Schule Schloss Salem

Last updated

Schule Schloss Salem
Schuleschlossalemlogo.jpg
Location
Schule Schloss Salem
Schlossbezirk 1

88682 Salem

Germany
Information
School type Private school
Founded1920 [1]
HeadmasterBernd Westermeyer [2]
Grades5–12 (Abitur), [3] 11–12 (IB)
Enrollment600 [3]
Language German, English
ColoursBlue, White
Alumni Altsalemer (Old Salems)
Website schule-schloss-salem.de
Salem Castle Schloss Salem.jpg
Salem Castle
Spetzgart and Harlen Spetzgart.jpg
Spetzgart and Härlen

Schule Schloss Salem (Anglicisation: School of Salem Castle) is a private boarding school with campuses at Salem and Überlingen in Baden-Württemberg, Southern Germany.

Contents

It offers the German Abitur and the International Baccalaureate (IB). With service-oriented programs like a fire brigade and a THW (Technical Support Organisation), the school seeks to offer education on a social as well as an academic level. [4] [5] [6]

The school was established in 1920 by educator Kurt Hahn with the support of Prince Maximilian of Baden, and it was co-educational from the start. [7] During the period of the Third Reich, Hahn, who was Jewish, was forced to emigrate to Scotland, where he founded the British Salem School of Gordonstoun and subsequently the Outward Bound organisation and the United World Colleges. [8]

The school today

Instruction in the first years takes place in German. From Year 8 onward, Salem is fully bilingual and offers a dual curriculum. Students may either continue in the German system (Abitur) or enter the international classes and the IB Diploma Programme, in which the primary language of instruction is English. Most students are of German background, but there are a significant number of international students, with students attending from countries such as Switzerland, Spain, US, China, Russia, Korea, India, Canada, Australia and Italy.

All students in the upper years must engage in community service at least one afternoon per week. All students must also participate in a regular program of sports and/or outdoor pursuits. Participation in the arts is strongly encouraged.

Far more than in boarding schools from the Anglo-American tradition, everyday responsibilities are placed in the hands of students under the guidance of staff. Many activities are led by students elected by their peers.

In 2013 the one-year interdisciplinary Salem Kolleg was opened in Überlingen; it is a studium generale programme seeking to prepare high school graduates for their academic and professional future through an orientation year of classes, career counseling, personal assessment, and outdoor leadership courses. The programme shares many of the Salem facilities.

Approximately one-third of pupils receive financial aid through various scholarship programmes.

Campuses

Salem is spread among three separate campuses: the Lower School (grades 5 to 7) and the Middle School in Salem Castle (grades 8 to 11, and Pre-IB). The Upper (secondary) School is in Spetzgart Castle – along the shores of Lake Constance – and the new campus of Härlen (Grades 11 and 12, IB years 1 and 2). Salem Castle is located in a former Cistercian monastery, which prior to secularisation in 1802–1803 was known as Salem Abbey, in the town of Salem.

In 2024, Architectural Digest named the school one of the "World's 9 Most Beautiful Boarding Schools." [9]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ↑ "History of Schule Schloss Salem". Schule Schloss Salem. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  2. ↑ "The basis of our community: our staff". Schule Schloss Salem. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Facts & Figures: a quick overview". Schule Schloss Salem. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  4. ↑ "Feuerwehren – Kreisfeuerwehrverband Bodenseekreis e.V." (in German). Retrieved 7 November 2025.
  5. ↑ "Services | Schule Schloss Salem". www.schule-schloss-salem.de. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
  6. ↑ "Unser Mitglied Schule Schloss Salem: Einsatzfahrzeug der Feuerwehr - Verband Deutscher Privatschulen BW e.V." www.vdp-bw.de (in German). Retrieved 7 November 2025.
  7. ↑ "Historie | Schule Schloss Salem". www.schule-schloss-salem.de (in German). Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  8. ↑ Wiedersheim, William A. (1990). "The Country Boarding Schools in Germany" . Die Unterrichtspraxis / Teaching German. 23 (1): 66–68. doi:10.2307/3529960. JSTOR   3529960.
  9. ↑ "The World's 9 Most Beautiful Boarding Schools". Architectural Digest . 28 March 2024.

47°46′34″N9°16′38″E / 47.77611°N 9.27722°E / 47.77611; 9.27722

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