School Without Walls

Washington, DC, adjacent to George Washington University.

Tutoring programs

Mobile labs.

2008 JV Girls Basketball DCIAA Championship, 2009-2012 DCIAA Ski Championship, 2011-2012 DCIAA Softball, 2013 DCIAA Bowling.

Art Studio, Brainfood, Cheese Club, Community Service Club, Contemporary Dance Ensemble, Creative Expression, Writing/Poetry Club, DC Youth and Government, Ethics Club, French Club, Girls Learn International, International Connections, Jazz Band, Lacrosse Club, Latin Club, Latino Club, Math and Science Tutoring, Model UN, Men of Strength Club, National Honor Society, National Society of Black Engineers, Robotics Club, Scuba Club, Sister Action Sister Strength, Skiing Club, Swahili Club, Tennis Club, Video Production Club, Weight Lifting Club, Women's Democratic Club, Yearbook, Yoga Club,

Street parking only for guests.

School Without Walls is an application based magnet school. Students must have a 3.0 or greater GPA in their core classes and proficient or advanced on a standardized test in order to begin the application process. Students who meet this criteria will be invited to take an entrance exam in math and reading and complete an essay. Students who pass the entrance exam will them be invited to interview in front of a panel of faculty and students.

School Without Walls will provide every student with a rigorous college preparatory, humanities program that incorporates global and local resources in an experiential and interdisciplinary methodology to teaching and learning.

In 1971, School Without Walls Senior High School (SWW) was established to offer an alternative to conventional instructional programs, in which students could develop "methods of learning outside the traditional classroom." Modeled after the successful Parkway Program in the School District of Philadelphia, SWW was created to provide a small school environment for students who had difficulty adjusting to the large traditional public high school.

The School Without Walls started with just fifty students, six teachers, and one administrator. Today the staff includes three administrators, 54 faculty and support staff positions. The student body consists of approximately 585 students.

In 1988, SWW adopted a Humanities program that provides an interdisciplinary core curriculum. The humanities approach launches students on a quest to find personal meaning from their studies; it provides the framework for academic rigor by requiring the study of primary sources and their contexts, and by exploring the interrelationships of ideas, events and persons across academic discipline.

While the school has changed somewhat from its original mission, it has maintained its core vision to remain an exemplary model of academic excellence in the District of Columbia Public School System.

The history of utilizing community and international resources to enrich and excel beyond textbook learning has remained a tradition at SWW. The instructional program encourages and emphasizes teaching approaches in which learning activities are carried on throughout the community and internationally.

The District of Columbia Public Schools describes the SWW as "…a demanding alternative college preparatory program that seeks to foster independence and creativity."

The academic program includes Humanities, Science, Math, Social Studies, Advanced Placement and elective courses. Additionally, juniors and seniors have the opportunity to enroll in college level courses at The George Washington University and other local universities.

School Without walls is currently ranked the #1 public high school in DC and #3 high school overall by the Washington Post.

100% of our students attend college after graduation. The class of 2013 received over $13 million dollars worth of college scholarships.

School Without Walls has a partnership with George Washington University which allows students to apply for two different programs. The first is the GW Early College Program which allows students in their junior year to become full time GW students and graduate from high school with an associates degree from George Washington University. The second program is the GW Exposure Program which allows students to begin taking one class per semester staring the summer after sophomore year.

To apply to School Without Walls, visit www.myschooldc.org.