Cranbrook Schools

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This article is about the private Pre K-12 school in the United States; For alternate uses, including other Cranbrook Schools, see Cranbrook (disambiguation).

Image:Cranbrook_School_Archer.png

Motto Cranbrook:"Aim High"
Kingswood:"Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve"
Established 1904
School type Private
Director of Schools Arlyce Seibert
Location Bloomfield Hills, Mich., USA
Enrollment 507 day, 263 boarding
Faculty 105
Campus Suburban, 311 acres (1.3 km²)
Athletics 70 teams
Homepage schools.cranbrook.edu

Cranbrook Schools is a private, PK-12 school located on a 319-acre campus in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit and one of the wealthiest cities in the United States. Cranbrook Kingswood is among the largest independent schools in the nation. The Cranbrook community was established in 1904 by publishing mogul George Booth, but Booth only began work on the planning and construction of the educational institutions in 1922. Cranbrook Schools is part of the Cranbrook Educational Community (CEC), which also includes the Cranbrook Institute of Science, the Cranbrook Academy of Art, and Cranbrook House and Gardens. Cranbrook is listed in the National Registry of Historic Places for its exquisite design, which attracts tourists from around the world. Approximately 40 acres of Cranbrook's campus are gardens. As of 2006, Cranbrook Schools has an endowment of more than 200 million dollars.

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[edit] Past and Present

In 1915, George and Ellen Booth opened a portion of their property to the general public with the construction of the Greek Theatre. Today, it is still used as an outdoors theatre by students at Cranbrook Schools. In 1918, the Booths built the Meeting House, which became the Bloomfield Hills School, opening for local children in 1922. Its name was changed to Brookside School in 1930. Today, approximately 500 students are also enrolled in kindergarten or grades 1 through 6 at the Vlasic Early Childhood Center, which opened in 1996.

The Booths embarked on their greatest building project in the 1920s, when they decided to build a college preparatory school. Cranbrook School for Boys, completed in 1928, was designed by world-renowned Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen. The name "Cranbrook" was chosen since Cranbrook, England is the birthplace of George Booth's father. Kingswood School for Girls, also designed Saarinen, opened in 1931. In building Cranbrook School and Kingswood School, Booth and Saarinen were greatly influenced by the Arts and Crafts Movement, which began in 19th century England. Although Cranbrook School and Kingswood School were originally Episcopalian, both schools haved since secularized, with special occasions still celebrated at Christ Church Cranbrook.

Cranbrook School, Kingswood School, and Brookside School operated separately until a decision in 1970 to govern them all together. This was soon followed by the creation of the Cranbrook Educational Community. The middle school was divided into two campuses in 1984. This decision was helped along by the Community's acquisition of Vaughan School, which remains the home of the boys' middle school, with 165 boys enrolled. A small portion of Kingswood is now the girls' middle school, with 166 girls enrolled. All classes with the exception of performing arts (Symphonic Band and Orchestra) are separate for boys and girls of grades 6-8, while English, religion, and history classes remain separate through the 10th grade.

In 1984, Cranbrook School and Kingswood School were merged to create a coeducational upper school -- Cranbrook Kingswood. Classes remain taught on both of the original Cranbrook and Kingswood campuses. Frequently, the school is referred to as "CK" by its students, faculty, and alumni. Cranbrook Kingswood now lays claim to 70 athletic teams, which have recently won state championships in hockey, tennis, lacrosse, and golf. As of 2006, there are 763 students, approximately 1/3 of which are boarding students who live in single-sex residence halls.

A college preparatory school, Cranbrook Kingswood offers a comprehensive and challenging program that includes 15 Advanced Placement courses in its upper school. More than a 1/3 of AP Scholars in Michigan attend Cranbrook Kinsgwood. Its graduates often into matriculate into the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, the University of Chicago, and the University of Pennsylvania. Cranbrook Kingswood accepts roughly 1/3 of applicants, making it one of the most selective preparatory schools in the United States.

Cranbrook Kingswood is also well known for its diversity. Numerous students come from South Korea and Saudi Arabia to attend. Approximately 11% of Cranbrook Kingswood's students are international students. Traditionally, Cranbrook School also has an exchange program with a boarding school in Cranbrook, England in honor of George Booth's heritage.

[edit] Trivia

  • Eminem made reference to the school in the film 8 Mile when he rapped, "You went to Cranbrook/ That's a private school."
  • Cranbrook School produced two Rhodes Scholars in one graduating class (1955): Heisman Tropy winner Pete Dawkins and lawyer Paul Dodyk.
  • Cranbrook School students sing "Forty Years On" and William Blake's "Jerusalem" hymn upon graduation, both traditional English songs.
  • Traditionally, students shout the school's motto "Aim High" loudly when the phrase appears during a rendition of "Cranbrook Song." This school hymn is generally sung during special convocations at Christ Church Cranbrook.
  • Cranbrook School is the model for the preparatory school in Edmund White's controversial and classic autobiographical novel A Boy's Own Story.
  • Boarding students at Cranbrook School live in one of four residence halls: Stevens (9th graders), Marquis (10th graders), and Coulter and Page Halls (11th and 12th graders).
  • Cranbrook Kingswood is known for producing excellent Ice Hockey teams. The boys' team has won 13 state championships, more than any other school in Michigan.

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] External links

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