Worcester Academy

Worcester Academy
Dexter Hall
Location
81 Providence Street

Worcester
,
Massachusetts
01604

United States
Information
Type
MottoἘφικνοῦ τῶν Καλῶν
(Achieve the Honorable)
Religious affiliation
Nonsectarian
Established1834; 192 years ago (1834)
Head of School
Kevin Breen
Faculty80
Grades6–12 & postgraduate
GenderCo-ed
Enrollment450 upper school
65 middle school
Average class size
14
Student to teacher ratio
8:1
Campus size
71 acres (290,000 m2)
Campus type
Urban
Color  Maroon
Athletics24 Interscholastic sports
54 Interscholastic teams
Athletics conference
NEPSAC
MascotOskee
Team nameHilltoppers
NewspaperVigornia
YearbookThe Towers
Tuitionmiddle school day students: $43,225
upper school day students: $47,725
boarding students: $65,225
international students: $78,000
Websitewww.worcesteracademy.org

Worcester Academy is a co-ed private boarding school in Worcester, Massachusetts, serving grades 6-12. It is the oldest school founded in Worcester, Massachusetts, and one of the oldest day-boarding schools in the United States. A coeducational preparatory school, it belongs to the National Association of Independent Schools.

History

Worcester Academy was founded in 1834 as the Worcester County Manual Labor High School; the name "Worcester Academy" was adopted in 1847.

Isaac Davis, President of the Worcester Academy Trustees 1834 – 1873

Isaac Davis was a central figure in the school's early years, serving as President of the Worcester Academy Trustees from 1834 to 1873.

The school moved several times during its first decades. The first site was a 60 acre farm on what is now Main Street. In 1854 the school moved into the abandoned building of the American Antiquarian society at Belmont and Summer streets. Around this time, principals were paid little, and "were given a free hand to charge whatever tuition they could get, pay the expenses, and pocket the profit."

In 1869, Isaac Davis purchased the abandoned Dale General Hospital on Providence Street in the Union Hill neighborhood. Davis donated the building, a former Civil War military hospital, to the school as its new permanent home. The building was renamed Davis Hall in his honor.

Davis Hall served as Worcester Academy's only building for many years; at times, it served as a dormitory, reputedly haunted by ghosts of Civil War soldiers. Davis Hall was damaged by the hurricane of 1938, and demolished in 1965. It was replaced by Davol Hall.

Daniel Webster Abercrombie served as principal from 1882 to 1918. He established the school's motto "Achieve the Honorable" in 1890. He presided over an aggressive expansion of the school, including Kingsley Laboratories (1897) and The Megaron (1905).

use alt tags
Worcester Academy in 1910. L to R: Davis Hall, Abercrombie House, Walker Hall, The Megaron, Adams Hall, Dexter Hall, and Kingsley Laboratories

Demographics

As of 2018, 451 out of 600, or 68% of the school's students were white, 66 (11%) were Asian, 32 (5%) were Black, and 15 (2.5%) were Hispanic or Latino. The corresponding numbers for the community were 56% white, 8% Asian, 12% black and 21% Hispanic or Latino.

Clubs

In the springs of 2010 and 2011, the We the People club won the Massachusetts championship and traveled to Washington, D.C. to participate in the national championship.

In 2011, Worcester Academy's math team won its seventh (and fourth straight) Worcester County Mathematics League championship, its seventh (and sixth straight) state championship, and its fourth New England championship (the third in six years).

Notable alumni

Notable faculty and alumni include:

In certain instances, student-athletes attend Worcester Academy solely for their senior year, or for a single postgraduate year, to increase their exposure to college coaches or to improve their academic standing. Notable student-athletes include:

Headmasters of Worcester Academy

Number Name Years
1st Silas Bailey, D.D. 1834–1838
2nd Samuel Stillman Greene, LL.D. 1838–1840
3rd Nelson Wheeler, A.M. 1840–1847
4th Eli Thayer 1840, A.M. 1847–1849
5th Charles C. Burnett, A.M. 1849–1852
6th Eleazer J. Avery, A.M. 1852–1854
7th William S. Greene, A.M. 1854–1858
8th Werden Reynolds, A.M. 1858–1860
9th James R. Stone, D.D. 1860–1862
10th Ambrose P. S. Stuart, A.M. 1862–1864
11th Charles Ayer, A.B. 1865–1866
12th Albert Prescott Marble, PhD 1866–1868
13th William Carey Poland, A.B. 1868–1870
14th Willard T. Leonard, M.A. 1870
15th Rev. David Weston, A.B. 1870–1871
16th John Day Smith, A.B. 1872–1875
17th Nathan Leavenworth, A.M. 1875–1882
18th Daniel Abercrombie, Litt.D., LL.D. 1882–1918
19th Samuel Foss Holmes, A.M. 1918–1933
20th Harold H. Wade 1933–1942
21st LeRoy A. Campbell, PhD 1942–1950
22nd Paul K. Phillips, A.B. 1950–1954
23rd William S. Piper, Jr., Ed.D. 1954–1968
24th Harold G. Rader, Ed.D. 1968–1969
25th David R. Jefferson, B.A., B.D. 1969–1970
26th Robert A. LaBranche 1946, M.S. 1970–1974
27th John A. Bloom, M.A. 1974–1985
28th Ben Williams, M.A. 1985–1991
29th John Mackenzie, M.A. 1991–1997
30th Dexter P. Morse, M Ed., C.A.G.S. 1997–2012
31st Ronald M. Cino 2012–2021
32nd Kevin Breen 2021–Present

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Tuition & Financial Aid". Worcesteracademy.org. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Official Website". Worcester Academy.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Callahan, Frank (May 16, 2014). "1959 "Worcester Gazette" Article on the Academy's History and Plans for the Future". Worcester Academy History. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Elfland, Mike (November 1, 2021). "Then & Now: Old Davis Hall, Providence Street, Worcester Academy". Worcester, Massachusetts: Worcester Telegram & Gazette. Archived from the original on November 1, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 Callahan, Frank (January 16, 2014). ""Achieve The Honorable" on Buildings". Worcester Academy History. Frank Callahan. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  6. ↑ "School ID 00603712". National Center for Education Statistics.
  7. ↑ "Worcester, MA id 2513230". National Center for Education Statistics.
  8. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved July 25, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. ↑ WOCOMAL Varsity Team Championships by Year. Wocomal.org. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
  10. ↑ WOCOMAL Varsity Team Rankings 2010–11. Wocomal.org. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
  11. ↑ MAML Team Championships by Year Archived May 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine. Wocomal.org. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
  12. ↑ MAML State Meet Team Rankings 2011. Wocomal.org. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
  13. ↑ NEAML Team Championships by Year Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Wocomal.org. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
  14. ↑ NEAML State Meet Team Rankings 2011. Wocomal.org. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
  15. ↑ Worcester Academy wins NE math championship. Telegram.com. Retrieved on October 14, 2011.
  16. ↑ Worcester Academy (1882). Annual Catalogue of the Officers and Students of Worcester Academy. Worcester, Massachusetts: Lucius P. Goddard. p. 10 – via Ancestry.com.
  17. ↑ Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. (1998). Generals In Khaki. Raleigh, North Carolina: Pentland Press. p. 300. ISBN 978-1-5719-7088-6 – via Google Books.
  18. ↑ "NEPSAC Basketball: Where Are They Now". New England Recruiting Report Retrieved on July 29, 2014.

Further reading

42°15′10″N 71°47′27″W / 42.252675°N 71.790703°W / 42.252675; -71.790703