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Harvard-Westlake School

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Coordinates: 34°08′27″N 118°24′44″W / 34.14079°N 118.41216°W / 34.14079; -118.41216
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Harvard-Westlake School
File:HW Crest800.png
Location
Map
Los Angeles
,
California

United States
Information
TypeIndependent
MottoPossunt Quia Posse Videntur
trans.: They can because they think they can.
lit.: They are able because they seem to be able.
EstablishedHarvard School for Boys: 1900
Westlake School for Girls: 1904
Fully Merged as Harvard-Westlake: 1991
ReligionNone
formerly Episcopal (Harvard)
PresidentThomas C. Hudnut
Vice PresidentJohn Amato
Faculty214
Grades7-12
Head of SchoolJeanne M. Huybrechts, Ed.D.
Color(s)Red,Black,and White   
MascotFile:Wolverine1.png
The Wolverine
formerly the Saracen (Harvard), and the Wallaby (Westlake)
AccreditationWASC, NAIS, CAIS
2007 SAT average700 verbal/critical reading
710 math
710 writing[1]
NewspaperThe Chronicle (High School) and the Spectrum (Middle School)
Student to faculty ratio8:1
Average class size16
Websitewww.hw.com

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Middle School
Address
Map
700 North Faring Road

Los Angeles
,
 California

 USA
Information
TypeIndependent
Head of Middle SchoolRonnie Codrington-Cazeau
Grades7-9
Enrollment727 (2009-2010)
Campus size12 acres (4.9 ha)

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Upper School
Address
Map
3700 Coldwater Canyon Ave.,
North Hollywood, CA

Studio City neighborhood,
Los Angeles
,

 California


 USA
Information
TypeIndependent
Head of Upper SchoolHarry Salamandra
Grades10-12
Enrollment870 (2009-2010)
Athletics22 CIF Varsity teams
Campus size22 acres (8.9 ha)

Template:FixBunching Harvard-Westlake School is an independent, co-educational university preparatory day school consisting of two campuses located in Los Angeles, California, United States with approximately 1,600 students enrolled in grades 7 through 12. The school, which has its campuses in Holmby Hills and North Hollywood, is known for its strong academic program, selective admissions, high college matriculation, and well-known parents and alumni.[citation needed] The school is a member of the G20 Schools group.

History

Harvard-Westlake is the product of the 1991 merger between the Harvard School and the Westlake School for Girls.

Harvard School

The Harvard School for Boys was established in 1900 by Grenville C. Emery as a military academy, located at the corner of Western Avenue and Venice Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. In 1911, it confidently secured endorsement from the Episcopal Church and became a non-profit organization. In 1937, the school moved to its present-day campus on Coldwater Canyon in Studio City after receiving a loan from Sir Donald Douglas of the Douglas Aviation Company. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Harvard School gradually discontinued both boarding and its standing as a military academy, while continually expanding its enrollment, courses, classes, teachers and curriculum.[2]

Westlake School

The Westlake School was established in 1904 by Jessica Smith Vance and Frederica de Laguna in what is now downtown Los Angeles, California as an exclusively female institution offering both elementary and secondary education. It moved to its present-day campus located in Holmby Hills, California in 1927. The School was purchased by Sydney Temple, whose daughter, Helen Temple Dickinson, was headmistress until 1966, when Westlake became a non-profit institution. The Temple Family owned the school until 1977, with Mrs. Dickinson serving in an ex officio capacity. Mrs. Dickinson's nephew, Hunter Miller Temple, continued the family tradition of teaching in the independent school environment and was the Headmaster of the Brentwood School in Los Angeles for twenty-five years, retiring in the 1990s. In 1968 Westlake became exclusively a secondary school.[2]

The merger

As both schools continued to grow in size towards the late 1980s, and as gender-exclusivity became less and less of a factor both in the schools’ reputations and desirability, the trustees of both Harvard and Westlake effectuated a merger in 1989. The two institutions had long been de facto sister schools and interacted socially. Complete integration and coeducation began in 1991.[2]

Campus

At this time the school is split between the two campuses, with grades 7-9 located at the former Westlake campus in Holmby Hills, colloquially referred to as the Middle School, and grades 10-12 located at the former Harvard campus in Studio City (near North Hollywood), colloquially referred to as the Upper School.[3]

The Middle School completed a four-year modernization effort in September 2008, replacing 35 structures (keeping the original stained glassed windows from Westlake), including the original administration building [4] which has now has a large auditorium, a new state of the art technology center, the ninth and seventh grade locker areas have been redone but the eighth grade lockers in Reynolds Hall have yet to be refinished, three levels of classrooms in the "Academic Center", a large parking lot, and on the bottom floor (basement area) which is reserved for musical purposes, it has a suite of practice rooms, a few large rooms for ensemble practice, a multi-purpose room, and a room filled with [electric piano]s. All of these rooms are equipped with state of the art technology, the teaching rooms all have a projector, and each teacher gets a pick of a laptop with touch type capability, and a document camera or doc cam, which is basically a video camera that projects what is under it at the given time. As of November 2006, a fund raising campaign has commenced for the modernization of the Upper School.

Tuition

In the 1980s, annual tuition at Harvard-Westlake was around $4,000 and by 1983 or 1984, tuition had surpassed $5,000.[5]. In the 2009-2010 academic year, the current annual tuition at Harvard-Westlake is $27,825, plus additional expenses of approximately $2,000 for costs such as books and activities.[6]

Academics

Diploma Requirements for Grades 10-12 in 2007-2008:[7]

  • English—three years (required each year)
  • History and Social Studies—two years, through eleventh grade
  • Mathematics—two years, through eleventh grade; three years strongly recommended
  • Foreign Language—two years each of any two languages; the completion of study of one language through level III strongly recommended
  • Science—two years of laboratory sciences, usually taken in grades 10 and 11
  • Fine Arts (Visual and/or Performing Arts)—one year
  • Physical Education—six trimesters in grades 9-12
  • Choices and Challenges (Health and Human Development)—one semester in grade 10
  • Community Service—required each year
  • School Internship—one period per week for one semester in both grades 10 and 11

Advanced Placement

Starting in the tenth grade, Harvard-Westlake offers 35 College Board Advanced Placement preparation courses, the tests for which are administered by the school in May of each school year. Of these, the English Language, English Literature, Physics B, and Spanish Literature courses were cited by the College Board as the best in the world among high schools with an enrollment of more than 800 students. Approximately 90 percent of students score above a three on the AP exams.[8][9]

National Merit

In the Class of 2007, 115 students received National Merit Recognition, with 43 National Merit Semifinalists.[9]

Rankings

In 2003, Worth Magazine ranked Harvard-Westlake number 35 out of thousands of secondary institutions across the country in sending children to top colleges and universities, including Harvard, Princeton, and Yale. According to www.prepreview.com, HW is one of America's 25 best independent schools 2008. In 2008, Los Angeles Magazine named Harvard-Westlake as one of the most elite prep schools in the Greater Los Angeles area. In June 2009, Forbes listed Harvard-Westlake among the country's top prep schools.[10]

Student life

Students are involved in many extracurricular activities, from student government to athletic programs.

Clubs

In 2006, Harvard-Westlake had 43 registered and sponsored clubs and organizations across both campuses, including Amnesty International, Model United Nations, JSIC, and debate teams for the middle and upper schools.

The Chronicle

Harvard-Westlake's student-run school newspaper, The Chronicle, is published monthly during the school year. The Chronicle is a member of the Quill & Scroll International Journalism Honorary, which has awarded it 15 consecutive George Gallup Awards; the National Scholastic Press Association, which has awarded it three National Pacemakers; and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, which has awarded it four Gold Crowns and four Silver Crowns. The California Newspaper Publishers Association named The Chronicle as California’s best high school newspaper yearly since 2003.[11][12] Along with the newspaper and the yearbook, the Upper School Publications Department also produces a literary magazine entitled Stone-Cutters and a foreign literary magazine, Foreign Outlook.

Vox Populi

Harvard-Westlake's student-run yearbook, Vox Populi, Latin for "Voice of the People", is an annually published book. Vox is an multiple award winning book.

The Spectrum

Harvard-Westlake's student-run school newsmagainze, The Spectrum, is published six times during the school year. The Spectrum took third place at the 2009 National Scholastic Press Association competition under Junior High Schools.

Mock trial

Harvard-Westlake's mock trial team (both at the upper and middle school) is coached by former Deputy District Attorney and Federal Prosecutor David Hinden. The team has a strong competitive record and won first place in the Los Angeles County Mock Trial Competition in 1995, 2002, 2003, and 2006.[13] The competition is conducted by the Constitutional Rights Foundation.[14]

Performing arts

Middle school

  • Beginning, intermediate, and concert ensembles for both strings and band, as well as a symphonic orchestra
  • A large jazz ensemble
  • Classes for electronic music production
  • Rhythm Section Workshop
  • Classes offered in production, drama, acting, and contemporary dance
  • Grade-specific choral groups
  • Dance classes such as "Introduction to Contemporary Dance" and "Contemporary Dance Workshop" and one advanced dance company, with a Dance Production Concert in the Spring and several student-choreographed shows throughout the year

Each class or ensemble is given the opportunity to perform at least once a year.

Upper school

  • Two orchestras
  • Four jazz groups, along with workshops for trios, quartets, and quintets
  • Four choral groups
  • Two synthesizer classes
  • An annual film festival
  • An annual Playwrights Festival written and directed by students
  • Many dance classes and two advanced dance companies, with a Dance Production Concert in the Spring and several student-choreographed shows throughout the year

Cross-campus

  • Two annual stage productions (drama and musical)
  • Various other opportunities for collaboration, including the Upper School Concerto Concert and the Middle School Chamber Music Concert

Athletics

Harvard-Westlake fields 22 Varsity teams in the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section, as well as teams on the Junior Varsity, Club, and Junior High levels. It is known in particular for its successful Boys' Basketball and Water Polo programs as well as its Girls' Volleyball team.

Actor Ashton Kutcher was the Freshman Assistant Coach for the football team in the 2008 football season. However he did not return for the 2009 season. [15]

College placement

Approximately 99 percent of graduating seniors enter a four-year college or university within two years of graduation.[citation needed]

Accreditation and membership

Harvard-Westlake is accredited by and/or affiliated with the following organizations:

Notable alumni

Notes

  1. ^ "About Us". Retrieved 2008-03-08.
  2. ^ a b c "Harvard Westlake History". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  3. ^ "Harvard-Westlake School". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  4. ^ "Harvard-Westlake School Middle School Modernization Project > MSMP Home". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  5. ^ Carla Rivera (2006-02-17). "Tuition Hits $25,000 at Elite Schools/ref". Retrieved 2008-09-10.
  6. ^ http://www.hw.com/admission/AffordingHW/tabid/882/Default.aspx
  7. ^ "Harvard-Westlake School US Course of Study". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  8. ^ "Advanced Placement Report to the Nation" (PDF) (Press release). College Board AP. 2006. Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  9. ^ a b "Harvard-Westlake About Us". Retrieved 2009-07-29.
  10. ^ "Forbes - America's Elite Prep Schools". Retrieved 2009-07-29.
  11. ^ "National Scholastic Press Association". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  12. ^ "Columbia Scholastic Press Association : 2006 Scholastic Crowns". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  13. ^ "29th Annual Los Angeles County Mock Trial Competition 2006 Special Commendation Winners" (PDF) (Press release). Constitutional Rights Foundation. 2006. Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  14. ^ "iB::Topic::Final Results". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  15. ^ http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/varsitytimesinsider/2009/09/football-no-more-coach-kutcher-at-harvardwestlake.html
  16. ^ "Move over G8—this is G20 > Harvard Westlake Chronicle Online > News Articles". Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  17. ^ a b c d e f Groves, Martha (2004-10-08). "Goliath vs. Goliath in Battle to Expand School". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2009-06-19.
  18. ^ Heyman, Marshall (June 2009). "The Power Couple Behind L.A.'s Most Exclusive Schools". W Magazine. Retrieved 2009-06-19.
  19. ^ Rose, David (January 23 2005). "The Observer Profile: Sir Ian Blair". The Observer. Retrieved 2009-04-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ {{cite web ]|url = http://www.onmilwaukee.com/family/articles/charlotterae.html?page=2%7Ctitle = Milwaukee Talks Charlotte Rae|accessdate = 2009-06-19|author = Molly Snyder Edler|publisher = www.onmilwaukee.com}}
  21. ^ "Jarron Collins profile". Go Stanford. Retrieved 2009-06-19.
  22. ^ "Jason Collins profile". Go Stanford. Retrieved 2009-06-19.
  23. ^ "Nickelodeon Taps Rising Star Lily Collins for Network Hosting Duties". Reuters. 2008-02-25. Retrieved 2009-06-19.
  24. ^ Good, Jenna (2007-11-30). "Robbie's loving Ayda instead". The Sun. Retrieved 2009-06-19.

34°08′27″N 118°24′44″W / 34.14079°N 118.41216°W / 34.14079; -118.41216

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