Profile
2014-15 MISSION The mission of University School is to develop promising and motivated boys into accomplished and independent young men who aspire to make a difference in the world. The school is rigorous. Our programs, led by challenging and supportive faculty, promote intellectual, physical, creative, and moral excellence. We believe these goals are best achieved in a diverse community where tradition is valued and where every boy is known and loved.
ABOUT UNIVERSITY SCHOOL Founded in 1890, University School maintains two campuses, grades K through 8 in Shaker Heights and grades 9 through 12 on a 220-acre campus in Hunting Valley. The 880 male students, 420 in the upper four grades, are enrolled selectively from an increasingly diverse population that mirrors the demographic makeup of the surrounding areas in Cleveland. Admission is determined by interview, examination, and previous record. Entering students find a rigorous course of study, individual personal and academic guidance, and the opportunity to participate fully in perhaps the most extensive group of athletic and extracurricular activities found in any school in the area. One hundred percent of our graduates go on to four-year colleges. University School is committed to having a diverse student body reflecting the broad economic mix of the community it serves. To achieve this goal and to ensure that the most qualified candidates have the opportunity to attend University School regardless of financial circumstances, the school maintains a considerable financial assistance program. Annually, University School awards more than $4.4 million in financial assistance.
ACCREDITATION The School is accredited by ISACS (Independent Schools Association of the Central States) and by the Ohio State Department of Education. The School is also a member of the National Association of Independent Schools.
FACULTY
Contacts Stephen Murray Headmaster 216-831-2200 smurray@us.edu
Patrick Gallagher William Daughtrey
Upper School Co-Directors 216-831-2200 pgallagher@us.edu wdaughtrey@us.edu
Jennifer Rifken Fisher
Director of College Counseling 216-831-2200 x7357 jrifken@us.edu
Jennifer Rohan Beros Assistant Director of College Counseling 216-831-2200 x7324 jberos@us.edu
Scott Boehnen
English Faculty & College Counselor 216-831-2200 x7487 sboehnen@us.edu
Barbara Dew
Coordinator, College Counseling 216-831-2200 x7368 bdew@us.edu
The Upper School faculty numbers 78, including seven with Ph.D. degrees and 55 with master’s degrees. In addition, three faculty members have earned their J.D. degrees.
HOUSE SYSTEM University School’s House System is comprised of students divided into ten administrative units with each grade level equally represented. Several faculty members are assigned to each House to serve in a guidance capacity, and a prefect is selected from a group of senior applicants to lead the House. He presides over House disciplinary matters, spirit-raising activities, and school and community service.
University School 2785 SOM Center Road Hunting Valley, Ohio 44022 Phone: 216-831-2200 Fax: 216-292-7808 www.us.edu CEEB Code: 361415
Advanced Placement Courses
Grading System a+ = 4.33 A = 4.00 A- = 3.67 B+ = 3.33 B = 3.00 B- = 2.67
C+ = 2.33 C = 2.00 C- = 1.67 D+ = 1.33 D = 1.00 D- = .67
All grades are unweighted.
Class Ranking
The Class of 2015 is comprised of 96 students. Because of the relatively small size and strong quality of our graduating classes, we have chosen not to rank our students. Our strength is that all of our students have an excellent academic foundation and have historically performed very well in competitive colleges. We have no grade inflation; therefore, it is very difficult for a student to earn straight As. 100% of our students attend four-year colleges.
Graduation Requirements 20 units minimum English History Math Foreign Language Science (Lab) Fine Arts Physical Education
4 years 3 years 3 years 3 years 3 years 2 years 4 years
AP courses are offered in several disciplines including English, foreign languages, mathematics, economics, U.S. history, government, science, and computer science. With the exception of two sections of American Civilization, however, our history classes are not tracked; students receive rigorous college-level preparation in this discipline. Many students take the AP exams in European and U.S. history. Our English department does not offer options for acceleration until junior year. Many AP courses are only offered in the senior year; therefore many students have only a few AP classes.
AP Courses Offerings
AP English 11 (Language) AP English 12 (Literature) AP French V AP Latin IV/V AP Spanish AP Chinese AP Biology AP Environmental Science AP Chemistry
2013 Testing AP Statistics AP Calculus AB AP Calculus BC AP Economics AP American Politics
& Government AP US History AP Physics
3 23% 28% 25% 24% 24%
Total Tests 443 436 436 401 382
In the last five years, University School has averaged ten Semifinalists and eight Commended Scholars. Typically 20% of our senior class is honored by the National Merit Scholarship Program.
Class
Finalist
SAT Critical Reading School Mean: 618 Middle 50%: 550-680 State Mean: 555 National Mean: 497
Semifinalist
pending 9 8 12 8
9 11 8 14 8
School Mean: 636 Middle 50%: 550-700 State Mean: 562 National Mean: 513
SAT Writing School Mean: 625 Middle 50%: 580-690 State Mean: 535 National Mean: 487
ACT
5-Year National Merit Summary
Total AP Exams: 443 Scores of 3 or Better: 78%
SAT Math
5-Year AP Score Summary Class 5&4 2014 55% 2013 54% 2012 52% 2011 51% 2010 54%
Advanced Placement
School Mean: 27.8 Middle 50%: 25-30 State Mean: 22.2 National Mean: 21.0
Commended 8 6 7 9 12
Achievement
100% of students take four years of high school math. 90% will take high school physics. Students must petition to take more than five academic classes per year. All courses are considered college preparatory.
2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
2 1 1 0 0
The class of 2014 matriculated at 62 different colleges. Last year’s class included finalists for the Jefferson Scholars Program and for the Morehead-Cain Scholars Program, a participant in the Princeton Humanities Symposium, a student offered the A.B. Duke Scholarship, and a Danforth Scholar at Washington University in St. Louis.
Davey Fellowships and Strnad Fellowships provide unique opportunities for intensive independent study on a tutorial basis. Davey projects have included the writing of poetry, short fiction, full-length novels, epics and contemporary versions of older (e.g. Arthurian) legends. Strnad projects have examined a wide spectrum of topics in such fields as life, physical and computer science, mathematics, history and the arts. Detailed summary reports are delivered orally to the student body upon completion of the Strnad Fellowships in May. The Anderson Scholars Program is designed to challenge and mentor students of unusual talent and motivation in the areas of biological or physical sciences or entrepreneurship. Both programs require significant and rigorous curricular and co-curricular particpation and achievement.
Davey & sTRNAD Fellowships, ANDERSON SCHOLARS
University School Classes of 2010-2014
One hundred percent of our graduates enter four-year colleges. In the last five years, University School graduates matriculated at the following institutions: American University 1 Amherst College 2 Arizona State University 2 Babson College 3 Baldwin Wallace University 2 Bates College 4 Belmont University 2 Bentley University 1 Boston College 2 Boston University 2 Bowdoin College 3 Brown University 2 Bucknell University 4 Butler University 1 California Institute of Technology 1 Calvin College 1 Canisius College 1 Carleton College 1 Carleton University 1 Case Western Reserve University 15 Castleton State College 1 Clark University 1 Cleveland State University 1 Colby College 2 Colgate University 7 Colorado College 10 Columbia College Chicago 2 Columbia University 2 Cornell University 6 Dartmouth College 6 Davidson College 4 Denison University 5 DePauw University 2 Duke University 2 Eckerd College 1 Elon University 11 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University 1 Emerson College 1 Emory University 4 Endicott College 1 Florida Atlantic University 1 Fordham University 2 Franklin and Marshall College 1 Furman University 2 Georgetown University 6 Gettysburg College 1 Hamilton College - NY 2 Harvard University 6 Harvey Mudd College 1 Haverford College 3 Heidelberg University 1 High Point University 4 Hiram College 2 Hobart and William Smith Colleges 4 Holy Cross College 1
Howard University Indiana University at Bloomington Ithaca College John Carroll University Johns Hopkins University Kent State University Kenyon College Lafayette College Lake Erie College Lake Forest College Lehigh University Lincoln Christian College Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Maryland Macalester College Marietta College Marion Military Institute Massachusetts Institute of Technology Miami University, Oxford Middlebury College Morehouse College Muskingum University New York University Northeastern University Northwestern University Notre Dame College of Ohio Oberlin College Ohio University Ohio Wesleyan University Pennsylvania State University Princeton University Purdue University Queen’s University Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rhode Island School of Design Roanoke College Rochester Institute of Technology Roger Williams University Rollins College Saint Louis University Southern Methodist University St. Lawrence University St. Olaf College Stanford University Stetson University Swarthmore College Syracuse University The College of Wooster The George Washington University The Ohio State University The Ohio State University, Mansfield The University of Akron The University of Alabama The University of Arizona The University of Georgia
1 6 5 7 3 1 6 2 2 1 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 42 3 1 1 6 2 6 2 3 14 2 1 2 2 1 1 1 2 4 1 1 3 4 1 1 2 2 5 3 4 1 26 2 1 1 4 1
The University of Iowa 1 The University of Montana, Missoula 1 The University of North Carolina 1 The University of Tampa 1 Tiffin University 1 Trinity College 1 Tufts University 4 Tulane University 8 Tuskegee University 1 Union College 2 United States Air Force Academy 1 University of California, Los Angeles 2 University of Chicago 3 University of Cincinnati 1 University of Colorado 5 University of Dayton 3 University of Denver 3 University of Illinois 2 University of Kentucky 1 University of Mary Washington 1 University of Maryland 2 University of Miami 1 University of Michigan 13 University of Minnesota 1 University of Mount Union 1 University of Notre Dame 1 University of Pennsylvania 6 University of Pittsburgh 1 University of Richmond 2 University of Rochester 7 University of South Carolina 2 University of Southern California 2 University of St Andrews 1 University of Vermont 5 University of Virginia 2 University of Washington 1 University of Wisconsin, Madison 1 University of Wyoming 1 Vanderbilt University 4 Vassar College 1 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University 1 Wake Forest University 6 Washington and Jefferson College 3 Washington University in St. Louis 6 Wesleyan University 2 West Virginia University 2 Westminster College 1 Westmont College 1 Wheaton College IL 2 Williams College 2 Wittenberg University 4 Xavier University 4 Yale University 5
For Boys, Grades K-12 2785 SOM Center Road Hunting Valley, Ohio 44022 P: 216-831-2200 F: 216-292-7808 Website
www.us.edu