Friends Academy recently welcomed prospective families to its annual Open House, offering an immersive view of daily student life and how lifelong trajectories are nurtured at the oldest and longest-running private school on Long Island.
Across three days in late October, families toured the Upper School (grades 9-12), the Middle School (5-8), and the Lower School (K-4), which also includes the Early Childhood Education program (age 3 through Pre-K). They heard from administrators, teachers, coaches, and students who described the school — regardless of grade or division — as a place that always feels like home.
Their sentiments echoed those of Friends Academy alumni who offered recollections as the school celebrates its 150th anniversary during the 2026-27 school year. Notably, three alumni said:
Friends sits on a 65-acre campus in Locust Valley. The strategic layout of the school and its emphasis on community create an environment that Mrs. Brie Kraska ’93 — a Middle School math teacher, an alumna, and the parent of two Friends students — described in a panel discussion as “the heart of my life and my family’s life.”
The buildings at Friends not only line the perimeter of the Quad, they’re also in close proximity to each other, giving the vibe of togetherness a tangible feel.
The Upper School is nestled next to the Lower School, which sits across a pathway from the Dolan Arts Center, which is down another pathway from the Athletics Building, the Kumar Wang Library, and the Middle School, which (coming full circle) is another short pathway from the Upper School.
Beyond the layout, all aspects of the school are interconnected by an undercurrent of kindness.
That sense of belonging — of feeling seen, heard, valued, truly known — exists, senior Jack Steinberg said in a student panel discussion, because “Friends is the one place where you can always be vulnerable. It’s the one place where there is no judgment whatsoever.”
No matter the grade in which students start their journey at Friends Academy, they receive that level of support and care. And they all traverse the same pathways to end up in the same place: at graduation, on the Quad, equipped with what Head of School Mr. Alfred (Rik) F. Dugan III calls “a compass to morally and ethically navigate a very complex world, and the clarity of knowing who they are so they can lead lives of purpose and impact the world to make it a better place.”
Knowing yourself, it has been said, is the beginning of all wisdom. It’s a timeless adage, often traced back to Aristotle.
At Friends Academy, it’s a timeless practice.
Founded as a Quaker school in 1867, Friends has always been guided by the core values of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality, and stewardship.
What does simplicity mean for students at Friends?
With each transition during the school day, students are guided to take a moment and pause for silent reflection. Taking this long beat gives students and teachers a chance to recenter themselves, breathe deeply, and connect to their inward selves rather than the external things they are striving to achieve.
Academic rigor, to be sure, is baked into the DNA of Friends Academy.
Every year, 100% of graduating seniors head off to the finest colleges and universities across the country and around the world. And throughout the school’s history, Friends alumni have worked with NASA, the White House, Doctors Without Borders, the Peace Corps, and many other distinguished institutions that shape the dynamics of the world.
Friends students are immersed in a culture of high achievement, but they’re also grounded in what it means to be human.
Moments of silent reflection?
There are modern names that speak to this time-honored Quaker practice: mindfulness, being present, expressing gratitude, meditation — all scientifically backed ways of reducing stress, improving mental health, enhancing emotional intelligence, and leading to fulfilled, balanced, purpose-driven lives.
By building this habit multiple times a day, Friends students develop the lifelong advantage of knowing who they are, what they care about most, and how to find inner calm when an ever-chaotic world seems to be going too fast around them.
“I recently had a conversation with one of our alumni who is deep into his career,” Ms. Judi O’Brien, the principal for the Lower and Middle Schools at Friends, said to a group of parents during Open House. “The thing that has always stayed with him is the cadence of his life. Knowing how to slow down, knowing when to pause and reflect. He said it has always helped him deal with the complexities in his work and his personal life. He learned those things at Friends Academy.”
Towns with * denote 1-3 students enrolled; ** have 4-9; *** have 10+.
| Albertson * | Babylon * | Baldwin * | Bay Shore * |
| Bayside * | Bayville * | Bellmore * | Bethpage * |
| Brentwood * | Brooklyn * | Cambria Heights * | Carle Place * |
| Centerport * | Central Islip * | Cold Spring Harbor * | Deer Park * |
| Dix Hills ** | Douglaston ** | East Meadow ** | East Northport * |
| East Norwich ** | Farmingdale * | Floral Park * | Freeport * |
| Garden City ** | Garden City Park * | Glen Cove *** | Glen Head *** |
| Great Neck *** | Greenlawn * | Greenvale ** | Halesite ** |
| Hempstead * | Hewlett * | Hicksville * | Hollis * |
| Huntington *** | Jackson Heights * | Jamaica * | Jericho ** |
| Levittown * | Lindenhurst * | Little Neck ** | Lloyd Harbor *** |
| Locust Valley *** | Long Beach * | Mamaroneck * | Manhasset *** |
| Melville * | Merrick * | Mill Neck ** | Mineola * |
| New Hyde Park * | New York * | North Baldwin * | North Hills * |
| Northport * | Old Brookville * | Old Westbury *** | Oyster Bay *** |
| Oyster Bay Cove * | Plandome * | Port Washington *** | Rockville Centre ** |
| Roosevelt ** | Rosedale * | Roslyn *** | Roslyn Heights ** |
| Sands Point *** | Sea Cliff ** | Seaford * | South Huntington * |
| Syosset *** | Uniondale ** | Valley Stream * | Wantagh * |
| West Hempstead * | Westbury *** | Whitestone * | Williston Park * |
| Woodbury ** | Woodmere * |
During a Q&A session at the Open House, the mother of a prospective student asked a pointed question about staying connected while coming from so many different places.
Jack Steinberg, a multi-sport senior from Suffolk County (pictured below), instantly reached for the microphone.
“I understand where this question is coming from, because I had the same concerns before I came here,” he said. “And once I got here, it’s something I never thought about again. We all find our people here. We do things at school together and after school together. On the weekends, we meet each other halfway or don’t even think about the distance. The friends you make here, they’re your best friends, and we all want to stay connected with each other.”
Senior Jack Costagliola, who lives farther out in Suffolk County, said, “It takes me about an hour to get to school every day. That’s obviously a long commute, but it’s worth it. The community here really cares about you. We are focused on making everyone feel included. Geographically, we are dispersed, but don’t be afraid to come here. Everyone is made to feel included, no matter what.”
As he moderated a student panel discussion, Mr. Mark Schoeffel, Assistant Head of School for Academic Affairs and the principal of the Upper School, added, “The fact that people come from all over to attend Friends is part of what makes the school really special. It’s not just geographically. This is a really vibrantly diverse community, and in my view it’s our greatest strength.”
Important documents for prospective families:
At Friends Academy, students specialize in being well-rounded.
Senior Holly Marcell (pictured below) shared her journey at the Open House, expressing gratitude for how the school doesn’t force students to become one-dimensional.
Holly participates in theater, where she showed dynamic range in multiple roles during last winter’s musical, The Lightning Thief. She is co-clerk for the Tri-M Music Honor Society, and she performed in the distinguished 2026 All-County Music Festival at the Tilles Center. She is also a captain on the girls’ varsity soccer team and serves as a student ambassador for the admissions office.
“Our mission at Friends,” Mr. Dugan, the Head of School, says, “is to help our students discover and develop the best of who they are, and who they can become. No student at Friends is only one thing. They pursue their passions. They’re given the time and space — and the support — to become leaders who are incredibly well prepared to go off to college and do amazing things in the world.”
Upper School students are encouraged not to build a transactional résumé for college applications, but to instead “let their life speak” — a traditional Quaker expression that guides students to discover their genuine passions and purpose in life.
Friends offers students like Holly and fellow senior Joseline Reyes (pictured below) the chance to explore a vibrant arts program and be a part of an inclusive, championship-caliber athletics program.
Challenged by a rigorous curriculum, students also have multiple pathways to explore cutting-edge STEM and research programs; entrepreneurship and social impact programs; cross-disciplinary studies; robust club and committee leadership opportunities; and student-driven initiatives to create programs or independent studies; and more.
Mr. Edward Dugger, the director of college counseling who has been at Friends for 30 years, told prospective families at Open House: “The question — how do you let your life speak? — isn't just about getting into college. People think, What’s the end game by going to Friends Academy? Am I going to go to a good school? Rest assured, the mission of our college office is to work as hard as we can, so that you will have a great choice. Part of that mission is making sure you have the space to let your life speak. We don’t just ask this question as you enter the school, or just when you’re going off to college. We’ll ask you 20 years after you graduate. How are you letting your life speak?”
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Children between the ages of 10 to 14 continually undergo their most rapid period of emotional, physical, and brain growth since they were toddlers. It’s also a time when they walk a fine line between seeking independence and still needing support and guidance to build daily habits, overall resilience, and discover who they are.
The Middle School at Friends Academy gives students a broad canvas to explore their passions, discover new talents, be leaders, and shape their identities.
All students take core math, English, science, history, and world languages. They also take specialized courses, such as speech and debate and robotics, to build communication and technical foundations. And they’re able to engage in advanced topics well beyond standard middle school curricula. Examples highlighted by current students include entering the Long Island Math Fair with projects on convolutional neural networks and AI-driven cancer detection.
Beyond the classroom, students participate in robust athletics and have access to vibrant opportunities in the arts.
Exposure to the arts is universal in Middle School. Every student in grades 5-8 participates in music (instrumental and vocal ensembles), visual arts (photography, painting, sculpting), dance (including aerial silks), and theater. Students partake in co-curricular productions, including writing their own original short plays for the stage, and get to experience a one-of-its-kind Middle School Arts Week.
Recognizing that students are multi-dimensional scholars, artists, and family members who also pursue interests outside of school, the athletics department structures middle school practices during the school day rather than evenings. Practices take the place of physical education classes — the final period of the school day for 7th and 8th graders, and earlier in the day for 5th and 6th graders.
When it comes to games, 5th and 6th graders participate in mini-seasons against nearby independent schools, while 7th and 8th graders compete in the Nassau County public school league against neighboring districts (with minimal travel).
At Friends, students in the Middle School are not taught what to think, but how to think. Along the same lines, they’re not told how to study. Instead, they’re exposed to multiple ways of engaging with material, processing information, and finding what approach works best for them.
Because they are pragmatic learners in this stage of life — they grow best when they understand why something matters — they are charged with taking ownership of their educational journey.
It’s a central theme to the Middle School experience at Friends Academy.
Instead of traditional parent-teacher meetings in which adults talk about the student, Friends Academy holds student-led conferences a few months into each new school year to hear from the student. Supported by teachers prior to the conference, students speak to their parents about their own reflections, strengths, areas for improvement, and goals.
Friends Academy measures success not just by grades, but also by nurturing articulate, grounded young people who know how to advocate for themselves, empathize with others, and approach complex challenges with confidence.
Every student is paired with a faculty advisor who acts as their frontline advocate, helping them navigate social dynamics, academic challenges, time management, and test retakes. The academic programming prioritizes curiosity and resilience, teaching students that skill develops through practice and constructive feedback that reframes mistakes as learning opportunities.
Small class sizes allow teachers to tailor instruction to individual strengths or needs. Flexible periods like WINN (What I Need Now) give teachers space to offer targeted enrichment, such as literary discussion circles or one-on-one academic support.
For middle schoolers navigating early adolescence, Friends Academy serves as a secure “home away from home” where teachers know them fully as individuals.
“Middle school is a pivotal stage where students are intensely curious and actively figuring out who they are,” says Ms. Judi O’Brien, the principal of the Middle School. “That journey requires a growth mindset, which serves as the cornerstone of our entire program. During a time when adolescents often battle self-consciousness and fear drawing attention to themselves, we create a culture where taking healthy risks and making mistakes are embraced as essential parts of learning.
“When you provide the right conditions for wonder and inquiry, students don't just learn how to navigate challenges — they gain enduring confidence that carries them through life.”
Important documents for prospective families:
The love for learning instilled in students at Friends Academy’s Lower School is seen every morning when they run ahead of their parents and greet their teachers with bright eyes, wide smiles, and handshakes at the front door.
“Research shows that a child’s long-term orientation toward learning is set in their earliest school years,” says Ms. Judi O’Brien, the Lower School principal. “And that academic success naturally follows when children feel genuine enthusiasm and belonging. More than anything, we want our youngest learners to love going to school every day.”
Everything about the Lower School experience (age 3 through Grade 4) is designed to give students an unparalleled advantage for their upcoming transition to Middle School — and a lifelong foundation that emphasizes academic rigor, character development, and emotional intelligence.
With this in mind, Friends uses a Responsive Classroom approach that gives equal importance to students’ social, emotional, academic, athletic, and artistic development. At Friends, we nurture the whole child and show our youngest students the whole world of possibilities.
“Our teachers know their students as whole people,” Ms. O’Brien says. “They really take an interest in knowing who they are, what they care about, what’s challenging for them, and that makes all the difference. Every student here feels known, seen, understood, and valued. That experience stays with them for life.”
Classrooms are designed for student agency. Supplies, learning centers, and spaces are organized so students learn self-management, independence, and accountability. Whether exploring foundational literacy, mathematical reasoning, or hands-on science, teachers use open-ended inquiry, writing conferences, and peer-to-peer teaching to ensure every child’s voice is heard and encouraged.
Because young minds develop best when structured skill acquisition is balanced with spontaneous discovery, play is recognized as essential cognitive and social development at Friends rather than a mere break from instruction. This approach aligns with the mission of the Lower School, which is to ensure that each child goes on to Middle School with a solid sense of self, a love of learning, and a deep curiosity that matches their confidence, competence, and joy.
Young children rise to meet high expectations at Friends Academy because they are guided through student-centered, hands-on learning that teaches them real-world skills such as communication, inquiry, interpretation, analysis, and problem-solving.
They are taught reading, writing, math, social studies, science, world languages, visual art, music, theater, library, health, an outdoors forest program, physical education, and signature experiences that highlight interdisciplinary studies.
The signature experiences are designed as rites of passage at the end of each school year. Rooted in the curriculum, they are meant to challenge students to expand their growth as they prepare to take the next step. The projects require age-appropriate levels of research, writing, collaborating with peers and the local community, and speaking publicly while presenting work to an audience.
In lockstep with academics, students at Friends get an education they can’t get anywhere else when it comes to empathy, self-control, and understanding others’ perspectives. In Friends’ school-wide K-12 Community Groups, Lower School students are mentored by high school students and middle school students who set the example of how to treat others in our community. It’s an example they see the older students set every day across the school’s campus.
“Friends provides a social and emotional learning dynamic that standalone elementary schools and standalone K-8 schools can’t duplicate,” Ms. O’Brien says. “This is just as important, if not more important, than developing study habits and time management skills.”
Beyond academic benchmarks, parents choose Friends Academy because the school graduates young adults who know themselves and pursue their passions in life. That milestone event might seem far down the road, but the work of molding kind hearts and strong minds begins in Lower School. It’s where reflective habits are first practiced daily — pausing amidst complexity, actively listening to differing viewpoints, taking thoughtful action in community settings — and it’s how children develop an enduring internal compass that serves them well into adulthood.
It’s seen every morning in the way that students greet their teachers at the front door. Families trust Friends Academy because we do not ask them to choose between academic ambition and emotional well-being. By wrapping foundational skills in play, purpose, and genuine community, the Lower School ensures that students develop both the competence to excel and the character to make a meaningful mark on the world.
At Friends, community isn’t just a buzzword. It’s an intentional choice and a deliberate way of interacting with each other. This is most apparent in Community Groups, a cherished program that turns the three divisions of Friends — Upper, Middle, Lower — into one large school multiple times throughout the school year.
There are nearly 40 Community Groups at Friends. Each is composed of students and faculty from all three divisions and different grades. When students join the school, they are welcomed into a Community Group and remain in that same one for the entirety of their time at Friends Academy.
This anchor point allows students to grow individually while seeing younger and older students grow at different stages around them. In Community Groups, students are simultaneously given the chance to mentor younger students while being mentored by older students.
Hayden Penn, a sophomore, has been at Friends Academy since Kindergarten. He’s in Community Group 13. He plays soccer, baseball, and participates in the school’s extracurricular Independent Science Research Program.
Growing up with his Community Group, he says, allowed him to see a greater perspective beyond what was just in front of him at any given time. Speaking to a group of prospective families at Open House, he traced the steps of his journey from Lower School (what he called open and creative discovery), to Middle School (where he built skills such as time management), to where he is now in Upper School — pursuing his passions in advanced science and building independence upon the foundation he’s been given by the school.
A backbone of his journey — “one thing that has made me especially proud to be a part of the Friends Academy community,” he says — has been Community Groups.
“We have elementary students, middle schoolers, and high school students in our group,” Hayden said. “We all bond and come together. When I was younger, the older students knew who I was and said hello to me when they saw me on the Quad. Now that I’m in high school, I do the same for the younger students. Everybody has a sense of belonging here, no matter what grade you’re in.”
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“At Friends Academy,” director of arts Andrew Geha told prospective families, “we’ve cracked that open. From the Lower School all the way through 12th grade, our students engage with an arts experience that keeps them connected to what’s happening in the world and how to make sense of it — and they learn how to put their own creative voice out there so the world can receive it.”
Finding and refining your voice is a hallmark of the student experience at Friends Academy, with some of the most profound growth occurring in the arts.
Students do not simply perform existing repertoire; they create it. From second-grade narrative building to middle schoolers penning original one-act plays to high schoolers writing and staging immersive theater, the arts program at Friends empowers students to understand, explain, and frame the world through their own experiences, perspectives, and insights.
Many Friends alumni go on to study the arts in college, with graduates attending the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, the University of Southern California School of Dramatic Arts, The Juilliard School, and other leading institutions. Some alumni go on to perform on Broadway while others tour the country with their bands. Wherever Friends alumni end up pursuing their careers — operating rooms, courtrooms, anywhere — they take what they learned from the arts with them.
At Friends, the arts teach students how to take ownership of their ideas; how to collaborate within an ensemble, aligning their roles to the goals of the collective; and they learn how to build confidence in a structured, supportive environment where vulnerability is practiced and rewarded.
The deep empathy, public poise, and creative problem-solving fostered by the arts at Friends Academy become a competitive advantage for life. This is why the arts aren’t an afterthought or an occasional elective. The offerings at Friends include:
Students are able to explore an array of art offerings at Friends, which couldn’t be more imperative in the age of artificial intelligence.
At the Open House, Mr. Geha spoke about the idea that AI is a tool that can only ever look backward at what has already been created.
“When you use AI to answer a question,” he said, “it just gives you sort of the average of what we’ve heard already. If you want to look forward, if you want to think about the future, or if you want to create the future, you need the arts. You need artists who are thinking about things differently, thinking about problems in ways that we’ve never tried to solve before. Arts education, at its core, is teaching real-world skills that students can apply to whatever careers they choose to go into.”
At Friends, we believe the future does not belong to those who can merely summarize the past. It belongs to those who have the courage, creativity, and imagination to build what comes next.
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Most athletic programs are defined by early specialization, hyper-competitive cuts, and a ruthless environment in which non-college-recruits are pushed aside.
At Friends, we do things differently.
Whether students are aspiring NCAA recruits, multi-sport athletes who also participate in the arts, or beginners looking to put on a school jersey, there is a team waiting for them in Friends Academy’s no-barrier sports culture.
Our athletics are built on the conviction that competitiveness and inclusive Quaker values are mutually reinforcing. The program makes two simple promises: we pursue athletic excellence at the highest levels, and we ensure that every student has a place to play, grow, and belong. At Friends, 84% of seventh through 12th graders play a sport. High-performing college recruits and newcomers share the same rosters because Friends views athletics as a laboratory for developing character, physical well-being, leadership, and lifelong friendships.
As a member of Section VIII in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association, the Quakers have won:
Friends is the only independent/private school to play in the public school league, which gives student-athletes access to high-level competition, regional recognition (Newsday coverage), and New York State championship eligibility — all while avoiding grueling road trips and late nights (more time to balance academics) that other independent/private schools must take across the tri-state area.
Sports is another way of saying community. Our coaches average 10+ years of coaching varsity sports at Friends, and more than 60% of our coaches either teach or work full-time on campus. We get to know student-athletes on a personal level and instill the school’s mission — allow students to discover and develop the best of who they are and who they can become — through both teaching and coaching.
That crossover mentorship helps students excel at the highest standards.
On average, 10% of our student-athletes commit to play in college (compared to the national average of 7%). Last spring, 13 student-athletes in a graduating class of 82 (16%) committed to play in college.
Perhaps the best example of what it means to be a part of a sports team at Friends: Two years ago, the boys’ tennis team won the New York state title on the courts of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens.
“Some of the kids who were on that state championship team are now playing in college,” Mr. Johnsen said at the Open House. “There were also kids who were just so excited to have the opportunity to be on the team, to be with their friends, and to celebrate with their friends.
“On every team, there are students who have dreams of playing in college, who are all-stars and award-winners and all those incredible things. At the same time, there are students on every team who are looking for community, who want to be with their friends, who just want to put on a Friends Academy jersey and belong to a part of something bigger than them. Both of those things exist at the same time on our teams, and that is truly what I am most proud of with our athletics program.”
What It Means to Be an Athlete at Friends: Listen to the senior athlete testimonial for multi-sport athlete Dylan Wolf ’26.
As a Quaker School, students in each division attend Quaker Meetings with peers and teachers. For roughly 40 minutes each week, students sit in the Matinecock Meeting House, located across the street from the school, where they are prompted to reflect deeply, share thoughtful insights about their lives, and actively listen to peers about the dynamics shaping their journeys and the world at large.
Nurturing this depth of character development alongside intellectual growth molds the next generation of leaders who know how to listen intentionally, engage with complex ethical questions, and cultivate authentic self-expression.
As part of Friends Academy’s 150th Oral History project, scores of alumni shared their favorite memories about the school, with many relaying how their cumulative time in the Meeting House shaped their lives. Here are but a few examples through the decades:
Class of 1946
“The Quaker values instilled at Friends shaped who I am today. I'm not a religious Quaker, but I carry their beliefs of non-violence and kindness. The school’s influence was a formative experience that created a gentle, peaceful outlook that has guided my life.”
Class of 1959
“Every Wednesday, our entire student body sat in silence for about an hour. It's a Quaker tradition — no minister, just quiet reflection, and people speaking only if moved to speak. At the time, some of us found it boring. Looking back, those moments of silence were invaluable to our growth. The proof came at our 25th reunion. We were at a party Saturday night when someone suggested attending Meeting the next morning. Every single one of us went. That showed how deeply it had affected us.”
Class of 1968
“At first, I was nervous about going to Quaker Meetings because I wasn't sure I could stay quiet for 45 minutes. But I got used to it and came to enjoy it. The principles of simplicity, moderation, and serving others — those ideas stuck with me. I still live by them. Not a day goes by that Friends Academy doesn’t somehow resound in the background of my life.”
Class of 1972
“Even as a teenager, I was struck by the sincerity and eloquence of remarks made in the Meeting House, particularly when they addressed the tragedy and human cost of the Vietnam War. Those moments reflected some of the best qualities of a Quaker education: thoughtful inquiry, compassion, and the willingness to wrestle with difficult questions.”
Class of 1984
“The weekly Quaker Meetings were an experience I didn't fully appreciate at the time, but have become increasingly meaningful. Being able to reflect as a community on a regular basis was truly special. It was a formative experience that continues to shape my life to this day. What I'm most grateful for was the opportunity to be in a smaller environment where every voice mattered.”
Class of 1993
“The Quaker Meetings were incredibly meaningful; a time to reflect, share thoughts and feelings, and practice empathy and consensus-building. The school’s influence has stayed with me long after graduation. The relationships, traditions, and values of the Friends community have shaped who I am today. It will always hold a special place in my heart as the place I’ve called home for most of my life.”
Class of 2008
“The Quaker Meetings were unlike anything I had experienced before. Taking time each week to sit in silent reflection, allowing anyone to speak when moved, was such a calming and centering part of my school day. I looked forward to the meetings and the sense of community they fostered. The teachers always made me feel supported, instilling values of kindness and character that have stayed with me. The foundation laid during my time there has undoubtedly shaped who I am today.”
Class of 2015
“Friends shaped me far beyond academics. The Quaker values and teachings became a foundation for how I approach being a good person and human. I now help people become their healthiest, happiest selves through mindfulness coaching and sound meditation. I can trace these threads back to Friends and the foundation it gave me.”
Class of 2026
“In an increasingly buzzing world, weekly Quaker Meeting allowed me to reset my mind and keep track of what mattered. While I didn’t always appreciate it, the Meeting House slowly became one of my favorite places on campus as I reached the end of my journey at Friends. For me, it was the mark of thoughtful reflection, open-mindedness, and served as a sense of community. I look forward to exercising all that it taught me as I navigate my journey throughout life.”
At the Open House, Head of School Alfred (Rik) F. Dugan III (pictred above) spoke about how families aren’t just making short-term investments in their children by sending them to Friends, they’re investing long-term in who they will become as adults.
“I have three children of my own,” Mr. Dugan said. “One just graduated from college, another is in college, and our third is in eighth grade here at Friends. My wife, Joanna, and I always talk about how we’re not just raising a 13-year-old. We’re raising a 33-year-old who happens to be 13 right now. And we talk about the best thing we can give our children is a compass to morally and ethically navigate a very complex world, so that no matter what situation they’re in, there will be something bigger than themselves guiding the decisions they make.
“Our students lead lives of purpose,” he added. “Our students are whole and not hollow. They lift up the people next to them. They are forming spiritually as human beings on this earth through our Quaker principles. And most of all, they are loved. And I say that without apology. You send your child to Friends Academy; they will be seen, they will be cherished, and they will be loved. As parents, that’s the environment we all want for our children.”
Students who attend Friends (and their families) often feel called to the school in their search for something deeper, greater, and more meaningful than traditional pathways through public schools or the isolating, high-pressure environments that often define other elite private schools.
What makes Friends Academy different is what differentiates our students for the rest of their lives.
They are supported by small class sizes and expert teachers who blend time-honored academics with modern lessons, such as how to navigate artificial intelligence. Friends is at the forefront of this emerging technology with industry-leading guidelines on how to teach and learn with AI.
They thrive in an environment, Mr. Dugan says, where “the adults are comfortable taking a step back so the students can step forward, lead, and learn by doing.” This empowers them to not only find their voices but also understand their agency. Students are encouraged to be active creators rather than passive recipients in order to become what Friends Academy calls “the heroes of their own stories.”
Teachers at Friends understand the importance of psychological safety — the difference between genuine belonging rather than adapting to merely fit in. The school-wide community is intentionally cultivated to create a genuine sense of belonging where differences are celebrated and the sameness that makes us all human is deeply felt and understood.
Friends Academy turns 150 years old this school year. It’s more than a number or a historical fact. It’s a decades-long, living momentum of strong minds and kind hearts in which the next generation of students are writing the next chapter of the school’s illustrious history.
They are students who …
… are changing lives by applying what they learned in entrepreneurship class to positively impact communities beyond the school.
… reflect 20% of this year’s senior class and earned distinctions in the National Merit Scholarship Program.
… were one of 300 scholars worldwide to be named as a semifinalist in the prestigious Regeneron Science Talent Search 2026.
… were one of roughly 400 high school students in the country to earn a qualifying score on the daunting 2026 F=ma exam.
… all placed at the 2026 Long Island Math Fair; of the 39 students who represented Friends, 22 won gold medals and everyone else took either a silver or bronze.
... who participated in the 2026 Long Island Science Engineering Fair (LISEF) and presented projects across an array of specialized areas, including plant sciences, energy, physics, biology, and computer sciences — and made it a banner year for scientific exploration at Friends Academy.
… created new programs and brought alumni back to Friends to speak about their life experiences and careers in an array of fields.
… performed in the 2026 All-County Music Festival, an annual series of concerts hosted each winter at the Tilles Center.
… were recognized in the 2026 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious awards program for creative teens.
… won the school’s most recent state championship.
… made the school’s winter musical feel like a Broadway production.
… reimagined what the humanities can be and created a new tradition at Friends.
At Friends Academy, a student can compete in sports, play an instrument, act on stage, serve as a club leader, and help solve real-world problems all in the same day.
They can do all these things in an environment where academic rigor coexists with emotional intelligence and community warmth. “Our students are obviously high-chargers,” Mr. Mark Schoeffel, the Assistant Head of School, told prospective families at Open House. “But we make sure they have balance in their days. We want them to have full lives, not lives that are burnt out.”
What makes Friends so different?
We know that knowledge is incomplete without wisdom; that ambition is aimless without purpose; and that true growth requires hard work, productive struggle, and the right support for students to find their own way. In the end, Friends students know who they are and what they care about before they head off to college — already poised to impact the world.
There is no better foundation for the rest of their lives.
“Parents can get so focused on future outcomes that they overlook what’s right in front of us, which is a child’s reality each day,” Mr. Dugan said at the Open House. “We never lose sight of that. Our kids get the experience of growing up once. If you have confidence in the outcome at the end of the journey — which we do, because we have a history of delivering desired results — wouldn’t you want them to be in a place where they are going to be loved, uplifted, challenged, and nurtured?
“We slow life down for them on purpose. We don’t rush things. They’re going to become the best versions of themselves at Friends. Not only because of the work they do, but also because of the time we take to reflect on the fullness of our lives. On our campus, they’re going to know what it feels like to be in a place that celebrates every child and cherishes every day.”
We encourage families to take advantage of our Early Notification process, which has a December 15 deadline and ensures notification by January 15, 2027.
The deadline for regular decision applications is January 15, 2027, with families being notified by February 15, 2027.
Regardless of which application timeline you choose, the deadline for applying for financial aid is December 15.
Because Friends believes that every child deserves access to a transformative education, the school operates a financial aid program for families in Kindergarten through Grade 12 to ensure that tuition concerns are not a barrier. The financial aid process is confidential and awards are based on demonstrated need.
Admissions decisions are finalized on March 15, 2027.
During an Open House roundtable discussion, Mrs. Brie Kraska ’93 spoke about the impact that Friends Academy has had on her life.
A Middle School math teacher now in her 22nd year at Friends, Mrs. Kraska (pictured below) was the 2026 recipient of the school’s Fahey Master Teacher Award, which is given annually to a faculty member who demonstrates exceptional talent and a deep commitment to students. She and her husband are Friends alumni; their daughter (pictured next to her mom below) graduated last spring and their son is now a junior.
“It’s difficult to look out on this campus and not see my family’s story woven into every corner,” Mrs. Kraska said. “I don’t consider Friends a workplace. It’s the foundation, the heart of my life and my family’s life.
“My husband and I have two children who have quite literally grown up on this campus. My daughter started at 5 months old in daycare, and last year she walked across the graduation stage as an 18-year-old. She wrote her college essay on what school meant to her, so I thought it would be fun to read a little excerpt from it, which she did not let me read until she had committed to Elon University.
“She wrote: ‘Reflecting on community for this essay, I began to realize how unique it is to have grown up in one place for the entirety of my life. I have walked the same paths and seen many of the same faces for 17 years. We notice each other, ask questions, listen with interest and care. To me, community is not defined by grand gestures, but by the quiet ways people show up for one another. It lives in the small moments of kindness, in the shared laughter that lightens a heavy day, and in the simple reassurance of knowing that someone will be there when you need them.
“‘It's easy to feel invisible in the world, but my community has not let that happen, from my earliest moments in FA daycare to the milestones of my senior year. Sure, my school has taught me math, science, and history, and it has given me opportunities in athletics and arts. But more importantly, it has taught me the value and power of empathy. Paying attention to the people around me has become both instinctual and purposeful. Friends Academy is where I learned that being kind is not a personality trait; it's a choice we make every day.’”
Photos by Alvin Caal & Matt Gagne / Friends Academy