2023–2024 School Profile
OVERVIEW
Woodberry is an all-boys, all-boarding high school. 97 percent of the faculty live on our 1,200-acre campus in Central Virginia.
A Woodberry Forest School education is rooted in intellectual thoroughness and moral integrity. Our storied honor system allows students to enjoy an incredible amount of trust and freedom; we ask them to keep high standards and hold each other accountable for everything from academic integrity to a positive dorm culture.
Juniors and seniors set the tone on campus. They take on significant leadership and community responsibilities, including serving in formal mentorship roles like the Peer Leadership Council and the Prefect Board. They learn quickly that independence means using time well.
FACTS AND FIGURES
2023–2024 enrollment: 391 students (90 in senior class)
Abroad programs in Central Asia, China, the Galápagos, Mexico, South Africa, Spain, and the UK
Nearly 40 percent of our students are involved in one of eight music ensembles (beginning band, concert band, jazz band, beginning strings, string ensemble, pipe and drum band, chapel choir, the Dozen)
Five major theater productions each year, including work written, produced, and directed by students
12,736 milkshakes sold at the Fir Tree — Woodberry’s oncampus snack bar — last year.
Accredited by the Southern Association of Independent Schools and the Virginia Association of Independent Schools
Founding member of the International Boys’ School Coalition (IBSC) and the Association of Boarding Schools (TABS).
Member: ACCIS, NACAC, NAIS, PCACAC, SACAC, SAIS
College Counseling O ce
David F. Mabe, Director • david_mabe@woodberry.org
Julia Hixson, Associate Director • julia_hixson@woodberry.org
Curtis T. Johnson, Associate Director • curtis_johnson@woodberry.org
Elena Kritter, College Counseling Assistant & Test Coordinator • elena_kritter@woodberry.org
CEEB Code: 472455
148 Woodberry Station Woodberry Forest, VA 22989
Byron C. Hulsey, Headmaster
GRADES Woodberry Forest calculates a weighted annual grade point average using grades earned in all courses that year. A weighted cumulative GPA is also reported. Students are normally enrolled in five core academic courses each meeting 3 3⁄4 hours per week, and may enroll in a maximum of six yearlong courses per academic year. Woodberry is on a trimester system; first trimester senior grades are considered mid-year grades.
CLASS RANK Woodberry Forest School does not rank its students. Only courses taken at Woodberry appear on our transcript. Our weighted cumulative GPA is calculated using only grades earned while attending Woodberry. Transcripts from previous secondary schools attended are also provided.
CURRICULUM
English
English 300, 400, 500, 600
Honors English 500
English 600:
Leadership and Literature
Mythology and Modern Literature; Honors
Page to Stage
Honors A Good Poem
Honors A Good Story
Honors Creative Writing
Honors Frontier Film and Literature
Honors Shakespeare
Fine Arts
*Ceramics; Advanced
*Drawing; Advanced
*Painting; Advanced
*Photography; Advanced
*Printmaking; Advanced
*Sculpture; Advanced
Intro Drama and Speech
Honors Drama: Adv. Acting & Directing
Documentary Filmmaking
Narrative Filmmaking
Music – Choir, Concert Band, Dozen,
*Electronic, Jazz, Pipe and Drum, Strings
*Music Theory – Intermediate
Honors Music Theory
Individual Instruction – Instrumental, Voice (no credit)
Design & Editing for Lit. Pubs; Honors
Journalism; Advanced
Yearbook
Foreign Language
Chinese 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, Ind. Study
Honors Chinese 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
French 1, 2, 3
Honors French 4, 5
Latin 1, 2, 3
Honors Latin 3, Advanced Latin Lit.
Spanish 1, 2, 3, 4
Honors Spanish 3, 4, 5, Ind. Study
Russian Independent Study
History
Stories and Histories: Intro to Historical Analysis
US History; Honors
Elective history sections: Ancient Empires; Honors
Honors American Govt. & Politics
Atlantic World; Honors
Honors Democracy and Dictatorship
Environmental History
Europe and the World; Honors
Historical Research Seminar
Islamic History; Honors
World War I & II & the 20th Century; Honors
Math & Computer Science
Foundations in Algebra
Algebra 1
Geometry; Honors
Algebra 2; Honors
Foundations in Algebra 2
Functions, Statistics & Trig
Pre-Calculus
Honors Intro to Calculus
Statistics; Honors
Honors Calculus A
Honors Calculus B
Seminar in Advanced Math
Economics, Finance, and Investment
Independent Study: Advanced Math
*Python I: Computational Tools
*Python II: Data Science
*Python III: Machine Learning
*Honors Java Coding
*Seminar in Advanced Computing
Religion
*Introduction to the Bible
Science
Conceptual Physics
Physics; Honors Chemistry; Honors Biology; Honors
Environmental Science: Woodberry Environment
Engineering Design
Honors Independent Study: Physics
Honors Science Thesis Seminar
“H” Level Courses: Woodberry o ers courses at two levels of academic rigor: regular and honors. Honors courses carry an “H” label and are considered college-level. *Trimester course Honors courses
Science Thesis Seminar
Science Thesis Seminar is an undergraduate-level science course that allows juniors and seniors to dive into faculty mentored research projects and immersive short courses. Each student undertakes two separate projects/immersives, at least one culminating in an externally evaluated thesis defense. STS is an ungraded honors course. Students are selected based on authentic, demonstrated interest in science and an application and interview process.
Engineering Design
Engineering blends math, science, and team-based design thinking. The course is a core science o ering, and students need instructor permission to enroll.
The Talon
For more than seventy years, Woodberry students have published poetry, prose, and art in The Talon, the school’s literary-arts magazine. Students who have submitted their own work can apply to serve on editorial review boards and then become section editors or editors in chief. The Talon is regularly recognized by the National Scholastic Press Association, the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, and others as one of the best student-produced literary magazines in the country.
COLLEGES ADMITTING WOODBERRY GRADUATES, 2021–2023
Members of the class of 2023 enrolled at institutions in orange
Adelphi University
Allegheny College
American University
Amherst College
Appalachian State University
Arizona State University
Auburn University
Babson College
Bard College
Baylor University
Belmont University
Bentley University
Berry College
Boise State University
Boston College
Boston University
Bowdoin College
Bridgewater College
Brown University
Bucknell University
Butler University
California Lutheran University
CSU, Dominguez Hills
CSU, Fullerton
CSU, Los Angeles
Carnegie Mellon University
Case Western Reserve University
Centre College
Christopher Newport University
Citadel
Claremont McKenna College
Clemson University
College of Charleston
College of the Holy Cross
College of William & Mary
College of Wooster
Colorado College
Colorado School of Mines
Colorado State University
Dartmouth College
Davidson College
Denison University
DePaul University
Dickinson College
Drexel University
Duke University
Duquesne University
East Carolina University
Eckerd College
Elon University
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical U.
Emory University
Fairfield University
Flagler College
Florida Institute of Technology
Florida State University
Fordham University
Furman University
George Mason University
George Washington University
Georgetown University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Georgia State University
Gettysburg College
Greensboro College
Grinnell College
Guilford College
Hampden-Sydney College
Hampton University
Haverford College
High Point University
Hillsdale College
Indiana University, Bloomington
James Madison University
Johns Hopkins University
Juniata College
Kennesaw State University
Kenyon College
Kettering University
Lafayette College
Lake Forest College
Lander University
Lehigh University
Lenoir-Rhyne University
Lewis & Clark College
Louisiana State University
Loyola Marymount University
Loyola University Maryland
Macalester College
Maine College of Art
Maine Maritime Academy
Mary Baldwin University
Mass. Maritime Academy
McGill University
Merrimack College
Miami University
Michigan State University
Middlebury College
Mississippi State University
Montana State University
Montclair State University
Morehouse College
Morgan State University
New Jersey Inst. of Technology
New York University
Norfolk State University
North Carolina A&T
North Carolina State University
North Carolina Wesleyan Col.
Northeastern University
Oberlin Col. of Arts and Sciences
Ohio Wesleyan University
Old Dominion University
Oxford College at Emory U.
Penn. Academy of the Fine Arts
Penn. State, University Park
Pepperdine University
Point Loma Nazarene University
Pomona College
Pratt Institute
Princeton University
Purdue University
Queens University of Charlotte
Randolph College
Randolph-Macon College
Reed College
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rhodes College
Rider University
Roanoke College
Rochester Inst. of Technology
Rollins College
Rose-Hulman Inst. of Technology
Rutgers University
Saint Louis University
Saint Mary’s College of California
Samford University
Santa Clara University
Sarah Lawrence College
Seattle University
Seton Hall University
Sewanee, U. of the South
Shenandoah University
Skidmore College
Southern Methodist University
Southwestern University
St. John’s College, Santa Fe
St. Lawrence University
Stevens Institute of Technology
Su olk University
Syracuse University
Temple University
Texas A&M University
Texas Christian University
Texas Tech University
The Catholic U. of America
The Ohio State University
Trinity College
Trinity College Dublin
Trinity University
Tulane University
US Coast Guard Academy
US Military Academy
US Naval Academy
University of Aberdeen
U. of Alabama
U. of Arizona
U. of Arkansas
U. of British Columbia, Vancouver
U. of California, Santa Barbara
U. of California, Berkeley
U. of California, Davis
U. of California, Irvine
U. of California, San Diego
U. of California, Santa Cruz
U. of Chicago
U. of Cincinnati
U. of Colorado, Boulder
U. of Dayton
U. of Delaware
U. of Denver
U. of Edinburgh
U. of Exeter
U. of Florida
U. of Georgia
U. of Glasgow
U. of Houston
U. of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
U. of Kansas
U. of Kentucky
U. of Louisville
U. of Lynchburg
U. of Maine
U. of Mary Washington
U. of Maryland
U. of Massachusetts, Boston
U. of Massachusetts, Dartmouth
U. of Massachusetts, Amherst
U. of Miami
U. of Michigan, Ann Arbor
U. of Minnesota, Twin Cities
U. of Mississippi
U. of Montana
U. of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV)
U. of New Hampshire
U. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
U. of North Carolina, Charlotte
U. of North Carolina, Wilmington
U. of North Georgia
U. of North Texas
U. of Notre Dame
U. of Oklahoma
U. of Oregon
U. of Pennsylvania
U. of Pittsburgh
U. of Puget Sound
U. of Richmond
U. of Rochester
U. of San Diego
U. of San Francisco
U. of South Alabama
U. of South Carolina
U. of Southern California
U. of Stirling
U. of Tennessee, Knoxville
U. of Texas, Austin
U. of Texas, San Antonio
U. of the Pacific
U. of Toledo
U. of Tulsa
U. of Utah
U. of Vermont
U. of Virginia
U. of Washington
U. of Wisconsin, Madison
U. of Wyoming
Vanderbilt University
Vassar College
Villanova University
Virginia Commonwealth U.
Virginia Tech
Wagner College
Wake Forest University
Warren Wilson College
Washington and Lee University
Washington U. in St. Louis
Wesleyan University
West Virginia University
Western Carolina University
Westminster College (Utah)
Westmont College
Williams College
Wingate University
Wo ord College
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Xavier University
York College of Pennsylvania