The Kew-Forest School

Infobox Secondary school
name = The Kew Forest School
native_name =

motto = "Ad Summum"
established = 1918
city = Forest Hills
state = New York
province =
country =
campus = Urban
type = Private
affiliation =
affiliations =
president =
principal =
headmaster =
rector =
dean =
founder = Louis D. Marriott
chaplain =
chairman =
head_label = Headmaster
head = Dr. Peter Lewis
student/faculty ratio = 9:1
enrollment = approx. 385
enrolment =
grades = K-12
address = 119-17 Union Turnpike, Forest Hills, NY 11375
district =
oversight =
accreditation = National Association of Independent Schools
mascot = Jagon
colors = Blue, Red
colours =
newspaper = The Forester
yearbook = The Blotter
free_label_1 =
free_1 =
free_label_2 =
free_2 =
free_label_3 =
free_3 =
website = http://www.kewforest.org
footnotes =
picture =

The Kew-Forest School is an independent, co-ed, college preparatory school for students in grades K-12. The school was established in 1918 strictly for residents of Forest Hills and Kew Gardens, hence the name. Now, however, Kew-Forest has students from over 30 different towns and areas including Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Little Neck, Bayside, Jamaica Estates, Long Island, Manhattan, and more. Not only does the school attract people from different geographical areas, but it attracts a diverse student body with students of many different races and ethnicities enrolling in Kew-Forest.

The Kew-Forest School has been lauded for its prestige and college preparatory ways of learning. It is regarded as one of Queens finest and oldest independent schools which is home to a diverse student body, caring teachers, small classes, and a safe environment.

Not only is The Kew-Forest School an impressive display of education, but it also has an impressive history of club and team championships. The Mock Trial Team traveled to State and City Finals in the years 1999, 2000, and 2001. The Basketball Team was 2005-2006 Champions, and the soccer team recently became the 06-07 champions.

Kew-Forest has had several notable graduates and attendees over the years, such as, Hank Azaria, Katharine Weber, Gideon Yago, and Donald Trump.

Clubs

tudent Government

A restructured version of the previous Student Council. This new form of student government is no longer led by elected representatives, but "selected" representatives. Instead of the traditional student government where people would campaign, make speeches, debate, and then ultimately be elected by popular vote, this new revamped system has students applying for this positions. Students are to complete applications and submit them to the administration for reviewing. These faculty members choose which students have demonstrated the most commitment and dedication (just a few of the criteria) for the positions on the Leadership Board. This system was recently put into affect during the academic year of 2007-2008 in an attempt to steer away from students being elected purely on the basis of popularity. Also, the administration believes in a system of balance where every individual member has equal power, thus keeping everyong at the same playing field. The Student Leadership Board has organized a number of events such as Can Drive which raises over 1300 cans each year. These cans are then doanted to local food pantries for distribution amongst the needy. Also, they helped organize a Habitat For Humanity trip to Hartford, CT in an effort to build homes for the homeless.

In the 2008-2009 year, the Student Leadership Board was changed into the "New" Student Council. Changes included elections for class representatives, as well as an Executive Council composed of a president, vice-president, and treasurer.

Mock Trial

Coached by Dr. Spelman, the school's Latin teacher, The Mock Trial Team has gone to the State and City Finals in the years 1999 through 2001. The Mock Trial Team is known to be one of the most serious and time consuming teams in the school. Students who take part in Mock Trial all agree that, although preparation for trials takes up most of their time, their experience on the team is more rewarding than their experience on any other team or club in the school. Participants learn about the legal system, how to make valid arguments, and how to act among many other things. Team unity and passion allow the Mock Trial team to get far in the competition each year.

Model United Nations

Since the Model UN Club was founded 8 years ago, the school has been to over 15 conferences such as ILMUNC, RUMUN, JHUMUNC, and several more. There have been several 'Best Delegate' Awards given to Kew-Forest Students as well as Honorable Mentions and Verbal Commendations. The club is run by two club officers and one teacher.

The Community Service Club

The Community Service Club has done numerous events towards helping the community and people around them such as a trip to New Orleans with the help of The Curriculum Initiative (TCI), Habitat for Humanity, and The Ronald McDonald House.

"The Forester"

The school's publication which provides students with information about what is going on in the school and the community around, new events coming up, and stories about past events. The Forester is led by the Editor in Chief, who is helped by two co-editors. Currently, the Forester has approximately 30 students writing for it from grades 7 through 12.

"Nubbin"

This Publication includes a humor section, a short story section, and a poetry section, all composed by Kew-Forest students. "Nubbin", unlike "The Forester", is only distributed to upper classmen (10-12) due to the sometimes risqué nature of the article.

Chess Club

The newly invented Chess Club had a disappointing debut receiving less than 5 signatures on its opening day and making it the #25 group in Kew-Forest. The club was made purely for fun and competition by Sean Puri and Yuri Yakobchik (two academically challenged young men, although praised for their efforts). A very small amount of people have signed up for this club, and an even smaller amount of the members, about 5%, actually know how to play chess. Unfortunately, this is not a club of teaching chess, but rather to fool around and do anything but play chess. No meetings have been held yet, and the creators of the club have no intention of setting up any meeting times in the future.

Other Clubs

*Amnesty International
*The Tea Club

Academic Divisions

Kew-Forest has two distinct divisions for grades K-6 (Lower) and grades 7-12 (Upper). There is a Division Head for each division.

Lower Division

The Kew-Forest Lower Division believes that the school's primary function is to educate children so they can become a responsible member of society, able to recognize the obligations of an individual in a community. The lower division strives to work closely with parents and children towards discovering and developing each child's potential.

The Lower Division embraces the belief that all children can learn and want to succeed. Its comprehensive and academically rigorous curriculum promotes mastery of basic skills—reading, writing, and mathematics—while offering additional enrichment and integration of core programs with foreign language instruction, library skills, technology, science, drama, art, music, and physical education.

All the grades are highlighted by field trips that are integrated into the core program. Grades five and six students engage in overnight, experiential outdoor education trips that stress cooperation and social development through off-campus study in a natural environment.

Upper Division

The Kew-Forest Upper Division marks an exciting period of personal and academic growth. The Upper Division offers a traditional, college preparatory program with a carefully designed core curriculum. Students are able to do more, understand more, and achieve more every year. The Kew-Forest curriculum not only provides a strong core of college-preparatory courses, but also fosters increased independence and self-responsibility. Students are expected to stretch their intellect, hold themselves to high personal and academic standards, ask questions, take risks, and learn to express themselves clearly in both writing and speaking.

The Upper Division offers 12 AP courses, including Latin, English, History, French, Spanish, Calculus and more. Other classes include Broadcast Journalism, Film, Studio Art, Philosophy, and Geology.

The Upper Division has a full complement of extracurricular activities including newspaper, Yearbook, literary magazine, French and Spanish Clubs, Model UN and Global Classroom, Mock Trial, music and drama ensembles, theatre productions, and a full-scale community service program.

Notes and references

* [http://www.queenscourier.com/articles/2006/04/17/headline_news/news01.prt Kew Forest School Assists in New Orleans Cleanup]

External links

* [http://kewforest.org/ Official website]
* [http://www.highschoolsports.net/defaultcal_300.cfm?ct=2d&school=NY113752594&spt=-1&lvl=-1&division=-1&timezone=240 Kew Forest School's Athletic Events]