A Great Story draws you in, takes you places, keeps you on your toes, makes you think, touches your soul
A Great Story
Atlanta Girls’ School has a great story to tell. Our story unfolds as a college preparatory school focused on the needs of a 21st century world. That world demands more people who are thinkers, writers, learners and doers. AGS is a story of helping girls reach their full potential as leaders, team members, friends and members of the community. It’s a story told again and again through each of our students.
When young children are asked if they can tell a story, they say “yes!” without hesitation. But as they get older, they often begin to doubt themselves. To wonder if they really have something to say. Atlanta Girls’ School helps preserve that “yes I can!” and makes it grow stronger and brighter.
All students participate in community service and civic leadership programs, including environmental awareness and philanthropy.
Over 70 percent of AGS students participate in sports.
What story will each girl tell? Is she an athlete or a scholar? Is she both? Will her story be read in a quiet corner, or spoken loudly from a stage? By word of mouth, or in a completely different language?
At AGS we say, “Aim your voice at the back row. Make your words ring out. You’ve got our attention. What do you want to say?”
AGS FOUNDERS’ CHARGE
All of life is school; be in attendance daily. Choose wisdom, generosity and kindness as your teachers. Judge tenderly and be forgiving; everyone else is learning too. During the leaden hours of loss or failure, Ask others for help and help those whose suffering is greater. During the bright moments of success or celebrity, Say thank you and wield your power with compassion and humility. All of life is journey; therefore, pack lightly and travel broadly. Choose courage, integrity and wonder as your companions. Along the way, unload yourselves of fear and hubris. Find work that profits your souls and gives you purpose. Leave each corner of the world better than the way you found it. Keep your hearts soft and your minds open. Listen. Ask questions. Be bold. And wed yourselves to joy. Emily Ellison Atlanta Girls’ School’s Co-Founder AGS’s first graduation ceremony, May 2004
Graduates of girls’ schools pursue math, science and technology careers four times more than graduates of co-ed schools.
In my story,
AGirl Sees for herself.
At AGS, girls develop their minds — and speak their minds. AGS prepares students for the diverse, changing world around us through rich learning experiences guided by dedicated educators. Our girls go forward secure in who they are and in the skills they have mastered, able to navigate confidently to college and beyond. All-girl schools aren’t designed to keep boys and girls apart. They focus on how girls learn best within the classroom, culture and community. Single-gender schools can break down stereotypes, those paralyzing assumptions that prevent students from doing their best. At Atlanta Girls’ School, a girl speaks up because she’s not afraid of looking too smart. She offers her ideas freely and welcomes others to do the same. She becomes more confident and comfortable with taking risks. She can throw herself into a sport without worrying what people think. Strong role models help her discover her own strengths, and leadership opportunities from her first year forward give her the hands-on practice crucial to self-confidence.
In Middle School, girls hone the skills of learning, of thinking critically and considering more than one side of a situation. Rich experiences in the classroom and out create the independence of mind girls need to rise to the challenge of Upper School.
Every entering Middle School student is paired with a Big Sister, an older student who will show her the ropes and help her feel at home.
Through the liberal arts curriculum in Upper School, each girl prepares to succeed in college and the larger world beyond. The rigorous curriculum helps students reach farther than they might have thought possible, charting a course for success in studies as well as extracurricular activities and finding the important connections between the two. AGS girls learn to contemplate, analyze and communicate so they are fully prepared regardless of their field of study.
Class size is small — averaging 12–15 students — so every student receives focused attention from teachers.
Students in single-gender schools score 15 to 22 percent higher on standardized tests than students at co-ed schools.
In my story,
AGirl Soars.
And a girl scores, on much more than tests. The pace of change in the world is exponential. Grasping specific dates and facts is far less meaningful than communicating well orally and in writing, thinking critically and creating. AGS provides a forward-thinking education that emphasizes leadership, athletics, experiential learning, public service and strong academics to promote those abilities.
LEADERSHIP Leadership is learned, so it’s taught at every grade level and in many contexts. To be a leader, a girl first has to learn to lead herself, to focus on her own growth. AGS fosters growth by teaching students to persevere, to persist in tasks undertaken, to press on in spite of obstacles. Not to find the easy way, but to help forge the most meaningful way. Our Education for the Development of Leadership and Service program promotes philanthropy, public service and environmental stewardship. In this program, students develop these strengths and others through service to the community throughout their time at AGS.
FACULTY Girls benefit every day from close, one-on-one relationships with fully engaged faculty. These educators are deeply committed to the success of the school and every student in it. They give girls more to think about than facts, more to learn than assignments. They don’t teach what to think, but how to think.
TECHNOLOGY Technology is a vital tool to enhance learning. That means at AGS it’s available everywhere and to everyone equally. Every student has her own Apple MacBook and is continuously connected via our campuswide wireless network. Each laptop is loaded with the Microsoft Office Suite, as well as iMovie and Photoshop for digital editing; Geometer's Sketchpad for geometry; InDesign for yearbook and newspaper design; and Inspiration, a project design tool.
In my story,
AGirl Shines.
This light of mine. There are as many ways to shine at AGS as there are students. A girl doesn’t have to choose between playing a sport and singing, or between being a drama queen and a tech guru. Here she can do it all. An atmosphere of genuine respect, and ample opportunities for hands-on experience, enable girls to stretch their wings. Then they can discover their own unique abilities and inclinations.
WINTERIM After winter break, the Winterim mini-semester punctuates the school year with a different kind of learning. Girls take up to three intensive seminar courses during this period of focused learning. They reach outside their usual four walls to enhance what they’re learning in the classroom. Programs include Performing Arts in Atlanta, Discovering Genealogy, Sports Psychology and the Puzzle of the Middle East. STUDY ABROAD Our curriculum has expanded to include the world because students’ understanding is deepened tremendously by a global perspective. Students may travel to Ecuador for community service and environmental study, or to London to discover the origins of American government, art and literature to complement their study of United States history.
ATHLETICS AGS athletics embody the spirit of teamwork and fair play. AGS’s no-cut policy at the sub-varsity level ensures that every girl, no matter her skill level, gets a turn. In a world where physical education is vanishing from the school day, an impressive 72 percent of AGS students participate in sports, whether volleyball, softball, cross-country, swimming, basketball, dance, track and field, soccer, tennis or golf. Teams compete through the Georgia Independent School Association. FINE ARTS A Shakespearean drama or a Broadway musical. Instrumental ensembles, dance team and choral music, not to mention sculpture, printmaking and videography. In AGS’s rich variety of fine arts classes, girls explore their creative sides through materials, movement and music. Technique is emphasized along with creativity; history and theory balance opportunities for artistic expression.
CLUBS AND ACTIVITIES Clubs are integral to AGS’s culture, so they aren’t left until after the school day is over. Girls can choose from a multitude of clubs, including Drama Club and Model UN, or they can start their own. Atlanta Girls’ School’s student council, the “Circle of Sisters,” includes girls from every grade. There is a full calendar of activities and events as well, everything from trivia nights and pep rallies to lock-ins and the junior/senior prom.
In my story,
AGirl Shapes the
world of today and tomorrow.
Creating
her place
in the world. Why attend a girls’ school? After all, it isn’t the real world. Shirley Franklin. Madeleine Albright. Christine Todd Whitman. All these leaders attended girls’ schools. Girls’ schools are the optimum preparation. Our girls grow into the kind of people who can take up complex challenges in a world where cultures and economies are increasingly interconnected. Our girls need to be visionary — to see clearly so they can help change what should be changed. They need to be practical — to apply experience and critical thinking in making sound decisions. And they need to value community — to dedicate their intelligence and self-discipline to problems and possibilities around the world and close to home. Much of education is bringing out character — vital qualities like leadership, perseverance and creativity. An education at Atlanta Girls’ School enables girls to grow into confident young women, lifelong learners and character-based leaders.
AGS students have been accepted at more than 200 colleges and universities, including Princeton, Dartmouth and Columbia.
Over 70 percent of our students are accepted at their school of choice.
A great story lives on. Atlanta Girls’ School was founded in 2000 and is Atlanta’s only nonsectarian college preparatory school for girls in grades 6 through 12. The campus has 60,000 square feet of space including state-of-the-art science labs, music and art rooms, a library, a gymnasium and two stages. OUR MISSION To provide a challenging college preparatory program in a learning environment designed to foster the full potential of each student and to enable her to become a vital contributor to our complex global society.
OUR STORY AGS doesn’t just teach girls; it nurtures leaders. Not just disciplines, but the importance of many perspectives. Not just tolerance, but respect. AGS has high expectations for each girl we teach. She will go on to have them for herself.
TO APPLY Atlanta Girls’ School considers each student based on her academic promise, individual achievements, character and willingness to become fully engaged in school life. Call the AGS Admission Office at 404.845.0900 or visit www.atlantagirlsschool.org to apply for admission and to find out about opportunities to visit the school throughout the year. Applications for early April response are accepted until February 15. Admissions are conducted on a rolling basis thereafter while space is available.
Atlanta Girls’ School 3254 Northside Parkway NW Atlanta, Georgia 30327 atlantagirlsschool.org
Atlanta Girls’ School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, or national or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admission policies, financial aid programs, employment practices, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
T 404.845.0900 F 404.869.9718