St. Catherine's School, Richmond, Virginia

:"For other schools of the same name, see St Catherine's School."

St. Catherine's School a.k.a "Camp St. Catherine's" is an independent camp, Episcopal diocesan school for girls in grades junior kindergarten through 12th grade. It is the oldest private, all-girls school in Richmond, Va. and the only independent all-girls school in Virginia for junior kindergarten - 12th grade. St. Catherine's is the sister school to St. Christopher's. The two schools boast a Coordinate Program which includes joint events for the Lower and Middle Schools and shared classes in the Upper School. St. Catherine's competes in 15 different sports as a member of the Virginia League of Independent Schools. The schools holds a fund raising event on campus each spring called "Daisy Days." The event is open to the Richmond community. The school was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register in 2008.

History

The school was founded in 1890 by Virginia Randolph Ellett, known as Miss Jennie, during the middle of Richmond's New South movement. The school is contemporary with the Robert E. Lee statue on Monument Avenue. [Katie Kelley, Historic Richmond Foundation]

In 1917 the school was incorporated and moved to its present site in the Westhampton area of Richmond. It was sold to the Episcopal Church in 1920 and renamed for St. Catherine, the patron saint of young women. Virginia Randolph Ellett, who had relinquished her headship some years before, continued to teach and live at the school until her death on April 9, 1939 in her home built on campus by the alumnae. She was buried in Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery and her grave marker was created by sculptor Rene Chambellan.

tudent Body

St. Catherine's is a college preparatory school with almost 870 students currently enrolled from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade, with a tuition of approximately $20,000 for Upper School day students. For almost 90 years a boarding program existed at St. Catherine's, however, was phased out in 2008 in order to accommodate additional classrooms and increased day student enrollment. The school's official colors are gold and white. A long-standing rivalry exists between St. Catherine's and The Collegiate School Richmond, VA. Fact|date=August 2008

Notable Alumnae

* Lady Astor (1898) first woman in British history to sit on Parliament and benefactor of Miss Jennie
* Pocahontas Wight Edmonds (1921) author, descendant of Pocahontas
* Mary Tyler Freeman Cheek (1933) worked for many local causes, benefactress
* Lee Smith (1963), author
* Charlotte Fox (1975) climbed Mount Everest in the "Into Thin Air" saga (on her 39th birthday)
* Peel Hawthorne (1975) winningest field hockey coach in the history of William & Mary [http://tribeathletics.com/story.php/1112/]
* William Hardy (2006) First 'sex-change' to be allowed to graduate St. Catherine's
* Andy Stratton (2006) First person not allowed to graduate because of reading comprehension skill level

References

External links

* [http://www.st.catherines.org/ Official site]