NCSSM Profile - North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics

Instructional ProgramThe instructional program at NCSSM takes advantageof a residential learning environment, a well-trained anddedicated staff, and a highly motivated and talentedstudent body, to provide a unique learning experiencefor each student. The School’s philosophy is to ensure thateach student obtains a thorough grounding in the sciences,mathematics, language arts, history, and a world language;that each becomes proficient in the use of computers,laboratory facilities, and other means by which knowledge isacquired and processed in the sciences and mathematics;and that each adopts a sequence of study that includesinvestigating areas of academic interest in depth throughhigh-level course offerings and such activities as mentorship,research courses, independent studies, seminars, directedgroup studies, and Mini-Term.Students in the Class of 2012 were typically enrolled in fouror five core academic courses per trimester as juniors andfive courses per trimester as seniors, all of which were takenduring their two years at NCSSM. These include the followingminimal requirements of trimester credits earned:6 Science, 5 Mathematics, 4 English, 2 Social Science, 3-6World Language (varies with competency), 1 PhysicalActivity & Wellness, plus sufficient electives to equal therequired number of credits.Each student must also successfully complete two years ofMini-Term, two years of campus work service, a communityservice project and the Student Life 101 and 201 courses.In addition to meeting core graduation requirements,students participate in a number of elective academicprograms. The curriculum includes extensive opportunitiesin the arts and music. There are opportunities to participatein selected online courses offered through NCSSM Online.NCSSM also has exchange programs with a school in Italyand is developing programs with several schools in China.NCSSM graduates are prepared for learning successfully in acollegiate environment. Throughout the curriculum, they areexpected to develop their independent investigative skills,solve novel problems, function as leaders and participantson project teams, and appreciate the learning advantagesthat a diverse community offers. This extensive access toeach other and their teachers allows learning to carry onwell after the class day ends.The readiness of NCSSM students for college is alsoenhanced by articulation agreements with universities.These agreements award university credit for coursestaken at NCSSM without a requirement for an AdvancedPlacement Exam or other placement or exemptiontesting. There are articulation agreements in place withthe following universities: Appalachian State University,East Carolina University, Elizabeth City State University,Meredith College, North Carolina A&T State University,North Carolina Central University, North Carolina StateUniversity, Oglethorpe University, University of North Carolinaat Charlotte, University of North Carolina at Greensboroand University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Negotiationsare underway to establish agreement with other institutionsincluding more members of the University of North CarolinaSystem.In the Class of 2012, students sat for 964 AP examsin Biology, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Chemistry,Chinese Language & Culture, Computer Science A,Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, English Language &Composition, Environmental Science, European History,Government & Politics: United States, Physics B, Physics C:Electricity & Magnetism, Physics C: Mechanics, Psychology,Spanish Language, Statistics, United States History, andWorld History.STUDENT LIFE PROGRAMThe Student Life Division provides a nurturing setting forthe holistic development of every student. The residentialenvironment increases the depth and breadth of all students’experiences as they take advantage of the rich opportunitiesand support that are available within the NCSSM community.The Counseling Services Department provides personal,academic, college and career counseling and support forstudents on study skills and time management. The PhysicalActivity and Wellness Department offers a wide variety ofcore and elective courses including Resistance Training,Sports Medicine I & II, Self-Defense, Archery, Dancing andFencing; an eighteen-sport interscholastic program; anintramural program with more than 85 percent participationand many recreational opportunities.Service LearningRequirements:Sixty hours of service learning in North CarolinaThree hours a week of work service at NCSSMBeyond expectations:The Class of 2012 logged more than 21,000 hours of serviceStudents averaged nearly 72 hours of serviceStudents worked with hundreds of service organizationsacross North Carolina during the summer of 2011.Over the past three years, the student-led NCSSM Food Drivehas collected and delivered nearly 1 million pounds of foodto help fight hunger across North Carolina.The Residential Life Department offers instruction for agraduation required Student Life 101 course that addressestopics on community building, diversity, alcohol and drugs,sexual issues, public speaking, leadership and interviewing skills;and Student Life 201 programs on success strategies, sexualassault and harassment, financial strategies, and collegeprepartion.Through the Student Services Department, students arerequired to perform 60 hours of service learning for anon-profit organization in North Carolina before theirsenior year. In 2012, students averaged nearly 72 hours,with students logging more than 21,000 total hours. Eachstudent is also required to perform three hours of workservice for a departmental area including cafeteria,grounds or in another capacity such as Residential LifeAssistant, Student Ambassador, Peer College Counselor,Multicultural Peer Counselor, Institutional AdvancementAttache or Student Government.

NCSSM OnlineNCSSM launched in August 2008 a virtuallearning program, NCSSM Online. Thistwo-year program serves students fromacross North Carolina. The students inthis program attend their local highschools and supplement their academicprograms with NCSSM curriculum andresidential experiences. The NCSSM onlinecourses are complemented with weeklyreal-time web conferencing sessions. Aunique component of the program isthe hosting of several onsite residentialweekends during the year, allowingstudents to work side-by side with theirpeers under the leadership of their NCSSMinstructors. A weeklong summer residentialstudent symposium is offered to risingseniors of the NCSSM Online Program.A transcript and complete profile areprovided to students who are enrolledin this program. Students admitted intoNCSSM Online program must meetthe same admissions standards as theresidential program. Students can eitherapply directly to the Online Programfor admission or apply to the residentialprogram and later be screened for theonline program once the residentialadmission process has been completed.Student ResearchRecognizing the importance of technicaland problem-solving skills and theincreasing demand for research learningopportunities among our students, NCSSMoffers a variety of options for focusedresearch. For students with limitedprevious research involvement, ResearchExperience courses provide researchskills development and the opportunityto complete a comprehensiveresearch project in science, humanities,mathematics, or computer science.MentorshipMentorship offers students the opportunityto work in an off-campus lab or other realworld setting under the guidance of aresearch professional at an area universityor in a Research Triangle Park lab.Advanced ResearchMore advanced courses in a specificscientific discipline — Research in Biology,Chemistry, Computational Science,Mathematics or Physics — are forstudents who want to initiate or continuean in-depth research project of theirown design. Students can also earn aresearch credential in Mathematics bysuccessfully completing an advancedsequence in Statistics or MathematicalModeling. Numerous students alsoparticipate in summer research programson campus or in the Triangle area and/or enter their work in state, national andinternational competitions. Each springNCSSM showcases its student researchprograms in our Research Symposium,at which students present the results oftheir research activities through oral and/or poster presentations to the NCSSMcommunity and invited guests.Mini-TermFor seven days in early spring, regularclasses are suspended to permit eachstudent to have the opportunity either totake a specialized mini-course arrangedby one or more faculty members or topursue an approved academic projectof the student’s own design. Topics rangefrom in-depth lab or computer studies toextended art or science trips. The resultsof each project are presented to thecommunity.Research, Competition& AwardsThe Class of 2012 was well-represented ininternational, national and regional highschool science competitions, winningfirst place in the Singapore MathematicsChallenge and the Conrad FoundationSpirit of Innovation Awards, and winningnational awards at the InternationalScience and Engineering Fair, SiemensCompetition, Intel Science Talent Search,Science Olympiad, Health OccupationsStudent competition, and many more.Since 2000 NCSSM has had more SiemensCompetition semifinalists and winners thanany other school, having won the nationalcompetition three times.Student ClubsNCSSM students are encouraged toparticipate in extra-curricular activitiesincluding student clubs. The School hasmore than 90 clubs, including thosethat are academic, physical, social andservice related. Some of the clubs atNCSSM include: Health OccupationsStudents of America (HOSA), YMCA Youthand Government, Ethical AwarenessGroup, Fencing Club, Swimming Club,French Cultures Club, The Garden Cluband NCSSiMprov. For a full list of clubs,visit: www.ncssm.edu/sg/index.php/clubs.AthleticsNCSSM offers a wide range of intramuralathletic opportunities for students,including volleyball, basketball, soccerand ultimate Frisbee, with more than 85%of students participating. Students mayalso participate in the 18 varsity sports theschool offers. Since 2006, NCSSM has wonteam North Carolina High School AthleticAssociation State Championships in Men’sCross Country, Men’s Track and Field,Women’s Tennis, Men’s Soccer and Men’sTennis.NCSSMAdministrationJ. Todd RobertsChancellorRichard AlstonChief Information OfficerJoan D. BarberVice Chancellorfor Student LifeJan-Rae CastilloInternal AuditorMichael DelafieldChief Legal CounselGail Faulkner HudsonDean of Counseling ServicesEd McBrideVice Chancellor for OperationsMelissa ThibaultVice Chancellorfor Distance Educationand Extended ProgramsKatie WagstaffPresidentof NCSSM FoundationSteve WarshawVice Chancellor forAcademic ProgramsT. Brock Winslow ’86Vice Chancellor forInstitutional AdvancementContact UsMail:NCSSMP.O. Box 2418Durham, N.C. 27715Phone:Campus: 919.416.2600Counseling Services: 919.416.2835Online:www.ncssm.eduFollow Uswww.facebook.com/ncssmwww.twitter.com/ncssm

EvaluationStudents at NCSSM are evaluated at the end of eachtrimester and are given letter grades. Although NCSSMassigns quality points to courses and calculates grade pointaverages, students are not ranked. This GPA system hasbeen implemented solely to help describe each student’sperformance and course selections as part of the process ofapplying to schools and programs outside of NCSSM.COURSE #Quality Points and GPAThe Quality Point value of courses is reflected in the NCSSM course numbering system:DESCRIPTIONQuality Points Awarded By Letter GradeA+ / A / A-B+ / B / B-C+ / C / C-D300 - 349Introductory level courses that meet a core NCSSM graduationrequirement (comparable to honors level courses at many high schools)5.04.03.00.0350 - 399Meet one or more of the following criteria:• accelerated versions of classes at the 300 – 349 level• courses that require prerequisites taken at NCSSM• courses at a level higher than a typical high school honors course• courses that are for seniors only5.54.53.50.0400 - 449Courses at the level of introductory college courses and/or that helpprepare students to take an Advanced Placement examination6.05.04.00.0450 - 499Courses that deal with topics beyond those of introductory college courses6.05.04.00.0All NCSSM courses are at the honors level or higher. Mini-Term, physical activity courses, Student Life courses, Work Service and SummerService Learning are graduation requirements. These courses, however, along with Special Study Options, carry no quality points andare not computed in the GPA.Class of 2012 StatisticsStandardized Test PerformanceMean:Median:Scholastic Aptitude Test305 studentsVerbal674680Math704710Total13781390SAT statistics were compiled using the best verbal and best mathscores reported for each student. At the time of admission, the Classof 2012 had a mean combined score of 1292 and a mediancombined score of 1300.Advanced Placement Examinationsnational merit PerformanceNational Merit andNational AchievementNational Merit Finalists: 63National Achievement Finalists: 7The Merit status is based on the PSAT, which studentstake in October of their junior year.Final Grades253 students took 964 examinations.89.5% scored a 3, 4 or 5.score:% of scores:5 4 3 2 140.6 28.9 20 6.3 4.1A - OutstandingB - Superior, meets allcourse requirementsC - Acceptable, minimallymeets course requirementsD - Unsatisfactory, noNCSSM credit57.6%36.4%5.8%0.2%83% of the graduates took at least one examOf the 305 students who graduated, 11 (3.6%)had all A’s during their junior and senior years.

College Acceptances & Enrollments for the Classes of 2008 through 2012A = Accepted :: E = EnrolledAgnes Scott CollegeAlaska-Pacific UniversityAllegheny CollegeAmerican UniversityAmherst UniversityAppalachian State UniversityArizona State UniversityAuburn UniversityAustralia National UniversityAve Maria UniversityAverett UniversityBard CollegeBarnard UniversityBarry CollegeBarton CollegeBaylor UniversityBellarmine UniversityBelmont UniversityBeloit CollegeBentley CollegeBerklee College of MusicBinghamton UniversityBirmingham-Southern CollegeBoston CollegeBoston UniversityBrandeis UniversityBrenau UniversityBrigham Young UniversityBrown UniversityBryn Mawr CollegeBucknell UniversityCalifornia Institute Of TechnologyCampbell UniversityCarleton CollegeCarnegie-Mellon UniversityCarson-NewmanCase Western Reserve UniversityCedarville CollegeCentre CollegeChapman UniversityCharleston Southern UniversityChowan CollegeChristopher Newport UniversityCincinnati Christian UniversityClaremont McKenna CollegeClark UniversityClarkson UniversityClemson UniversityColby CollegeCollege of CharlestonColorado School of the MinesColorado State UniversityColumbia UniversityConverse CollegeCornell CollegeCornell UniversityCovenant CollegeDartmouth CollegeDavidson CollegeDefiance CollegeDePaul UniversityDickinson CollegeDrexel UniversityDuke UniversityDuquesne UniversityEarlham UniversityEast Carolina UniversityEckerd CollegeElizabeth City StateElon UniversityEmbry-Riddle Aeronautical UniversityEmerson CollegeEmory and Henry CollegeEmory UniversityFayetteville State UniversityFlorida A & M UniversityFlorida Institute of TechnologyFlorida State UniversityFordham UniversityFranklin W. Olin College of EngineeringFurman UniversityGardner-Webb UniversityGeorge Fox UniversityGeorge Mason UniversityGeorgetown UniversityGeorgia Institute of TechnologyGonzaga UniversityGrinnell CollegeGrove City CollegeGuilford CollegeHampden-Sydney CollegeHampshire CollegeHampton UniversityHarvard UniversityHarvey-Mudd CollegeHaverford CollegeHawaii Pacific UniversityHigh Point UniversityHiram CollegeHollins UniversityHoward UniversityIllinois Institute of TechnologyIndiana University of BloomingtonIowa State UniversityIthaca CollegeJacksonville UniversityJames Madison UniversityA5112179451211164118123111182282336140644381191431421111521215143283711860114652742215264341114747741619612259313210125656118272216242211E0005125330000200201000000210100011805010000000100703011100130310000369103200400042100027102715011010195201103100110Johns Hopkins UniversityJohnson & Wales UniversityJuniata CollegeKenyon CollegeKettering UniversityKnox CollegeLa Tierra UniversityLafayette CollegeLees-McCrae CollegeLehigh UniversityLenior-Rhyne UniversityLetourneau UniversityLiberty UniversityLouisiana State UniversityLoyola UniversityMacalester CollegeMarquette UniversityMars Hill CollegeMary Baldwin CollegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMcGill University, CanadaMercer UniversityMeredith CollegeMethodist CollegeMiami University: Oxford, OhioMichigan State UniversityMichigan Tech UniversityMiddlebury CollegeMillsaps CollegeMoravian CollegeMorehouse CollegeMount Holyoke CollegeMount Olive CollegeNew College of South FloridaNew York Institute of TechnologyNew York UniversityNorfolk State UniversityNorth Carolina A & T State UniversityNorth Carolina Central UniversityNorth Carolina State UniversityNortheastern UniversityNorthwestern UniversityOberlin CollegeOglethorpe UniversityOhio Wesleyan UniversityOklahoma City UniversityOregon State UniversityOxford College of Emory UniversityPace UniversityPacific UniversityPennsylvania State UniversityPolytechnic of NYUPomona CollegePratt InstitutePrinceton UniversityPurdue UniversityQueens CollegeQueens University of CharlotteQuinnipiac CollegeRandolph College - Lynchburg, VARandolph-Macon CollegeReed CollegeRegent UniversityRensselaer Polytechnic InstituteRhodes CollegeRice UniversityRingling College of Art and DesignRoanoke CollegeRochester Institute of TechnologyRose Hulman Institute of TechnologyRutgers UniversitySaint Louis UniversitySalem CollegeSamford UniversitySarah Lawrence UniversitySavannah School of DesignScripps CollegeSeattle Pacific UniversitySeton Hall UniversityShaw UniversityShimer CollegeSmith CollegeSouthwestern UniversitySpelman CollegeSt. John's College AnnapolisSt. John's University New YorkSt. Joseph UniversitySt. Mary's College of MarylandStanford UniversityState University of NY Collegeof Environmental Science & ForestryStephens CollegeStevens Institute of TechnologySwarthmore CollegeSweet Briar CollegeSyracuse UniversityTemple UniversityTexas A & M UniversityTexas Christian UniversityThe Catholic University of AmericaThe CitadelThe College of William & MaryThe Cooper Union for the Advancementof Science and ArtThe George Washington UniversityThe Kings' CollegeThe Ohio State UniversityA E A E46212411223121315843265286214111111319151120328207171518211102111121691236121341177151371111713211111317271147211133214123255241112000100001012001010200041000000200107085334115200101010009002023002230021102010010001000000120012110001331311The University of EdinburghTransylvania CollegeTrinity CollegeTufts UniversityTulane UniversityTusculum CollegeTuskegee UniversityUnion CollegeUnited States Air Force AcademyUnited States Coast Guard AcademyUnited States Military Academy - West PointUnited States Naval AcademyUnity CollegeUniversity of Alabama at HuntsvilleUniversity of Alabama at TuscaloosaUniversity of ArizonaUniversity of British ColumbiaUniversity of California BerkeleyUniversity of California DavisUniversity of California Los AngelesUniversity of California MercedUniversity of California RiversideUniversity of California San DiegoUniversity of California Santa BarbaraUniversity of California Santa CruzUniversity of Central FloridaUniversity of ChicagoUniversity of Colorado, BoulderUniversity of Colorado, DenverUniversity of ConnecticutUniversity of DelawareUniversity of FloridaUniversity of GeorgiaUniversity of Hawaii at ManoaUniversity of Illinois at ChicagoUniversity of Illinois at UrbanaUniversity of IowaUniversity of KentuckyUniversity of LouisvilleUniversity of Maryland Baltimore CountyUniversity of Maryland, College ParkUniversity of Massachusetts - AmherstUniversity of Massachusetts - BostonUniversity of Massachusetts - LowellUniversity of MelbourneUniversity of MiamiUniversity of MichiganUniversity of Missouri at Kansas CityUniversity of Nebraska-LincolnUniversity of New HavenUniversity of North Carolina - AshevilleUniversity of North Carolina - Chapel HillUniversity of North Carolina - CharlotteUniversity of North Carolina - GreensboroUniversity of North Carolina - PembrokeUniversity of North Carolina - WilmingtonUniversity of Notre DameUniversity of OklahomaUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of PittsburghUniversity of Puget SoundUniversity of Puget SoundUniversity of Rhode IslandUniversity of RichmondUniversity of RochesterUniversity of San DiegoUniversity of San FranciscoUniversity of South CarolinaUniversity of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of TampaUniversity of TennesseeUniversity of TexasUniversity of the SouthUniversity of VermontUniversity of VictoriaUniversity of VirginiaUniversity of Washington - SeattleUniversity of Wisconsin-MadisonUrsinus CollegeVanderbilt UniversityVassar CollegeVillanova UniversityVirginia Commonwealth UniversityVirginia Polytechnic InstituteVirginia Union UniversityWake Forest UniversityWarren Wilson CollegeWashington & Jefferson CollegeWashington & Lee UniversityWashington University in St. LouisWellesley CollegeWells CollegeWentworth Institute of TechWesleyan UniversityWest Virginia UniversityWestern Carolina UniversityWestminster CollegeWheaton CollegeWillamette UniversityWilliam Peace UniversityWilliams CollegeWingate UniversityWinston Salem State UniversityWofford CollegeWorcester Polytechnic InstituteXavier UniversityYale University111147121418911521202811721245313478131212113121215171241261898684641091033710111912113153365312622335627481154426351131424913146566811610100200011550011041000000090001020030002100003120017577121112811900002100240021012101110050360013200005000022210020TOTALS5,338 1,564