![Photo of students at SSFS stream]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1557863940/sandyspring/sipvvddpx71an4dt1tkv/MMR_1168.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1557863940/sandyspring/sipvvddpx71an4dt1tkv/MMR_1168.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1557863940/sandyspring/sipvvddpx71an4dt1tkv/MMR_1168.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1557863940/sandyspring/sipvvddpx71an4dt1tkv/MMR_1168.jpg","width":950}])
The SSFS campus is part of the Anacostia Watershed, with a spring running through our campus. Students utilize the spring for outdoor experiential learning, and act as stewards to ensure they contribute positively to the health of the stream.
Our Campus
We prepare students to create a sustainable future on one of the largest and most beautiful campuses in the region.
With 140 acres nestled between Washington D.C. and Baltimore, the serenity of Sandy Spring Friends School is amplified by the nearby bustle. Pastoral, light-filled, and functional, the forested SSFS campus includes academic and administrative buildings, the historic Meeting House, student housing, faculty residences, a state of the art performing arts center, an athletics center (including a fitness center and climbing wall), sports fields, a swimming pond, and an aerial park.
For our students, this is an ideal setting for intellectual contemplation, athletic training, diverse extracurricular pursuits, outdoor exploration, urban excursion and personal growth.
Campus Highlights
summer
60%
of the School's energy consumption is offset by our 2 solar fields.
leaf
6
Miles of cross-country trails in our old-growth forest.
apple
1,500
Pounds of food grown on our organic farm.
shoe
13
Trails of varying difficulty at our aerial adventure park.
![Photo of Middle School students on the SSFS Farm]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1557924598/sandyspring/o7xvehjmi4jzuhu833fl/MMR_2582950px.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1557924598/sandyspring/o7xvehjmi4jzuhu833fl/MMR_2582950px.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1557924598/sandyspring/o7xvehjmi4jzuhu833fl/MMR_2582950px.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1557924598/sandyspring/o7xvehjmi4jzuhu833fl/MMR_2582950px.jpg","width":950}])
The SSFS Community Farm is a community-run educational and working farm that supplies the School's kitchen with fresh, organically-grown seasonal produce and provides members of the SSFS community with opportunities for hands on experience in sustainable food production.
![Sandy Spring Stone and Ceramic Mural]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1559152260/sandyspring/ybmj6rhk25oghcaulyzw/mural_600px.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1559152260/sandyspring/ybmj6rhk25oghcaulyzw/mural_600px.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1559152260/sandyspring/ybmj6rhk25oghcaulyzw/mural_600px.jpg","width":600}])
Designed and created by Michelle Higgins (parent of a 2014 alumnus) and Kate Santorineos (LS art teacher), the mural—made up of 44,000 stones donated from the community from around the world—hold an inspiring message to all who come to campus: "Tend the Garden in your Heart, and by Walking in the Light, your Vines and Lilies will Thrive.”
Map and Directions
- Directions from Points South
- Directions from Points East
- Directions from Points West
- Directions from Points North
Directions from Points South
(via Connecticut Ave.)
North on Connecticut (Rt. 185) to Kensington. Bear left to stay on Connecticut Ave. at junction with University Blvd. Turn left onto Georgia Ave. (Rt. 97-North). Go approx. 3 miles to right turn onto Norbeck Rd. (Rt. 28-East). Turn left onto Layhill Rd. (Rt. 182-North). Go 1/4 mile to light, turn left onto Norwood Rd. Entrance to SSFS is 1/2 mile on right.
(via New Hampshire Ave)
North on New Hampshire (Rt. 650) through White Oak and past Randolph Rd. Turn left onto Norwood Road. Continue through the light at Ednor Rd./Layhill Rd. Go approximately 1/2 mile after the light to SSFS entrance on right.
Directions from Points East
West on Rt. 32 to left onto Rt. 108. Go approx. 12 miles on Rt. 108, continue through light at Ashton (intersection of Rt. 650-New Hampshire Ave.), into village of Sandy Spring. Turn left at light onto Norwood Rd. At stop sign, turn left to continue on Norwood, SSFS is 1/4 mile on left.
Alternate Columbia route: From Rt. 29, take Rt. 108 west, follow directions above.
(from Burtonsville/Laurel areas)
West on Rt. 198. Make a right onto New Hampshire Ave. Go 1 mile and take a left onto Ednor Rd. Turn right at light onto Norwood Rd. Entrance to SSFS 1/2 mile on right.
Directions from Points West
(from Rockville)
East on Norbeck Rd. (Rt.28), at Georgia Ave. (Rt. 97) stay straight, continuing on Norbeck Rd. At light turn left onto Layhill Rd. Go 1/4 mile to left at light at Norwood Rd. Entrance to SSFS 1/2 mile on right.
(from Gaithersburg)
East on Rt. 108 to Olney (intersection at Rt. 97-Georgia Ave.). Continue on Rt. 108 to right turn onto Dr. Bird Road (opposite Olney Theatre). Continue 1 mile to entrance to SSFS on left. (Note: Dr. Bird Road becomes Norwood Rd. after approximately 3/4 mile).
Directions from Points North
(via Georgia Ave. Rt. 97) From I-70 to exit at Rt. 97 South (Georgia Ave. extended). At Sunshine, turn left onto Rt. 650 - New Hampshire Ave. Take Rt. 650 to Ashton, turn right onto Rt. 108. Go approx. 1 mile into village of Sandy Spring. At light, turn left onto Norwood Rd. At stop sign, turn left to continue on Norwood Rd. Entrance to SSFS is 1/4 mile on left.
(from Baltimore)
South on I-95 to exit at Rt. 32 west toward Columbia. See directions above from Columbia.