| Friends School of Baltimore | |
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Palma Non Sine Pulvere
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| Location | |
| 5114 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, MD, 21210, United States | |
| Coordinates | enrollment = 1010 total |
| Information | |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Quaker |
| Established | 1784 |
| Head of School | Matthew W. Micciche |
| Faculty | 95 |
| Average class size | 12 students |
| Student to teacher ratio | 8:1 |
| Campus | Suburban, 35 acres |
| Color(s) | Scarlet and Grey |
| Athletics | 30 sports |
| Mascot | The Quaker |
| Average SAT scores | 1280 (2007) |
| Website | www.friendsbalt.org |
Friends School of Baltimore is a private Quaker school in Baltimore, serving students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade.
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It is the oldest private school in Baltimore, founded in 1784 by members of the Religious Society of Friends (the Quakers). Classes were first held in the Aisquith Street Meetinghouse in the East Baltimore community of Old Town. The School was moved to the Lombard Street Meetinghouse in the 1840s and then, in 1899, to its third location at 1712 Park Avenue, adjacent to the Park Avenue Meetinghouse. In 1925, Friends purchased its present site at 5114 North Charles Street. Though the School incorporated in 1973 and separated from the Baltimore Monthly Meeting of Friends, Stony Run, it maintains its historic and philosophic ties with the Meeting.
Quakers believe in the fundamental equality of all persons. In keeping with this tradition, Friends School provides an environment that attempts to promote trust and mutual respect, and encourages students to identify and develop their unique gifts and talents. All students at Friends attend Meeting for Worship on a regular basis. Based on the Quaker tradition of silent waiting, this shared religious experience gives participants an opportunity to quietly "center" and express their inner thoughts in an atmosphere of trust and mutual respect.
Education programs in each division are designed to instill a love of learning by fostering students' critical thinking skills and encouraging them to seek creative methods for solving problems. In addition to traditional academic subjects, all students participate in fine arts and physical education courses, as well as community service, which teaches students to look beyond themselves and form connections with the greater community.
Co-curricular activities include after-school interscholastic and intramural sports, theater and dance productions, private music lessons, and after-school clubs and committees in each division.
In addition to separate instructional buildings for the Lower, Middle and Upper Schools—including a separate facility for the Lower School's Pre-K through Pre-First program—the Friends campus features a music education facility, dance studio, fitness room, two gymnasiums, a wrestling room, tennis courts, five full playing fields and two practice areas.
In 2006 the School had a faculty of 105 teachers, including 87 full-time faculty, a yearly operating budget of $16.1 million and an endowment of $16.6 million. The School is governed by a Board of Trustees.
Friends School is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and the Association of Independent Maryland Schools, and is approved by the Maryland State Board of Education.
†The terms "Principal" and "Headmaster" were not used before 1864. The term "Head of School" was first used by Jon Harris.
†From 1889 to 1899 Lamb's school was separate from the Meeting's School. † Calvin McCo