The Kinkaid School

The Kinkaid School is a premier college preparatory school that stresses academic accomplishment alongside social development, athletic participation, enjoyment of the arts and ethical behavior. Our focus is the whole child, the whole family, the whole community. If you are looking for a superior education that nurtures strong, well-rounded individuals, Kinkaid is the school for you.

With a proud 113-year history, our school is rich in character and steeped in tradition. Kinkaid is recognized for our extraordinary faculty and staff; the talent, character, and spirit of our students; our exceptional facilities; and the wonderful support provided by parents, alumni and trustees. We are committed to excellence and driven to strengthen our position as one of the premier pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade schools in the country.

Kinkaid’s mission is to promote educational excellence, personal responsibility, and balanced growth, and thereby to help students discover and develop their talents and fulfill their best potential. From its earliest days, Kinkaid has emphasized both academic excellence and character development. Today’s Kinkaid values students for their potential as well as their achievement and emphasizes balanced growth – intellectual, physical, social, and ethical.

Kinkaid recognizes that the primary responsibility for instilling and strengthening values resides with parents. Nevertheless, a school can and should play an important role in character education. We have established four core values at the heart of our emphasis on character development.

• Members of the Kinkaid community tell the truth and act with integrity and honor. We do not mislead, cheat, or steal.
• Members of the Kinkaid community are reliable and hold themselves and others accountable for their actions. We do not make excuses, blame others, or take unwarranted credit.
• Members of the Kinkaid community affirm the intrinsic dignity of all people. We act with tolerance, courtesy, and thoughtful regard for all persons, for property, for the environment, and for ourselves.
• Members of the Kinkaid community exhibit caring and compassionate behavior in all aspects of daily life. We are not mean, and we do not harass nor act in a cruel manner. By our positive example, we discourage unkind behavior in others.

Kinkaid believes that the diversity of its school community, which in simplest terms means the ways in which people are different, enhances the school’s ability to implement its mission. Education involves acknowledging and valuing what is comfortable and known and leading students to an understanding and appreciation of what is new and different. Encountering different perspectives, ideas, ways of thinking, and understandings is an essential part of this process. Through their experience with such differences students develop the ability to think critically, to make informed judgments, to imagine, to understand, and to grow. This principle is at the heart of Kinkaid’s motto, lux per scientiam, light through knowledge.

Diversity serves other mission goals of Kinkaid as well. Personal responsibility in today’s world will demand increased knowledge and respect for the rich diversity of the people and points of view in that world. The next generation of leaders must be prepared to deal effectively with rapid change, varied viewpoints, and different methods of solving problems. Helping Kinkaid students understand their connection to the world and to each other will enable them not only to achieve their highest potentials but also to serve as strong and effective leaders.

Respect for diversity mirrors Kinkaid’s commitment to character education. It is the school’s goal that all students, school families, and faculty and staff feel welcome, valued, and respected at Kinkaid. The values that anchor its character education program—honesty, respect, responsibility, and kindness—also characterize its attitude toward the diversity in the school community. Kinkaid expects that in the professions and communities its graduates enter as adults, they will embody these values that contribute to a global society in a positive and transforming way.

Kinkaid students benefit in other ways from diversity at school. The Houston metropolitan area (and many other parts of the United States) is undergoing dramatic demographic change. The cities in which most of today’s students will live, work, and raise families will be racially and culturally diverse. Indeed, Houston is one of the most diverse cities in the country. Similarly, the professions that many of our graduates will enter will increasingly be required to serve a global community and to draw on resources from around the world to generate their best work. To compete successfully, Kinkaid students must develop a greater appreciation for such diversity.