|
|
| Head of School |
(since 2002) |
| President of the Board |
|
| School Directors |
Lower:
Middle: '''Carmie Rodriguez'''
Upper: '''Grace Hamilton''' |
| School type |
Private |
| Religious affiliation |
None |
| Founded |
1907 |
| Location |
Pasadena, California |
| Enrollment |
Lower School: 300
Middle School: 200
Upper School: 359 |
| Faculty |
163 |
| Campus surroundings |
Residential |
| Campus size |
15 acres |
| School Colors |
Orange & White |
| Mascot |
Panther |
, familiarly referred to as '''Poly''', is a
K-12 college preparatory
Private School in
Pasadena, California . It was founded in
1907 as the first private
Non-profit elementary school in California, descended from the Throop Polytechnic Institute founded by
Amos G. Throop , the same institution which grew into the present
California Institute Of Technology . The school added a ninth grade in
1918 and expanded to high school in
1959 . Polytechnic ended its
Pre-Kindergarten program in
2005 .
In the spring of 1907, the Institute decided to focus on the college level and closed the grammar school. A philanthropic sheepherder,
Ezra S. Gosney , donated $12,500 which was matched by eighteen other donors. This money allowed them to purchase the property at the present site, originally an orange grove. The school opened in October of 1907 with 106 students. At the time, the school was named Polytechnic Elementary School. After instituting a ninth grade, the name changed to Polytechnic Elementary and Junior High School. The school newspaper is ''The Paw Print''.
Poly has an outstanding national reputation for its rigorous academics, including
Advanced Placement and honors classes, as well as strong arts and athletic programs. Virtually all graduates go on to attend universities around the nation. The school also stresses strong moral and ethical values and has a community service requirement for graduation.
The school is divided by Cornell Road into two campuses, north (lower and middle school) and south (upper school). Most of the north campus buildings were designed by
Myron Hunt , who also designed the
Rose Bowl and
The Huntington , and Elmer Gray, who designed the
Beverly Hills Hotel and the
Pasadena Playhouse . The Cornett Mansion, designed in 1907, in the south campus serves as the administration building and houses several classrooms for the upper school.
In April 2005, the city of Pasadena approved Polytechnic's Master Development Plan which over the following ten years will permit the construction of an aquatics facility, underground parking structure, and other facilities and new structures. On December 19, 2005, it was announced that Jamie Neilson would become the new Upper School Director starting in July of 2006, after Grace Hamilton stepped down earlier that year. Wendy Munger, the president of the board, is the daughter of investment tycoon,
Charlie Munger , vice president of
Berkshire Hathaway . She is also on the board of
Stanford University .
According to a
College Board report, Polytechnic School was named a world leader in student participation and performance on
Advanced Placement exams. Furthermore, the report also named Polytechnic as the top small school for having the largest part of its students achieve a 3 or above on the AP Calculus AB examination.
Poly's athletic rival is
Flintridge Preparatory School , familiarly called Prep, in
La Cañada , California.
Every year, in the last week of April, Poly holds the
Poly Pet And Hobby Show
Notable alumni include:
- John Battelle , author, journalist, and co-founder of '' Wired '' magazine
- Alec Berg , screenwriter, actor, and film producer
- Erin Sones Borchard, USA diving team member, wife of Joe Borchard
- Stephen J. Cannell , television producer
- Julia Child , television chef and personality
- Ted Griffin , screenwriter, actor, and film producer
- Dominic Crapuchettes ,co-creator of the game Cluzzle
- R. Stanton Hales , president of the College Of Wooster
- Catherine Hamilton , co-creator of the game Cluzzle
- Harriet Huntington Doerr , author of ''Stones for Ibarra'', ''Consider This, Senora'', and ''The Tiger in the Grass''
- Charles Kornblith , author
- Steve McCoy-Thompson , author
- Randall Miller , director
- Drew Pinsky , psychiatrist, radio and television personality
- Alison Sweeney , actor
- Mike White , film director, screenwriter, and actor
- Ari Wiseman, Assistant Director, Museum Of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
The School
Credo , adopted in 1986, states:
- We are committed to honesty, justice, charity, and the pursuit of knowledge.
- We respect the dignity and worth of all human beings—their thoughts, their feelings, and their individuality.
- We seek to celebrate the joy, the love, and the creativity that emanate from the human spirit.
- We strive to be responsible and contributing members of our families, our school community, and the world.
