List of 10 items.

• IB Diploma

  In 2002, Wilmington Friends became the first school in Delaware authorized to participate in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB). The IB is recognized as among the highest standards--indeed, it is often considered the highest standard--for college preparatory education.

   

  The IB provides a curriculum structure and access to an internationally recognized standard of excellence, which strengthen our overall school program to the benefit of every student. The IB emphasizes high academic standards, global perspective, informed and engaged citizenship, respect for others, and the active application of classroom experience--all undertaken through a process-oriented, teacher-guided, multiple assessment approach--making it a natural fit with the program and philosophy at Wilmington Friends.

   

  Students have the option of participating in the IB Diploma Programme in their junior and senior years, or of earning certificates in individual IB courses. The Diploma Programme combines IB course work and exams in six academic areas; a signature course called Theory of Knowledge, which brings together issues studied across academic disciplines (e.g. logic, aesthetics); an extended essay project; and a requirement for participation in community service and activities such as sports, the arts, and civic and school organizations.
  
  

  For specific information on the program requirements, please see IB Program Components; for answers to frequently asked questions, including how colleges view the IB program and whether the program is a good fit, please see IB FAQ. For a list of colleges where Friends IB Diploma students have enrolled, see IB Diploma Student Colleges.

• Service

  Rooted in the history and practice of Quaker humanitarian service, students must complete at least 50 hours of community service some time during their upper school years as a requirement for graduation. It is an opportunity for students to implement personal values through service to others. This service may be performed during unscheduled periods of the school day, after school, on weekends, during school vacations, or in the summer. It must be steady involvement in one activity with one sponsor agency performed outside of the Wilmington Friends School community.

• AppleCore (Student-Run Tech Support)

  A distinctive feature of the Friends technology program⏤and, in particular, the 1:1 laptop program⏤is the student-led tech support group, AppleCore. Maintaining over 1,000 devices would be a monumental task without the student leaders involved in the program; and the students gain valuable, practical technology training and experience. Students in AppleCore provide tech support for students, faculty, and staff. No prior tech support experience is necessary. Students are taught troubleshooting techniques and are given access to AppleCore support documentation.

• Science Fellows

  The Science Department offers the opportunity for 11th and 12th-grade students to further their laboratory skills by assisting in the science classrooms. During their free periods, students report to their designated science faculty advisor 2-3 times a week. Lab assistants receive training including how to take inventory, make solutions, prepare labs, and care for living things. Responsibilities include laboratory and demonstration preparation, garden work, lab and classroom cleanup, filing and other minor clerical work. 

• School Year Abroad

  In 2007, Wilmington Friends School became a member of School Year Abroad (SYA), a consortium of independent schools across the country with a commitment to global education. SYA was founded in 1964 “to help young Americans become full-fledged citizens of the world.” The goal of the program is to give American students⏤high school juniors and seniors⏤the benefits of living in another country, with an emphasis on cultural understanding, language fluency, and consistent high-level preparation for university study. Students live with host families, and study at SYA schools both in English and in the language of the host country. Member schools have additional opportunities for students to participate in summer programs and for faculty members to teach and learn abroad.

• Senior Exploration

  In May of their senior year, the Senior Exploration provides students with a chance to integrate and apply skills and knowledge in an authentic, in-depth experience. Using a personal question as a guide, students are encouraged to find an experience that will require them to reflect on their own growth while at WFS. Students may explore any of the following: career options, service, immersion in a different culture, an old passion, or a new interest. Students work with a mentor/expert, document the experience through guided journals and photographic evidence, and present to family, peers, and faculty.

• QUEST Term Service/Leadership Experience

  The Quaker Center for Understanding, Engagement and Stewardship (QUEST) supports programs that express and build upon the distinctive strengths of Quaker education: teaching students to develop a global understanding of problems and questions they encounter; giving them the skills, motivation and sense of responsibility to engage those questions in thought and in action; and helping them to grow as stewards and leaders, capable and willing to work toward positive change. Toward that end, the center’s QUEST Term Service/Leadership Experience engages students in an experiential learning model to increase their understanding of global issues as well as strategies to mitigate the impact of these challenges. During the summers preceding their 10th, 11th, and 12th grade years, students may elect to travel to domestic or international destinations to engage in global issues and leadership.

  
  

  Previous service learning trips have included travel to the Dominican Republic, El Paso, TX and South Africa. In June 2023, WFS will head to the Dominican Republic to work with the Dominican Dream foundation to provide literacy activities to young children in the Puerta Plata area.

• QUEST Scholars Program

  The QUEST Scholars program provides Wilmington Friends School students with significant service learning opportunities that combine academic studies with experiential learning. Students design a question and service learning that explores answers to that question. The program starts in the spring of 9th grade.

  
  

  QUEST Scholar requirements

  • A journal of reflections on all activities

  • At least 150 hours of service, starting with at least 30 hours the summer before tenth grade (50 hours minimum per year)

  • A presentation on the experience in the senior year

  
  

  All WFS upper school students in ninth grade are eligible for participation in the QUEST Scholars program. In applying for participation, each potential QUEST Scholar completes an interest form and then develops a program proposal. In doing so, the student works with the appropriate adults (in school and in the broader community) to develop a plan to meet the requirements of the particular QUEST Scholar program. The proposal is reviewed and approved by the members of the Upper School Service Committee.

  
  

  With the completion of the proposed program, the Scholar provides the Service Committee with evidence of engagement in the elements of the Scholar’s chosen plan. Scholars who have completed the program are recognized during Final Assembly.

• Independent Study

  When a student has a particular passion for a subject that is not available in our curriculum, they may design an independent study with a willing faculty member to guide they learning. The proposal is to be written by the student and group independent studies may have no more than four students. 

• Mastery Program

  The mastery program is a vehicle to stimulate Friends School students to develop their talents, to explore deeply felt interests, to challenge themselves in ways they might not otherwise attempt, and to produce an achievement of which they can be justifiably proud. The aim of this program is to meet all of these goals, not one or two of them. In short, the final outcomes of students’ mastery projects should be intrinsically-motivated and extraordinary. 
                  
  The scope of the program is broad. Any upper school student at Friends School may undertake a mastery project, and, in fact, may wish to undertake more than one during their Friends School career. Participation in the program is not limited to the strongest students; the School encourages any interested student to undertake a mastery project. However, the student will have to demonstrate initiative, rigor of approach, persistence, intensity, and follow-through to meet the requirements of a successful project.
                  
  Projects should be planned with specific time limitations in mind. Although some projects will necessarily take longer than others, students should generally plan to complete them within one semester.