National Cathedral School

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The National Cathedral School for Girls
The Princesses!.jpg
"Women's education without limits."
Location
Washington, D.C.
United States
Information
Type Independent Episcopal college preparatory school for girls
Established 1900
Principal Kathleen O'Neill Jamieson
Faculty ~70
Enrollment ~560
Website

National Cathedral School (NCS) is an independent Episcopal private day school for girls located on the grounds of the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. Founded by Phoebe Apperson Hearst and Bishop Henry Yates Satterlee in 1900, NCS is the oldest of the institutions constituting the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation.

NCS has about 560 students in grades 4 through 12. Its mascot is the eagle. Its brother school, St. Albans, and the elementary school, Beauvoir, are also located on the 57-acre (230,000 m2) Cathedral Close in Northwest Washington near the Washington National Cathedral. Kathleen O'Neill Jamieson is the Head of School.[1] The school motto is Noblesse Oblige ("Unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required," St. Luke XII, 48).[2]

Contents

[edit] Traditions

As the National Cathedral School is chartered by the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation, and is an Episcopal School, the school holds a mandatory chapel service every Monday, as well as a weekly Friday morning service in the National Cathedral. Graduation is held in the Washington National Cathedral. However, students of various religions attend the school, and the chapel services are generally ecumenical in nature.

The school has charity functions and music and choral performances.

Final Cathedral services for the year include the induction of seniors into the Alumnae Association at the Alumnae Service and a "Senior Service" in which the graduating seniors plan and run the service.

NCS also has two school hymns, one dating back to the beginning of the school, and one for the school's centennial celebration composed by Richard Wayne Dirksen, former director of the National Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys.

[edit] Extracurriculars and clubs

Extracurriculars include student government (grades 7-12), two student newspapers, literary publications, the yearbook, and more than 30 different clubs, including the BSU (Black Student Union), Vestry, Chorale, Madrigal Singers, Choristers, and Service Board.

Students from classes 7-12 can serve as acolytes for Friday morning Cathedral services.

NCS students also have the unique opportunity of participating in the Whitechapel Guild to learn traditional change ringing on the Cathedral bells.

[edit] Notable alumnae

Other families who chose the National Cathedral School for their girls are the Roosevelts, the Rockefellers, the Firestones (Mary), the Wilsons of Wilson sports, and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Welcome from the Head National Cathedral School
  2. ^ Facts at a Glance National Cathedral School
  3. ^ Washington Weddings Washington Life Magazine, March 2002

Coordinates: 38°55′53″N 77°04′20″W / 38.9313°N 77.0722°W / 38.9313; -77.0722

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