as an excuse for incomplete class preparation/homework (except for very rare cases). Finally, if you are a soccer person, I highly recommend our soccer team. We have two great coaches for the boys' and girls' teams and the two teams have done great this season ('04-'05). The boys made it to the final four and the girls won another state championship. |
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Describe the arts program at your school - what did you like most about it? |
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| First of all, we have a fabulous choir. Over half of the school is involved in the Concert Choir and from the concert choir, another group of talented singers are chosen to join the Chamber Choir. A lot of effort is put into the choir. Each year the Concert Choir takes a tour around America to perform! The past years they have gone to Florida, New York, and Washington D.C.
Music is also a part of the school's art program; however, it is not as big as the choir. We have an ensemble group however, there are very few people involved.
Theater is very popular at our school. We have many productions per year and we have a great program for future theater directors. There is a course for seniors called "Play Production" which allows each member of that course to direct their own play. Some even write their own script!
We have several visual art courses for painting, photography, and pottery. The teachers are very talented. The school will be rebuilding many of its buildings in the next five years and they are planning to build a new art building. Also, at the end of each semester, there are art shows for students to show their work over the past semester. |
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Describe the extracurriculars offered at your school - what did you like most about it? |
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| There are a plethora of extra-curricular activities at Springs. Clubs vary from personal interest (such as Guitar Club, Chess Club) to cultural clubs (such as Spanish Club, Latin Club, French Club, Asian Club, African-American Caucus Club, Gay-Straight Alliance). Many students at Springs are involved in clubs. |
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Describe the dorm life in your school - what did you like most about it? |
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| The school will be rebuilding the dorms in the next few years. |
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Describe the dining arrangements at your school. |
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| The quality of food at the dining hall has been improving little by little. There is a salad bar, soup of the day, ice cream, etc. Students eat at the dining hall during their lunch period and boarders eat three meals a day at the dining hall. Every Monday is "Community Dining," where boarders and the faculty of the school have a "family style" dinner at assigned tables. The dining hall is not open after dinner time (which continues to about 7p.m.), therefore, it is rough for those who have the midnight munchies. Be sure to have something to munch on in your room! |
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| 1.) Describe the school's town and surrounding area. |
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| Birmingham, AL does not have much compared to Atlanta, GA or other large cities in the surrounding states. However, there are weekend activities that students can participate in and the dorm staff are always creative when planning. Most of the time, students do not have to pay for the weekend activities (such as bowling, movies, ice cream, skating, laser tag, etc.) Also, there are frequent trips to Wal Mart for students who need to get their shopping done. |
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Describe the social life at your school - what did you like most about it? |
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| Most of my social life took place on campus! I got along very well with the people I lived with, so on weekends we would just hang out together and enjoy the weekend. Of course we would go off campus to enjoy a movie, go shopping, or just drive around. Fridays and Saturdays would be the fun days and on Sunday, we would start our homework! Unless we had a busy week coming up ahead. |
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| 7:00 AM | Wake up, shower, etc. | | 7:30 AM | Wake up roommate, go to breakfast. | | 8:00 AM | School starts. | | 12:30 AM | Lunch. | | 3:30 PM | School ends. 10th period starts (for sports, clubs, etc.) | | 6:00 PM | Dinner. | | 7:30 PM | Study hall begins. (Quiet time.) | | 9:00 PM | Study hall ends. Free time begins! | | 10:00 PM | Check in for underclassmen. (9th, 10th, 11th grade) | | 11:30 PM | Lights out for underclassmen. Check in for seniors. (No lights out for seinors.) | |
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| 10:00 AM | Wake up. Weekends are for sleeping in! | | 11:30 AM | Lunch | | 1:00 PM | Go off campus to shop, hang out, etc. | | 6:00 PM | Dinner on campus. (Optional. You can eat something off campus! Do anything.) | | 7:30 PM | (Only on Sundays: study hall begins.) | | 9:00 PM | (Only on Sundays: study hall ends. Free time.) | | 10:00 PM | (Check in for underclassmen.) | | 11:30 PM | (Lights out for underclassmen. Check in for seniors.) | | 12:30 AM | Check in time for all students on Fridays and Saturdays. | |
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