LIKE NO OTHER MERCERSBURG AC ADEMY
EVERYTHING YOU WANT IS HERE.
A place of virtually limitless exploration and learning. An academic mecca, where you will feel both challenged and supported. A place rich in heritage and traditions —and a place to be yourself. A safe haven, where you’ll form lasting bonds with friends and teachers. A place where you don’t just reach goals—you define them. A proving ground for college and life.
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THINK BIG You’ll graduate Mercersburg Academy part of something bigger. You will know where you’re going and how to get there. It all starts the first time you set foot on campus. Right away, you’ll fit in comfortably. You’ll understand what it means to be a global citizen because you’ll have friends from all over the world. You will discover that Mercersburg is all about opportunity. Pursue passions you already know. Discover new ones along the way. The life of the mind flourishes here. Doing what you love and doing your schoolwork become one and the same. You will learn to live independently—and think independently. You will grow into the person you want to be. We are Mercersburg. You will be Mercersburg, too.
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SIMPLY SPEC TA CUL AR Driving here, you fall in love with our natural beauty. It’s easy to do. You pass corn fields and dairy farms. The Tuscarora Mountains form a majestic backdrop. Then suddenly, you’re standing on 300 eye-popping acres. All around are open spaces, athletic fields, woods, and trails. Buildings from a century ago sit alongside dazzling modern facilities. You have stepped into a magical place. You have arrived.
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Mercersburg Academy is an easy drive from New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh. Because of our location, Mercersburg is able to provide academic and creative trips to Smithsonian museums, Broadway shows, historic sites, and more. And with three international airports (Baltimore, Dulles, Washington Reagan) in close proximity, we’re well-positioned for study and travel abroad and accessible from anywhere in the world.
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FRIENDLY RIGOR A Mercersburg education is second to none. You are going to work hard here, but you won’t be stuck in run-of-the-mill courses. We offer a lot of things you cannot find anywhere else—over 170 courses, including Honors, AP, and post-AP classes. After 10th grade, you more fully shape your own academic path, culminating in a capstone course in your senior year. Our gifted faculty—78 percent have advanced degrees—will do more than instruct you. They are mentors who enliven learning and make sure you achieve your potential.
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170
That’s the number of courses we offer. And within this breadth, you can superaccelerate, if that’s the pace you want, with more than 40 honors, Advanced Placement, and post-AP courses.
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At Mercersburg you will come to class eager to plug in to the discussion. In many classes, a Harkness table puts everyone in a common space, equally responsible for the conversation. Here technology is a tool, not the goal. Teachers often deliver assignments and special content through your iPad, and many of your textbooks will be iBooks your teachers actually wrote and tailored to your specific course.
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“I love the sense of independence you get here. Mercersburg lets you find out who you are rather than telling you who you are.� F E R N A N D O | Mexico City, Mexico 13
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A C ADE MIC ALLY, I FEEL LIKE I’ VE FOUND MY NICHE HERE. I’M LEANING TO WARD EC ONOMICS AND INTERNATIONAL REL ATIONS. So this year I’m taking AP Comparative Government F E R N A N D O ’ S BIGGEST CHALLENGE project. My paper is about how educational revolutions R I G H T N O W: affect national economies. My mentor works at I’m taking six classes the World Bank in India, so writing it has been out of seven time slots. It’s definitely challenging a great process. but rewarding. This school gives you so many Outside of class, I’ve gotten into biking as a sport. great opportunities.
and AP Economics and creating my own capstone
We ride every day—sometimes 20 or 30 miles away from school—and we race a few times a year. We’re surrounded by such a beautiful place that it’s a waste not to go around and see it, right? It doesn’t matter whether you’re riding by yourself or with your team, you can just have some time with your own thoughts. You’re free.
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PUSH RESE T Academics come first but we make sure you have downtime, too. There are so many ways to re-energize yourself at Mercersburg, none of which would happen back home. Kick back, relax, and play foosball at the Simon Student Center. Set personal bests at the McDowell Fitness Center and on our 30-foot climbing wall in the barn. Walk into town with friends to see a first-run movie in an old-fashioned theater or splurge on a delicious pizza. Bike and run on miles of trails. Or look forward to a weekend outing, like a teacher-led sightseeing trip to Washington, D.C., or a Mercersburg Outdoor Education hiking or ice climbing excursion. The common denominator? It’s hard to be bored!
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“ My freshman year I was really quiet and shy. Now I don’t stop talking. Being here has made me really comfortable with who I am as a person.” C O U R T N E Y | Moorestown, New Jersey 17
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AT MY OLD SCHOOL, IT WA S HARD TO S WIM AND SING. I LOVE DOING BOTH, AND I S AW THAT IT WOULD BE POS SIBLE AT MERCERSBURG. When I’m on the pool deck, I’m always smiling. I C O U R T N E Y ’ S know it sounds nerdy, but the swim team is a family to me. My art teacher is also my adviser, and she’s sort of like a mother to me. At first it was weird going into someone else’s house and sitting at the kitchen table or playing hide and seek with their kids. But now it’s second nature. I decided to be a peer group leader since my own freshman peer group was such a great experience. I was really quiet when I got here, and knowing people in my peer group helped a lot. We help freshmen get acclimated to the school. We meet once a week and play board games and talk about how things are going.
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FAVO R I T E THING ABOUT MERCERSBURG: The stars. You can see all of them here.
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OUR UNIQUE CULTURE Making students feel at home is a way of life at Mercersburg. It’s about more than simply making friends. It’s about appreciating everyone for who they are. No one will ask you to be anyone but you. This is a place where people smile and say hello to each other. It’s normal for first-year students and seniors to hang out together and for faculty members to go out of their way to be there for you. Everyone will respect your privacy, but you will never feel isolated. We’re all happy at Mercersburg. You’ll be happy here, too.
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Getting together in the dining hall anchors each day. Breakfast is available until classes start at 8:50. Everyone comes together for lunch and for three family-style dinners a week. Monday dinners have an added touch: they’re semiformal. It’s a chance to dress up a little and start the week off in a special way.
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FAMILYS T YLE
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A C OMMON HERITA GE Mercersburg Academy is a community with real history and depth. Traditions like the Irving and Marshall Societies are as old as our school. Imagine being a member of a society for life, whose members stretch all the way back to 1893. These traditions, like the campus itself, especially the Chapel, are part of a common heritage that ties you to every single Mercersburg alum. Our graduates include Rhodes scholars, a Nobel Laureate, two Oscar-winning actors, and 54 Olympians. They also encompass business and community leaders, innovators, producers, and artists. How will you change the world?
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“Here it’s always a firm hi, hello, or a wave. You acknowledge everyone. We go beyond just being friends. There’s a deep sense of caring.” M I C H A E L A | Woodmore, Maryland 25
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MY F IRS T TIME ON C AMPUS, THERE WA S THIS FEELING OF, ‘I NEED TO BE HERE.’ THIS IS MY SEC OND BOARDING SCHOOL. I WANTED MORE FOR MYSELF AND I FOUND IT HERE. I am really into architecture. The first building I saw M I C H A E L A’ S BIGGEST MERCERSBURG my homework done. Having a space I’m comfortable M O M E N T ( S O F A R ) : in is important. And of course, the Burgin Center I never expected to get into for the Arts stood out because I am a dancer, and I a tradition like Declamation. I stood in front of a full knew I’d end up spending a lot of free time there. theater and delivered an eight-minute monologue!
was the Chapel. Then the library. That’s where I get
It wasn’t only the spaces I loved. I could tell that, inside each, were teachers with real dedication and passion. I recognized a community where everyone is dedicated to their craft and the process of creating. My parents, who are naturally critical and picky, also realized Mercersburg would address all of my needs. And it has. They know I’m fine.
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SPORTS ABOUND Want to take your game to the next level or try a sport for the first time? Look no further. Start with 26 varsity teams, plus JV and club teams, add in Mercersburg Outdoor Education programs—and get ready to push your limits. Our student-athletes compete with the best at top-notch events like the Penn Relays and Easterns Swimming Championships, all the way to the Olympics, where 54 students/ alumni from 15 countries have won 12 gold medals. Our facilities complete the picture: expansive natural and artificial turf fields and 168,000 square feet of indoor space, including a strength and conditioning center and the Hale Field House, the largest facility of its kind in the entire Mid-Atlantic.
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That’s how many sports teams are available at Mercersburg. We’ll match your athletic strengths and fit your competitive groove.
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“I’m glad I followed my gut and chose Mercersburg. There’s a balance to everything we do. We’re just a well-rounded community.” C H R I S | Dhahran, Saudi Arabia 31
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THE FIRS T TIME I VISITED MERCERSBURG, I THOUGHT IT WA S BEAUTIFUL. THE C AMPUS WA S LIKE A C OLLEGE C AMPUS. Mercersburg has a really nice community feel to it. People smile and say hi as you walk by. I like that. I’m proud of my athletic side and really enjoy being able to go out there every day and do something athletic. I’ve been lucky enough to be a three-sport athlete. We put in a lot of work but it’s worth it and it’s fun. I’ve always wanted to be a sportscaster. In this year’s English class we’re focusing on reporting and creating our own podcasts, so I’m excited about that. I also practice almost every night of the week with Octet, the male a cappella singing group. We perform at a lot of school functions but also perform whenever we feel like it: serenading the girls’ dorms, or going to the student center and singing after dinner. Just being able to unwind and hang out with these guys is nice.
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CHRIS’ FAVO R I T E PL ACE ON CAMPUS: Behind home plate!
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THE ARTIS T IN YOU Discover artistic bliss in the spectacular Burgin Center for the Arts. Most colleges don’t have facilities like these under one roof. Want to paint, perform in a play, or design a set for a musical? Master an instrument, dance for the first time, or fire ceramics? It’s all here to spark your creativity. Many performance groups have long histories, like our Stony Batter Players and the Octet and Magalia a cappella groups, and we’re also on the cutting edge of digital arts. You can take private music lessons or join a group, like the Jazz Band, Percussion Ensemble, or Chapel Choir. There’s definitely an artist in you waiting to break out.
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65,000 MERCERSBURG
That’s the number of square feet in the Burgin. That’s room to grow artistically, find something you love, and take it to the next level.
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“When I saw Mercersburg, I thought, wow, you can study in a place like this? It’s really a little utopia.” E L I S A | Shenzhen, China 37
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I’M FROM A CIT Y WHERE 10 MILLION PEOPLE LIVE, SO I’ VE NEVER HAD THE CHANCE TO BE IN TOUCH WITH NATURE. Experiences like climbing and the outdoor E L I S A’ S N E W E S T leadership program have sparked my interest in environmental science. I might pursue a career in the field. I’m proud to say the Mercersburg News is one of the few American high school newspapers that is published weekly. We produce the paper every Wednesday night, and it’s a lot of fun. We cover what’s happening on campus. We cover global issues. We even have cartoons. I’m also a prefect in South Cottage dorm, which means I manage room checks, organize floor meetings, and coordinate group activities for bonding. These can include birthday parties and weekend picnics. I become friends with everyone, and I like solving problems around the dorm or helping with challenging homework.
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WAY T O U N W I N D : Spinning a pot is my new favorite thing to do. I never realized how relaxing, and also energizing, it can be.
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REALWORLD LIVING As one Mercersburg student recently said, “On my hall, there are students from Nigeria, South Korea, the Bahamas, Tokyo, New York City, Colorado, and the town of Mercersburg. I have friends from all over the world, all over the country.” This exposure to many ways of life and world views enriches every dorm. But you never lose the sense of being at home. In each dorm, a faculty member lives down the hall with his or her family. So while you’re on your own, you always have the security of knowing your dorm parent is there for you.
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Roommates are golden. We take care in matching you with a great roommate. Together you will open up each other’s worlds at Mercersburg. When you hang out with neighbors on your hall, the fun naturally flows. Plus you’re never stranded: well-trained faculty members (who live right there in your dorm) are always ready to assist—whether you need a late-night snack, homework help, or just someone to listen. As we said, perfect together.
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Independence is the greatest reward of boarding at Mercersburg—your room, your schedule, your doorway to independence and learning the joys of living with others. You will walk down your hall and love that your dorm feels as international as any college dorm. So when you graduate, you’re already prepared for life in the world beyond Mercersburg.
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“Mercersburg has it figured out. It’s a wonderful school academically. And outside of class, there is nothing Mercersburg doesn’t have to offer.” T H O M A S | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 45
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THIS SCHOOL PROVIDES YOU W I T H E V E R Y O P P O R T U N I T Y. IT ’S LIKE SOMETHING MY DAD S A I D : “ YO U ’ L L G E T W H AT E V E R Y O U P U T I N T O T H I S S C H O O L .” It’s really true. Mercersburg allows you to be T H O M A S ’ A D V I C E TO INCOMING STUDENTS: go here, I don’t see them much. My mom feels so Just be yourself. Be comfortable with the three of us here. confident. Be enthusiastic and open-minded about I love my classes, from math and writing music to everything. You’ll make friends right away.
yourself. Even though my brother and sister
first-year Chinese, which presented a huge learning
challenge. Then you start to understand things and pick it up super quick. All the teachers are great! In my free time, I like to go outside and set up a hammock and relax and read a book. My friends and I play a ton of soccer on weekends. I live next to my best friend now, Sam. It’s fantastic. My dorm mates are from all different places and we really get along. It’s great to wake up every morning and just be with your friends.
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THINK C OLLEGE Mercersburg is all about preparing you for college. Your counselor, who starts meeting with you when you first arrive, is a personal college authority. He or she will see you through every application and college essay and will help you plan a course load that’s challenging and manageable. Unlike most schools, Mercersburg gives all 11th-graders ACT and SAT prep sessions for no additional charge. Add in Mercersburg’s emphasis on key college skills—how to study, manage your time, and write—and you can be sure of one thing: you’ll be ready for what’s next.
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SEEING IS BELIEVING To truly know our school, you must come to campus and experience everything firsthand. Almost instantly, you will see: this is a school like no other. Take a guided tour. Talk to teachers and students. Hang out in the student lounge. Enjoy the vistas. You’ll feel right at home and, trust us, you won’t want to leave.
Call us: 717.328.6173
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N E W YO RK 240 miles
P IT T S BU RG H 150 miles
P HIL A D E LP HIA 180 miles
GE T T YSB URG 50 miles
WA S H IN GTO N , D.C. 90 miles
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BA LT IMO RE 96 miles
MERCERSBURG ACADEMY
www.mercersburg.edu 717.328.6173
Mercersburg Academy abides by both the spirit and the letter of the law in all its employment and admission policies. The school does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, or national or ethnic origin.