Choate Rosemary Hall Summer Programs

Courses are taught by Choate faculty in classes of five to fourteen students. The five-week Academic Enrichment Program gives boarders three courses of their choice; the English Language Institute pairs three courses with cultural immersion field trips; Immersion Geometry and the John F. Kennedy '35 Institute in Government are single-subject programmes for high school students, the Institute including a multi-day overnight trip to Washington, D.C.; the Theater Arts Institute runs six courses alongside weekly trips to professional theatre and artistic performances; and the two-week Workshops concentrate on one subject at a time, with a workshop in each session adding up to a four-week stay. Homework runs about an hour a night for each course, and most courses expect the student to bring a laptop or tablet.

Boarding tuition covers books, room and board, access to laundry facilities, a health and safety fee and student activities. Day trips within Connecticut arranged by the Student Activities Center carry no extra charge. Travel to and from campus, health insurance valid in Connecticut and personal spending are not included; the school also charges a non-refundable deposit on enrolment.

Boarders live on campus in the dormitories the school uses during the academic year. Rooms are furnished with a bed, dresser, desk, chair and a wardrobe or closet, and housing is assigned by age, gender and the length of the programme. Each house is overseen by an adult Head of House with a team of resident and adjunct advisers, and uniformed Community Safety officers monitor the campus around the clock on foot, by car and by bike. Boarders enrolled in consecutive two-week workshops may stay on campus for the weekend in between.

Room and board is part of the boarding fee: breakfast in the morning, lunch in the middle of the day and dinner in the dining hall. Hill House Dining Hall is the main dining room; St. John Hall has a cashless Tuck Shop snack bar and there is a cafe on campus, where students pay for extras themselves with their campus card.

Afternoon activities run on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and are required for boarders, with all-school programming on Wednesday afternoons and a 45-minute wellness activity every Thursday. Evenings bring dorm competitions and events, then study hours. The Student Activities Center arranges day trips within Connecticut at no extra charge — shopping malls, cinemas, sporting events, museums and amusement parks — with first-come, first-served sign-ups. Middle school students are supervised in small groups by a chaperone on every trip; high school students may sometimes shop and eat on their own but check in with chaperones at set times.

The campus covers 458 acres in the heart of Wallingford, Connecticut, with classrooms, art studios, performance venues, athletic facilities and playing fields. St. John Hall holds the Student Activities Center, the school store, a student services kiosk and the Tuck Shop; St. John Chapel is nondenominational and houses the Joan Harris Gelb Theater; and the Pratt Health Center is a professionally staffed care facility on campus.

The day starts with breakfast and classes, breaks for a school meeting and adviser time, and turns to activities in the afternoon; evening study hours are followed by curfew, which is earlier for middle school students than for high school students. Saturdays have shorter classes, no meetings and a longer afternoon. Work is graded H, HP, P, LP or F, with letter grades in Immersion Geometry, and a Citizenship Award recognises students who show integrity, respect and compassion.