Alexander W Dreyfoos School of the Arts – West Palm Beach

The school’s campus is located in downtown West Palm Beach at 501 South Sapodilla Avenue, adjacent to the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts.  DSOA is a part of the School District of Palm Beach County, but also receives funds from the School of the Arts Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.  Previously known as the Palm Beach County School of the Arts, the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts is a public high school and was renamed in recognition of a donation ($1million made by Alexander W. Dreyfoos, Jr., a West Palm Beach philanthropist, in 1997), as the school moved into a new campus in downtown West Palm Beach.  Currently, it is in the heart of Palm Beach County’s cultural landscape, surrounded by the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, the Norton Museum of Art, and the Armory Art Center.

In order to be accepted to the Dreyfoos School, students must audition.  Although most students audition for entry in the ninth grade, prospectives can continue to attempt at higher grades if they aren’t successful at first.  The auditions are held annually for students that live in Palm Beach County.  Applications should be submitted by December of the preceding school year.  Those auditions are then scheduled by late January, held from late January through early March, with acceptances letters distributed by the end of April.  Once accepted, students major in one of the school’s six art departments: Communication Arts, Dance, Digital Media, Music, Theatre, and Visual Arts while taking at least two art area classes, traditional academic classes, and participating in the school’s athletic programs.

Since it’s inception, Dreyfoos has achieved high honors including a 100% graduation rate two years in a row!!  The band program is a student Grammy winner; its concert band, jazz band and classical orchestra are among the best in Florida; and awards from the National Scholastic Press Association, Southeastern Theatre Conference, and the National Public Policy Forum are among its other accolades.

Learn more about the Dreyfoos School of the Arts, please visit their website: http://www.awdsoa.org/

See USNews and World Report’s review: http://education.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-high-schools/listings/florida/alexander-w-dreyfoos-jr-school-of-the-arts