Worcester Academy

Infobox Private School
background = #f0f6fa (standard color)
border = #ccd2d9 (standard color)
name = Worcester Academy


motto = Έφικνού τών Καλών
(Achieve the Honorable)
established = 1834
type = Independent, day and boarding
religion = None
head_name = Headmaster
head = Dexter P. Morse
city = Worcester
state = MA
country = USA
campus = Urban, 67 acres
enrollment = 501 upper school
154 middle school
faculty = 80
class = 13
ratio = 8:1
year = 2006
SAT = 600 Verbal
629 Math
611 Writing
athletics = 24 Interscholastic sports
54 Interscholastic teams
colors = Crimson, Black
mascot = Hilltoppers (rams)
conference = NEPSAC
homepage = [http://www.worcesteracademy.org/ 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."

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.

Campus

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 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 [ [http://www.worcesteracademy.org/about/history/ History of Worcester Academy] ] . 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 notable 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.

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.Fact|date=July 2008

Since 2000, the year the hockey team was re-instated, it has grown into a powerhouse in the NEPSAC Division 2 ranks. Having sent students onto a variety of Division 1, 2, and 3 college teams. Notable Alumni include Pat Brosnihan(Yale), Adam Sinewitz (AIC and pro in Holland), Billy Kasper (Norwich), Mike Mortimer and Ryan Crapser (Trinity), Mike Dwyer (Assumption).

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.Fact|date=July 2008

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.

Notable alumni

Notable faculty and alumni of Worcester Academy include:
* Eli Thayer 1840, founder of the Oread Institute and the New England Emigrant Aid Society
* Royal C. Taft 1872, Governor of Rhode Island
* Edward Davis Jones 1873, co-founder of Dow Jones
* Webster Thayer 1876, Massachusetts judge, presided over the trial of Sacco and Vanzetti in 1920.
* John Barrett 1883, American Diplomat
* Benaiah L. Whitman 1883, President of Colby College and George Washington University
* John Hope 1890, educator and founder of Atlanta University
* Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor 1893, founder and first editor of "National Geographic" magazine
* Ernest Manley Hopkins 1896, President of Dartmouth College
* Arthur Duffey 1899, Olympic SprinterFact|date=July 2008
* Arthur U. Pope 1899, Persian Art Scholar and Administrator
* Clarence Dillon 1904, co-founder of investment bank Dillon, Read and Company, father of C. Douglas Dillon
* Charles E. Merrill 1904, co-founder of Merrill Lynch
* Cole Porter 1909, Broadway composer
* Willis Goldbeck, 1910, movie producer and writer
* Lou Little 1912, college football coach
* Frank Reed Horton 1914, founder Alpha Phi Omega Fraternity
* General Norman D. Cota 1915
* General Hugh J. Gaffey 1916, Patton's Chief of Staff
* Henry A. Sullivan 1917, composer
* Tony Hulman 1920, Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner
* Charles Starrett 1922, the "Durango Kid"
* Prince Nandiyavat Svasti 1927, member of the Thai Royal Family and grandson to King Rama IV (1851-1868), a.k.a. Mongkut, the king of Siam depicted in the musical, "The King and I"
* Arthur Kennedy 1930, stage and screen actor
*Herman Gundlach 1931, Harvard football captain, Boston Brave lineman, NFL
* John Edward Sawyer 1937, President Williams College
* Ned Harkness 1939, college and professional hockey coach
* Lewis Wilson 1939, first Batman in the movies
* Hervey S. Ross 1946, insurance executive, Academy benefactor
* Abbie Hoffman 1955, social and political activist in the 1960s
* Mark Slade 1957, TV actor
* William Toomey 1957, gold-medal winning decathlete in the 1968 Summer Olympics
* Tom Holland 1962, film director
* Arnold L. Lehman 1962, Director Brooklyn Museum
* Michael LoPresti Jr 1967, former Massachusetts State Senator
* Michael Tien 1968, Deputy, National Peoples Congress, China
* Stefan Lano 1970, conductor
* Rep. Jim McGovern 1977, U.S. Congressman
* Ira Stoll 1990 VP and Managing Editor of the New York Sun
* Naomi Schaefer Riley 1994, Wall Street Journal Editor
* Wesley Piermarini 2000, rower, mens double skull, 2008 Olympics, Beijing, China

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:

* Mark Fidrych 1974, Former Detroit Tiger
* Rick Carlisle 1979, Former NBA player, current coach of the Dallas Mavericks
* Joe Philbin 1980, Offensive Coordinator for the Green Bay Packers
* Donnie Nelson 1982, Former NBA and international basketball coach, current President–GM of Dallas Mavericks basketball operations
* Obinna Ekezie 1995, former NBA player
* Sean Ryan 1998, New York Jets
* Jarrett Jack 2002, Indiana Pacers of the NBA
* Craig Smith 2002, Minnesota Timberwolves
* Colt Brennan 2003, quarterback for the University of Hawaii, Quarterback for The Washington Redskins, voted third in 2007 Heisman Voting
* David Ball 2003, New York Jets

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

References

External links

* [http://www.worcesteracademy.org/ Official website]
* [http://www.worcesteracademy.org/about/history/ Worcester Academy's official history page]
* [http://www.assumption.edu/ahc/Education/WorcesterAcad_copy.html Worcester Academy history]