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MCDS Upper School

Cultivating Thoughtful Leaders

Our program ignites a passion in each and every student in the Upper School. 

Through thought-provoking, analytic, philanthropic and student-centered experiences, we nurture our young adults as they develop into confident, intellectual and compassionate global citizens. 

We strive to make education relevant and to give our students the foundation they need for success beyond life at Miami Country Day School.
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    • Developing Individual Strengths

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Michael Culley Director of Upper School
I am thrilled to be joining a forward-thinking community where the students are at the center of every endeavor. The MCDS mission immediately appealed to me, and I am humbled by the opportunity to serve and support every student, teacher, and parent as Upper School Director. My family is overjoyed with anticipation of the move to Miami and looks forward to meeting the MCDS community!
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From Students To Empowered Individuals

In the Upper School, our students actively seek their unique and individual voices. Students affirm their identities, build community and cultivate leadership skills daily.

We achieve this through advisory programming, which focuses on social-emotional learning and diversity, equity and inclusivity work, and through the wide-array of student led clubs, activities and affinity groups. 

Our students discover the power of their voice by engaging in focused, compassionate and interest-specific acts of service to our local, national and international communities.
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Community Service

We enable students to make a positive impact wherever they venture through meaningful community service beginning in 6th grade. MCDS requires each student to complete a minimum of 25 hours of community service each for a nonprofit organization.
DEI Work

Our inclusive educational community fosters an understanding of and respect for individual differences along a wide spectrum through the classroom, faculty training, events and other programming.
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Advisory and SEL Work

The objectives of our school counseling department and social emotional learning (SEL) are aligned with the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL) Competencies, www.casel.org, which develop students’ self-awareness, social awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making and relationship skills.
School Counseling

By partnering with parents and providing support, resources, and counseling, our school counseling department guides students to attain the awareness, self-management, knowledge, and relational skills that allow them to develop as individuals who respect themselves and others.
Clubs, Activities, and Affinity Groups

We offer a wide variety of extra-curricular activities for our students. With over 30 interest clubs, affinity groups and service groups, there is something for every Spartan.
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Exploring Cultures And Perspectives

We believe that learning is active and social, so we strive to stoke the excitement and momentum of learning in every student. 

Through our signature programs, students develop the literacy, knowledge and skills necessary to navigate our modern society. 

Our students regularly engage in the world around them, whether here in Miami or on another continent, to develop multi-perspective thinking and experience education through inspiration.

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  • GATEway

    GATEway allows kids of all ages to explore the world’s many cultures and languages, through travel programs and other experiences, to prepare students for an essential part of lifelong learning: global citizenship.
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  • X-Term

    X-Term allows Upper School students to explore passions not typically found in the traditional curriculum. Various opportunities are possible on campus, in Miami and at other domestic and international locations. From a new sister school student exchange opportunity in Helsinki, Finland, to the study of architectural design here in Miami, we offer both new courses and our classic options.
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    • Field Trips

    • Field Trips

Field Trips and Field Experiences

Field trips and experiences help stimulate students’ curiosity, facilitate engagement with content and encourage meaningful connections between their curriculum and the world. Experiences have ranged from a trip to Pinecrest Gardens to discuss Shakespeare to a weekend trip to the National Flight Academy in Tallahassee. Students have learned about the biological and chemical processes at the South District Wastewater Treatment Plant, admired works at Art Basel Design Miami and much more. 


Class Trips

In the Upper School, we believe class trips play an essential role in developing our students’ social, emotional, and academic potentials.  During class trips, students participate in a wide variety of experiences to expand their view of the world, foster independence and build upon the excitement of exploration for students to seek new avenues of learning.  Whether collaborating with peers during team-building exercises on a Dude Ranch or navigating the refreshing white waters of the Appalachian Mountains, MCDS class trips are the embodiment of education by inspiration!


Project Capstone

All of our seniors develop, research and complete a meaningful project as a graduation requirement, with support from the Project Capstone Committee and Senior Advisors. The projects are grounded in problem-solving or rooted in service-learning and reflective of our core values. Students are asked to think globally, act locally.

Creating A Unique Path

The path through the Upper School is grounded in a broad-based curriculum while providing an experience as unique as each student. Each year of learning is a combination of survey courses as well as deep dives into areas of interest and passion. 

As students discover who they are and hone in on areas of interest they may want to study at the university level, they have greater choice and ownership of the courses studied.
College Counseling

Our dedicated College Counseling Office helps students with the increasingly complex and competitive college admission process. We facilitate their matriculation to a college that matches their interests and skillsets.
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