FAQs - Friends School of Wilmington - Quaker School-8th Grade Independent School in Wilmington, NC FAQs What is FSW's educational approach and teaching philosophy for the preschool program? What is FSW's educational approach and teaching philosophy for the K-8 program? How is FSW’s academic curriculum vetted and accredited? How are students assessed throughout the year? What are the target student-to-teacher ratios for each grade level? What makes FSW’s environmental education program profoundly unique? We believe that education is a journey of self-discovery. Our Montessori preschool program is designed to ignite your child's imagination and creativity, allowing them to explore their interests and passions freely. With an emphasis on fostering independence, our students develop self-confidence and a sense of responsibility from an early age. Through a balance of structured learning and hands-on play, our dedicated educators create a supportive environment that encourages each child to reach their full potential. By instilling a lifelong love for learning, we lay the foundation for a fulfilling educational experience. Across our Lower School & Middle School, we prioritize inquiry-based, experiential, and service-learning models to offer a transformative educational experience for our students. By stepping outside the traditional classroom walls, our young learners embark on a journey of discovery, exploring the wonders of the world firsthand.  Our students are active participants in their learning journey, cultivating critical thinking and problem solving skills, along with a strong sense of social responsibility. Our aim is to nurture self-confident, socially aware, and academically curious individuals who are eager to make a difference in the world. We are accredited by the Southern Association of Independent Schools , who conducts a full accreditation process every five years, as well as midpoint check-ins with recommendations for continued growth. We are also members of the National Association of Independent Schools and the North Carolina Association of Independent Schools and we use their annual testing benchmarks to cross-check our curricular depth, breadth, and rigor. We are also members of Friends Council on Education , a national organization that supports all 75 Quaker schools throughout the United States through professional development, teaching resources, and faculty networking. All four organizations guide our approach to the transformative power of a Quaker education and ensure we provide a vibrant, vigorous, and adaptive learning environment for all students. We believe in the power of narrative student assessment to foster holistic growth and individualized learning. In addition to annual standardized testing ( ERBs ) and traditional grading models, we also provide personalized assessments that offer a more comprehensive and authentic understanding of each student's learning journey, going beyond mere test scores to appreciate a student's creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities. By using qualitative feedback in conjunction with other assessment models, we encourage students to take risks, learn from mistakes, and celebrate their achievements. Our approach to whole-child, growth-mindset assessment ensures that every student is seen, heard, and appreciated for the unique contributions they bring to our learning community. We are dedicated to achieving a small student-to-teacher ratio in order to foster personalized attention, individualized instruction, and stronger community relationships, allowing for a more supportive and effective learning environment. Our typical ratios are as follows: Preschool: 6:1 K-5th Grade: 7:1 6th-8th Grade: 9:1 Quakers are known for their reverence for the natural world and their deep call to care for the earth. The unification of our campus and the purchase of adjoining green space in Spring 2021 inspired us to reimagine our existing environmental education initiatives. As part of an ongoing collaboration with faculty, parents, students, and community partners, we are building a comprehensive program with an integrated curriculum across all grade levels at the newly established Longleaf Center for Environmental Education. Depending upon grade level and subject area, teachers work in conjunction with our EE Coordinator, Karen Linehan, to deliver lessons related to ecological systems and biodiversity; air and water quality; energy and climate change; stewardship of land and water; recycling and composting; individual and organizational sustainability; and environmental justice. Does a student need to be a Quaker to attend FSW? How does FSW ensure a diverse and inclusive learning environment and community culture? Once a student graduates from FSW, what is a typical path or outcome? What opportunities exist for parent involvement? Most students, parents, and staff at FSW are not Quaker. We follow varied religious traditions—or none at all—but our identity as a Friends School is central to who we are. At its core, a Friends School aims to provide a holistic education that combines academic excellence with the development of ethical character, social responsibility, and personal growth. Our ongoing commitments to diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and belonging (DEIJB) is to build a transformative community of dynamic learners who are guided by unwavering empathy, cultural competency, and social awareness. Through school-wide programming, faculty/staff professional development, family workshops, donor and endowment support, cross-cultural community events, and organizational partnerships, we prepare students to navigate an increasingly networked global society, challenge systemic biases, and contribute to a more just and inclusive world. Most of our graduates from 8th grade seek out advanced placement and honors classes, as well as magnet programs. Recent school placements include North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, Isaac M. Bear High School, Southeast Area Technical High School (SEA-Tech), and Wilmington Early College High School. College placements include Ivy League universities like Brown, Princeton, and Yale; liberal arts colleges like Davidson, Emory, and Guilford; and art & design institutions like SCAD, FIT, and KCAI. Both during and after high school, it is our hope and intention that FSW graduates continue to live out our guiding principles and remain lifelong learners, global citizens, and compassionate leaders in the greater world. The Parents Association (PA) supports our students through the generosity of their time and resources, and they help strengthen student programs, build community, and provide additional support through fundraising. If you are a parent or guardian of a Friends School of Wilmington student, you are automatically a member of the Parents Association. There is no fee to join and there are no requirements for membership. Does FSW offer financial aid? How is a family’s tuition calculated? Is my financial information confidential? When would I know my tuition amount? Does applying for financial aid affect my enrollment application? If I don't receive financial aid, can I apply again another year? Do I need to apply again for financial aid each year? How does the School supply the remainder of costs outside of tuition? If I have additional questions about financial aid, who should I contact? We are dedicated to the Quaker principle of inclusivity and recognize that every child is equally deserving of a transformative education. In order to make FSW better accessible to families from a range of economic backgrounds, we offer need-based financial aid to Kindergarten through 8th grade families who would benefit from tuition assistance to attend. The Friends School of Wilmington Financial Aid Committee takes great care to assess each family’s unique financial profile and partners with a third party organization, FACTS Grant & Aid Assessment, to determine need-based award. Many factors are reviewed and evaluated and include things such as annual income expenses, liabilities and debts, family size, and any unusual expenses. One particular noteworthy element of our financial aid program is that asset accounts such as a 401(k) are not part of a financial decision. However, since family circumstances vary widely, differences in circumstances other than income often result in families with similar incomes having different financial need. Yes, any financial information submitted to FACTS Grant & Aid Assessment and/or the Business Office is held in strict confidence. All decisions concerning tuition are confidential agreements between a family and Friends School of Wilmington and we request that details of these agreements not be discussed publicly to preserve that confidentiality. For prospective families, when we notify an applicant that we are able to offer admission, the admission decision notification also includes details concerning tuition and expenses. For current families, tuition decisions are communicated at the time of re-enrollment. No, applications for admission are evaluated by the Admissions team separately and on their own merit. An applicant’s financial situation is never discussed in admission deliberations. FSW is happy to consider applications from returning families who have a significant change in their financial profile. Families who do not receive financial aid rate during their initial year should not expect their tuition to be less in subsequent years unless they have experienced a significant change in circumstances. Increased expenditures such as having an additional child in a tuition-paying school could qualify as a significant change in circumstances. Yes. All families who wish to be considered for financial aid must apply each year. Given the same financial circumstances as in the prior year, a family can expect their contribution to remain proportionally the same. Additional revenue comes from some of our enrichment programming,  as well as from the support of our greater community through the Annual Fund and other methods of giving Please contact Business Manager, Marla Schoolmeester, by email or by phone (910-792-1811 x2). We welcome your questions and comments.