Academic Student Services

At Whitfield, we recognize that success is the product of both academic skills and social-emotional skills, the former often dependent in some degree upon the latter. Through a web of academic and non-cognitive resources, students graduate both academically prepared as well as emotionally prepared for college and beyond.

HEALTH & WELLNESS

To best serve our community we provide health and wellness curriculum that supports students, faculty, and parents in the development of a variety of fundamental non-cognitive skills such as emotional intelligence, self-regulation, and empathy. This curriculum is delivered to our students through our Advisory program and informally cultivated through all aspects of the Whitfield experience.

Advisory Program

The advisory program is a key structure put into place to ensure that all students are known well and supported academically, socially, and emotionally. The program’s mission-driven objectives are to build trusting relationships, to develop the Habits of Mind & Heart, and to foster collaboration between the advisor, student, and parents/guardians. The program is also an avenue to help students evaluate and develop executive functioning skills, understand their strengths of character and the contributions they can make to their personal growth as well as to their local, national, and global communities.

STUDENT SERVICES

In addition to the executive functioning and other support services built into the Whitfield academic program, the below services are available to students and families.

Counseling

Services provided by Ginny Fendell, MSW, Director of Health & Wellness include:

individual short-term counseling for students and/or parents
referrals for services in the community
mental health skills and resilience training for students through PE and Advisory classes
professional development presentations for faculty/parent discussion groups
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) courses for faculty, parents, and students

Tech Support

Tutoring

Students who need additional academic support should contact the Director of Teaching and Learning to discuss the challenges they are facing and determine the best intervention. Intervention options include, but are not limited to, peer tutoring as well as 1-on-1 tutoring with subject specific tutors employed by Whitfield. This support is often arranged weekly and occurs on campus before/during/after the school day.

College Counseling

Whitfield provides a comprehensive college counseling program for students and families. This program follows a formal curriculum that is delivered during the school day beginning in ninth grade. The curriculum develops a wide range of skills and competencies in students, in addition to leading them to the college in which they will be the most successful.

Learn more about College Counseling

STUDENT ACCOMMODATIONS

We recognize that students capable of being successful in a rigorous college preparatory program may also experience learning challenges that require additional support. The school strives to work with all students, including those with diagnosed learning differences, to provide fair and reasonable opportunities for academic success.

Learning Profiles

If a Whitfield student has completed an outside evaluation that meets the criteria stated in the Handbook, he/she/they will meet with the Director of Teaching and Learning to develop a learning profile. Learning profiles outline the students strengths, areas of support and capture appropriate educational accommodations listed below. This working document is shared with parents, teachers, advisors and interventionists.

The following accommodations are considered to be appropriate and accessible at Whitfield:

up to 50% extended time on quizzes, tests, and exams
reduced-distraction testing environment
eliminate the use of scantrons when possible
preferential seating
use of a scientific calculator when a graphing calculator is prohibited
access to study guides/class notes when requested
other accommodations are allowed in cases when the core requirements of the course are not compromised and when existing resources are available.

Student learning profiles are periodically reviewed and modified. Over time, identification and ownership of the need for accommodations should be student driven. Developing self-advocacy skills as well as the ability to differentiate for oneself is the goal upon graduation.

Documentation Requirements

In order to receive accommodations, a comprehensive evaluation must have been completed by a qualified Psychologist/Learning Specialist within the last three years. The student’s evaluation report must include the following:

the specific disability or disorder which has been diagnosed
a recommendation for specific accommodations, with an explanation of why the disability requires each accommodation requested
relevant educational, developmental and medical history of student
thorough documentation of the techniques or methods of evaluation
test results and subtest scores
the professional credentials of the evaluator (license, certification, area of specialization)

Once the report has been submitted and reviewed by the school, it will be kept in the student’s file, and the school’s confidentiality procedures will be followed. It is important to note that a diagnosis, in and of itself, does not necessitate the need for accommodations. Parents are financially responsible for any outside support indicated in an assessment. Parents are also asked to provide any documentation of learning disabilities during the Admission process.

Standardized Test Accommodations

Students in grades 6-10 take the ASPIRE, a standardized test designed by ACT. By design, the ASPIRE test is given without accommodations. Because the results from the ASPIRE test are only shared with the school and your family, this test provides documented information about general test performance. Therefore, it can be used in conjunction with classroom testing and exam testing documentation to apply for accommodations for the ACT during the junior year.

Students receiving accommodations at Whitfield may be eligible for accommodations for the SAT and ACT tests used for college admission. Upper school families are notified each year regarding the process for requesting accommodations for these standardized tests. For a student to be considered for these accommodations, Whitfield must certify that we have current signed documents on file which include the information listed above. The decision to grant accommodations for these exams is made independently by College Board (for PSAT, SAT, and AP tests) and ACT (for the ACT test). Whitfield School is not involved in the review process when determining which, if any, accommodations will be granted for these standardized tests. The Director of College Counseling, and Assistant Director of College Counseling, help families submit their applications for accommodations.

Partnering with Families

The ultimate goal at Whitfield School is to build a collaborative partnership with students and families. That relationship provides the platform for maximizing the student learning experience and providing students with the skills to be successful in future academic settings. To that end, reasonable and appropriate accommodations can be consistently provided when proper evidence and documentation is ascertained.

While Whitfield School makes reasonable efforts to support students who are admitted, the school may determine over time that a student’s needs would be better served in a different academic setting.

Ginny Fendell, MSW, LCSW

Director of Health & Wellness

Mead Ploszay, MS, LPC

Director of Teaching & Learning

Anna Warbelow, PhD

Director of Equity & Inclusion

Lisa Barry Jenkins

Director of Technology

Curriculum

Admission