Beaver Country Day School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Beaver Country Day School is an independent, college preparatory day school for students in grades 6 through 12 founded in 1920 and located on a 17-acre campus in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, near Boston. Recently the school has been moving toward calling itself only by its initials, "BCDS," although this is a somewhat controversial move within the student body.
BCDS is a member of the Cum Laude Society and the National Association of Independent Schools, an affiliate of the Coalition of Essential Schools, and is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.
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[edit] History
BCDS was incorporated as an elementary school and an all-girls' high school in 1920 by a group of parents who were interested in progressive education and the Country Day School movement. The first head of school was Eugene Randolph Smith, a prominent progressive educator and a follower of the educational reformer John Dewey. The school was originally located near downtown Boston on Beaver Place, from which the school took its name, and moved to Chestnut Hill in the mid 1920s. Over the years the school has tried to remain true to its progressive roots while evolving with the times. The school adopted coeducation in 1971.
[edit] Mission Statement
The school's mission statement, adopted by the Board of Trustees in 2006, states that "Beaver Country Day School offers an academically challenging curriculum in an environment that promotes balance in students’ lives. Deeply committed to individual student success, teachers inspire students to:
- Reason and engage deeply with complex ideas and issues;
- Be intellectually curious, open-minded, and fair;
- Identify and build upon their strengths;
- Develop leadership and teamwork skills;
- Act effectively within a genuinely diverse cultural and social framework;
- Serve both school and society with integrity, respect, and compassion.
[edit] Students
BCDS offers grades 6 through 12. Current enrollment (2006-07) is about 405 students, of whom 300 are in the upper school (grades 9–12). Classes average about 15 students; one hundred percent of Beaver graduates go on to four-year colleges and universities. The school community is diverse, with students coming from 45 towns in the metropolitan Boston area and speaking 20 languages besides English at home. About 28% of students and 16% of faculty are of color. Currently 26% of students receive financial aid.
[edit] Programs and Facilities
BCDS prides itself on offering a challenging, student-centered academic program; a comprehensive arts program and dedicated facility (a three-story Visual and Performing Arts Center opened in 2004); and a competitive athletic program that will benefit from the construction of an expanded Athletic Center (scheduled for completion in the summer of 2007). The school integrates community service and social responsibility into its curriculum and extra-curricular program through its recently endowed Anne Hiatt Center.
The new athletic center, with construction expected to finish by late June 2007, will fulfill the second of the two major needs identified by the school's Strategic Plan of 2000. (The first was the new Visual and Performing Arts Center.)
The new athletic complex will consolidate athletics in one space and will add:
- 24,700 s.f. to the existing gym (which will remain in use)
- 2 new full-size playing courts (for a total of 4 courts)
- Expanded, separate locker rooms for middle school & upper school athletes
- Fully-equipped fitness & strength training room
- Offices for athletic director, trainer, and coaches
- New common courtyard between middle school wing & athletic center
- Additional parking spaces and improved traffic flow
[edit] School Song
Stand we now to hail thee,
Beaver, loyal and united.
By the guiding spirit
Let our hearts and minds be lighted.
May we know through rightful living
And the light of friendship true:
Ours the right to claim the motto:
Mente et Manu.
Stand we now to hail thee,
Beaver, loyal and united.
[edit] Notable Persons Who Have Attended Beaver Country Day School
- Gretchen Dow Simpson, artist whose paintings have been on the cover of the New Yorker magazine 58 times
- Susan Lyne, CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, former CEO of ABC Entertainment
- Lucinda Franks, journalist and winner of a Pulitzer Prize
- Phil Lipof, television anchor and reporter for Channel 7 News in Boston
- Tammy Grimes, noted stage and film actor who originated the title role in The Unsinkable Molly Brown on Broadway
- Jane Alexander, stage and film actor and former chair of the National Endowment of the Arts
- Matt Selman, writer and producer for The Simpsons
- Bradley Falchuck, producer of the Nip/Tuck television series
- Eliza Dushku, actor most noted for her role as Faith in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
- Carol Beckwith, photographer
- Temple Grandin, college professor and expert on humane animal slaughter
- Amy Godine, journalist
- Dr. Tenley Albright, physician and winner of the 1956 Olympic Gold Medal in Ladies Figure Skating
- Wayne Turner, former University of Kentucky basketball star and professional basketball player
- Ellen Driscoll, artist whose large-scale works adorn public spaces in several cities
