How Is Dublin Different?
Small school size - Our school size is ideal in promoting the engagement and growth of the individual student. No one falls through the cracks. They can't. They are encouraged to try new things. We need kids who are willing to participate in lots of different things - sports, the arts, outdoor activities, and work gang.
A committed and passionate staff and faculty - Unsurpassed support dedicated to the educational growth and personal development of our students. On our campus, everyone is an educator. If you look carefully, you will see students exploring bee keeping or playing pond hockey with a member of our buildings and grounds staff.
A culture and environment that enriches each student's ability to find his/her voice - The high-school years can often be hard for kids. Trying to discover who a person is and confronting the demands of our culture can be confusing. Unfortunately, too many kids in large schools feel the need to hide who they are. Dublin's size and culture allows students to rediscover their inner voice.
An environment that encourages our students to pursue their passions, discovered and undiscovered - We have developed an interactive environment that encourages personal engagement, risk taking and the pursuit of one's passions. Some of our finest artists and actors have never handled a paint brush or mounted a stage prior to coming to Dublin. In a larger school, they might never get a chance to try or be discouraged by social pressure -- at Dublin they are pushed, encouraged and supported in trying.
Diversity in terms of perspective and ideas - Which leads directly to enhancing respect for all persons and the ability to work and socialize with others. Our environment welcomes a diversity of interests and perspectives.
A communal atmosphere that cultivates friendships and support among students, faculty and staff - Respect for and investing in oneself and the larger school community. Its very hard to hide here. Its also very hard to not be accepted for who you are.
An environment that is supportive and demanding of everyone (students,faculty and staff) to engage and invest, and reap the benefits individually and collectively - Among our oldest traditions, work gang goes back to Dublin’s earliest years, when students, teachers, and staff worked together to build their school. Today’s work gangs continue the tradition of tackling substantial projects and discovering that teamwork makes it possible to “get it done.” Work gang teams carve out new trails on Dublin’s campus, grow food, and cut firewood, deliver and stack it for needy families in Dublin’s community. Work gang is one of Dublin’s most enduring and beloved “classrooms”—providing lessons about life and the world we live in.
A balance of students - Dublin is intentional about creating an ideal balance of differing students. We want students to learn from the diversity of their experience. We don't want a particular culture to dominate, so that individual students cannot avoid becoming part of the larger Dublin family. It is something that we work very hard at.
Learning skills - Everyone deserves a great education. Sometimes children get off the path to achieving this. Our one-on-one learning skills program is among the oldest and most successful of its type in independent schools. We bend over backwards to find the key to unlocking a student's potential.
English as a Second Language - Everyone deserves a great education. Language shouldn't hold anyone back. Our ESL program allows gifted international students to further develop their English proficiency, thus ensuring success in the American university system.
The school's location - Dublin's location is ideal. In the center of the Monadnock highlands (though close to Boston and NY), we are surrounded by mountains, clean lakes, dirt roads and wildlife. Though rural, Dublin long has been a center for intellectual life. For over 100 years, writers and artists have made Dublin a summer or permanent home. Mark Twain and Henry James wrote here. Abbot Thayer invented camouflage here. Amelia Earhart landed her plane on Dublin Lake. The first public library in the United States was located here. Yankee Magazine is our neighbor.
A rich community - In the words of our alumni:
You can’t hide at Dublin. You are required to be a part of the class, team, and not just sit back and watch others participate. It forced me (in a good way) to come out of my shell and be a part of the community.”
—Jeff Holland ’87