Back-to-School Guide

As you prepare for the new school year, we hope you will find this Back-to-School Guide a useful resource. We will be adding updates throughout the summer, so please check back for additional details as we look forward to the start our 177th year as a school together.

International students will be welcomed back starting Monday, September 7.
Domestic Boarding and Day students begin arriving Tuesday, September 8.

We are excited to welcome students and faculty to campus for the 2026-2027 academic year. Go Gunn!

Summer reading

Check the Summer Reading Guide for the All-School Read and other assignments.Summer Reading Guide

Textbook ordering

Textbooks are ordered through the school store.Orders can be placed starting August 1.

Coming August 1

Advising Assignments

Students will hear from their advisors in late August.

Coming in August

Getting Ready to arrive on Campus

What to Bring

Dress Code

We would like all students to find their voice at The Frederick Gunn School and do so through creative expression, achievement, and rapport with the campus community, not through their attire and outward appearance. Students should dress and present themselves in good taste and be respectful of the School’s Mission and Core Values as they apply to appearance.

Students at Gunn have a lot of freedom to choose what they wear within the guidelines provided. Clothes should be purposeful and intentional for the demands of the day. They should be neat, clean, and in good repair. While remaining professional, clothing should also be comfortable and practical. Students’ dress and footwear should also be adaptable to traveling around campus and spending time outside, including in inclement or cold weather.

Please note that for students who have not received their Tartan tie or skirt for the start of the 2026-27 school year, the following alternatives have been approved for Formal Gunn Dress until orders are delivered:

Tie: Students may wear a solid-colored dress tie
Skirt: Students may wear a solid khaki-colored skirt

Dress Code

Laundry Services

Student Debit Accounts

Guardian Requirements

As part of The Frederick Gunn School’s commitment to health and safety, we require all families, day and boarding, to designate a guardian who is not the student’s parent or legal guardian. This process is completed via August Schools in partnership with Guardian Verify, a secure platform for collecting and confirming guardian information. Once you have read and electronically sign off on the policy, you will receive an email from Guardian Verify (support@guardianverify.com). This message will feature Guardian Verify’s distinctive green logo and detailed instructions on assigning your designated guardian.

Guardians must be available to come to campus within 8 hours for reasons that may include:

Student illness with a communicable disease that requires isolation from the community
Medical and non-medical issues that necessitate distancing from the campus community
Disciplinary matters
School closures or vacations
Medical or surgical appointments/procedures/surgeries that require a guardian's presence; surgical procedures will require a minimum of one night off campus with a guardian.
Situations in which students are unable to care for themselves due to illness, injury, medical concerns, or mental health concerns

Guardians must meet the following criteria:

The guardian must live within an 8-hour drive and 250 miles of the campus.
The guardian must not be an immediate family member of the student (i.e., cannot be a sibling or parent).
The guardian must be an adult over 21 years of age.
The guardian may not be a school employee (advisor, faculty, staff, etc.).
The student's family must inform the designated guardian of the requirements and expectations and ensure that the guardian is willing and able to comply with this policy.
If the designated guardian is unavailable when needed, it is the parent's responsibility to provide a substitute guardian promptly.

Students who are unable to identify a guardian who meets the above criteria may utilize our partnered service Student Health Advocates.

Tartan Skirt & Tie Order Form

Order the required Tartan skirt and tie using the buttons below.

Please note that due to manufacturing delays, Tartan orders placed after June 1 will not arrive for the start of the 2026-27 school year. We expect orders to arrive on campus in early November. Please click on the Dress Code tab in this section for Formal Gunn Dress approved alternatives for this fall.

Tartan Tie Order Form

Tartan Skirt Order Form

Transportation to campus

If your student requires transportation from the airport or train station to campus on registration day and/or for long weekends or vacations, please refer to this list of car services:

Avon Limo - (203) 660-7272
Lindsey Limousine - (860) 289-5466
Black Swan Limousine (aka Antique Limo) - (860) 676-2600
Kee Limo - (860) 355-4509

Shipping to campus

Every student will be assigned a personal mailbox number that you can share with family and friends after you arrive. If you are shipping items to campus, our mailing address is:

The Frederick Gunn School

99 Green Hill Road

Washington, CT 06793

Don't forget to put your student's name on the package! Please ensure that packages do not arrive prior to August 24, as we do not have available storage in the mailroom.

Please ship all items via USPS, FedEx, or UPS; please do not ship packages via FedEx Home Delivery.

Summer Forms

Prior to September, please be sure that all required forms have been submitted to each department.
All forms can be found on Highlander Nation as they become available.

Please RSVP by Friday, August 28

RSVP

RECENT COMMUNICATIONS

New Students

4/23 Welcome to Gunn
4/30 Course Registration
5/12 Order Your Official School Tartan by May 22
5/14 Student Health Forms are due July 8 (New US Students)
5/14 Student Health Forms are due July 8 (International Students)
5/28 HSX Events Invite
6/2 Information for International Students & Families