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Millbrook is a co-educational boarding and day school, which offers a rigorous college-preparatory curriculum that integrates academics, service, athletics, and leadership. Excellent teaching and close, stimulating relationships between students and their teachers have been the School’s hallmark since its founding by Edward Pulling in 1931. Under Mr. Pulling’s thirty-four-year tenure, Millbrook also became known for its strong commitment to a community service program on campus in which all students contribute to the daily functioning of the School. Students operate their own store, bank, recycling program, and zoo–to name but a few of the many services. These qualities remain firmly in place in the Millbrook of today, as well as the decision to remain a size where every student can be needed and known.

Originally a school for boys, Millbrook first admitted girls as day students in 1971 and then as boarding students in 1975. The current boy-girl ratio is 55:45. In keeping with the founder’s vision, Millbrook’s goal is to promote in every student the intellectual, emotional, spiritual, and physical growth that will lead to a life both individually satisfying and valuable to the greater society.

As the student body is diverse, so are the reasons for each individual’s choice of Millbrook. For many, the appeal is the ideal size combined with the strength of the academic program and the fact that all students have a meaningful role in the community. The AZA-accredited Trevor Zoo, with such auxiliary features as a forest canopy walkway, a wetlands sanctuary, and a center for the captive breeding of endangered species and for the recovery of sick and injured animals, draws students with related interests. Community service is also of interest as it offers a student the opportunity to have a significant, positive impact on the daily lives of others in the School. For the athlete, there is the promise of active, frequent team participation that in much larger schools might be available only to a limited number. For the arts enthusiast, there is ample opportunity to study, exhibit, and perform.

The campus of 800 acres is located in the rolling hills of Dutchess County, New York–90 miles north of New York City, 20 miles northeast of Poughkeepsie, and 8 miles from the Connecticut border. Woods, fields, streams, and ponds are the dominant features of the land, all central to the natural science and recreational interests of many Millbrook students and faculty members.

The School is incorporated not-for-profit and is governed by a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees, many of whom are alumni. Millbrook has an endowment of $22 million and is not encumbered by long-term debts. Annual contributions from the Board of Trustees, parents, and the 2,400 alumni generally total in excess of $5 million. These funds are used to make up the difference between tuition income and per-student expense, as well as to support capital projects and the growth of the endowment.

Millbrook School is accredited by the New York State Association of Independent Schools and the Board of Regents of the State University of New York. Institutional memberships include the Cum Laude Society, the Secondary School Admission Test Board, the National Association of Independent Schools, the New York State Association of Independent Schools, the Association of Boarding Schools, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, and A Better Chance.

Millbrook offers a traditional college-preparatory curriculum, which is rigorous, varied, and comprehensive. It features a variety of honors and AP courses, electives, and independent study opportunities and is supplemented by field trips and forums with guest speakers. Every aspect of the curriculum is intended to embrace five core values: curiosity, respect, integrity, stewardship of the natural world, and service to others. All students participate in a weeklong intersession in which they explore interests outside the classroom or off campus. Juniors of strong academic standing may apply to study overseas through the School Year Abroad Program (SYA) or take a semester away at a program sanctioned by the School. Seniors are required to produce a Culminating Experience project in the spring term and present it to the student body. All students carry a minimum of five major academic subjects throughout each year. The minimum graduation requirements are 4 years of English, 3 of mathematics, 3 of one foreign language, 2 laboratory sciences (of which one must be biology), and 1 year of fine arts. The history/social science requirement varies with the grade level at which the student enters, but all students must take U.S. history. Extensive reading and writing are the essence of the broadly based Millbrook curriculum. Students’ academic achievement is recognized at the end of each semester by placement on the High Honor Roll, Honor Roll, and Effort List. In addition, each year a limited number of seniors who have demonstrated academic excellence and intellectual leadership are elected to the Cum Laude Society.

The arts are a full partner in Millbrook’s overall program. The $8.5 million, 34,000 square-foot Holbrook Arts Center is home to an exceptional arts faculty and 80 percent of the student body who elect to take an art class each term.

A rich and varied curricula in music, the visual arts, dance, and drama is enhanced by many opportunities for performance and exhibition. Student art exhibits, as well as those of visiting artists, are presented throughout the year in the Warner Gallery. The Arts Department presents three to four plays each year, including a musical, a dramatic production, and a series of one-act plays. Students also perform in approximately six arts nights, which are evenings of dance, music, and acting.

The academic year is divided into two semesters. Students receive indicator grades at the mid-term and grades and comments at the end of each semester.

In the tradition begun by Edward Pulling, Millbrook attracts and maintains teachers who share a passion for their disciplines, a commitment to and belief in the power of education, and a desire to involve themselves deeply in the lives of young people. The 2008 faculty consists of 60 members who have the ability to teach in a variety of roles and encourage their students to be curious, involved, active learners. All hold a bachelor’s degree, 26 hold a master’s degree, and 2 hold a doctoral degree.

In addition to their teaching responsibilities, faculty members serve as coaches to teams and extracurricular activities, advisers to 2–6 students, dorm parents, and community service advisers. The majority live on campus, and many occupy dorm housing.

Drew Casertano was appointed Headmaster of Millbrook in 1990. He is a graduate of the Choate School and Amherst College and holds an Ed.M. from Harvard University. Prior to his appointment at Millbrook, Mr. Casertano served as a teacher, coach, dorm parent, and the Director of Admission and Financial Aid over the course of his ten-year tenure at the Loomis Chaffee School in Windsor, Connecticut.

Virtually all Millbrook graduates continue their formal education on the college level. The College Counseling Office works closely with students, parents, and faculty advisers to help ensure strong and appropriate placement. Mean SAT scores for the class of 2008 were 583 critical reading, 589 math, and 577 writing.

The graduates of the class of 2008 entered colleges and universities that include Bowdoin, Colby, Colorado College, Colgate, Cornell, Denison, Elon, Gettysburg, Hobart and William Smith, Northwestern, St. Lawrence, Skidmore, Trinity, Union, Vassar, and the Universities of Chicago, Pennsylvania, St. Andrew’s, and Scotland.

Of 258 students, 203 are boarders and 55 are day students; 139 are boys, 119 are girls. They come from nineteen states and nine other countries and are distributed among grades as follows: Form III, 47; Form IV, 72; Form V, 78; and Form VI, 61. Of the student body, 12 percent are students of color and 10 percent are international. Students for whom English is not their primary language must enter with fairly well-developed English language skills.

In keeping with Millbrook’s motto, Non Sibi Sed Cunctis, and its commitment to student involvement, students take an active role in the School’s leadership and creating School culture. The Student Council officers run School assemblies that are held three times a week and meet with the Headmaster on a weekly basis to discuss student issues. Dorm leaders, appointed by the faculty, provide leadership and guidance in the dormitories. In addition, there is an active group of trained Peer Counselors who work with the Director of Counseling in providing support for fellow students. Prefects, seniors who are elected by the student body, also provide leadership on campus and serve with faculty members on the Discipline Committee, which makes recommendations to the Headmaster in response to major student disciplinary infractions. In addition, there are leadership opportunities for students in their respective community service activities.

It is the School’s expectation that Millbrook students conduct themselves in a way that is consistent with the character, values, and mission of the School. Behavior that is determined to be detrimental to the School or unbecoming to a Millbrook student is met with serious consequences. The disciplinary system, led by the Dean of Students, is educational in nature. In most instances when a student admits to a first violation of a major school rule in a given year, the resources of the School and family are mobilized to hold the student accountable and to afford him or her the opportunity to learn from his or her mistake. There are times, however, when the School recognizes that there are limits to its ability to assist an individual’s growth, and one violation of a major School rule may result in expulsion. In all cases, the discipline system is intended to be a process of accountability, reflection, reparation, and change.

The thirty classrooms are distributed in several buildings. The Schoolhouse contains classrooms for the humanities, administrative offices, a computer center, and an 18,000-volume library that is equipped with an online public access catalog. The Flagler Memorial Chapel serves as a meeting space for the entire School community and also contains several classrooms. The $8.5 million, 34,000-square-foot Holbrook Arts Center, completed in 2001, houses the 325-seat Chelsea Morrison Theater, the Warner Art Gallery, several classrooms and studios (2-dimensional, dance, and ceramics), a state-of-the-art digital and print photography complex with a dark room, a music suite (a recital/lecture hall and four practice rooms), and department offices. Construction of a $12 million, 25,000-square-foot math and science center was completed in winter 2008. This LEED-certified building (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) contains four science laboratories, five math classrooms, a technology center, and faculty offices in addition to a detached greenhouse and exhibit spaces for the School’s extensive biological and geological collections. Additional laboratory space is located in the 6-acre Trevor Zoo. The Harris-Kenan Foreign Language Center, completed in fall 2008, features three classrooms, a seminar room, a lounge area for students, and offices for teachers in that department.

Seven dormitories of varying capacities house Millbrook students in single; double; and, in some cases, triple rooms. Students in grades 10–12 are housed together; ninth graders are housed separately. Each dorm has a staff of 4 faculty members and 2–4 student dorm leaders and peer counselors, who assist the faculty members in maintaining the high quality of dormitory life. Dormitories are closed during long weekends and major School vacations. Students have access to e-mail and the Internet in the dormitories and classroom buildings through a wireless network.

Most meals are served buffet-style in the dining room, with the exception of a formal family-style meal once a week. The latter is preceded by a Chapel Talk, traditionally given by students on a topic of their choice.

The Barn is home to Millbrook’s student center, which includes lounges and game areas, the School store, a snack bar, and the college counseling office. Three full-time RNs staff a fully equipped health center, and a physician makes regular visits to the campus and is on call at all times. The health center also utilizes the resources of the nearby Sharon (Connecticut) Hospital, an excellent medical facility.

Millbrook has a long history of strong, competitive athletics with a high standard of sportsmanship. Millbrook’s teams are well-coached and compete squarely with larger schools. The School’s athletic program boasts a state-of-the-art $9 million, 86,000-square-foot sports complex. The Bradford and Cheryl Mills Athletic Center contains an indoor hockey rink that converts into four indoor tennis courts in the off-season, a basketball court, four international squash courts with a gallery for viewing, and a training room and fitness center. Nine playing fields, a 3.2-mile cross-country trail, and a stable for student-owned horses complete Millbrook’s athletic facilities.

Students are required to play a sport at least two of the three athletic seasons. Interscholastic teams include those for baseball (boys), basketball, cross-country, field hockey (girls), golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, softball (girls), squash, and tennis. Varying team levels ensure a place for all, from beginners to accomplished athletes. Non-team offerings include horseback riding, dance, weight training/conditioning, and racquet sports. Options in lieu of a sport are theater, Improv, zoo squad, and outdoor skills.

Traditional clubs are largely incorporated within the framework of community service. Student interests are served, as are the needs of the School community, through work in one of the many community services, including the zoo, library, observatory, store, bank, post office, outreach activities, recycling, and student tutors. Other offerings outside of community service include Model UN, Environmental Council, Jazz Ensemble, Millbrook Singers, Improv, the newspaper and literary magazines, the yearbook, and tour guides.

The academic day runs from 8 a.m.–3 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays and 8:15 a.m.–12:15 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Each class meets for three 45-minute periods and one 90-minute period a week. The entire school convenes four times a week for an all-school assembly and four times a week for community service work. On Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays, a class period is dedicated to extra help. Athletic practices take place each afternoon. On Wednesdays and Saturdays, classes meet in the morning only; sports teams compete against other schools in the afternoon.

Films, dances, concerts, trips to museums, professional sports events, Broadway shows, sleeping, studying, fishing, hiking, bicycling, playing an instrument, working on an art project, watching television, listening to music, tramping the hills with camera in hand, skiing, riding, and more combine to make each weekend as active or as quiet as each individual prefers. Students with parental permission may leave campus on open weekends after their last Saturday commitment, but an energetic and creative Activities Committee plans a full array of activities and outings on and off campus.

Day students have access to all School programs and activities, are encouraged to be full participants in the life of the School, and have bed space within the dormitories.

The 2008–09 charge for boarders was $41,400; for day students, $30,100. Extra costs, such as activity and athletics fees, books, allowances, athletic equipment, linen, and insurance, added approximately $1000 to the base fee for boarders, slightly less for day students.

Financial aid is awarded on the basis of a family’s demonstrated need and within the confines of the School’s available financial resources. In determining its awards, Millbrook consults the information provided by families to the School and Student Services for Financial Aid. For the 2008–09 year, 25 percent of the student body shared grants totaling $1.9 million.

Millbrook enrolls young men and women whose tested abilities range from average to superior, who are able to work in a school that makes considerable academic demands without being highly pressured, who are willing to participate actively in learning, and who are willing to share their talents with others through extracurricular activities and community service. As part of the application process, taking the SSAT is required. For the last several years, SSAT scores for incoming Form III and Form IV students have ranged from the low 30s to the high 90s. Mean scores for both groups have hovered at the 60th percentile mark. No candidate is denied or offered a place solely on the basis of a particular test score.

Many factors are considered in making admissions decisions. Academic and testing information, teachers’ recommendations, extracurricular involvement, and a host of intangibles are evaluated carefully as part of the admissions process. For entrance in fall 2008, 483 applications for admission were completed; 229 applicants were accepted, and 97 new students were enrolled.

Inquiries are welcomed at any time; interviews are welcomed and the application deadline is January 31. Admissions decisions are made and announced March 10 and on a rolling basis thereafter. It is to the advantage of the candidate and the family to visit Millbrook during the academic year. The admissions office welcomes visitors by appointment Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday between 8:15 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. and on Wednesday and Saturday mornings.

Cynthia S. McWilliams
Director of Admissions
Millbrook School
131 Millbrook School Road
Millbrook, New York 12545, United States
Telephone: 845-677-8261
Fax: 845-677-1265