Girard receives its financial support from an endowment established by our founder, Stephen Girard, in the 1830's. The original 7 million dollars has now grown to 400 million; in addition, Girard has income from our development office initiatives, real estate, coal mining, and other investments.
What kind of applicant does Girard attract? Average intelligence? Above average intelligence? Local? Regional? Nationwide?
A pre-requisite: All students must be from single parent families with significant financial need. A successful applicant will have average or above average intelligence, good academic potential, very good records from his/her previous school, and will do well during the interviews with student and family. Most students come from the Philadelphia area and surrounding counties and states.
Do you receive more applications than you have places?
We admit students in grades 1 - 9. The school enrollment includes grades 1 - 12 at many grade levels, we do have many more applicants than we can accept. We admit no day students; all students board.
Is there any stigma attached to attending a 'free' school?
In my nearly 30 years at Girard, I have come to believe that the vast majority of students are proud to attend and their families are likewise proud. I am not aware of any "stigma."
What kinds of colleges do your graduates go on to attend?
Virtually all our graduates attend four year colleges. Most attend schools like Temple, Penn State, Millersville ... within the last 10 years or so some of our best students have been successful at Drexel University, University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern, Yale, Duke, Johns Hopkins, the Naval Academy, Brown and other similar schools.
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