Buxton School (Massachusetts)


Buxton School is a private, coeducational, college preparatory, and boarding and day school for grades 9–12 located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, US. As of the 2015-2016 school year, the school had a student body of 78 students.

History

The school was founded by Ellen Geer Sangster in 1928 as a coeducational country day school in Short Hills, New Jersey. In 1947, the high school was moved to Sangster's family estate in Williamstown, and formed anew as a boarding school. Nineteen students and many faculty followed Sangster from the New Jersey school to the nascent boarding school in Williamstown. The primary and middle school stayed in Short Hills as the newly formed Far Brook School.

Academics

Available classes include: English, French, Spanish, American History, Ancient Greece and Rome, Sociology, World Religions, Algebra, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, Multivariable calculus, Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Health, Marine Biology, Physics, The Practice of Poetry, Writing: Daily Themes, Drama, Music, Ceramics, Photography, Printmaking, Studio Art, Video Production, and more.
If students are interested in a subject that is not offered as a class, they can initiate an independent study with a faculty member relevant to their subject, or a teacher from outside. Private music lessons are offered. More advanced students have the opportunity to take more advanced science and math courses at Williams College, which is a mile away.
Requirements for graduation are based on a credit system:
The grade system is based on report conferences. Students are given grades for the purposes of college, but they are not allowed to see them until they are relevant to the students' college application process. Feedback from teachers is in the form of report letters and report conferences. Conversations and written assessments are used to give the teacher and student a full understating of the student's performance in the class.

Campus

Buxton occupies of New England meadow and forest in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts. Buildings on campus include the Main House, a girls' dorm, and where meals are served; The Boys' Dorm, affectionately called "The Barn" due to its history as a barn; The Classroom Building, which houses most of the classrooms on campus; the Arts complex which includes buildings for Photography, Studio Art, Music, and Ceramics; The Theater; The Library; and faculty houses.

Notable alumni