Worcester Academy

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Worcester Academy
Έφικνού τών Καλών
(Achieve the Honorable)
Location
Worcester, MA, USA
Information
Religion None
Headmaster Dexter P. Morse
Enrollment

501 upper school
154 middle school
Faculty 80
Average class size 13
Student:teacher ratio 8:1
Average SAT scores (2006) 600 Verbal
629 Math
611 Writing
Type Independent, day and boarding
Campus Urban, 67 acres
Athletics 24 Interscholastic sports
54 Interscholastic teams
Athletics conference NEPSAC
Mascot Hilltoppers (rams)
Color(s) Crimson, Black
Established 1834
Homepage worcesteracademy.org

Worcester Academy is an independent coeducational preparatory school spread over 67 acres in Worcester, Massachusetts in the United States. The school is divided into a middle school, serving approximately 150 students in grades six to eight, and an upper school, serving approximately 500 students in grades nine and above, including some postgraduates. Approximately one-third of students in the upper school participate in the school's five- and seven-day boarding programs. Currently there are approximately 80 international students enrolled from 10 different nations.

Worcester Academy is a member of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council.

Its motto is the Greek phrase "Έφικνού τών Καλών," which translates to "Achieve the Honorable."

Contents

[edit] History

Founded in 1834 as the Worcester County Manual Labor High School, it did not change its name until 1847. The school moved to its current location on Union Hill in Worcester in 1869. Worcester Academy was all-male from its founding until 1856, and again from 1890 to 1974. It has been coeducational since.

[edit] Campus

Warner Memorial Theater
Warner Memorial Theater
Walker Hall, The Megaron, and Adams Hall
Walker Hall, The Megaron, and Adams Hall
Dexter Hall
Dexter Hall
Kingsley Laboratories
Kingsley Laboratories
Walker Hall
Walker Hall
Rader Hall (library)
Rader Hall (library)

Worcester Academy's campus is currently spread over four main parcels: the main campus, which contains approximately twelve acres; Francis A. Gaskill Field, a twelve-acre parcel two blocks from the main campus; and the New Balance Fields on Stafford Street, comprising about thirty acres. Worcester Academy also recently relocated some of its offices and alumni facilities to a renovated Victorian home two blocks from the main campus. In 2006, Worcester Academy signed a purchase and sale agreement to purchase an additional thirteen acres between Gaskill Field and the main campus, with the intent of creating a new indoor athletic complex.

On the main campus, several beautiful brick buildings are listed on the national historic register, including Chester W. Kingsley Laboratories, Joseph H. Walker Hall, Reverend Robert J. Adams Hall, and William H. Dexter Hall. The headmaster lives in the Daniel W. Abercrombie House, named for the principal of Worcester Academy from 1882 to 1918. A new addition to the Worcester Academy campus is Harold G. "Dutch" Rader Hall, which houses the school's library and is used for middle school classes and activities.

One of the most famous and remarkable architectural buildings on the campus is the Lewis J. Warner Memorial Theater, a gift from Warner Brothers Studio President Harry Warner. He donated the building in memory of his son Lewis Warner '28, who died shortly after graduating from the academy. The Academy's formal student assemblies are held in Hervey S. Ross Auditorium, Warner Theater to this day, though the theater is no longer able to seat the entire middle and upper school student bodies at once.

[edit] Athletics

Worcester is a member of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council. Its main athletic rivals include Phillips Exeter Academy, Phillips Academy Andover, Deerfield Academy, Cushing Academy, Lawrence Academy, The Governor's Academy, Loomis Chaffee and Milton Academy.

In 2005-2006 the girls' varsity basketball team had an undefeated season, winning the NEPSAC championship.

Since 2000, the year the hockey team was re-instated, it has grown into a powerhouse in the NEPSAC Division 2 ranks. Having sent kids onto a variety of Division 1, 2, and 3 college teams. Many notable Alumni include Pat Brosnihan(Yale), Adam Sinewitz(AIC and pro in Holland), Billy Kasper(Norwich), Mike Mortimer and Ryan Crapser(Trinity) and many more to follow. The Academy looks to build off the 2007-2008 season where it achieved its best record since re-instating the program.

[edit] Other

In September 2006, Boston Magazine rated Worcester Academy the sixteenth best private school in the Boston Area, and the best in Worcester County. In an article entitled "The Right Private School for Your Kid," Boston Magazine rated Worcester Academy the best private school in the Boston area for students to exercise their mathematical talents, probably due to an undefeated contest season.

[edit] Trivia

  • Parts of the 1992 movie School Ties were filmed in Worcester Academy's gymnasium.
  • Arctic explorer Donald B. MacMillan was a member of the faculty from 1903 to 1908, when he joined Robert Peary in his effort to reach the North Pole. He donated a kayak from the expedition to the Academy, which now rests in the Megaron.
  • A rafter in the Megaron has Greek writing on it, which translates to "Let no evil enter here."
  • The Andes Pit Theatre used to be the gym.

[edit] Headmasters of Worcester Academy

Number Name Years
1st Silas Bailey, D.D. 1834-1838
2nd Samuel S. Greene, LL.D. 1838-1840
3rd Nelson Wheeler, A.M. 1840-1847
4th Eli Thayer 1840, A.M. 1847-1849
5th Charles C. Burnett, A.M. 1849-1852
6th Eleazer J. Avery, A.M. 1852-1854
7th William S. Greene, A.M. 1854-1858
8th Werden Reynolds, A.M. 1858-1860
9th James R. Stone, D.D. 1860-1862
10th Ambrose P. S. Stuart, A.M. 1862-1864
11th Charles Ayer, A.B. 1865-1866
12th Albert Prescott Marble, Ph.D. 1866-1868
13th William C. Poland, A.B. 1868-1870
14th Willard T. Leonard, M.A. 1870
15th Rev. David Weston, A.B. 1870-1871
16th John D. Smith, A.B. 1872-1875
17th Nathan Leavenworth, A.M. 1875-1882
18th Daniel Abercrombie, Litt.D., LL.D. 1882-1918
19th Samuel Foss Holmes, A.M. 1918-1933
20th Harold H. Wade 1933-1942
21st LeRoy A. Campbell, Ph.D. 1942-1950
22nd Paul K. Phillips, A.B. 1950-1954
23rd William S. Piper, Jr., Ed.D. 1954-1968
24th Harold G. Rader, Ed.D. 1968-1969
25th David R. Jefferson, B.A., B.D. 1969-1970
26th Robert A. LaBranche 1946, M.S. 1970-1974
27th John A. Bloom, M.A. 1974-1985
28th Ben Williams 1985-1991
29th John Mackenzie 1991-1997
30th Dexter P. Morse 1997-present

[edit] Notable alumni

Notable faculty and alumni of Worcester Academy include:

In addition, many student-athletes attend Worcester Academy solely for their senior year, or for a single postgraduate year, to increase their exposure to college coaches or to improve their academic standing. Notable student-athletes include:

[edit] External links

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