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Kents Hill School (also known as Kents Hill or KHS) is a co-educational independent college-preparatory school for boarding and day students in grades nine through twelve, as well as a postgraduate year. Kents Hill is located in Kents Hill, Maine, 12 miles west of the state capital of Augusta. It instructs 245 students from over 50 communities in Maine, 25 states, and 18 countries on 5 continents.

Kents Hill was founded in 1824 by Luther Sampson, a veteran of the American Revolution. The school is now a member of the Association of Independent Schools in New England (AISNE) and accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC).

Kents Hill offers a curriculum with honors, Advanced Placement (AP), and regular college-preparatory classes. The school is committed to a values-based education, promoting its ten "core values" in every facet of school life: Altruism, Compassion, Courage, Friendship, Honesty, Perseverance, Responsibility, Scholarship, Sportsmanship, and Tolerance. Each academic year, incoming classes choose one core value to exemplify as a group and uphold among their peers, and to adorn a representative class banner that hangs in the student union. Part of the school's mission teaches all students that "one man or woman of principle can always make a difference."

Kents Hill School was voted "Best Private School in Maine" in 2013 and 2014 by Down East, The Magazine of Maine, and has received several other local and national accolades for education. In 2003, the school received the Siemens Foundation Award for Advanced Placement programs in math and science. In 2007, social studies teacher, David Pearson, was awarded one of the first Harvard Singer Prizes for Excellence in Secondary School Teaching.

History
Kents Hill is one of the oldest co-educational schools in the United States, and may be the oldest continuously operating co-educational college preparatory school in the nation.

Origins
Kents Hill was founded in 1824 as the Maine Wesleyan Seminary by Luther Sampson, a Duxbury, Massachusetts native and a veteran of the American Revolution. According to an early publication of the Kents Hill Breeze, a school periodical beginning in 1882, Sampson "was of the fifth generation in lineal descent from Henry Sampson, one of the Pilgrim band that landed on Plymouth Rock, December 22, 1620." A carpenter who had not had a formal education, Sampson wanted to use the wealth he had earned in his profession and the government-granted assignment of land he earned as a Colonial soldier to benefit society and to glorify God. Sampson, his wife Abigail Ford, and their children lived in Duxbury and, later, Marshfield, before relocating to over two hundred acres in Readfield, Maine, around the turn of the century. In 1821, Sampson incorporated there the "Readfield Religious and Charitable Society," whose original charter contained no mention of a school, but rather laid a plan to support area Methodist belief and practice. Sampson deeded the society over one hundred acres of land on Kents Hill.

Failing financially and seeking a more efficacious means of performing his mission, by 1823 Sampson had begun to explore the possibility of changing the society's identity into one rooted in the education of youths. Together with Elihu Robinson, a carpenter-schoolmaster in the nearby city of Augusta, and his wife, they opened the Seminary in order to better society through education. Boys and girls appeared on the school's roster from the day the school opened.

Developments
Later headmaster, Dr. Henry O Torsey, oversaw the construction of Sampson Hall which was opened in 1860 and is still serving students today. Dr. Torsey also opened a female collegiate institute - the "Female College" - one of the first of its kind to offer degrees to women at the time. Dr. Torsey is also credited with introducing baseball to the school in 1861.

Bearce Hall was completed in 1873. James G. Blaine, who later served as Secretary of State under President Benjamin Harrison, donated a bell for the bell tower, both of which become important school symbols. To this day, the bell is rung to celebrate school victories and important occasions. During the next fifty years, the school added a conservatory of music as well as a working farm.

During the Second World War, Headmaster Bill Dunn inaugurated a ski program next to nearby Torsey Lake. The students cleared the land, and Kents Hill established an alpine racing program that endures to this day. The O'Conner Alpine Center boasts alpine racing and snowboarding facilities, complete with digital timing, night lights, snow-making equipment, and a ski lodge.

Beginning in 1990, Headmaster Rist Bonnefond oversaw further expansion of the school, its programs, and its facilities. In addition to growing the school's curriculum to include 12 Advanced Placement programs, the school added an Environmental Studies program and graduation requirements. Since 1998 the school has added several new buildings and outdoor areas, including the Liz Cross Mellen Ski Lodge, the Alfond Athletics Center, the Hansen Quadrangle, the Colhoun Plaza, the Williams Woodworking Studio, Reed Hall, and several new faculty residences. Davis Hall, the Alpine Center, and Bearce Hall have all been updated and renovated.

In the fall of 2008 the school opened the Harold Alfond Turf Fields, one of the largest turf field complexes in New England.

In 2009, the Bodman Performing Arts Center opened in the renovated Newton Gym.

In 2012, the Waters Learning Center was renamed the Akin Learning Center and a new campus facility opened to house the school's Learning Skills Program.

Academics
"To create a stimulating academic community, provide students with the skills to become life-long learners, build each student's self-esteem, and encourage artistic and creative expression and appreciation for the arts" are of some of Kents Hill's stated institutional goals.

The student-to-faculty ratio at Kents Hill School is 6:1, with an average class size of 11. 85% of the faculty live on campus.

Kents Hill offers a college-preparatory curriculum on a trimester schedule: Fall, Winter, and Spring. Curricular offerings include 14 Advanced Placement courses and honors-level courses available in most academic disciplines. Kents Hill offers independent study options for direct-guided coursework outside of its course prospectus offerings. Kents Hill also provides a three-level ESL curriculum for non-native English speakers.

In 2012, Kents Hill introduced a Global Studies Concentration, including required language, humanities, and other GS-designated courses, as well as extracurricular activities and a major capstone project

The school currently offers exchange programs with four international schools: Kent College Pembury, Tunbridge Wells, England; Montaigne School, France; Colegio Estudio, Spain; and Bishops Diocesan College, Cape Town, South Africa.

Recognition
Kents Hill School was voted "Best Private School in Maine" in 2013 and 2014 by Down East, The Magazine of Maine[3], and has received several other local and national accolades for education. In 2003, the school received the Siemens Foundation Award[4] for Advanced Placement programs in math and science. In 2007, social studies teacher, David Pearson, was awarded one of the first Harvard Singer Prizes[5] for Excellence in Secondary School Teaching.

Athletics
"To promote regular physical activity and sportsmanship" is one of Kents Hill's stated institutional goals. The athletics program is designed to meet the needs of a variety of students with a wide range of ability, including offerings in varsity, junior varsity, and non-competitive athletics in the fall, winter, and spring trimesters. All students participate in a sport each trimester.

Interscholastic sports
Fall
 * Boys' cross country
 * Girls' cross country
 * Equestrian
 * Field hockey
 * Football
 * Golf
 * Mountain biking
 * Boys' soccer
 * Girls' soccer

Winter
 * Boys' basketball
 * Girls' basketball
 * Fencing
 * Boys' ice hockey
 * Girls' ice hockey
 * Skiing - alpine & nordic
 * Snowboarding

Spring
 * Baseball
 * Equestrian
 * Fencing
 * Boys' lacrosse
 * Girls' lacrosse
 * Softball
 * Boys' tennis
 * Girls' tennis

Non-competitive sporting activities

 * Dance (Spring)
 * Drama (Fall, Winter, Spring)
 * Fitness (Winter)
 * Outing Club (Fall, Spring)
 * Recreational skiing (Winter)
 * Recreational snowboarding (Winter)

Academic facilities

 * Akin Learning Center (1979, re-housed in 2012), formerly the Waters Learning Center, is home to the Learning Skills Program.
 * Bearce Hall (1873) is Kents Hill's iconic bell-tower structure. It is home to school Administration (Head of School, Assistant Head of School, Director of Studies, and Dean of Students), Admissions, and Communications, as well as the Social Studies Department, several classrooms, and Deering Chapel.
 * Dunn Science Center (1966) houses Science, Environmental Studies, Mathematics, and Modern Languages Departments.
 * Ricker Hall (1893) houses the English and Performing Arts Departments. Historic Ricker Theater is located on the third floor and the KHS Bookstore and Student Center are on the first floor.
 * Sampson Hall (1860) houses the James R. Cochrane Library, Bass Visual Arts Center and KHS Art Department, and the Technology Department (IT), in addition to student residences.
 * Williams Woodworking Studio (19??)

Athletic facilities

 * The Alfond Athletics Center (2001) contains the Bonnefond Ice Arena (dedicated 2011), the Hawley Gymnasium, a fitness center, and locker room facilities, in addition to housing the Athletics Department.
 * The Harold Alfond Athletic Complex (2008) is a single major, divisible turf field including area designations for football, soccer, field hockey, baseball, and softball.
 * The O'Connor Alpine Training Center (19??) offers on-campus alpine racing and snowboarding facilities, complete with lights, snow-making equipment, and digital timing.
 * The Liz Cross Mellon Lodge (1998) sits atop the ski hill.
 * In addition to grass playing fields and tennis courts, acres of woods contain maintained cross-country running, mountain biking, and Nordic skiing/snow-showing trails. All these facilities are not only used by the Kents Hill students but support many clubs and youth athletic teams from surrounding communities.

Performance and Leisure facilities

 * Masterman Union (19??) — Dining Hall, College Counseling, Husky Den (snack bar), student lounges, and Lois Masterman Computer Lab.
 * Newton Hall (1932), formerly Newton Gymnasium, is home to the Bodman Performing Arts Center, including an auditorium, recording studio, school band practice room, and offices.

Dormitories

 * Davis Hall (19??) — Senior and Postgraduate Boys' Residence Hall, with faculty housing
 * Jacobs Hall (1982) — Freshmen and Sophomore Girls' Residence Hall, with faculty housing
 * Reed Hall (2007) — Junior, Senior, and Postgraduate Girls' Residence Hall, with faculty housing
 * Sampson Hall (1860) — Sophomore, Junior, and Senior Boys' Residence Hall, with faculty housing
 * Wesleyan Hall (19??) — Freshmen Boys' Residence Hall, with faculty housing

Historic houses

 * 1821 House (1821) - Faculty family Housing
 * Blethen House (1883) - Residence of the Head of School
 * Jollity Manse (????) - Faculty family housing
 * Maxim House (19??) - Faculty family housing
 * Weld House (19XX) - Faculty family housing

Notable Alumni

 * Leon Leonwood Bean, inventor, founder of L.L. Bean Company
 * Alden J. Blethen, co-owner and editor-in-chief of Seattle Daily Times
 * Aaron S. Daggett, last surviving general of the American Civil War
 * Charles H. Fernald, entomologist, naturalist, first professor of economic entomology
 * Timothy Howe, United States Senator from Wisconsin and Postmaster General
 * John Huard, National Football League player and Canadian Football League coach
 * Ephraim K. Smart, United States Representative from Maine
 * Elihu B. Washburne, United States Representative from Illinois and Minister to France
 * Hempstead Washburne, Mayor of Chicago 1891-1892