SEWICKLEY ACADEMY Private coeducational college preparatory day school located in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Located approximately 12 miles (20 km) north of Pittsburgh, Sewickley Academy is the oldest independent school in the Pittsburgh area dating back to 1838. The school began as a boys only school, which struggled to survive through the American Civil War years, and was closed for a short time while many students fought in the war, both for the Union and for the Confederacy. The school reopened in the 1870s as a school for boys and girls. Sewickley Academy would close for a short while as a result of the departure of their headmaster. When the school was reopened, it was named after the current headmaster Miss Maude Munson. In 1925, Miss Munsons school and the nearby Miss Dickinsons school combined to form a new Sewickley Academy. The 1960s brought change as the Academy introduced a Senior School to meet the demands of local families. The Academy remained mostly a community school until the 1980s when an emphasis was put on increasing diversity, which has resulted in a student body from more than 50 school districts in western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio and northern West Virginia. Currently, Sewickley Academy enrolls approximately 800 students from pre-kindergarten through grade 12. The Sewickley Academy Senior School enrolls approximately 300 students each year, with the majority of new students entering in the freshman year.Sewickley Academy provides academic, athletic, and art programs, along with extracurricular activities. Campus Sewickley Academy has all three schools located in a single location in Sewickley. The school comprises 8 different buildings on a 16-acre (6.5 ha) campus with an additional 14 acres 3 minutes away with extra athletic fields and tennis courts. The Campus consists of nine science labs, Planetarium and telescope, two greenhouses, darkroom, a media center, two libraries with a total of 33,600 volumes, and two student publishing centers. HISTORY In 1838, John Champ and William Nevin opened a school for boys in Sewickley Bottoms¸ PA. They used local patron Squire John Way’s brick home as the first official school building. Despite heavy marketing, the school could not stay afloat financially, and closed in 1841. The Reverend Joseph Travelli re-opened the Academy in 1843 and classes were held in the Fife House, formerly located on the corner of Grove and Grimes Streets in Sewickley. 1860 brought the outbreak of the Civil War and many of the Academys students were drawn into the conflict. The Reverend Joseph Travellis son was killed in action and the school was ultimately closed. After the conclusion of the Civil War, community members rallied together to reopen the school. Its headquarters at that time were in the old Presbyterian Church in Edgeworth, Pennsylvania. In 1892 after a series of different iterations of the Academy, Sewickley education is handed over to two educators, Miss Munson and Miss Dickinson. Miss Munsons school primarily served male students while Miss Dickinsons classes were all female. There was a potent rivalry between these two institutions. By the mid-1920s, both Miss Munson and Miss Dickinson were nearing their retirements and concerned about the future of their schools. Working with the community, they consolidated their separate schools to form the fifth and current Sewickley Academy in 1925. The Academy opened its doors on the cusp of the Great Depression and the school was not immune to the national financial crisis. In 1933, Alexander C. Tener, Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Sewickley Academy at that time, wrote to all of the trustees asking each to underwrite $300 of the operating deficit for that year, so they could close the books and keep the school open. During WWII, Sewickley Academy once again falls into deficit. SA alumni fight hard in the war and contribute to the war effort back at home. The Academys trustees also pitch in, once again reaching into their own pockets to curb the schools deficit. In 1944, continued concern from the community prompts a reorganization of the Academy. With an entirely new board of trustees with expanded responsibilities, the school began to become the academic and social powerhouse standing it continues to carry today. In 1963, the Senior School was built at Sewickley Academy and in 1966, SA graduated its first 12th grade class. In January 1970, a fire of unknown origin ravaged Sewickley Academy. An outpouring of community support ensured that much of the Academys belongings were saved and the school would be rebuilt. During the 1980s period, the Academy experienced a period of great expansion. The campus grew physically and teachers began to incorporate new technologies into their curriculums. This culminated with the building the Oliver Science Center on campus. Sewickley Academy in 1986 The 1990s were years of strategic planning, campus expansion and increased diversity. The Academy began to shift from a community school built on strong traditions and a proud history to what many considered the school of choice in the greater Pittsburgh area. To accommodate growth in the student population, Headmaster Ham Clark and the Board of Trustees implemented a new Master Plan for campus expansion that included many new academic spaces on campus. In 1993, as a means of contributing to the Pittsburgh community, Sewickley Academy established its Summerbridge Pittsburgh program, a six-week, tuition-free academic enrichment program for middle and high school students facing limited opportunities. The 1997 boys basketball team won the PIAA Championship, which was the Academys first-ever state championship in any sport. In 2004, a strategic plan was developed that included input from 700 members of the Academy community. Centered on these strategic goals, the PICTURE THIS Campaign was launched in 2007 as the most ambitious fundraising effort in school history. The campaign added $15 million to the schools endowment - funding many innovative projects that enhanced the educational experience for all students. In 2013 Sewickley celebrated its 175 year anniversary.
Posted on: Tue, 06 Jan 2015 18:20:55 +0000