Semester Programs

Each year, a small number of juniors participate in semester programs off campus.

There are four main programs that students take part in:

• City Semester: The Bronx Experience
  
  http://citysem.org
  
  This new program integrates history, English, science, ethics, language, civic leadership, and the arts around the study of New York City through the lens of the Bronx. Led by a team of 10 teachers from across the high-school departments, the program’s goal is to connect student-centered, interdisciplinary, place-based scholarship to leadership, personal growth, and engagement in the communal life of the city.
  
  City Semester offers students a chance to step outside their everyday routine, have an adventure, challenge their assumptions, and grow in new ways. At the same time, City Semester is rooted in their immediate environment (Fieldston), their neighborhood, and their city. It is not residential, so students will be able to bring their discoveries back to their “normal” life in powerful ways, both during the program and after. We spend at least one day a week outside of the classroom doing research, exploring neighborhoods, interviewing residents, working with community groups, presenting in the field, and speaking to policymakers. The academic work is rigorous and challenging, with teachers teaching in their own disciplines while also working across boundaries. The work is project-based, organized around both individual and group assignments that draw from multiple subjects and from the world beyond the classroom. The goal is to connect student learning to the world by studying the city.
  
  To follow the City Semester experience, visit the program’s website at http://citysem.org.
   
• The Maine Coast Semester
  
  www.chewonki.org
  
  The Maine Coast Semester offers small numbers students the chance to live and work on a 400-acre saltwater peninsula with the goal of exploring the interrelationship between people and the environment.  The buildings are rustic, the atmosphere is informal, and the community is small
   
• The Mountain School of Milton Academy
  
  www.mountainschool.org
  
  The Mountain School is located in Vermont and emphasizes the relationship between nature and learning.  Students are expected to develop skills that make them more self-directed.  Students participate in gardening, afternoon hikes, work in the woodshop and other outdoor activities
   
• Rocky Mountain Semester
  
  www.hminet.org
  
  Rocky Mountain Semester is an "apprenticeship with nature" located in the Colorado mountains.  Half of the program takes place in wild settings, far away from the reaches of modern civilization.  The other half is on their campus at the foot of several 14,000 foot peaks.

• GlobalQuest
  
  www.gquest.org
  
  GlobalQuest is a semester program for seniors that takes place in either Thailand or Ecuador/Galapagos Islands.  This is an experiential and interdisciplinary program that allows students to study and experience language, culture and the environment.