Washington Area Schools Offer Diverse Selection of Multicultural Programs by Carolyn Cosmos That Washington, D.C., should provide opportunities for international students is not surprising. What may startle some people, however, is the wealth of multicultural programs for adolescents available at both public and private schools in the District. Here is a potpourri tour of a few such initiatives, old and new, within the city boundariesósome at news-making institutions, others tucked away and decidedly more low-key. Bell Multicultural High School ìWe have 660 students and 75 percent either come here from another country or have an international background,î said Maria Tukeva, award-winning principal of Bell Multicultural High School, a public school in Northwest Washington. The Washington Post last year selected Tukeva as one of Washingtonís outstanding principals, and she was named D.C. Principal of the Year in 2000 by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. Serving students from 50 countries, Bell has a 90 percent graduation rate. It combine s English as a second language (ESL) studies with English-language academics in ìa sheltered environmentî where the teacher adjusts instruction to student need, Tukeva explained. Sixty-four percent of the students are Hispanic, 15 percent are African American, 10 percent are Asian or Pacific Islander, and 9 percent are African, with 2 percent coming from other backgrounds. ìWe have a strong counseling component to help both students and parents adjust to the U.S. educational system,î Tukeva said. This includes assistance in translating school credit to the U.S. system, a college counselor to help with college applications, and two career counselors. The school offers seven advanced placement (AP) courses in which students can earn college credit for courses they take in high school, and 80 percent of Bell graduates go on to further studies. In addition, the school had $100,000 in college scholarship money to give to graduating seniors last year, and it is starting an early college program in which high school students can attend local college classes for credit. Playing to student strengths, Bell offers courses in translation and interpretation ìthat students can use as a marketable skill,î Tukeva said. The school participates in the Model U.N., sponsored by the U.S. wing of the United Nations Association, in which high school and college students take part in simulated United Nations sessions and Model U.N. competitions against other schools. Bell is building a new school at 16th and Irving Streets, NW. When it opens in 2004, it will house a Model U.N. facility, complete with simultaneous interpretation and videoconferencing capabilities. Upper division Bell students (grades 11 and 12) choose between two specialized study clustersóone in mathematics, science and business and a second in multilingual communications and the arts. Bell also has a nonprofit arm, the Multicultural Career Intern Program (MCIP), which supports vocational education, special services for refugees and disadvantaged youth, and other programs. Bell Multicultural High School is at 3145 Hiatt Place, NW. The principal is Maria Tukeva and the phone number is (202) 673-7314. Maret School Parents at Maret School, a private coeducational school for students in grades kindergarten through 12, come from 35 countries. Many are involved in the schoolís programs as mentors, guides and sources of professional and specialized expertise. Both upper and lower class divisions are housed on the same seven-acre campus, encouraging interactions among older and younger students and teacher involvement across the grades. ìWeíre small, and families develop strong connectionsî to the school and to other school families, said Annie Farquhar, director of admissions and financial aid at Maret. Farquhar has worked at the school for 14 years, and she describes the spirit there as ìcreative and full of energy and reaching out.î Maretówhich has an upper school of about 300 students and a student-teacher ratio of seven to oneóbegins foreign language studies in kindergarten and offers ìa long tradition of providing a welcoming environment for international families,î said communications director Linda Johnson. In fact, one quarter of Maretís students identify themselves as students of color. The school prepares students for college and the upper school offers a large number of accelerated and advanced courses in all disciplines, Johnson said. Last year, 90 Maret students took advanced placement exams in 17 subject areas. In addition, students have more than 80 electives open to them. Farquhar noted that the schoolís special programs include a two-week ìintensive studyî held in February each year. During this time, she said students have the chance to ìbuild an Adirondack chair, spend a week on Wall Street, or interact with professional journalists.î Maretís service learning (volunteer work with an academic component) and community programs are similarly innovative. In one project, a Spanish class published a bilingual newsletter to raise funds for a Hispanic homeless shelter. Another tutored bilingual children, and one U.S. history class is interviewing immigrants and developing related advocacy projects. Tuition for Maret School ranges between $16,725 and $19,850 a year depending on grade level, and 16 percent of its students receive scholarships. Maret School is at 3000 Cathedral Ave., NW. The head of the school is Marjo Talbott, the phone number is (202) 939-8800 and the Web site is www.maret.org. Woodrow Wilson Senior High School Woodrow Wilson Senior High School in Washington is a public school with a college preparatory focus. It serves about 1,500 students, a third of whom have an international background or English as a second language. According to Alex Wilson, director of academic development, the school this year has students from more than 85 countries speaking 90 languages. ìItís a diverse population, economically, ethnically, racially, with a healthy dynamic among the groups,î said another member of the senior staff. Students with an Asian or Pacific Island background make up 8 percent of the student population, 55 percent are African American, 18 percent are Hispanic, and 19 percent are white. The school also has a separate bilingual studies (ESL) department with a faculty of 12 and a world languages department. Nearly 90 percent of Wilson students go on to college. Advanced placement courses are offered in every department or disciplineóup to 18 a yearóand Wilson seniors can take college courses for credit at local universities. In 2002, the school had 21 National Merit-commended students, semifinalists or finalists. Special programs include schools within the school called ìacademies.î They focus on four areas: finance; science, mathematics and technology; the humanities, arts and media; and international studies. The Wilson International Studies Program (WISP) is a magnet academy open to students throughout Washington, which currently enrolls 140 students. WISP requires four years of a foreign language, international area studies and a senior thesis. WISP students participate in the Model U.N. and various internships throughout the city, and ìthereís substantial international travel,î Wilson noted. Recent travel abroad included trips to Chile and Cuba. In addition, community partnerships with organizations such as the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace allow students to role play as scholars and interact with staff in a ìthink tankî exercise. Woodrow Wilson Senior High School is at 3950 Chesapeake St., NW. The principal is Stephen Tarason, the phone number is (202) 282-0120 and the Web site is www.wilsonhs.org. Sidwell Friends School ìWe sent three of our children to SidwellóSarah, Paul and Jimóbecause the school has a deep respect for students as learners and they really do teach critical thinking and analysis,î said Jerry Park of Mount Rainier, Md. He and his wife, Mary Joan Park, recently became a host family for Li Xin, a Sidwell exchange student from China, as part of the schoolís Chinese Studies Program. ìThe best way to fight terrorism,î Park said, ìis for people to get to know each other.î Sidwell Friends School is a college preparatory coeducational Quaker day school serving pre-kindergarten through grade 12. It has slightly more than 1,000 students and campuses in two locations. The upper school is in the Tenleytown area of Washington. Thirty-six percent of those enrolled are students of color and 20 percent of Sidwell students receive some form of financial assistance to attend the school. In the 2002-2003 school year, students received more than $2.5 million in financial aid. The school describes itself as striving ìto promote world citizenship, multicultural understanding, and peaceful conflict resolution.î As part of that mission, it has offered a Chinese Studies Program since 1983. The program features Chinese language and history study, a distinguished lecturer series, a student exchange component, and a fellowship program that annually sends two Sidwell graduates to Beijing for a year of language study. During the 2001-2002 school year, Jerry Parkís son, Jim, a Sidwell student, became an exchange student in Spain while his family in turn hosted Xin, who stayed with three families for three months each during his visit here. ìWe liked that because it gave him a chance to get to know three very different American families,î Jerry Park said, noting that each exchange student received daily staff support at the school and ìSidwell staff also stayed in close communication with the host families. They were culturally and personally sensitive.î Tuition for Sidwell Friends School ranges from $17,600 to $19,990 a year depending on grade level, and 20 percent of the student body receives some type of financial assistance. Sidwell Friends School is at 3825 Wisconsin Ave., NW. The head of the school is Bruce Stewart, the phone number is (202) 537-8100 and the Web site is www.sidwell.edu. Duke Ellington School of the Arts The Duke Ellington School of the Arts has a new Web site up and running and school principal Mitzi Yates wants you to know about it. The site, www.ellingtonschool.org, lets you instantly see that this is a school for students interested in the arts: music, theater, dance, literary media, visual arts and museum studies. A college preparatory school thatís part of the D.C. public school system, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts boasts a success rate of more than 90 percent of its students continuing their studies after graduation. The school currently has an enrollment of 476 students. ìWe do get international students,î Yates said, with students currently coming from Turkey, France, Finland, Uruguay, Chile and Bermuda. Ellington students complete a four-year academic program in the humanities, mathematics and sciences, and may be eligible to take college classes for credit their senior year. A world languages department works with the vocal music department and offers French, Spanish and German. Admission to Ellington is by audition only, and specialized arts programs offer pre-professional training. This can include dance training in ballet and modern dance, with student residencies at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Paul Taylor II, and the American Ballet Theatre. An instrumental music focus includes performance in a school ensemble or with the Ellington chamber or jazz orchestras, while vocal music specialization features classical training and performance work with monthly recitals. The Literary Media Arts Department offers creative writing, journalism and media curriculums, with internships for advanced students. A theater focus features performance and production work along with internships, and visual arts studies includes the creation of a student portfolio, and the school also offers a museum studies program. The Duke Ellington School of the Arts is at 3500 R St., NW. The principal is Mitzi Yates, the phone number is (202) 282-0123 and the Web site is www.ellingtonschool.org. Washington International School The Washington International School (WIS) offers programs on ìthe worldís cultural heritageî to some 820 private school students in grades pre-kindergarten to 12. The school has a bilingual instruction program that begins with an immersion program for its smallest students, and the WIS course of study can lead to an international baccalaureate (IB) diploma, a globally recognized education certificate. Fifty-eight students hailing from 38 countries graduated from WIS last year, and the faculty is similarly diverse. Academics in all the grades are conducted in English and either French, Spanish or Dutch on the schoolís two campuses, with additional language options available in the Middle School, including Italian, Chinese, Japanese or intensive French. In the upper grades, however, there is an emphasis on English. The IB diploma gives many students the opportunity to enter U.S. universities with sophomore standing, and for the last two years, a graduating WIS student has been named a presidential scholar in the United States Presidential Scholars Program. The student body is a mix of international families and American ones. Community service is part of the curriculum, and last year the school offered students $1.26 million in financial aid. Standard tuition for the Washington International School ranges from $9,191 to $18,380 a year depending on grade level. The Washington International School upper schoolís Tregaron Campus is located at 3100 Macomb St., NW. The principal is Garreth Vaughn, the phone number is (202) 243-1800 and the Web site is www.wis.edu. School Without Walls Senior High School School Without Walls, part of the D.C. public school system, describes itself as a ìdemanding alternative college preparatory program that seeks to foster independence and creativity [through] internships, apprenticeships and independent study.î The schoolówhich for the last two years has been rated the top-performing public high school in Washingtonócurrently serves 320 students from a home base on the campus of The George Washington University. The student body and faculty are diverse: 68.4 percent of the schoolís students are African American, 19.8 percent are white, 7 percent are Asian or Pacific Islander, 4.5 percent are Hispanic, and 0.3 percent are American Indian. Sixty-four percent of the faculty and staff represent minority cultures, and almost 20 percent were either born in another country or speak English as a second language. The schoolís academic backgrounds are equally strong, with 88 percent of the teaching staff possessing either a doctorate or masterís degree, 95 percent of students going on to four-year colleges, and 46 percent of those graduating also receiving awards and scholarships totaling $3.1 million over four years. A School Without Walls student was recently named one of two metropolitan area finalists in the Intel Science Talent Search, and its students have garnered Intel science awards in the two previous years as well. During the last three years, the school fostered students who obtained a perfect 1600 score on the SAT exam and three National Merit finalists. Itís also had a National Hispanic Recognition Program finalist, a Congressional Black Caucus Essay Contest recipient, and two congressional nominees for appointment to the United States Military Academy. School Without Walls is at 2130 G St., NW. The principal is Dana Bedden and the phone number is (202) 724-4889. St. Albans School of Public Service The St. Albans National Cathedral School For Boys, an Episcopal day and boarding school, has created an innovative summer residential program in government policy and service called the St. Albans School of Public Service, in cooperation with the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Only one year old, the school is open to young men and women from around the country and around the globe, including international students living in the United States. Participants must be entering their senior year of high school (or an equivalent), and St. Albans is now accepting applications for its summer 2003 session. The school is the brainchild of St. Albansís headmaster, Vance Wilson, and it uses the ìcase methodî of teaching, which is an immersion approach that features hands-on experience, role play, and real-world involvement and decision making. According to the school, students ìstep into the shoes of Supreme Court justices, presidents, journalists and nonprofit advocates to experience the ethical, moral and political dilemmas that come with shaping public policy.î In addition, events such as mock official dinners and embassy receptions combined with personal interactions with leaders from the highest level of government, business and the media offer students an introduction to life as a public servant. Mason Lecky, St. Albansís director of communications and publications, said the program is designed to ìgive kids an idea of what itís like to be a public servant and serve their communities as an elected or appointed official, or as someone who works as a volunteer.î Students visit Capitol Hill and The Washington Post, for example, and the school tries to foster a regionally and ethnically diverse mix of students in the program with a balance among participants from public, secular private and parochial schools. Financial aid is available, and last year 60 percent of summer participants received financial assistance, which included, in some cases, scholarships that covered 100 percent of the tuition. Tuition for the St. Albans School of Public Service is $4,800. The St. Albans Summer School of Public Service is at Mount St. Albans, NW. The headmaster is Vance Wilson, the phone number is (202) 537-5286 and the Web site is www.schoolofpublicservice.org. Carolyn Cosmos is a freelance writer in Washington, D.C.