Moorestown Friends School (also known as MFS) is a private, coeducational Quaker day school located in Moorestown, in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2019–20 school year, the school had an enrollment of 652 students (plus 43 in PreK) and 74.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 8.8:1. The school's student body was 54.8% (357) White, 17.6% (115) Asian, 13.5% (88) Black, 9.7% (63) two or more races, 3.8% (25) Hispanic, 0.3% (2) American Indian / Alaska Native and 0.3% (2) Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1991. MFS is also a member of the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools and the Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools. The Head of school is Julia de la Torre.

Awards and recognition

During the 1991–92 school year, Moorestown Friends Lower School was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education, the highest award an American school can receive. In 2007, Barbara Quinn Kreider, former chair of the science department and chemistry teacher, was recognized as the New Jersey parochial school teacher of the year, after her successful freshmen science program was rated number one in the country. In 2020, the Philadelphia Eagles selected Michael Omilian, upper school math teacher and Scheduling Director, as an Axalta All-Pro Teacher; he was one of 10 teachers in the Greater Philadelphia area to be recognized. Historian James C. Scott dedicated his 1990 book Domination and the Arts of Resistance to Moorestown Friends School.

History

In 1781, thirty-three Quaker families pooled their funds and purchased a two-acre lot, located near the intersection of Chester Avenue and Main Street. In 1785, a stone schoolhouse was erected and Joshua Hunt was the first teacher. In 1784, a lot near Colestown, a growing settlement located at the western side of the township, was purchased and a brick schoolhouse was erected. In 1827, the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, which the Moorestown Monthly Meeting is a part of, split into the Orthodox and Hicksite meetings. The Orthodox school stayed on the current site under the name "Moorestown Friends Academy", while a Hicksite school called "Moorestown Friends High School" a block away. The two schools recombined under the name "Moorestown Friends School" in 1920 at the current site. In 1927, the kindergarten building was constructed, followed by the high school (1929) and gymnasium (1958). In 1965, the current Lower School was built. About two decades later, Stokes Hall was completed, linking the upper and lower schools. In 1997, the Commons Dining Hall was added. In 2002 and 2003, the Field House and Woodward Henry Diller Memorial Library were renovated, respectively. More recently, Moorestown Friends School purchased the Greenleaf Retirement facility to create the Greenleaf South Annex and Hartman Hall in 2008. In 2018, the Greenleaf South Annex was renamed Van Meter Hall in honor of the school's retired Head, Larry Van Meter.

Upper school

Upper school at MFS includes grades 9 through 12. The total average SAT score for the Class of 2020 was 1301, made up of Evidence-based Reading and Writing 655 and Math 646.

Community service

All Upper School students must complete 50 hours of community service, and many participate in service trips to places like New Orleans, the Florida Everglades, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Tanzania. Faculty make an effort to engage students in their local communities, including the cities of Camden, New Jersey and Philadelphia.

Clubs

Extracurricular activities at MFS include Aerospace Club, Agenda Committee (similar to Student Government), Animal Awareness Club, Art and Stress Relief Club, Basketball Club, BBQ Club, Biology Club, Chinese Culture Club, Cooking Club, Creative Writing Club, Dance Team Club, DECA, Disney Club, Diversity Committee, Drama Club, Fellowship of Christians (FOCUS), Game Analytics Club, Gender Equality Forum, Girl Up Club, Glamour Gals, Health Awareness Club, History Bowl, Indian Culture Club, Investment Club, Jewish Culture Club, Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Club, Model United Nations, Operation Smile Club (OSI), PRIDE Club, Quiz Bowl, Service Committee, Soccer and Futsal Club, Spanish Club, Spikeball Club, Tabletop Games Club, Tennis/Ping Pong Club, Video Game Club, Volleyball Club, Women in STEM, and Worship Planning.

Middle school

Middle school at MFS includes grades 5 through 8. Students take courses in English, Math, Social Studies, Science, and World Languages as well as in non-major courses such as Woodshop, Art, Music, Physical Education, and Health. Technology is an important component of education at MFS. Faculty advisors meet with middle school students daily to help them develop effective study skills. Middle school extracurricular activities include choir, band, theater, student government, robotics, architecture, web design, and newspaper. The students also have a variety of sports to choose from. Each Middle School grade level has a unique outdoor educational experience.

Lower school

Lower school at MFS includes preschool through grade 4.

Beginnings at MFS

During the 2012–2013 school year, the early childhood program at Moorestown Friends School rebranded itself as "Beginnings at MFS" to stress the importance of preschool, prekindergarten, and kindergarten in a child's development. "We consider the education of young children to be work of enormous importance. [...] This is a school where you will find an experienced, certified teacher with a Master's degree from the University of Pennsylvania leading a class of three-year-olds. Furthermore, in our early childhood classes, we maintain a ratio of one teacher to just 7 or 8 students."

Academic technology

Moorestown Friends School has more than 450 computers and laptops throughout the school, consisting of five computer labs, ten laptop carts and three mini-labs. Five of the laptop carts are for general use and two are for the middle and upper school Science Department. Mathematics, World Languages, and the lower school each have their own dedicated computer cart. MFS is predominantly a PC school; however there are several Macs and iPads available for use at every grade level. The school has a MacBook Pro cart for high-end graphical and media use and an iPad cart as well. They acquired high-quality video production equipment and created an editing studio capable of creating high, near-professional quality video. Numonic's interactive whiteboards with mounted projectors are in every classroom. The MFS campus has Wi-Fi accessibility throughout the entire school, and all upper school students are able to connect with their own personal devices. The MFS library houses a computer processing center for students to research and prepare written work. The library's online catalog is available via the network throughout the school or from home. Students are also able to check out laptops, iPads and digital cameras from the Library.

Diversity

33% of the student body are students of color.

The Camden Scholars Program

The Camden Scholars Program at MFS provides opportunities to students from the Camden City Public Schools in Camden, New Jersey. Recommended by guidance counselors at Camden Middle Schools, candidates apply to Moorestown Friends School, visit classes, and are interviewed. Once selected by the Camden Scholars Committee and admitted, students receive a scholarship that provides virtually full tuition to MFS. Camden Scholars are encouraged to pursue their interests and develop their talents. Camden Scholars participate in clubs, serve as student leaders, are athletes and perform in plays. They go on overnight retreats and field trips. MFS has a Camden Scholars Coordinator who serves as a liaison to help participants adjust to their new learning environment and sustain a healthy and successful academic and extracurricular schedule. The school's Diversity Coordinator oversees student, employee and curricular diversity efforts throughout the entire school with the aid of a faculty/staff sub-committee.

Meeting for Worship

Each week, the MFS community gathers in the Meetinghouse, built in 1802, for Meeting for Worship. There are separate Meetings for each school division. Friends believe that each person has within him/herself, with God's help, the ability to discern truth. Participants use this time to pray, or worship or simply reflect deeply on the world around them, according to their own faith traditions. Since Friends believe that each person, no matter their age, is able to discern truth, all are welcome to speak from their hearts if so moved. It is expected that their words will be listened to from the same deep connection to the Spirit and provide insight for the listeners. When the Meeting for Worship is over, students on the facing benches close the Meeting by shaking hands. At this point everyone is invited to briefly greet their neighbor before settling back into quiet for dismissal.

The Examined Life

The phrase "Examined Life" is drawn from Socrates' axiom: "The unexamined life is not worth living." The goal of such a life is to integrate a tough mind and a tender heart. Moorestown Friends School's Examined Life Program has four components: Openness to a spiritual life, development and application of personal ethics in the community, critical thinking and development of resilience.

Athletics

Varsity and Junior Varsity sports include: baseball, basketball, cross country, field hockey, fencing, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis and swimming. Middle School sports offered are baseball, basketball, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer and tennis. MFS is a member of the Friends Schools League, which was established in 1981. Member schools are Abington Friends School, Academy of the New Church, Friends Central School, Friends Select School, George School, Germantown Friends School, Shipley School and Westtown School. The Moorestown Friends School Foxes also compete as a member of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, which allows the school's teams to compete for state championships. In keeping with Quaker philosophy, sportsmanship is stressed in all MFS athletics. The school's mascot is the Fox, named after George Fox, the founder of Quakerism. The girls' basketball team won the SJIBT championship in 2020 with a 68-45 win in the finals against Clearview Regional High School. The boys' cross country team were the 2007 South Jersey Non-Public B champions and state runner-up, which was the first cross country title in school history. The field hockey team won the South Jersey Group I state sectional championship in 1976. In 2019, the team won their third Friends School League championship, defeating Westtown School 3-1. The boys' fencing team was the NJSIAA state foil team winner from 2004-2007. Senior John Gurrieri won the state individual foil title in 2006. Senior Erin Chen won the state individual saber title in 2016. The golf team won their first-ever Friends School League championship in 2019. The girls' lacrosse team won the overall state championship in 1980, defeating Moorestown High School in the tournament final. The boys' soccer team won the Non-Public Group B state championship in 1979, defeating runner-up St. Cecilia High School with a 1-0 overtime win in the championship game. In 2015, the boys' soccer team won the NJSIAA Non-Public B South championship, The boys' soccer team won NJSIAA Non-Public B South titles in 2015 (defeating Holy Cross Academy by a score of 2–0 in the tournament final ), 2017 (vs. Immaculata High School) and 2019 (vs. Wardlaw-Hartridge School). In 2016, the team captured the program's first-ever Friends School League championship. In 2017, the girls' soccer team won the NJSIAA Non-Public B state championship for the first time in program history as co-champion with Montclair Kimberley Academy. The team won the NJSIAA sectional championships in 2017. In 2014, the girls' soccer team won the NJSIAA Non-Public B South championship, defeating Gill St. Bernard's School, 5–0. In 2015, the team repeated as the NJSIAA Non-Public B South champion, defeating Holy Spirit High School, 3–2 in double overtime. The boys' tennis team was Non-Public B/C state champion in 1978. In 2017, the boys' tennis team won the NJSIAA Non-Public B South championship, defeating Rutgers Preparatory School 5–0. The girls' tennis team won the 2005 South B state sectional championship with a 4–1 win over Sacred Heart High School. The 2007 team reclaimed the title, defeating Bishop Eustace High School 3–2 in the tournament final. The team won the Friends Schools League championship in 2017 and 2019. The girls' tennis team won the Non-Public B state championship in 2018 and 2019, defeating Newark Academy in the tournament final both years. The 2018 team defeated Newark Academy 3-2 in the finals. The swim team won seven gold medals in the 2018 Friends School League championship. In 2020, the girls' swim team won six gold medals, and the boys' swim team won two gold medals.

Notable alumni