Convent of the Sacred Heart (New York City)

Convent of the Sacred Heart Sanctissimi Cordis Conventus
The convent is housed in the former Otto H. Kahn and James A. Burden houses (left to right)
Address
1 East 91st Street New York City, New York 10128, United States
Coordinates	40°47′5″N 73°57′27″W
Information
Type	Private
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Established	1881
Founder	Society of the Sacred Heart
Head of school	Joseph J. Ciancaglini
Head of Upper School	Margaret Savino
Chaplain	Rev. John Kamas
Grades	Pre-kindergarten — 12
Gender	All-Female
Enrollment	670 (approximately)  (2008)
Language	English
Campus	Ny
Campus type	Urban
Color(s)	Red and White
Athletics	-11 interscholastic sports -Colin Hope, Physical Education Department Chair
Athletics conference	AAIS; New York State Association of Independent Schools
Mascot	Cardinal
Team name	Cardinals
Average SAT scores	Y
Publication	Zenith (literary magazine)
Newspaper	'Spirit of 91st Street'
Yearbook	'Cornerstone'
Tuition	-Pre-kindergarten — US$17,530 -Junior kindergarten — $23,070 -Grades kindergarten through 12 — $39,265
Head of Middle School	Catherine Hubacz
Head of Lower School	Patricia Hult
Upper School Dean of Studies	Steven Turner
Upper School Dean of Students	Jennifer Dynan
Director of Admissions	Elizabeth Santini
Website	cshnyc.org

The Convent of the Sacred Heart is a Roman Catholic all-girl school in the Manhattan borough of New York City. There is a San Francisco campus as well. Teaching grades from pre-kindergarten through twelve, it is located on Manhattan's Upper East Side at East 91st Street and Fifth Avenue.

The school is housed in the former Otto H. Kahn House and James A. Burden House, both of which are New York City-Designated Landmarks. It is one of the most selective and expensive schools in Manhattan.

History

Founded in 1881 by the Society of the Sacred Heart, a Roman Catholic congregation established in France in 1800, the school is New York City’s oldest private school for girls. The school was originally housed in a Manhattan brownstone on Madison Avenue at East 54th Street.

By the 1930s, the school had outgrown its Madison Avenue space and moved into the Kahn mansion. In the 1940s the Society acquired the Burden mansion next door.

Since the 1980s, the school has experienced some growth and academic progress.^{[citation needed]}.

Membership and accreditation

In addition to being a member of the Society of the Sacred Heart and a part of the global Network of Sacred Heart Schools, a worldwide network of over 150 schools committed to the mission of a Sacred Heart education, the school is accredited by the New York State Association of Independent Schools and is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools.

It is operated independently as part of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools.

The school is also associated with the New York Interschool Association.

Sacred Heart is accredited by the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS). It is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools, the Independent Schools Association of Greater New York, the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, the European Council of International Schools, the International Schools Association and the Network of Sacred Heart Schools in the United States.

Facilities

Sacred Heart is located in two historic mansions in the Carnegie Hill Historic District on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, at 1 East 91st Street and 7 East 91st Street, next to Central Park/5th Avenue and across the street from the Cooper-Hewitt Museum.

• 1 East 91st Street houses grade 5 through grade 12 (opened in 1934)

• 7 East 91st Street houses pre-kindergarten through grade 4 (opened in 1940)

In September 2008, The Convent of the Sacred Heart purchased a facility located at 406 East 91st Street which will become a new sports center. As of 2012 the athletic center is still under construction, and the date of its opening is still uncertain.

Within the buildings at 1 East 91st Street and 7 East 91st Street there are:

• 4 Science Labs
• 2 Gymnasiums and a Fitness Room
• 4 Performance Spaces
• Photography Darkroom Studio
• 2 rooftop playgrounds
• SMARTboards in all classrooms for grades 1-12
• 3 Libraries and Virtual Library Access
• Wireless Internet Access

Clubs and common-interest organizations

The school offers a range of clubs and activities for student participation including the Habitat for Humanity International, Amnesty International, student council and forensics (public speaking).^{[citation needed]}

• There are 40+ after-school activities available every fall, winter and spring to Lower School students.

• There are 40+ clubs and activities available to Middle School students.

• There are 30+ clubs and activities available to Upper School students.

Over 40% of the sophomore class study abroad on exchange for 3 to 10 weeks to other schools in the Sacred Heart network including schools in France and in Spain for 10 weeks, and to Australia, Italy, Ireland, Canada and Taiwan for 3 weeks.

Athletics

The school participates in eleven interscholastic sports disciplines.

Enrollment, tuition and fees

Tuition and Payment for the 2011-2012 School Year:

Pre-Kindergarten: $19,290 Junior Kindergarten: $25,390 Kindergarten: $36,760 Grades 1 – 12 : $37,395

• Average enrollment of students in pre-kindergarten through grade 12: 685

• The Lower School includes pre-kindergarten, junior kindergarten, kindergarten and grades 1 through 4

• The Middle School consists of grades 5 through 8

• The Upper School is made up of grades 9 through 12

• Students of color: 28%

• Average grade size (K-12): 50

• Student/Faculty Ratio: 7:1

Notable alumnae

• Karen Akers
• Lourdes Benedicto
• Jordana Brewster
• Paris Hilton
• Lady Gaga
• Magee Hickey
• Caroline Kennedy
• Ethel Skakel Kennedy
• Joan Bennett Kennedy
• Christa Miller
• Minnie Mortimer
• Lia Neal
• Emily Rutherfurd
• Eunice Kennedy Shriver
• Alix Smith
• Jean Kennedy Smith
• Frederica von Stade
• Elaine Stritch
• Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt
• Charlotte Selina Wood (1903)

In popular culture

Film and theatre

The Anderson Tapes (1971) Nine to Five (1980) Chicago (play - 1975; film - 2002) — in the song "We Both Reached For the Gun" the character, Roxie Hart, was said to have attended the school. The Verdict (1982) Working Girl (1988)

A Perfect Murder (1998) Uptown Girls (2003) Night at the Museum (2006) Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008) Duplicity (2009)

Falling for Grace (2006)

Literature and television

A Very Gaga Thanksgiving (2011) Cashmere Mafia (Season 1) Gossip Girl (book series) — contains the line "two little Sacred Heart girls in their cute red and white checked pinafores were walking an enormous black Rottweiler" on page 86 in the first novel of the series.

Law & Order Scrubs: Sacred Heart Hospital, where the series takes place, was named after the Convent of the Sacred Heart, where cast member (and wife of the series' screenwriter Bill Lawrence) Christa Miller (who portrays Jordan Sullivan) attended high school. White Collar

References

External links

cshnyc.org, Convent of the Sacred Heart, official website sofie.org, Network of Sacred Heart Schools, official website aashnet.org The Associated Alumnae and Alumni of the Sacred Heart, official website burdenkahnmansion.org, The Otto Kahn and James Burden Mansions, official website

"The Convent of the Sacred Heart School (originally the Otto and Addie Kahn House)", at "Tom Fletcher's New York Architecture Images and Notes" (nyc-architecture.com), an architecture fansite (undated) Gray, Christopher (1994-02-27). "Streetscapes/The Convent of the Sacred Heart; A Matter of Reconciling Preservation With Patina. The New York Times. article about restoration of the Burden mansion. Accessed 2009-10-10.