George School - Quaker Influences

Quaker Influences

George School is governed by the George School Committee, which is self-perpetuating by approval of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Society of Friends. Quaker influences on the school are apparent in many of the Friends-derived procedures of the school, especially in the consensus format for faculty and other committee meetings, where all present must either agree to proposals or "stand aside" in order for them to be approved. A four-year course of spiritual study begins with a term of Essentials of a Friends Community in the student's first year, followed by two terms of Faith Traditions, an in-depth World Religions course. Sophomore year students take a year-long "Health and the Human Spirit" class, and trimester-long Bible and Quakerism classes during the junior and senior years, respectively. Additionally, all students and faculty gather for a twenty-five minute Meeting for Worship once a week, and all boarding students and resident faculty attend a longer meeting on Sundays. Also in the Quaker spirit, since 1942 every student has had a "co-op" job, the equivalent to other schools' work-study jobs, but shared equally among all students regardless of their financial aid status. Finally, in the most apparent difference to outsiders, teachers and students usually refer to one another on a first-name basis.