Eagle Hill School

Eagle Hill School
Motto Discere diverse, diverse docere
Established 1967
Type Private Coeducational Boarding School for students with learning disabilities
Headmaster Peter J. McDonald
Students 205
Grades 8-12
Location Hardwick, Massachusetts, USA
Coordinates 42°21′46″N 72°12′1″W / 42.36278°N 72.20028°WCoordinates: 42°21′46″N 72°12′1″W / 42.36278°N 72.20028°W
Campus Rural
Mascot Pioneer
Website Official Website

Eagle Hill School is a private co-educational college preparatory boarding school for students with learning disabilities and Attention Deficit Disorder in Hardwick, Massachusetts, established in 1967. Related, but independent schools of the same name were established in Greenwich and Southport, Connecticut, in 1975 and 1985, respectively.

History

In the early 1960s, Doctor James J.A. Cavanaugh, Director of the Department of Pediatrics at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Brighton, MA, began to devote his work to children with dyslexia or specific language disability. Eagle Hill School was conceived from his recognition of the impact of this disability on the growing child and the limited facilities available for remediation.

Joining Dr. Cavanaugh to launch the school were Educational Director Mr. Charles Drake of Brandeis University and Headmaster Mr. Howard Delano, formerly of Fryeburg Academy. Nineteen children were in residence when the school opened its doors on family owned property in Hardwick, MA in September 1967. All of them were housed in the Main House, which now contains the school's administrative offices. By the third year, a dedicated dormitory was constructed and one-hundred children were in residence. In 2009, the boarding enrollment for the school is expected to reach approximately 160 students.

Teacher Induction Training

Held every summer on the Eagle Hill campus the EHS Institute for Teacher Induction is an induction training program primarily designed for first, second or third year public school teachers or seasoned teachers who are new to an urban district. Funded mainly by private organizations [1] the institute was a line budget item in the 2008 Massachusetts state budget.[2]

LearningDiversity.org

LearningDiversity.org is a project of The Eagle Hill School Foundation in Hardwick, MA. It is a hub of information that falls under the general heading of “education,” and focuses on the best practices and cutting edge ideas considered relevant to those that seek alternatives to mainstream institutional approaches. This site reflects a commitment to promoting an inclusive and nurturing approach to educating individuals free from the conceptual constraints of clinical and bureaucratic settings. Editors, teachers, and parents examine equitable and effective methods and administrative theory based on research, experience, and creative problem solving as opposed to prescribed “fixes.” This approach serves as the backbone of this evolving body of ideas and resources.[3]

Eagle Hill Greenwich

Eagle Hill School services children from Fairfield and Westchester counties as well as Manhattan in its day program, and children from the tri-state areas of Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey in its five-day boarding program. The school is approved as a special education facility by the Connecticut State Department of Education, and is accredited through the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools. They are a school for children with learning disabilities. The school is divided into two parts; the Upper School, and the Lower School.

Eagle Hill-Southport

Eagle Hill-Southport is a day school in historic Southport village, Connecticut, enrolling children ages 6 to 14. It was founded in 1985 by a group of educators from the Eagle Hill-Greenwich School. The school is located in the former Pequot School building, an historic structure built in 1918 that has had extensive interior renovations to create a modern school environment.[4]

The Cultural Center

In the fall of 2008, EHS opened a $15,000,000 Cultural Center complete with a new dining hall, classrooms, a black box theatre, and a 500 seat theatre. Professionals perform at the cultural center during the year. Eagle Hill School students use it as well.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.gsfullerfoundation.org/grants_2007.shtm
  2. ↑ http://www.mass.gov/legis/08budget/senate/amendments/edu.htm
  3. ↑ http://www.learningdiversity.org/about/
  4. ↑ Eagle Hill-Southport website, accessed October 13, 2009

External links