Saint David's School is an independent primary and pre-primary school located on East 89th Street in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is an all-boys school, educating students from pre-kindergarten through to eighth grade. Saint David's was founded in 1951. The current headmaster is P. David O'Halloran.
Video Saint David's School (New York City)
History
Officially opening on February 5, 1951, Saint David's began with one teacher and four students. Its purpose, according to its nine founding families, was "to provide a sound substantial education for the growing boy, equal to the best, derived from institutions of a similar level." Its mission is "to educate boys to fulfill their potential through rigorous academic pursuit, deliberate introspection, and critical analysis of ideas and issues. "That they be good men, Ut viri boni sint."
While a school in the Roman Catholic tradition, Saint David's has always been lay-run and independent.
Chaplains that serve and have served the school are:
- Msgr. Thomas Leonard (1968-2003)
- Rev. Stephen Katsourous, S.J. (2003 -2011)
- Rev. Patrick Bonner, S.T.B., M.S., J.C.L.
Academically, Saint David's School has embraced the classical ideal of balance, providing boys a rigorous education while encouraging them to grow into responsible and moral world citizens. In the decades since its founding, Saint David's has undertaken several expansions, adding state-of-the-art facilities for its academic and athletics programs. Today, the school community includes 400 students and more than 130 faculty and staff.
Maps Saint David's School (New York City)
Academics
Saint David's School is accredited by the New York State Association of Independent Schools, the National Association of Independent Schools, and the Educational Records Bureau.
The Lower School provides a structured, challenging, and dynamic academic environment in which each boy develops a strong sense of confidence in himself as a learner. In the pre-primary grades, the curriculum aims to foster a love of discovery while cultivating the skills necessary for continued academic achievement. Language arts and mathematics form the core of the academic curriculum. Taught in small instructional groups that progress at an appropriate pace, reading classes balance direct instruction with group and individualized work.
Saint David's Upper School refines the reading, writing, speaking, and critical-thinking skills developed in the Lower School and prepares boys for the greater independence and responsibility of adolescence. Teachers use direct instruction to impart essential knowledge skills, but through collaborative, project-based learning, they also cultivate teamwork, leadership, and public speaking skills.
Athletics
The school offers an extensive sports program, including baseball, basketball, cross-country, flag football, hockey, lacrosse, soccer, squash (sport), and track. Also with an athletic center located at 215 East 94th Street, they also offer an array of professional fitness equipment and an athletic venue. Overall, they have four gym spaces located in the main building and this annex.
Saint David's athletic program seeks "to cultivate a sense of sportsmanship, respect for others and self, cooperation, dedication, and self-confidence. We challenge boys to grow by fostering a healthy competitive spirit through participation, skill development, teamwork and commitment to achieving full athletic potential." Their goal is to strike a balance between athletics and academics, and the discipline to both work to the benefit of the whole student athlete.
As an after school elective, Saint David's also offers an ice hockey program which begins in kindergarten and is available until 8th grade. Along with other private schools, Saint David's use of an ice rink at a state park in Harlem has aroused some controversy.
Community service
Saint David's participates in many community service initiatives. Some of which include their annual Halloween candy drive, their bottle cap drive, and other fundraising projects. They work with New York Cares for their annual coat drive, the Graham Windham Mitten and Hat Collection, Project Cicero for book donations, City Harvest for annual food drives, Ronald McDonald's Fun Run, Florence Nightingale Nursing Home and Terence Cardinal Cooke Nursing Home for nursing home visits and carols, and It's My Park Day to rejuvenate New York City Parks.
Saint David's has also been very philanthropic. In 2004, they raised more that $10,000 for the Red Cross and their South East Asia Tsunami Fund. In 2010, they raised $36,000 for Haiti's Recovery Fund. And in 2011, they began a new initiative to raise money to build a school in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia with the help of Mimi's Building Blocks and Save the Children. They raised more than $120,000 and Saint David's Kalina School opened in Ethiopia in the fall of 2013.
They also have a special committee on environmental awareness and action. Here, they discuss and propose methods on being green and environmentally friendly. Televised by CBS New York, they were highlighted for their efforts in collecting and recycling bottle caps. They have been successful in modernizing and changing the school's usage of paper, supplies, and waste disposal.
Notable alumni
- Andrew Giuliani, son of Rudy Giuliani, mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001.
- Ryu Goto, concert violinist
- John F. Kennedy Jr., son of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy; attended only the first and second grades there.
- Prince Ali-Reza Pahlavi, son of the last Shah of Iran and second in line to the succession of the throne of Iran until the Islamic Revolution
- Andrew Rossi, documentary filmmaker
- Buck Sexton, radio talk show personality and conservative political commentator
- Dick Wolf, television producer
Headmasters
- Thomas F. Herlihy (1951-1953)
- David D. Hume (1953-1990)
- Timothy Burns (1990-1992)
- Dr. Donald T. Maiocco (1992-2004)
- Dr. P. David O'Halloran (2004-Present)
References
External links
- Saint David's School Website
- Saint David's School Headmaster's Blog
- Saint David's School Facebook Page
Source of article : Wikipedia
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