Student Experience
Advisory Program
Our advisory program is about making connections that last a lifetime. Each student is assigned a faculty advisor at the beginning of the school year who is dedicated to providing support and guidance, both in formal gatherings and impromptu meetings.
Whether a student is seeking advice on academics, athletics, social issues, or simply needs to know that someone is rooting for them, advisors are there.
Advisors meet individually with students during a period built into the daily schedule and share weekly lunches and/or dinners with their groups, ensuring that students are both recognized as individuals and connected to a larger group. Advisors are also the main point of contact between Kents Hill School and parents, ensuring that families are involved, informed, and engaged no matter where they are in the world.
At Kents Hill faculty and teachers make it their mission to see you succeed.
William L. '16
Everyone is so genuine. People here don't care about how popular and slick you are. They care about you as a person - who you really are without being compared to anyone else. Your teachers and classmates want you to be the best version of yourself...My friends, teachers, and coaches have drastically impacted my life.
Stuart V. '18
Traditions & Weekends
Ring the Bell
What's that you hear? It's the bell of historic Bearce Hall - constructed in 1873 - ringing loud and clear across campus to celebrate team victories, commencement exercises, the birth of a child, and more.
Class Projects
The first week of school is affectionately known as "Projects Week." Freshmen stay at Kents Hill to discover our rich traditions and rituals; Sophomores visit Acadia National Park to hike, bike, sea kayak, and swim; Juniors stay at a lakeside luxury summer camp; while Seniors and Postgraduates head north for a guided whitewater rafting trip.
Names in the Bell Tower
Bearce Hall's iconic golden bell tower does more than house the bell, it's home to the signature of every single Kents Hill School student who attended Freshmen Class Projects, during which they also write a ...
Letter to Your Future Self
What will you do over the next four years? Who will you become? Where will this journey take you? Freshmen contemplate these questions while writing letters to themselves. The letters are signed and sealed with a custom wax stamp to be delivered back to the student the day before graduation.
Set in Stone
When a student leaves Kents Hill for their next great adventure, a piece of them always remains here. Each student's name is engraved on a brick that runs along Alumni Walkway from central campus to the Bibby and Harold Alfond Dining Commons.
Winter Carnival
The best way to describe Winter Carnival is to see it. Six color teams battle it out during a week of zany competitions, tasks, and challenges. Past themes have included "Inner Child," "Twilight Zone," and "Endless Summer" and "Kents Hill Heroes." The orange team took the top spot in 2018. Who will reign in 2019?
Typical Weekend
At Kents Hill, we believe in fun! Weekends are a time for students to relax, spend time with friends, go on an adventure, and try something new. Our Student Life team works with “The Weekenders” student group to provide an active social calendar that offers everyone in our diverse student body with a range of fun things to do. Many of our weekend activities are hosted by students. Each week a lineup of the weekend events is emailed to students and displayed in the Bibby and Harold Alfond Dining Commons and the Daily Bulletin. While we have altered our weekend activities to follow safety measures and COVID-19 guidelines, we have not cut back on fun and creative offerings!
Some on-campus events this fall include:
- Apple picking at the Kents Hill apple orchard
- Corn hole tournaments with prizes
- Outdoor movies
- Bonfires and S’mores
- Bingo with prizes
- Tie-dying
- Lightning competitions on the turf
- Wiffle Ball and volleyball games
- Hammock parties in “Hammockville”
- Free pizza at the Student Center
- Trivia nights
- Knock-out competitions
- Canoeing, kayaking, and paddleboarding at our own waterfront park
- Hiking on our nature trails
- Outdoor spike pong (a combination of Spike Ball and ping-pong)
- And so much more!
Sample Weekend Lineup
