Episcopal High School - Review #7

I believe that Episcopal being 100 percent boarding is more unique and beneficial than the students and faculty realize. As I look back on my first days at EHS, the lack of day students aided in my transition as I was swiftly engulfed by the phenomena known as the "Episcopal Bubble", which left no option for distractions or tensions within the community. The 100 percent boarding aspect only strengthened the daily life of the students as we learned to rely on each other and our elders simply because we all lived on the same 120 acre piece of land in the middle of a thriving metropolis full of history.

The individuality, sense of responsibility, and character that I learned at Episcopal is something that has been invaluable to me in college thus far. Not to mention the integrity that will stay with me and give me the comparative advantage over other, less honorable competitors.

I would have tried more things my freshman year, more new sports, extracurriculars, etc. I realize now that freshman year is meant for trying new things, perhaps finding something you really like, perhaps not, but always worth it with nothing to lose.

The very foundation of the Episcopal community was the honor code. Everyday life revolved around it, every one lived by its four columns. It was an amazing thing to be able to keep my door unlocked, leave my books and laptops in the library or outside, or have a teacher who trusted his/her class enough to leave the room during a test. The honor code is what I both loved and respected the most at EHS, and it will undoubtedly stay with me the rest of my life.

Beware of the cookies at the snack bar, they are highly addictive. And, of course, Dal is the best dorm with the best rooms and the best people.

A few hours of homework after a full class day and two hours of practice can seem daunting, but the challenge of the academics at Episcopal were matched, if not surpassed, by the willingness to help from the faculty. We were always encouraged to come to tutorial or seek out our teachers at anytime if we were in need. And while there was a strict formal dress code, there was a comfortable and colloquial feeling in the classroom. The faculty have a sense of humor as well as professionalism, and this leads to a great teacher-student relationship; which, in turn, creates a lively and thriving environment in the classroom.

The root of the pride that students, faculty, and alumni have for The High School leads right back to the athletics. Every afternoon at 3:45, a new energy is felt as the campus bursts alive with activity on the fields, courts, gym, and track. The leagues that we are in are tough and always provide a challenging and rewarding season even if a team is not as successful. I realized that the relationships gained on a team at Episcopal are far more valuable than the team record. Meanwhile, the athletics program, already the heart and soul of the history and pride of Episcopal will only get better over the next few years as extensive plans to better the facilities are already underway.

The recent completion of a brand new $8 million art center and newly renovated theater was a catalyst for the development of the arts program at Episcopal. What used to be reserved for only a select few students willing to coop up in a stuffy attic with barely adequate facilities has now opened up to all students. In just three years students I never thought of as being artistic have been featured in the student art show with amazing work. It is no longer athlete vs. artist at episcopal, instead the community has adapted into one stronger community with athletes leading the winter musical, or amazing painters leading the varsity lacrosse team.

As a new freshman four years ago, I was overwhelmed by the amount of clubs and organizations presented to me at the annual beginning of the year activities fair. There is everything from diversity clubs, a cappella groups, and literary societies to clubs representing student's home states, and recreational clubs like ultimate frisbee. At the fair every student has the opportunity to sign up for everything, especially the ever popular tour guides and "Chronicle" (newspaper). Students can even start their own club with nothing more than a faculty sponsor. In recent years, also, the volunteer opportunities have taken off with the creation of the Service Council. A student saw the vast service potential in the greater Washington area and now there are community service opportunities almost every week. The extracurricular opportunities at Episcopal are where the leadership inside students can begin to thrive as they become enthralled by a club in which they take great interest.

At the beginning of each year, my dorm head would lead the first dorm meeting by reminding us of the importance of "In loco fraternis" (In place of a brother)on dorm. The dorms are small enough to where we do become a brotherhood of sorts, each of the eight dorms with their own individual character. The dorm teams, and faculty and spouses who live on dorm make themselves available 24/7 and are constantly planning different dorm events, usually involving food after sign in. When asked, most EHS alums would probably say that living on Dorm is a truly unique and invaluable experience, one that will stick out when reminded of their days there. While it can be hard to make dorm life stand out from other boarding schools, I realized that there is no other school that I can look out my window while studying on dorm and be inspired by the Washington Monument and Capitol Building staring back at me.

The family-style serving of the five seated meals (four lunch, one dinner) made for a great time to catch up with your advisory group or to get to know new students at a rotation seating. Also, the buffet style meals left a lot of time and room for student to mosey in after practice and share stories from the day with friends. While the quality of the food got old and repetitive, the dining hall staff always put a great amount of effort into gaining feedback from the students.

Typically, boarding schools look out over beautiful rolling hills and pastures. Episcopal, instead, is situated on the highest point in historic Alexandria and looks directly out to beautiful Washington D.C. This location provides unique opportunities such as weekly tours with classes to different places in and around the city, and internships for seniors with local businesses or on Capitol Hill.

Episcopal's location also comes into play with the social life. Instead of being cramped on campus, students are allowed to go to the movies on weekends and Old Town Alexandria is a great place to walk around and grab dinner. Juniors and Seniors are allowed into D.C. after dark, and Georgetown is a favorite spot, especially Clyde's restaurant, which is not only a favorite of students now, my uncle (who graduated in '66) remembers fondly of making the trek to Georgetown just for Clyde's every weekend.