Upper School
From the Head of Upper School
Here the girls who come together are smart, diverse intellectuals. In the Upper School, learning happens in and out of the classroom, and the pieces come together in a way that is most meaningful for our students, empowering them, helping them learn what it means to be who they are and how to find their place in the world for which they will become the caretakers.
Academic excellence stands at the center of a Spence education. Our girls work with an outstanding faculty possessing high expectations of them and a firm understanding of the challenges of adolescence and unique joys and opportunities of teaching in an all-girls’ school. As a single-sex school, Spence subscribes to the idea that its educational environment is the most powerful way for girls to gain and maximize the scholastic voice and leadership skills they will need once they graduate. Through the advisory and the grade-level dean systems, the girls understand how to form authentic relationships with the adults in the school, enabling them to share their knowledge and continue to shape and reshape their thoughts.
As Spence girls make their way through the Upper School, the work takes on more complex and sophisticated dimensions and learning becomes much more than an accumulation of facts. The required courses and the choice of electives promote thinking across the disciplines and knowing how to analyze and integrate information, as well as learning how to share with and teach others.
Equally important are the co-curricular offerings in athletics, and in performing, dramatic and visual arts. Through clubs and opportunities for community service, all integral pieces of a Spence education, as well as athletics and the arts, our students are encouraged to explore and take on roles of leadership. In our co-curricular program, they can discover their potential, create their own experiences. At Spence each girl has an opportunity to achieve her own goals and aspirations.
Michèle Krauthamer
Head of Upper School