For weeks now, the Admission Team has been processing 400 applications for admission for the 2010-2011 school year. It's an exhaustive process, involving lots of investigative telephone work, category management (number of new female sophomores, for example,) and lengthy deliberation. No short cuts exist; crafting a community is critically important work.

 

The task is nothing less than anticipating who is likely to thrive in this unique environment. This week, they'll communicate their decisions. The process will be far from complete! We know that a majority of those admitted will return on April 2 and 6 for immersion revisits, and we know that a high percentage of those revisiting will choose to attend Proctor. The factors that enter their deliberation are often many and complex! In some instances, of course, a single program such as Learning Skills or a specific athletic program is huge.

 

Athletic recruitment, I suspect, accounts for far fewer enrollments at Proctor than at many schools, due to the multiplicity of qualities that appeal to applicants and their families. We are aware of some students favoring Proctor because of a highly unique offering such as the recording studio or Ocean Classroom, but more often the it is the generic "strength of the arts" or "experiential programs" that new enrollees articulate as determining factors.

 




Proctor has great strength in its ability to attract and retain appropriate students. Here, the "academic excellence" that is usually promised is considered a given....the foundation on which everything else stands. And the quality of the college preparatory program is enhanced by the degree of academic support and the unique nature of adult/student relationships.

 




When 100-something families revisit during the first week of April, most will have a tough time articulating all the factors that make the community seem optimal for their child. They'll know about the accountability that comes with the advisor system; they'll know something about teaching methodologies, and they'll understand the breadth of the curriculum that enables students to customize their "Proctor experience." 


 




What they'll find hard to express is something far more subtle and pervasive. To capture the ethos of the community in words may be impossible, yet that tone is easy to know.


 




Without being wholly conscious of it, over the decades the faculty and administration hammered out a system distinguished by clear structure where rules and policies are common sense (you have to be in class on time; you have to do your homework, etc.) while protecting enough personal freedom that students exercise real responsibility. It's as if students have been struck a fair deal.

 

The next page will be posted on Tuesday, March 16.