Sidwell Friends School

Sidwell Friends School is a Quaker private school located in Washington, D.C. and Bethesda, Maryland in the United States.

Sidwell was founded in 1883 by Thomas Sidwell. Its motto is "Eluceat omnibus lux" (Let the light shine out from all; it can also be translated as "by all," and alludes to the Quaker concept of inner light). All Sidwell Friends students attend Quaker meetings for worship weekly. Many members of each graduating class attend Ivy League institutions, and 100% of each graduating class go on to a four year college or university.

Before moving to downtown Washington. The Wisconsin Avenue property was first used for athletic fields while the campus was still downtown, with students shuttling between the two sites by streetcar.

For many years, Sidwell was the only co-educational school in its athletic league, the MAC, while the female teams compete in the ISL.

Sidwell dropped its dress code in the 1970s.

The Wisconsin Avenue campus recently saw the completion of a new parking deck and sports field, and the construction on the Middle School has been completed. The Middle school building obtained a platinum certification for environmental soundness. The environmentally sound Middle School building spearheads Sidwell's effort to instill environmental stewardship among its students. The Sidwell community also cherishes Quaker values, diversity, and academic excellence.

The Sidwell Friends Upper School has a particularly strong English Department. In 2005, Sidwell's AP English Exam scores were the highest of all "Medium-sized" schools (300–799 students in grades 10–12)offering the AP English exam. Sidwell does not offer an AP English course.

In addition to English, all Sidwell students are required to study a foreign language, mathematics, science, history, and an art.

Sidwell has one of the region's strongest Chinese studies programs, with classes in Mandarin beginning in Middle School and extensive Chinese history courses offered in the Upper School. Every year the Sidwell Friends Upper School is host to two Chinese exchange students. Sidwell is also a member school of School Year Abroad.

The school's admissions process is merit-based and highly competitive. Often children of alumni and Quakers receive preference.

Athletics
Over the years, the Sidwell Friends School athletics program has strengthened. In fall, 2006, the boys varsity soccer team compiled a 19-2 record and was recognized as #9 in the Washington Post Top Ten soccer schools in the metropolitan area. The wrestling program has also been a success, as they took 10th place in the national prep tournament in 2003, and in 2007 won the DC Classic, which was comprised of all DC private schools that compete in Wrestling. The 2006-2007 Varsity Boys Basketball team also enjoyed measurable success, winning the school's first ever outright conference championship in Boy's Basketball, as well as enjoying the most successful conference season in MAC Boy's Basketball history with a 14-0 conference record.

Current profile

 * 2004-2005 school year: 1,091 students (563 boys and 528 girls) are enrolled
 * 38% of the student body belong to ethnic minorities
 * 21% of the student body receives some form of financial assistance
 * The School employs 145 teachers and 98 administrative and support staff.
 * Tuitions for the 2006-2007 school year are $24,990 (prekindergarten-grade 4) and $25,990 (grades 5-12).
 * The school never releases its SAT average scores or college admission list.

Campuses
The Middle and Upper School campus is located at 3825 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20016-2907
 * 15-acre (61,000 m²) Wisconsin Avenue campus in the Tenleytown section of Northwest Washington
 * Earl G. Harrison Jr. Upper School Building
 * A new environmentally-friendly Middle School building with LEED platinum status
 * Kogod Center for the Arts
 * Richard Walter Goldman Memorial Library
 * Zartman House (administration building)
 * Sensner Building (maintenance services and school store)
 * Wannan and Kenworthy Gymnasiums
 * Three athletic fields, three tennis courts, and a six-lane track.
 * Parking facility with ample faculty, student, guest and alumni parking (200+ parking spaces), as well as buildings for security, IT and maintenance.

The Lower School campus can be found at 5100 Edgemoor Lane, Bethesda, Maryland, 20814-2306
 * 5-acre (20,000 m²) Edgemoor Lane campus in Bethesda (formerly Longfellow School for Boys; opened for the 1963–64 school year)
 * Manor House (classrooms, administration, and Clark Library)
 * Groome Building (classrooms and multi-purpose room)
 * Science, Art, and Music (SAM) Building
 * The Bethesda Friends Meeting House
 * Athletic fields and play areas.

Both campuses underwent major renovations throughout the 2005-2006 school year.