Kent School

Infobox School

name = Kent School
motto = Temperantia, Fiducia, Constantia
"'Simplicity of Life, Directness of Purpose, Self-Reliance'"


established = 1906
type = Private, Boarding
religion = Episcopalian
headmaster = Richardson W. Schell
city = Kent
state = Connecticut
country = USA
campus = Township
enrollment = 571 (as of 2005-06)
>88% boarding /<12% day
faculty = 80.1 (on FTE basis)
ratio = 7.1
Faculty with Advanced Degrees = 60%
class = 11 students
ratio = 7:1
year = 2004
athletics = 21 Interscholastic Sports
62 Interscholastic Teams
colors = Blue & Gray
mascot = lion
homepage = [http://www.kent-school.edu/ www.kent-school.edu]

Kent School is an independent (private) co-ed prep school in Kent, Connecticut, USA. Currently situated between the Appalachian Trail and the Housatonic River, it was established in 1906 by The Reverend Frederick Herbert Sill.

As of the 2005-06 school year, the school had an enrollment of 571 students and 80.1 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 7.1. [http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pss/privateschoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&SchoolID=00232541&ID=00232541 Kent School] , National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed July 24, 2008.]

History

In the ensuing years, Kent has been led by four headmasters: William S. Chalmers (O.H.C.), Father John O. Patterson and Sidney N. Towle '31. The fifth and current Headmaster and Rector is Dick W. Schell. A 1969 graduate himself of Kent, Fr. Dick Schell went on to study at Harvard (A.B. '73) and Yale (M.Div. '76) before returning to Kent as Chaplain. He was appointed Headmaster in 1981.

Fr. Sill was also committed to educating students from "all walks of life." This original mission resulted in his "sliding scale tuition," in which families paid a tuition which Fr. Sill felt they could afford. Kent continues this mission today with the Parents Fund and the Financial Aid Program. Awarding more than five million dollars in the 2007 academic year, Kent's commitment to financial aid, relative to its endowment, ranks first among its peer schools.Fact|date=March 2007

Originally an all-boys school, the campus for girls was constructed in 1960. The girls' and boys' campuses were consolidated in 1992, resulting in the current, fully integrated co-educational campus of 560 students. Currently 46% of students are female and 54% male. Students come from 35 states and 26 countries.

Founded in the Episcopal tradition, as were many New England boarding schools, Kent has retained its spiritual affiliation in an era when many other institutions have relinquished theirs. Kent's diverse student body comes from a variety of religious backgrounds and secular traditions. Supported by two School Chaplains, students at Kent find an atmosphere which supports the beliefs and practices of all faiths by actively encouraging moral and spiritual understanding and growth. The whole school gathers at St. Joseph's Chapel for three weekly services, which often include a student, faculty, or guest speaker or performance.

Facilities

In 1995 Kent partnered with Microsoft, Toshiba and 29 other pioneer schools creating the Anytime Anywhere Learning program.Fact|date=March 2007 This program equips Kent students with laptop computers for use in every classroom on campus. Since 2002 these have been Tablet PCs, continuing the spirit of innovation. In addition, all of the classrooms and dorm rooms, as well as the library and administrative offices, have access to the Internet and the School network. All dorm rooms are equipped with individual data and voice connections which provide phone, Internet, and intranet access for each student. All of the academic areas, dorm common rooms and many public areas provide secure wireless as well.

Athletics

Kent School is a member of the athletics Founders League of New England prep schools.Fact|date=March 2007 Its mascot is the lion, and formerly, the fighting Episcopalians. Loomis Chaffee and Kent School have a long-running rivalry. The two schools take this historic enmity quite seriously, and have annual Kent vs. Loomis days in which both schools play a number of sports to compete for a spoon and a bowl.

Headmasters

*Fr. Frederick Herbert Sill (1906-1941)
*Fr. William Scott Chalmers (1941-1949)
*Mike Underwood (1949-1962)
*Sidney N. Towle (1962-1981)
*Fr. Richardson W. Schell '69 (1981-Present)

Kent School in media

The book (and 1999 film adaptation), "Outside Providence" is a fictionalized account of Peter Farrelly's experiences at the school.Fact|date=September 2007

In 1999, the school's headmaster, Rev. Richardson W. Schell, wrote to a number of companies urging them not to advertise with the animated TV show "Family Guy", written by a former pupil of the school, Seth MacFarlane. MacFarlane's parents, who worked at the school at the time, resigned in protest. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D02E4D6173BF934A35754C0A9629C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2]

Notable alumni

Notable alumni of Kent School include:
*His Royal Highness Prince Carl Philip Edmund Bertil, Duke of Värmland, Second in line to the Swedish Throne (Left after two years to finish at Lundsbergs upper secondary school)
*Jonathan Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere, Chairman of Daily Mail & General Trust, billionaire (post-graduate year after Gordonstoun School, Scotland)
*L. Paul Bremer (1941-), U.S. Presidential Envoy & "Administrator of Iraq" after the 2003 Invasion of Iraq (Left sometime in the late 1950s to finish high-school at Phillips Academy)
*Peter Carlisle (1952-), Prosecuting Attorney of Honolulu [ [http://www.ndaa-apri.org/ndaa/profile/peter_carlisle_jan_feb_2004.html Peter B. Carlisle] , National District Attorneys Association. Accessed December 3, 2007.]
*Ted Danson (1947-), Actor, notably in "Cheers" [ [http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-30923014_ITM "Ted Danson"] , "Saturday Evening Post", May 1, 2007. Accessed March 12, 2008. "Actor and environmentalist Ted Danson's first starring role was on the basketball team at Connecticut's Kent School in 1961, before his interest in acting emerged while attending Stanford University."]
*Richard Dearlove (1945-), Former Chief of MI6, British Secret Intelligence Service (1999-2004) [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/286128.stm New MI6 spymaster named] , "BBC News", February 25, 1999. Accessed February 13, 2008.]
*Emme (model) (1963-), Plus-size supermodel [Witchel, Alex. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E1DA1239F931A25750C0A961958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2 "Size 14, 190 Pounds: A Model Figure"] , "The New York Times", March 12, 1997. Accessed December 3, 2007. "When she was high-school age, her family moved back to the States, settling in Houston, and Emme attended the Kent School in Connecticut, where she joined the rowing team, sealing a life's passion for strenuous exercise."]
*Peter Farrelly (1956-), Writer, producer, director ("Outside Providence", "Dumb and Dumber", etc.)
*Joseph Kaiser, Canadian operatic tenor
*Draper L. Kauffman (1911-1979), Class of 1929, Navy Rear Admiral - considered father of Navy Frogmen & grandfather of Navy SEALs [Navy UDT-SEAL Museum. [http://www.navysealmuseum.com/heritage/history.php "Navy SEAL History"] , "Navy UDT-SEAL Museum webpage", 2004. Accessed October 25, 2007.]
*Sidney D. Kirkpatrick (1955-), Author
*Seth MacFarlane (1973-), Creator of "Family Guy" & "American Dad" animated series. [via Associated Press. [http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=ST&s_site=dfw&p_multi=ST&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAF920E64F34493&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM "One-man campaign out for `Family Guy'"] , "Fort Worth Star-Telegram", July 2, 1999. Accessed February 13, 2008. "Seth MacFarlane has been out of prep school for eight years, but the headmaster is still on his case. The top administrator of the Kent School is leading a one-man campaign to get advertisers to drop The Family Guy, an animated TV comedy created by MacFarlane, a 1991 Kent alumnus."]
*John Rawls (1921-2002), political philosopher, author of "A Theory of Justice" [Gewertz, Ken. [http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2002/11.21/99-rawls.html "John Rawls, influential political philosopher, dead at 81"] , "Harvard University Gazette", November 25, 2002. Accessed July 24, 2008. "Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Rawls attended the Kent School in Kent, Conn., and earned a B.A. degree from Princeton in 1943."]
*Serge Schmemann, reporter and winner of 1991 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting [ [http://www.nytco.com/company/executives/Serge_Schmemann.html Serge Schmemann - Executives Biographies - The New York Times Company ] ]
*J. Fife Symington Jr. (1910-2007), Class of 1929, former ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago
*KT Tunstall (1975-), Musician [Thomason, Carmel. [http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/entertainment/music/world_music/s/176/176311_kts_got_one_eye_on_the_future.html "KT's got one eye on the future"] , "Manchester Evening News", March 10, 2005. Accessed February 24, 2008. "After school, having learned to play the piano, flute and guitar, she left her native St Andrews to take up a scholarship at Kent School in Connecticut, New England, where she formed her first band, The Happy Campers."]
*Cyrus Vance (1917-2002), Former U.S. Secretary of State
*Treat Williams (1951-), Actor
* Crystal Cuddeback (1992-), Internationally acclaimed poet

ee also

William G. Pollard#Fiftieth anniversary of Kent School

References

External links

* [http://www.kent-school.edu/ Kent School website]
* [http://www.boardingschoolreview.com/school_ov/school_id/16 Kent School review] by boardingschoolreview.com.
* [http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pss/privateschoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&SchoolID=00232541&ID=00232541 Data for Kent School] , National Center for Education Statistics