School Facts

Founded:
1844, by the Methodist Church

President:
Kip P. Nygren
B.S., U.S. Military Academy
M.S., Aeronautics and Industrial
Engineering, Stanford University
Ph.D., Aerospace Engineering,
Georgia Institute of Technology

Enrollment (2009-10):
780 students total
Lower School (Preschool-Grade 8) 340 day students
Upper School (Grades 9 - 12 and PG)
440 students: 251 day, 189 boarding

Average Class Size:
Lower School: 12
Upper School: 14

Student/Teacher Ratio:
Lower School 8:1
Upper School 10:1
Residential: 6:1

Teaching Faculty:
Lower School: 40 women, eight men; two percent hold doctorates, 43 percent hold master’s degrees.
Upper School: 25 women, 37 men; 12 percent hold
doctorates; 57 percent hold master’s degrees.

Facilities:

Lower School, Forty Fort	Upper School, Kingston
administration and classroom building preschool’s Little White House 450-seat Amato Auditorium art studio science labs 12,500-volume library gymnasium athletic field computer labs playground for primary grades cafeteria band and choral rehearsal rooms	administration and classroom building two performing arts centers dance and fine art studios science center with five labs 20,000-volume library two gymnasiums two fitness rooms and pool wrestling room stadium, tennis center, and athletic fields artificial turf field three computer labs student center four residence halls dining services

Academics:
Trimester system (fall, winter, and spring terms). Early childhood and elementary education stress integrated learning and include Spanish (beginning in pre-kindergarten) and French (beginning in kindergarten).

Middle-school program includes modern global languages (grades 5-8) and Latin (optional in grades 7 and 8) with advanced courses for Upper School credit in math and global languages.

At the secondary level, more than 160 courses are available, with Advanced Placement courses offered in all major disciplines, preparing students for 25 AP subject exams.

Athletics:

Nine sports are offered for girls and boys at the middle-school level. Twenty Upper School sports are offered for girls and boys, including football, golf, cross country, basketball, soccer, swimming, ice hockey, wrestling, baseball, softball, lacrosse, tennis and field hockey.

Performing/Fine Arts:
Lower School offers chorus, Select Chorus, band, Jazz Band (grades 5-8), private and group instruction in strings and brass, drama productions (grades 3-8), art studio and gallery display area.

Upper School offers 100-voice Chorale, 28-voice Madrigal Singers, orchestra, chamber music ensembles, jazz ensemble, handbell choir, PAI Civic Symphony Orchestra, three dramatic productions annually, a dance company and a fully equipped art studio with annual studio art shows. Vocal and instrumental music are offered at all levels.

Extracurricular Programs:
Lower School offers special enrichment classes throughout the year as well as an after-care program. Middle School offers opportunities to participate in an active yearlong community service program, student government, campus activities, The Tatler (yearbook), sports and other after-school campus activities.

At Upper School, the Ex Colo program requires students to participate in community service and campus activities, arts or athletics. Among these activities are Wyoming Seminary government, Peer Group, resident assistants, Blue Key, Mock Trial, Model UN, the Science Research Group, the campus newspaper and yearbook, and more. Student interest groups also address gender and diversity issues.

Diversity:
Students come from 15 states and the District of Columbia, and 20 countries such as Canada, China, Czech Republic, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Netherlands, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand and Viet Nam. In a survey of the 19 public, parochial and independent high schools of Luzerne County, Pa., Wyoming Seminary’s class of 2010 had the largest percentage of students of color in any graduating class.

Summer Programs:
Well established and in great demand, the programs of Summer at Sem attracted more than 500 students in 2009. Programs for students ages 4 to 18 include academic enrichment and credit-worthy courses, the extraordinary Performing Arts Institute (PAI) and the world-renowned English as a Second Language (ESL) Institute.

College Guidance:
Beginning in the sophomore year, students receive highly personalized counseling to assist them in locating colleges and universities that suit their interests, abilities and needs. Virtually all graduates pursue their education in four-year programs; Eighty-four percent of graduates from the Class of 2009 gained admission to “very,” “highly” or “most competitive” colleges or universities. Wyoming Seminary graduates are currently enrolled at: Brown University, College of William and Mary, Georgetown University, Loyola College-Md., Mount Holyoke College, New York University, Pennsylvania State University (Schreyer Honors College), Smith College, Tufts University, University of Southern California, Villanova University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Scranton, and Yale University.

Endowment:
$43.3 million

Annual Budget:
$16.6 million

Financial Aid:
About $6 million in financial aid was offered in 2008-09 with 50 percent of all students in both divisions receiving some financial aid.

Accreditation:
The Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools; University Senate of the United Methodist Church; Pennsylvania Association of Private Academic Schools.

Memberships:
NAIS; The National Association of Methodist Schools and Colleges; PAIS; The Association of Boarding Schools; SSATB; Council for Spiritual and Ethical Education; The College Board; National Association of College Admission Counselors.