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Q:
What is St. Anselm’s Abbey School?
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A:
St. Anselm’s Abbey School is an independent, Roman Catholic day school for boys with demonstrated academic ability in grades 6 – 12. Students at St. Anselm’s establish a solid foundation in the liberal arts through a rigorous classical education. The school was founded in 1942 by Benedictine monks, an order with a 1,500-year spiritual and intellectual tradition. The focus of St. Anselm’s is not purely on academics; the richly philosophical nature of the school enables great personal and social growth among the individuals and the community. A St. Anselm’s education does not simply prepare a boy for college but also for life as a considerate and thoughtful man.
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Q:
What is a Benedictine?
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A:
A Benedictine is one who follows the Rule of St. Benedict, a rubric for communal life written by the Italian monk St. Benedict of Nursia. The Rule embodies a unique spirit of balance, moderation and reasonableness in all things. A monk spends their life engaged in work and prayer and aim for spiritual enlightenment both personal and communal. St. Anselm’s was founded in Brookland in 1924 by English Benedictines from Fort Augustus on the Loch Ness, Scotland. The monks opened the school in 1942, originally conducting classes in the monastery. While the majority of the faculty is now laypersons, the community yearly renews a fundamental commitment to the cherished Benedictine principles that guide them in developing the mind, body and spirit of the students.
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Q:
Who was Saint Anselm?
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A:
Saint Anselm of Canterbury was a philosopher, theologian, Benedictine and educator. Considered the father of scholasticism, he was an original proponent for the unity of reason and faith. Among Saint Anselm’s writings one encounters much wisdom, especially where education is concerned. By writing about youth as “soft wax,” Saint Anselm prescribes a molding process whose aim is to prepare students for true teaching. St. Anselm’s Abbey School continues this tradition in the modern day by offering students a fast paced and challenging curriculum to mold them into capable scholars and young men.
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Q:
Will I get into a good college if I go to St. Anselm’s?
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A:
Despite its relatively small size, the student body at St. Anselm’s is diverse and the college matriculations over the course of the school’s history reflect the distinctions among our individual students. 100 percent of our graduates have been accepted to four-year colleges and universities. Alumni attend Ivy League schools, small colleges, large public universities, private universities and service academies according to their own aspirations and interests. The College Counseling Office begins working with students during their sophomore year to ensure that they are as informed as possible about the process. The most important goal of the College Counseling Office is to help each student find the college or university that is the best fit for him. More information can be found at the College Counseling website.
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Q:
How big is the school?
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A:
The school presently has 232 boys enrolled in grades 6 through 12. The overall average class size is thirteen students, although in the middle school and first two years of high school the average classroom is closer to 20 students. To date there are over 1,300 alumni, with a peak class of 39 students in 2009.
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Q:
What about the faculty?
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A:
St. Anselm’s has 60 full- and part-time faculty and staff. Ten faculty members are monks or clergy. Eighty-four percent of the teachers hold advanced degrees. The student to faculty ratio is approximately 6:1. With this low ratio, teachers are able to devote extensive personal attention to each student and forge strong relationships with the student body.
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Q:
What about the academics?
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A:
The curriculum has been developed to match the abilities of all students who are admitted to the school. It is intended to challenge and excite every student, to enable him to grow intellectually and to make him feel a strong sense of achievement when he graduates. Additional help is provided to students as needed. The academic program is designed to be challenging but not intimidating. In sum, if a student is accepted here, he can do the work here.
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Q:
What about sports?
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A:
As part of the regular curriculum, all students participate in Physical Education classes. Forms A through IV (grades 6 through 10) have five periods of structured physical activity each week, including intramural competitions. Intramural competitions are fostered by the House system. Upon entering St. Anselm’s, each boy is assigned to one of the four houses (Alban, Austin, Main, or Moore). There are competitions between the houses throughout the school year. At all grade levels, our students participate in a variety of interscholastic sports. We currently field over 15 athletic teams in soccer, cross country, wrestling, basketball, track and field, tennis, baseball, fencing and lacrosse.
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Q:
What other activities are there?
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A:
Students at all grade levels take advantage of our outstanding facilities and faculty by engaging in extensive extra-curricular activities in the visual and performing arts, club sports, service, and particular academic interests. A club period is built into the end of the day Tuesdays through Thursdays. A list of current and recent clubs is found here.
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Q:
What about community service?
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A:
Community service is built into the curriculum for Juniors and Seniors; during a regular school week each boy performs at least three hours of community service with local charities and organizations. Community service teaches the boys how to respond to the needs they will perceive in the world upon graduation; by the end of high school a typical St. Anselm’s student has served the local community for more than 150 hours.
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Q:
Are all of the students Catholic?
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A:
About 60 percent of the students are Roman Catholic. Throughout the centuries schools run by monasteries have welcomed all students who are seeking to further their wisdom through study and practice. Every grade at St. Anselm’s involves theological study and by the time a boy graduates he has a clear understanding of the Roman Catholic faith regardless of his beliefs. A fundamental aspect of this understanding is a respect for other faiths and traditions around the world.
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Q:
How does a student get into St. Anselm’s?
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A:
Applying to St. Anselm’s is a straightforward process involving an application, entrance exam, applicant essays, current transcripts and teacher recommendations. The applicant spends a day at the school so he might get a better sense of its nature. When all of the elements of the file are in place and both parents and the student have met with the Admissions Office to clarify any remaining questions and concerns, the applicant’s file goes to the Admissions Committee for review. The Committee ensures that a variety of perspectives factor into the determination of fit: both how well the school will serve the student in question and how the student will fare in the unique setting at St. Anselm’s. Application forms and important dates for visits, tours, Open Houses and testing can be found on our website under Application Process.
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Q:
Where is St. Anselm’s?
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A:
St. Anselm’s Abbey School is located on a 40-acre wooded campus situated in the North Michigan Park neighborhood of Northeast Washington, approximately 4 miles from Capitol Hill and Downtown Washington. We are also approximately 5.5 miles from Chevy Chase, 5 miles from Silver Spring, Md., and 10 miles from Arlington, Va. Our students come from different parts of the greater Washington area, and we work with families to facilitate carpools. St. Anselm's is located less than one mile the Fort Totten Metro station (red, green and yellow lines). We run shuttles to and from Fort Totten each morning and afternoon. We also offer two morning shuttle buses. One bus leaves from Bethesda and makes additional stops at the Friendship Heights Metro station (red line) and on Military Road NW in Chevy Chase. The other morning bus is from Northern Virginia, stopping in Arlington, McLean and Alexandria.