Academics
Rigorous college prep taught the way girls learn best
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Experiential -
Collaborative
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— Courtney Ulmer, Assistant Head of School for Academics
“Foxcroft’s focus on the individual learner enables us to create an academic program that fits her interests, challenges her appropriately, and helps her find her voice.”
— Anne Burridge, English Department
“I want the girls to be critical thinkers. I want them to be able to look at a text or speech and interpret it well. Critical thinking will help them all their lives.”
Foxcroft’s academic program challenges you to develop the analytical, critical thinking, and communications skills you need and your own creative, confident, and independent voice as well. Terrific teachers, who want you to succeed, design hands-on, interdisciplinary lessons and group projects with real-world value. And, in response to our rapidly changing world, the all-girls prep school in the Southeast faculty continually examines course offerings and teaching methods to prepare you for college, career, and anything else the 21st century may bring!
Explore Our Courses
Foxcroft’s comprehensive program also offers 76 courses, including 16 APs — in six disciplines as well as opportunities for independent study, additional courses online through One Schoolhouse, and a distinct humanities track for non-native English speakers. The multi-faceted STEM initiative, which informs all math and science curricula, gives you an advantage in crucial fields typically underrepresented by women and required seminars in Digital Literacy, Wellness, and Financial Literacy address essential personal skills.
More Program Highlights
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AP Courses
Many girls get a leg-up on college by taking Advanced Placement courses, which have a college-level curriculum taught at the high school level. To take these exceptionally challenging courses, which the College Board oversees, you must get permission from the department, do well in the prerequisite courses, and complete significant summer assignments first. In May, students take the AP Exams that match the courses they took; top scores may help you earn college credit In 2016, Foxcroft had an amazing 30 AP Scholars honored for their performance on AP exams. That’s a lot of credits! -
Digital Literacy
Required for freshmen and new sophomores, the Digital Literacy class focuses on three crucial aspects of life in the digital age:- your ability to find, evaluate, utilize, and share information;
- new ways for you to create content using information, technology, and the Internet;
- perhaps most importantly, digital safety so that you better understand the risks associated with putting information online and how to protect what you put there.
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Educational Technology
Foxcroft strives to make the most effective use of educational technology in all disciplines. The Director of Educational Technology works with faculty to integrate appropriate and innovative technologies in support of student learning. -
Financial Literacy
Offered in conjunction with Invest in Girls, this course consists of four topic-specific workshops each year to prepare you for success, wellness, and a life of leadership and philanthropy. Topics include:- personal finance,
- investing your money,
- financing college,
- taxes and budgets.
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One Schoolhouse
Foxcroft is a charter affiliate member of the Online School for Girls, which expanded in 2016 to become One Schoolhouse. It presents courses that might not be offered at individual schools. With the approval of the Academic Dean and appropriate Department Chair, a student may take a course for credit during the school year or the summer. One Schoolhouse offers a variety of courses. -
Senior Thesis
An interdisciplinary, multimedia research project, Senior Thesis draws on all the skills students have developed in previous English classes, including literary analysis, public speaking, and expository writing. Foxcusing on topics and literary works of their own choosing, students expand their knowledge and facility with research, ranging from in-house reference sources to search engines, with an emphasis on building a comprehensive bibliography. -
Wellness
Wellness is a four-year, research-based program targeted to the aspects of wellness that most affect our students. Freshmen attend a class that meets regularly during the fall to study topics ranging from nutrition and the female body to the principles of mindfulness, stress, and public speaking, among other things. The program continues with a variety of age-appropriate seminars through the subsequent three years. -
Wintermission
Wintermission is a week-long term in February during which you take one or two intensive courses, generally on a topic very different from your usual classes. These courses encourage students and teachers to examine a subject in great depth and provide opportunities for off-campus travel and service. Students must successfully complete Wintermission term each year they are at Foxcroft. Courses and grades will appear on students’ transcripts.
Faculty
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70%
of faculty have
advanced degrees -
3
teachers have
Ph.D.s -
83%
of faculty and administrators
live on campus -
100%
offer extra help
outside of class
Wellness
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Wellness Program
Foxcroft's motto is mens sana in corpore sano (a healthy mind in a healthy body), and we help our girls live that through a robust Wellness program. Tailored to their needs and interests, topics change for each grade level and build upon one another, instilling in girls a strong foundation for all-encompassing well-being.
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Experiential Learning
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Learning is Everywhere
At Foxcroft, everything we do is curriculum — and that means learning occurs in many places and many ways. Foxcroft boasts a variety of unique programs focused on experiences outside the classroom and even beyond the front gate. Explore Experiential Learning at Foxcroft.
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STEM Initiative
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Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
At Foxcroft, these critical fields for the 21st century are compelling, engaging, and fun at Foxcroft. Our landmark STEM Initiative emphasizes inquiry-based labs, using technology with confidence and ease, and hands-on problem-solving — and extends well beyond the classroom. Investigate STEM, one of Foxcroft’s signature programs.
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Schoolhouse News
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A Very Creative Writing Project
By Eunice Y. ’21Read more >>
Ed Note: Rebecca Wise’s two Creative Writing classes recently completed a wonderful project in which each student produced her own chapbook (a small paperback booklet containing poems or fiction) and presented it at a workshop last week. Here’s a report from one of her students: -
Project-Based Learning
A Report from Hays T. ’21 and World Languages Department Chair Esther SánchezRead more >>
After learning about parts of the house, house chores, and certain specific grammar and vocabulary points, Spanish 2 students imagined that they were moving with their families to one of the Spanish-speaking areas of the world. Our goal was to find (or to make!) our ideal home that aligned with the values and standards of our new region. -
Trailblazing Women
From Julia R. '21Read more >>
Spanish 4 embarked on a project about a diverse group of trailblazing women from different parts of the Spanish-speaking world. Each of us had to research a specific woman who had an impact on society and broke certain barriers and/or stereotypes. In addition to learning about her life, we had to "become" her.
Contact
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An all-girls boarding and day school in Northern Virginia, Foxcroft prepares young women in grades 9-12 for success in college and in life. Our outstanding academic program offers challenging courses, including Advanced Placement classes and an innovative STEM program. Our premiere equestrian program is nationally recognized, and our athletic teams have won conference and state championships. Experience the best in girls' boarding schools: visit Foxcroft.
