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Students at MMI Preparatory School
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In the sixth grade, students at MMI Preparatory School in Freeland whet their academic appetites with an introduction to the Greek language. For the next two years, they will devour Latin. And, by the time they reach high school, the students will have the opportunity to read, write, and speak Mandarin Chinese. With its rigorous college preparatory curriculum, MMI Prep has established itself as one of Pennsylvania’s most well respected prep schools, drawing in students from the Greater Hazleton and Greater Wilkes-Barre areas, Shavertown, Bloomsburg, and the Poconos. Boasting challenging academics, MMI Prep also acclimates its students to the college atmosphere. It features an outdoor complex, sports fields, and a relaxing courtyard where students can chat with their friends or crack open a book in the sun.
“We’re designed like a small college campus,” explained Director of Admissions Kim McNulty.
To prepare students for college life and beyond, McNulty emphasized the importance of the school’s tradition of a challenging, well-rounded education. Since its inception in 1879, MMI Prep has been dedicated to enriching the educational lives of students in the region.
First known as the Mining and Mechanics Institute, the school was founded by Eckley B. Coxe- a captain of the coal industry- as a way to educate his coal miners. Many went on to college and returned to the mines with engineering degrees that allowed them to implement change in the perilous coal mining environment.
Following Coxe’s death in 1895, his widow, Sophia G. Coxe, took over management and established a day school to better meet the needs of the community.
“Sophia Coxe opened the day school to provide a quality education to all mining families,” McNulty said.
Throughout the years, MMI Prep has grown and evolved while still maintaining the core values on which it was founded.
Fostering a close-knit community has always been an integral part of the school and is something for which MMI Prep continues to strive. It maintains a small student body, averaging approximately 250 students in grades 6-12.
In order to encourage a supportive community, MMI Prep strives for close student-faculty interaction. Currently, it boasts an 11:1 student-to-faculty ratio, which allows the highest degree of one-on-one interaction.
“I think we are a family,
being as small a school as we are, ” McNulty added. “Because of our small class sizes, we know all our students by name and our administrators know everyone in the school. You know people on a one-to-one basis, which is great.”
In a letter posted on MMI Prep’s website, President Thomas G. Hood emphasizes the importance the school places on supportive relationships and treating students as individuals.
“Alumni often comment on the benefits of the personalized attention they received at MMI, saying it helped them immensely as they progressed through college and onto their chosen careers,” he wrote.
The supportive nature of student-faculty interaction complements the rigorous curriculum offered at MMI. The school takes its title as college preparatory seriously. Over the past 11 years, only three students out of 380 did not enroll at the college level.
McNulty also pointed out that MMI Prep offers a substantial amount of Advanced Placement courses, especially for a school of its size. Among them are AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Physics, AP European History, AP Language and Literature, and AP Studio Art. Students can also earn college credit by taking advantage of MMI Prep’s dual enrollment program with Penn State University’s Hazleton campus.
Other highlights include an extensive array of sports, clubs, and elective courses, which range from Film Appreciation to Robotics; from Presidents of the Cold War to Myths, Masks, and Miracles: The Superheroes; and from Ethics to Biotech.
With a school that offers so much academically and socially, some parents fear that their child will not have the grades to achieve admittance. However, McNulty emphasized that MMI Prep looks for a lot of things when choosing its students.
“We accept a broad range of students at MMI, not just the exceptionally bright,” she said. “We set high standards and look to admit students who have the will to work hard and the desire to be successful.”
Also, she pointed out that financial aid is available to offset the cost of tuition. Last year, 57% of students received aid, averaging more than $5,000 for each student. McNulty said this keeps in line with its history of being a philanthropic school since the 1920s.
“It was the hope of the Coxes that anyone who wanted to attend MMI would have the ability to attend,” McNulty said. “So we work really hard to make sure to keep it as affordable as possible.” |
