Japhet School

About

Japhet School is an independent, coeducational school for preschool through 8th-grade students located in Clawson, Mich. 

Founded in 1973, Japhet School provides strong academic fundamentals built on a foundation of character education. Each Japhet student shares in the responsibilities and privileges of the joyful, supportive and cooperative environment that is the Japhet School. Small classes, committed and caring faculty, and consistently high standards encourage every student to grow, question, learn and excel to his or her full potential.

At Japhet we are doing more than preparing our students for higher education; we are preparing them for life. We encourage students to be active life-long learners and enthusiastic participants in their school, community, and the world.

We believe that character education is an essential part of your child’s education and that education of children is a shared responsibility between the school, family, and the community. Our faculty focuses on educating the whole child, and establishing a strong basis for academic, physical, moral, social, and spiritual development.

At Japhet School character education is integrated into everything we do. We don’t have “character class,” a character “expert,” or 20-minute insertions of character-building activities that are separated from academics. Rather, the expression of good character and use of a common language is at the heart of our school climate, and the teaching of character is integrated into the daily lessons crafted by our nurturing teachers. 

National School of Character Award — 

Japhet School was honored as the first independent school in the country — and the first school in Michigan — to receive a National Schools of Character Award. The annual award is presented to K-12 schools that demonstrate exemplary programs that encourage the social and ethical development of their students, while maintaining strong academic standards. It recognizes outstanding character education initiatives that yield positive results in student behavior, school climate and academic performance. The award is sponsored and administered by the Character Education Partnership (CEP) in Washington, D.C. 

History of Enhancing Education

Throughout its long history, Japhet School continues to make enhancements to the school. Most recently, Japhet School students helped to plant gardens on the school grounds and Miss Margie Brown blessed the school by painting a mural of Michigan wildlife and gardens on the brick wall in front of our building. 

In 2022, Japhet School refurbished and re-equipped our Preschool classroom and in 2021, we rolled out a new STEM lab in the Middle School. The school also began participating in the Impact Challenge hosted by The Principia in St. Louis, MO. Anchored by a new challenge each year, students from a number of schools and across all classrooms share their solutions for real world problems and issues.

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