Humanities & Arts Signature Program

For students who are passionate about literature, history, languages,

art, theatre, music…!

A unique, flexible, and challenging course of study

Special enriched sections of 9th/10th /11th Grade Honors/AP English and Social Studies for H&A students only

Field trips, artists-in-residence, workshops, speaker series, and film festival

Specialty H&A courses such as Law, Film Studies, Mock Trial, History of Rock’n’Roll, and Creative Writing

Course Requirements: Humanities Focus

(4) English* (3) Social Studies* (4) Foreign Language (1.5) Fine Arts (2) Additional Electives (may be in any of the four

major humanities or arts disciplines) (1) Specialty Electives (.5)Senior Seminar (fall of senior year) *all H&A students are enrolled in special cohorted

classes of English and Social Studies

Course Requirements: Arts Focus

(4) English* (3) Social Studies* (4 or 5) Fine Arts (3 or 4)Foreign Language (.5)Specialty Elective (.5)Senior Seminar (fall of senior year) *all H&A students are enrolled in special

cohorted classes of English and Social Studies

Off-Campus Experience We believe that these experiences are

critical to the understanding of the humanities and arts in culture and society

Students must complete one off-campus experience during the program:

An internship A study abroad experience A university summer program

(arts focus students may also use music lessons or art experiences for the OCE)

Study Abroad

Requirements:at least 10 daysMust be in a foreign countryMust be educational in natureNot a family vacation

Trip Examples

Trips Offered through Wootton in 2010:China (two weeks, host families)Greece and ItalyAustralia and New ZealandCosta RicaFrance and Spain

Outside programs!People to People Israel Heritage tripsEtc.

University Program

RequirementsTwo-week programOn Campus (may be residential or not)Take a Humanities or Arts-based course

Examples: Creative Writing at Duke, Summer of Discovery at U of Michigan, Yale Exploration, Journalism at UMD

H&A Internships

Requirements:150 hoursAt a humanities or arts based place of businessSupervisor may not be a family memberMay be done during the summer OR during

your senior year

Examples: Smithsonian Museums, law offices, Mont. Co. Circuit Court, interior design firm, Library of Congress, political campaigns

Senior Independent Project

The Humanities & Arts Program experience culminates in the Senior Independent Project (SIP). Students choose

• extended research essay (18-20 pages) OR • major art project with a short research essay (8-10

pages) • Prepares students for the independent research,

writing, and oral presentation skills expected by universities

• students give an oral defense of their work to a faculty panel

Extended Essay Samples

“Wuliwya Suyu: The Survival of Indigenous Ethnicity and Language in Bolivia”

“Clinging to Cymraeg: National Identity and the Welsh Language”

“Working Class Hero: Society’s Distortion of the John Lennon’s Legacy”

“At the Keyhole to Eternity: The Implications of Immortality on the Human Race”

Short Essay/Creative ProjectsSamples

“A Comparative Study of the Keyboard Preludes of Bach and Chopin” (Piano Performance)

“A More “Catholic” Approach to Sacred Music in Public School Music Education: Is Secular Multicultural Music the Answer?” (Middle School Choral Performance)

“Women of Will: The Outspoken Women of Shakespeare’s Comedies” (Dramatic Performance)

Class of 2009 Statistics

58 GraduatesH&A GPA Avg.: 3.61Avg. # H&A AP: 5.03

2009 Graduates who went to top-tier universities: 25 !!

Including Harvard, U Penn, Oberlin, Berkeley, USC, Georgetown, NYU, UMCP, Vanderbilt