Academic Terms

Academic honesty: Hopkins follows the philosophy that honesty promotes learning, while dishonesty interferes with it. At the beginning of each school year, each student reads and signs the school's Statement of Academic Honesty in a special adviser meeting. Academic honesty is further outlined in the Hopkins Handbook.

Academic warning: On occasion, a student's academic performance causes special concern; in such a case, the appropriate head adviser will write a letter of academic warning to the student's parents, and the student's work will be closely monitored.

Advisers: Advisers are faculty members who act as advocates, friends and mentors to their student advisees; please see more about advisers in the "School Life" section of the site.

Free Fridays: Ninth-graders only have to attend one study hall on Fridays; the others become free periods that they can use as they choose.

Grades & comments: Grades (A+ through F) are accompanied by teacher-written comments, more detailed assessments of a student's academic performance and attitude.

Head Adviser: A member of the administration who is responsible for an entire grade, both students and the teachers who advise in that grade. Head advisers are also responsible for discipline for minor infractions.

L.O.P. / L.O.P. Sheet: Loss of privileges; a student loses privileges because of a minor disciplinary matter and must attend a certain number of study halls.

No Homework Weekend: select fall and spring weekends, holiday breaks when no homework is assigned

Parents Course Choice Meeting: meetings to familiarize parents with the course selection process

Promotion: In order to be promoted to the next grade, a student must pass all courses and earn an overall average of D+ or higher. A grade of C- or higher is required for promotion to the next level in foreign language and mathematics courses.

Quiet room: (Junior School) Students go to an assigned place to do work during their only recess; teachers will assign a quiet room when a student forgets his/her homework or book, or when a student misbehaves.

Saturday Hours: for those students who have been tardy too many times during the school week or have run afoul of other rules; they must come to Hopkins on Saturday morning to do course work in a supervised study hall.

HDA: Hopkins Drama Association