Our 4D Academic Curriculum places equal importance on knowledge, skills, character, and reflection.
Our 400 acre campus provides each student the space to learn and play beyond the classroom.
Each student has a dedicated faculty advisor who partners with them year-round to help them reach their full potential.
All of you, all the time. Be seen, valued, and celebrated for who you are.
Since 1824, Kents Hill has been dedicated to providing transformative experiences rooted in the power of community, character, and core values.
Kents Hill sees school differently. We are not just another college preparatory school. We are preparing students for a lifetime of endless possibilities.
30%
Day Students
30
Clubs
40+
Cultures Represented
70%
Boarding Students
Grades
9-PG
18
States
400
Acre Campus
10
Average Class Size
28
Teams
28%
International
240
Students
57%/42%
Male/Female
to Sugarloaf
to Colby College
to hallowell, maine
to sunday river
to Bates College
to augusta state airport
to the center for maine contemporary art
to L.L. Bean & the freeport outlets
to bowdoin college
to portland, Maine
to Boston Logan International Airport
The Kents Hill experience is both local and global. Our 400-acre campus - including a skiing and snowboarding center, miles of wooded trails, and pristine lakefront access - provides each student with the space to learn and play beyond the classroom. Internships, community engagement, and global experiences are no longer an add-on, they are an important part of the Kents Hill experience.
We believe that as a community we can make our school, and the world, a better place. Get a sense of what life at Kents Hill is really like by following us on Facebook and Instagram.
Follow along with senior Nora Castonguay's independent study as she recounts her days on The Hill, interviews community members, and makes a name for herself in the blogging world.
As my senior year rounds the corner into its second half, I find myself reflecting on the people who have impacted my Kents Hill experience, and I realized that there are many members of our community that I have just begun to connect with. Sure, I could name all of my classmates in an instant, but how much do I really know about my teachers and my peers? I’ve realized that I still have so much to squeeze out of this place – so many stories to hear and connections to make. So, to get a good start, I emailed Mr. Hodgin and asked if he’d be willing to sit down for an interview. I had one goal for the interview: hear a good story.
I started by asking: How’d you get here? At first, the conversation was pretty by-the-book; he told me that before going to Bowdoin College, he had been raised in Connecticut, and that his parents worked at a private school that he later attended. Our conversation ended with a philosophical ploy on why you should “maintain your independence as much as you can.” Let me catch you up.
After Mr. Hodgin graduated from Bowdoin, he received a fellowship to go to Africa, where he studied educational access and educational conditions for women and girls in Eritrea. When he returned back to the U.S., he settled in Portland, Maine with some close friends and picked up a gig at a local store. While maintaining his job, Hodgin joined a volunteer training for the sexual violence advocacy and response hotline in Portland. After he became certified, he worked in this capacity for quite some time, until he came to the conclusion that he wanted to put his education degree to use. Which brings us to today. It’s been nearly 21 years since he settled at Kents Hill School.
Within the last five minutes of our interview, I asked a question that I really wanted to know the answer to. I wanted to know what his advice was for students going onto secondary education or into career fields. “Maintain your independence as much as you can,” he advised, “and that doesn’t mean hold friends at an arm’s length.” What he meant, he clarified, was that you should go into your future demanding what you want. If you’re going to a college or university, go with an idea of what you’d like to get out of your time there. If you’re in the right place, your institution will aid you in your ambitions. “The institution, by its nature, tends to reward that. Approach things on your own terms and trust yourself to find the rewarding parts – because they’re there” he expressed.
I walked into the interview anxious, not because of the interview itself but because I had just been doing unsuccessful college research. Do I need to say that Mr. Hodgin’s words came at the right time? Well, Mr. Hodgin’s words came at the right time. I walked out of his room feeling relieved and supported, at peace with where I am and where I’m going. If you get anything out of this post, I hope it’s to talk to someone new, and to be okay with your journey. As long as you follow what you love, it’ll all work out just fine.
Follow along with senior Nora Castonguay's independent study as she recounts her days on The Hill, interviews community members, and makes a name for herself in the blogging world.
Hi Huskies! It’s been a while since we last talked. I hope exams treated you well, and that you are enjoying the start to a relaxing winter break.
Over November break, my AP Language class was assigned a memoir to read: Sigh, Gone by Phuc Tran. Then, during our review period for midterms, Tran virtually visited our class as part of the Grounded in Maine, Connected to the World Speaker Series. Tran discussed his book, his punk rock days, and all other probing questions my peers and I craved the answers to. It was as rewarding and insightful as you can imagine meeting an author to be, and here’s why.
The first question our class asked Tran was regarding the writing process, and how, specifically, he dealt with writer’s block. “It took about a year to finish writing [Sigh, Gone], he said, “and another year to edit.” He delved into the concept that no writing is perfect the first time, and stressed the importance of writing second, third, and as many more drafts as you need. He compared the writing process to climbing a mountain – getting to the top is writing the manuscript, the first draft, but if you want to live to tell the story, you’re going to have to climb down; you’re going to have to edit.
The next topic that he talked about really struck home with me; how to not set so many expectations for yourself, as so much of our futures are out of our control, and therefore we often get let down by experiences that don’t go as we planned for them to. “I wish I told myself to be more curious, to ask questions if things aren’t going as you wanted them to go,” he shared. I remember that when I got to high school, I was so excited, with so many expectations because my older brother had told me all about his incredible experience. And yet, freshman year sucked, it really did. Thankfully I transferred to Kents Hill and have loved it ever since, but still, it’s the idea that I set these expectations based on what someone else had told me, and I simply upset myself when these expectations weren’t met. To say the least, it felt nice to hear someone tell their own story that connected to mine, and to give the advice I would’ve wanted a few years ago.
During the entire time Tran was talking, I was thinking about what I wanted to ask him. I had so many questions, but I wanted to ask something meaningful, something that I knew I could carry with me. So I asked: If you could teach your book, what would you teach, what would you want your students to take away from your writing?
“I think the big takeaway that I would want any reader to take away, especially young people, is that we’re complicated people,” he answered. He then dove into this philosophy, that “we can contain multitudes,” a quote from Walt Whitman. He emphasized that this idea is especially true in the modern age of social media, where we portray ourselves 2D, literally and figuratively. We only show one side of ourselves, when in fact we’re complex beings. This answer stayed with me for a long time as someone who wishes to pursue media studies in college. How do we portray ourselves as complex beings in a digital world? Perhaps we can’t. Perhaps we simply must be more present and 3D as possible.
So, if I were take three things away from his visit, it would be these:
On Monday evening, December 5, in the Boardman Performing Arts Center, our community gathered to celebrate our fall athletes.
On Monday evening, December 5, in the Boardman Performing Arts Center, our community gathered to celebrate our fall athletes. Head of School, Chris Cheney opened the celebration by thanking parents who dealt with wind on The Hill throughout the season. He continued, know our coaches and athletes appreciate that support. “I particularly want to thank our student-athletes. Whatever your favorite sport or focus is, it is important to have a great fall. I want to thank you all who really set us up for a successful year.”
Director of Athletics, Becky Kimball followed with a warm welcome and a quick overview of the fall accomplishments, which included three MAISAD Championships and many NEPSAC appearances. Kimball added, “These accomplishments are a result of hard work and a will to succeed. Everyone in this room deserves a round of applause. Being a student-athlete requires talent and skill, but mastering the art of sleep habits, time management, nutrition, and academic and social responsibilities are noteworthy skills that a high school student is constantly working on. All while maintaining great spirits.”
Shray is the perfect example of what it means to embody a good teammate on and off the field. Shray did not get a lot of minutes this year as he made the jump from JV to Varsity. However, he was one of the hardest-working players on our team, and always asked questions to improve. He made sure that we had a good team culture, always encouraging and lifting others up while also trying to improve.
On a team with many loud voices and assertive personalities on and off the field, Lucas was perhaps the coolest and most level-headed of our squad this season- coaches included. Although one of the team's youngest members, he nonetheless seemed one of the wisest. Despite being a highly competitive alpine biker back home in Chile, Lucas joined JV soccer late in the pre-season, and his impact on the culture and success of the team was immediate. He was one of the first to arrive to practice each day and was nearly always the last to leave, often asking if he could hang on to one of the team's soccer balls so that he could continue to train some more. As one of our starting strikers and leading scorers, Lucas always played with a balance and a manner that combined intensity and effort, with a sense of fairness and respect for opponents, coaches, teammates, and spectators. On some level, he certainly wanted to win, but more importantly, Lucas more clearly just wanted to play- to compete- to do his best for his team and school. While some opposing players found his blended style of physical tenacity and steady composure infuriating (and let him know it with withering Spanish expletives and occasional threats of bodily injury), Lucas never gave it any oxygen, never let any of it get to him, and never broke character. No complaining. No retaliating. No cards. All business. Maybe there just isn't any chirping in alpine biking, because Lucas appeared completely incapable of it. When he was on the bench, he was completely focused on his teammates on the field, and when on the field, he was completely focused on playing soccer the right way. The Kents Hill School athletic program was lucky to have Lucas representing us this season.
![Hodgin on The Hill]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1673974393/kentshillorg/w5jddogfh1qlo4ax6prh/KentsHillSchool_Spring2022-83.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1673974393/kentshillorg/w5jddogfh1qlo4ax6prh/KentsHillSchool_Spring2022-83.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1673974393/kentshillorg/w5jddogfh1qlo4ax6prh/KentsHillSchool_Spring2022-83.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1673974393/kentshillorg/w5jddogfh1qlo4ax6prh/KentsHillSchool_Spring2022-83.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1673974393/kentshillorg/w5jddogfh1qlo4ax6prh/KentsHillSchool_Spring2022-83.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_6/v1673974393/kentshillorg/w5jddogfh1qlo4ax6prh/KentsHillSchool_Spring2022-83.jpg","width":2200}])
![A visit (and lesson) with Phuc Tran]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1671720818/kentshillorg/yia9wiihe2wlxdmiu7bi/PhucTran12.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1671720818/kentshillorg/yia9wiihe2wlxdmiu7bi/PhucTran12.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1671720818/kentshillorg/yia9wiihe2wlxdmiu7bi/PhucTran12.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1671720818/kentshillorg/yia9wiihe2wlxdmiu7bi/PhucTran12.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1671720818/kentshillorg/yia9wiihe2wlxdmiu7bi/PhucTran12.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1671720818/kentshillorg/yia9wiihe2wlxdmiu7bi/PhucTran12.jpg","width":2000}])
![Fall Athletics Awards Celebration]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1670449580/kentshillorg/tdv3jt6putzfn1gtbiqi/FallAthleticAwards1.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1670449580/kentshillorg/tdv3jt6putzfn1gtbiqi/FallAthleticAwards1.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1670449580/kentshillorg/tdv3jt6putzfn1gtbiqi/FallAthleticAwards1.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1670449580/kentshillorg/tdv3jt6putzfn1gtbiqi/FallAthleticAwards1.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1670449580/kentshillorg/tdv3jt6putzfn1gtbiqi/FallAthleticAwards1.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_6/v1670449580/kentshillorg/tdv3jt6putzfn1gtbiqi/FallAthleticAwards1.jpg","width":2200}])
