Buxton School

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Buxton School

Established:	1928
Type:	Private
Students:	about 90
Location:	Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA
Campus:	Rural
Website:	http://www.buxtonschool.org

Buxton School is a private, coeducational, college preparatory, a boarding school for grades 9–12 located in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The school was founded by Ellen Geer Sangster in 1928 as a coeducational country day school in Short Hills, New Jersey. In 1947 the high school was moved to Mrs. Sangster's family estate in Williamstown, and formed anew as a boarding school. Situated in the heart of the Berkshires, the campus itself encompasses 150 acres (0.61 km²) of New England meadow and forest. Buxton is known for its deep, continued commitment to education that is experimental and experiential. The current director of the school is Clarence William Bennett.

1 General Overview
2 Philosophy
3 Statement of Mission
4 Before the "Mission Statement"
5 Contacting Buxton

[edit] General Overview

Buxton School, located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, is a progressive coeducation boarding high school since 1928, providing a safe and sound educational environment for students. The school is designed to provide challenges and outlets for the student's potentialities, as stated in the third statement of the beliefs of Buxton from a 1929 school brochure.

The Main House at Buxton.

[edit] Philosophy

In its philosophy, Buxton treads the fine line between tradition and openness to change.

Students at Buxton participating in Work Program.

[edit] Statement of Mission

Buxton School has previously chosen not to have a mission statement for the goals of the shcool are remarkably subtle and in harmony with with the goals of life itself. Instead of providing the School's "mission statement" to prospective and enrolling students, Buxton provides a viewbook describing the Buxton experience in as much detail as possible to convey the underlying philosophical ideas to students before they join the community. The presumption here is that every student is smart enough to grasp the subtle goals of the school without officially stating a mission statement. However, in the Spring of 2002, the entire faculty ratified the school mission statement for it was deemed to be useful and was required for the accreditation of the school^[1]. The following is the mission statement from the Buxton School Self Study Report For the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC); September 2002:

Life at Buxton reflects the fundamental premise that a mature individual must be morally and actively committed, each in his or her own way, to the creation and betterment of a healthy society. To develop this foundation, all aspects of school life are considered equally educational, equally serious and constructive, equally deserving of respect. Academic courses, activities, and community life are all vital parts of education at Buxton. The school welcomes students from diverse social, economic, religious and ethnic backgrounds; commitment to diversity is crucial for Buxton to be true to itself and of benefit to the larger world. The educational philosophy at Buxton is based on the belief that personal growth and community well-being are rooted in meaningful and creative work. Out of this belief grows a curriculum that challenges intellectual curiosity by offering a combination of traditional subjects and many studies rarely encountered before college. Individual course programs are broad and demanding, and designed to allow a unique mixture of academic and non academic endeavors. The arts activities at Buxton have been centrally important in the philosophy and life of the school since the beginning. We believe strongly that, in addition to more traditional academic studies, positive experiences in the arts are essential to the broader development of educated, capable human beings. Renewal and growth are fundamental to all members of the Buxton community. The school strives to present challenges in a manner that brings new levels of insight, courage and ambition. Underlying a student’s intellectual pursuits is the understanding that the same clear vision will be needed to understand, affect, and change the life that lies ahead. Compassionate adult action and reaction form the foundation of education at Buxton. At Buxton, what is good for me can never truly be divorced from what is needed for us. The students and faculty together fulfill many of the operating needs of the school, providing a clear illustration of the invitation that Buxton makes to be useful, to participate, and to improve the status quo. Students are aware of the importance of contributing, of serving as assets to others, of aiding in others’ efforts to enrich the life of the group. Expanding and maintaining a sound, compassionate, stimulating environment for the entire group, while at the same time developing one’s own individuality, are central to the life of each student at Buxton.^[2]

[edit] Before the "Mission Statement"

As mentioned before, Buxton School originally chose not to have a mission statement, and instead had the following text in a school brochure in 1929, stating what the school believed in:

Buxton believes: First, that education should be the process of learning how to live fully as an individual and effectively in the social world. Second, that the child can develop into an adult who knows how to live only by first living fully and effectively as a child. Third, that to do so his school must provide challenges and outlets for all his potentialities. Human beings are intricate and many-sided. The neglect of any port of the growing child may result in a warped adult. Fourth, that this obligation to widen the curriculum has developed upon the school because of the tremendous changes in our civilization which have robbed the home of many of the educational features formerly offered there. Fifth, that to the acquisition of skill in using the tools of learning and sound knowledge of the accumulated past must be added to the ability to think creatively and to act constructively by facing the problems real to childhood when a child.^[3]