Princeton Day School
Encyclopedia
Princeton Day School is a private coeducation
al day school
located in Princeton Township
, New Jersey
, serving students in grades pre kindergarten - 12. The largest division is the Upper School (grades 9-12), with an enrollment of approximately 400. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
Commission on Secondary Schools since 1989.
As of the 2009-10 school year, the school had a total enrollment of 903 students (plus 16 in pre-K) and 110.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE
basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 8.1.
Of the 2011 graduating class of Princeton Day School seniors, a third were honored as semi-finalists or commended scholars in the National Merit Scholarship Program
. In the five years through 2011, the most common schools for members of the PDS graduating classes were University of Pennsylvania
, Princeton University
, Lehigh University
, New York University
and Boston University
. Approximately 85% of the Class of 2007 attended colleges rated “Most Competitive” or “Highly Competitive” by Barrons
, and 16% attended Ivy League
institutions.
In September 2005, the school launched the public phase of a five-year $50 million capital campaign, "Investing in Excellence" to support new and renovated facilities and increased endowment for faculty salaries and financial aid that raised a total of $53 million from more than 4,000 contributors.
The school is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools
, New Jersey Association of Independent Schools
and the Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools
.
"A large shapeless figure [with] a pile of white hair dominated by a bun on the top, which usually slid over to the side of her head by the end of the day," Fine was, despite her appearance, a loved and respected figure. John Finley, editor of The New York Times
during the 1910s, wrote of her, "So was the school under her wise and gentle rule a place where happy children grew into her spirited likeness." Fine retired in 1931 and died two years later.
In 1924, a group of parents established an elementary school for boys on Bayard Lane, next to Miss Fine's School. The boys' school was known as Princeton Country Day School (PCD). The school soon moved to an independent campus with purpose-built buildings at 171 Broadmead in another section of Princeton not far from Palmer Stadium. It has large playing fields across the street for football and soccer. In the winter, there was skating occasionally on Carnegie Lake nearby and daily ice hockey at Baker Rink. In the spring, there was an annual school fair. The school had an excellent academic reputation and most graduates went on to New England boarding schools for secondary education. The buildings and campus of PCD are now part of Princeton University and used as a nursery school.
Princeton Country Day merged with Miss Fine's School in 1965 to become Princeton Day School. Princeton Day School's campus along The Great Road in Princeton opened in 1965, thanks to the contributions of Dean Mathey.
Dance, actually continues today, though it is now performed by second graders instead of Upper Schoolers.)
New traditions have joined the Maypole
Dance in recent years, including the annual Powder Puff
game, a fiercely competitive flag football
match between the junior and senior girls that has been held since 2004, and Dr. Seuss
Day, a day of boisterous noise and frosted cake in the otherwise tightly-run Upper School library. Two of PDS's most celebrated current traditions are the Halloween Parade, and Blue & White Day.
Blue & White Day was founded by beloved Physical Education teacher Kim Bedesem; when Bedesem died in 1993, it was decided that each subsequent Blue & White Day be dedicated to her. Each year, the Blue & White Day t-shirts distributed to students and faculty have the name “KIM” hidden somewhere in the design. While Bedesem created Blue & White Day in its present form in the 80s, similar events existed at Miss Fine's and PCD as much as 60 years earlier. James Howard Murch, PCD’s first Headmaster, was remembered by his successor for “the pleasurable relish with which he took to interpret[ing] the decimal-splitting rivalries of the Blues and Whites.” Miss Fine’s School (whose school colors were voted Blue and Grey by the Class of 1918) had “similar challenges" in which Blues and Greys competed.
The Upper School (grades 9-12) returned to Blue and White Day in 2006 following over a decade's hiatus from the event. Their re-entry into the morning part of the activities was later expanded to include other Blue/White competitions in the Upper School during the rest of the school year.
was approved in a school-wide referendum in 2006. The current Code, the product of many years of work by successive Council administrations, was the focus of intense debate after being formally introduced to the Upper School in fall of 2005. Entering the philosophical fray were those who thought the school did not need an Honor Code, those who thought each student should be required to sign the Code, and many people holding different positions in between. The referendum held by Council in January 2006 ended in a compromise: each student at PDS would be bound by the Honor Code, but they did not have to physically sign it. The PDS Honor Code reads:
To learn honorably is to live honorably.
In order to foster the development of our community of learners, I will:
-uphold personal and academic integrity,
-respect myself and others,
-act responsibly and lead by example,
-be honest in my own work,
-and embrace the values expressed in this code.
in Roanoke, Virginia
before joining the PDS community. John Ora, the Head of the Middle School, also left after the 2006-07 school year, to take a job as the Head of School at another independent school in California. Warren Gould, who is the head of Academic Affairs at Princeton Day School, became the Interim Head of the Middle School, giving way to Steven Hancock for the 2008-09 school year and beyond.
The wide array of clubs offered in the Upper School at PDS (many of which are created by a student's or group of students' initiative) include the Outdoors Club, the Four Square Club, a Model United Nations
team, the Mock trial
team, the Debate Club, Amnesty International
, The Mo'adon, the International Affairs club, the Nigerian Culture Club, AWARE club (Allies Working towards Awareness Respect and Equality), the Science Olympiad
Team, the Science Club, the EnAct (Environmental Action) club, Garden Club, the Cricket Club, the Conservative Club, Princeton Friends of Freedom (PFoF), the Hippie Resurgence, the InterAct Club, the India Club, the French Club, the Gay-Straight Alliance, the Harry Potter
Club, Anime Club, the Mountain Appreciation Club, the Junior State of America
, the Spanish
Club (which holds a popular annual Salsa Cook-off in March) and the Science League Team. The Lower and Middle schools offer, among others, Destination Imagination
and FIRST Lego League
teams.
Students also participate in Peer Group, and Tour Guide programs, serve on the Community Council, Student Ambassadors Committee, and Judiciary Committee, and become SysOps (student administrators for the computer and email systems).
State championships
Recent achievements:
Coeducation
Mixed-sex education, also known as coeducation or co-education, is the integrated education of male and female persons in the same institution. It is the opposite of single-sex education...
al day school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
located in Princeton Township
Princeton Township, New Jersey
Also Princeton Borough is an independent municipality completely surrounded by the township.Princeton North is a census-designated place and unincorporated area located within Princeton Township....
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, serving students in grades pre kindergarten - 12. The largest division is the Upper School (grades 9-12), with an enrollment of approximately 400. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association dedicated to educational excellence and improvement through peer evaluation and accreditation...
Commission on Secondary Schools since 1989.
As of the 2009-10 school year, the school had a total enrollment of 903 students (plus 16 in pre-K) and 110.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE
Full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent , is a unit to measure employed persons or students in a way that makes them comparable although they may work or study a different number of hours per week. FTE is often used to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or to track cost reductions in an organization...
basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 8.1.
Of the 2011 graduating class of Princeton Day School seniors, a third were honored as semi-finalists or commended scholars in the National Merit Scholarship Program
National Merit Scholarship Program
The National Merit Scholarship Program is a United States academic scholarship competition for recognition and college scholarships administered by National Merit Scholarship Corporation , a privately funded, not-for-profit organization. The program began in 1955...
. In the five years through 2011, the most common schools for members of the PDS graduating classes were University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, Lehigh University
Lehigh University
Lehigh University is a private, co-educational university located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. It was established in 1865 by Asa Packer as a four-year technical school, but has grown to include studies in a wide variety of disciplines...
, New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
and Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
. Approximately 85% of the Class of 2007 attended colleges rated “Most Competitive” or “Highly Competitive” by Barrons
Barron's Educational Series
Barron's Educational Series, Inc. is an American test preparation company, founded in 1941 as a publisher of materials to help students to prepare for college entrance examinations, and that offers online college entrance exam preparation classes...
, and 16% attended Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
institutions.
In September 2005, the school launched the public phase of a five-year $50 million capital campaign, "Investing in Excellence" to support new and renovated facilities and increased endowment for faculty salaries and financial aid that raised a total of $53 million from more than 4,000 contributors.
The school is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools
National Association of Independent Schools
The National Association of Independent Schools is a U.S.-based membership organization for private, nonprofit, K-12 schools. Founded in 1963, NAIS represents independent schools and associations in the United States, including day, boarding, and day/boarding schools; elementary and secondary...
, New Jersey Association of Independent Schools
New Jersey Association of Independent Schools
The New Jersey Association of Independent Schools serves independent elementary and secondary schools throughout the state of New Jersey. The Association consists of 70 member schools with a total enrollment of approximately 26,000 students...
and the Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools
Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools
The Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools is a voluntary, non-profit consortium of independent schools in the Delaware Valley area of the USA. With headquarters in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, the Association currently has 134 members located throughout eastern Pennsylvania, northern...
.
History
Founded in 1898, Miss Fine's School in Princeton prepared girls for college with a curriculum including English, French, Latin, history and mathematics, at a time when women were not expected to attend college, and when only one out of eight children in America went to school at all. For years, the institution was, quite literally, Miss Fine's School; in addition to serving as Headmistress, May Margaret Fine taught all the subjects but French, maintained an individual interest in her students, and even "tended the furnace....often leaving in the middle of Latin class to do it.""A large shapeless figure [with] a pile of white hair dominated by a bun on the top, which usually slid over to the side of her head by the end of the day," Fine was, despite her appearance, a loved and respected figure. John Finley, editor of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
during the 1910s, wrote of her, "So was the school under her wise and gentle rule a place where happy children grew into her spirited likeness." Fine retired in 1931 and died two years later.
In 1924, a group of parents established an elementary school for boys on Bayard Lane, next to Miss Fine's School. The boys' school was known as Princeton Country Day School (PCD). The school soon moved to an independent campus with purpose-built buildings at 171 Broadmead in another section of Princeton not far from Palmer Stadium. It has large playing fields across the street for football and soccer. In the winter, there was skating occasionally on Carnegie Lake nearby and daily ice hockey at Baker Rink. In the spring, there was an annual school fair. The school had an excellent academic reputation and most graduates went on to New England boarding schools for secondary education. The buildings and campus of PCD are now part of Princeton University and used as a nursery school.
Princeton Country Day merged with Miss Fine's School in 1965 to become Princeton Day School. Princeton Day School's campus along The Great Road in Princeton opened in 1965, thanks to the contributions of Dean Mathey.
Traditions
Over the years, Princeton Day School enjoyed many traditions that no longer take place. These include an Upper School pie-eating competition that continued until the eighties, an annual sophomore-junior canoeing trip, intended to bridge the gap between two grades that traditionally do not share many classes, and legendary English teacher Anne Shepherd's wreathmaking assembly. The wreathmaking rite started in Miss Fine's School in 1900, and since, by the 1980s, participation in the event had dwindled, it was cancelled. A December 1982 article in PDS's student-run newspaper, the The Spokesman, explained that “This [announcement] raised such an uproar that, by popular demand, the [assembly] was given one last chance.” By the 1990s, though, wreathmaking was gone, indicative of the passing of certain traditions over time. (Another tradition that began at Miss Fine's, the annual MaypoleMaypole
A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, particularly on May Day, or Pentecost although in some countries it is instead erected at Midsummer...
Dance, actually continues today, though it is now performed by second graders instead of Upper Schoolers.)
New traditions have joined the Maypole
Maypole
A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, particularly on May Day, or Pentecost although in some countries it is instead erected at Midsummer...
Dance in recent years, including the annual Powder Puff
Powder Puff
Powderpuff is a reference to the division of a traditionally male sport reserved for females regardless of the age of the participants.Powderpuff football games are an annual tradition at many high schools and universities in the United States and Canada...
game, a fiercely competitive flag football
Flag football
Flag football is a version of Canadian football or American football that is popular worldwide. The basic rules of the game are similar to those of the mainstream game , but instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier to end...
match between the junior and senior girls that has been held since 2004, and Dr. Seuss
Dr. Seuss
Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg and, in one case, Rosetta Stone....
Day, a day of boisterous noise and frosted cake in the otherwise tightly-run Upper School library. Two of PDS's most celebrated current traditions are the Halloween Parade, and Blue & White Day.
Halloween Challenge/Parade
For at least 20 years (beginning by 1984 at the latest, and ending in 2003), the senior challenge, or the Halloween Challenge, had been a yearly PDS tradition. A collection of four Halloween-themed skits performed by each Upper School grade in front of the extended Lower School, Middle School and faculty each Halloween, the competition was introduced each October during announcement period, where the seniors would unexpectedly take control of the microphone and issue a public challenge to the other three grades.Blue & White Day
On Blue & White Field Day, an all-school athletic competition held each spring, PDS students often carry a fierce 24-hour sense of patriotism for their color, painting their faces blue or white and engaging in acts of playful discrimination against the opposing team. Popular Blue-White events include "The Big Race," which involves students in each grade from JK through 12, a faculty balloon toss (for which students serve as rowdy spectators), and the freestyle sack race.Blue & White Day was founded by beloved Physical Education teacher Kim Bedesem; when Bedesem died in 1993, it was decided that each subsequent Blue & White Day be dedicated to her. Each year, the Blue & White Day t-shirts distributed to students and faculty have the name “KIM” hidden somewhere in the design. While Bedesem created Blue & White Day in its present form in the 80s, similar events existed at Miss Fine's and PCD as much as 60 years earlier. James Howard Murch, PCD’s first Headmaster, was remembered by his successor for “the pleasurable relish with which he took to interpret[ing] the decimal-splitting rivalries of the Blues and Whites.” Miss Fine’s School (whose school colors were voted Blue and Grey by the Class of 1918) had “similar challenges" in which Blues and Greys competed.
The Upper School (grades 9-12) returned to Blue and White Day in 2006 following over a decade's hiatus from the event. Their re-entry into the morning part of the activities was later expanded to include other Blue/White competitions in the Upper School during the rest of the school year.
Honor Code
The PDS Honor CodeHonor code
An honour code or honour system is a set of rules or principles governing a community based on a set of rules or ideals that define what constitutes honorable behavior within that community. The use of an honor code depends on the idea that people can be trusted to act honorably...
was approved in a school-wide referendum in 2006. The current Code, the product of many years of work by successive Council administrations, was the focus of intense debate after being formally introduced to the Upper School in fall of 2005. Entering the philosophical fray were those who thought the school did not need an Honor Code, those who thought each student should be required to sign the Code, and many people holding different positions in between. The referendum held by Council in January 2006 ended in a compromise: each student at PDS would be bound by the Honor Code, but they did not have to physically sign it. The PDS Honor Code reads:
To learn honorably is to live honorably.
In order to foster the development of our community of learners, I will:
-uphold personal and academic integrity,
-respect myself and others,
-act responsibly and lead by example,
-be honest in my own work,
-and embrace the values expressed in this code.
Administration
Paul J. Stellato was appointed as Head of School indeterminately from the 2008-09 school year on. On November 7, 2007, The Board of Trustees announced that the committee voted unanimously to approve Paul J. Stellato as the next Head of School at Princeton Day School. His official term began July 1, 2008. Stellato was the Headmaster of North Cross SchoolNorth Cross School
North Cross School is an independent, co-educational, college-preparatory day school that serves children in Junior Kindergarten 3 through twelfth grade-School Stats:545 students 71% Faculty with advanced degrees 8:1 Student-to-faculty ratio...
in Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke is an independent city in the Mid-Atlantic U.S. state of Virginia and is the tenth-largest city in the Commonwealth. It is located in the Roanoke Valley of the Roanoke Region of Virginia. The population within the city limits was 97,032 as of 2010...
before joining the PDS community. John Ora, the Head of the Middle School, also left after the 2006-07 school year, to take a job as the Head of School at another independent school in California. Warren Gould, who is the head of Academic Affairs at Princeton Day School, became the Interim Head of the Middle School, giving way to Steven Hancock for the 2008-09 school year and beyond.
- Head of School: Paul Stellato
- Head of Upper School: Carlton Tucker
- Head of Middle School: Steven Hancock
- Interim Head of Lower School: Lisa Surace
Facilities
Princeton Day School recently completed a $24 million construction project which began in February 2006. The new construction and renovations a were completed in September 2007 and include doubling the size and adding a variety of new technologies to their middle and upper school libraries. A new art center houses studios for architecture, ceramics, painting/drawing, woodworking, photography, and cinematic arts. The school's music facilities have been expanded to include a state-of-the-art recording studio and new practice areas to accommodate a growing choral and instrumental music program. Currently, PDS's facilities include:- 6 Soccer/Lacrosse/Field Hockey Fields,including a state-of-the-art synthetic turf field
- 2 Football Fields, 2 Softball Fields, and 2 Baseball Fields
- Ice Rink with 6 Locker Rooms
- Weight Training Room
- 3 Gymnasiums
- Additional 2 Locker Rooms
- Full Music Wing with 7 Soundproof Rehearsal Rooms
- Wood shop
- Architecture Studio
- Fine Art Studio
- Film Studio with Green Room and Computer Lab
- Photography Lab with Dark Room and Computer Lab
- 2 Ceramics Rooms
- Planetarium
- Campus Center Cafeteria with Snack Bar
- 400+ Seat Theater
- Two Amphitheaters, Indoor and Outdoor
- Three Additional Computer Labs
- Three Libraries
- Bookstore
- Dance Studio
- Printing Room for School Newspaper
- 14 Science Labs
- 50+ Classrooms
Clubs and activities
Student-run publications at Princeton Day School include the Spokesman, an award-winning Upper School newspaper published eight times a year, which uses a staff of 19 editors and two faculty advisors, and its Middle School sister publication, the Spokeskid. A yearly literary and arts magazine called Cymbals is also published, along with the annual yearbook, the Link. Recently, students from the 2011-2012 Media Arts Major have started Princeton Day School's first news network, Channel 12 News, which provides monthly news in through an alternate medium.The wide array of clubs offered in the Upper School at PDS (many of which are created by a student's or group of students' initiative) include the Outdoors Club, the Four Square Club, a Model United Nations
Model United Nations
Model United Nations is an academic simulation of the United Nations that aims to educate participants about current events, topics in international relations, diplomacy and the United Nations agenda....
team, the Mock trial
Mock trial
A Mock Trial is an act or imitation trial. It is similar to a moot court, but mock trials simulate lower-court trials, while moot court simulates appellate court hearings. Attorneys preparing for a real trial might use a mock trial consisting of volunteers as role players to test theories or...
team, the Debate Club, Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
, The Mo'adon, the International Affairs club, the Nigerian Culture Club, AWARE club (Allies Working towards Awareness Respect and Equality), the Science Olympiad
Science Olympiad
Science Olympiad is an American elementary, middle, or high school team competition which tests knowledge of various science topics and engineering ability. Over 6,200 teams from 49 U.S. states compete each year. Most teams compete in three levels of competition: regionals, states, and nationals...
Team, the Science Club, the EnAct (Environmental Action) club, Garden Club, the Cricket Club, the Conservative Club, Princeton Friends of Freedom (PFoF), the Hippie Resurgence, the InterAct Club, the India Club, the French Club, the Gay-Straight Alliance, the Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
Club, Anime Club, the Mountain Appreciation Club, the Junior State of America
Junior State of America
The Junior State of America is an American non-partisan student-run youth organization. It is also the largest high school student-run organization in the country...
, the Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
Club (which holds a popular annual Salsa Cook-off in March) and the Science League Team. The Lower and Middle schools offer, among others, Destination Imagination
Destination ImagiNation
Destination ImagiNation Inc. or DI is a creative problem solving organization for youth and adults. Destination ImagiNation's educational goals are to foster creative and critical thinking, to develop teamwork, collaboration and leadership skills, and to nurture research and inquiry skills...
and FIRST Lego League
FIRST Lego League
The FIRST® LEGO® League is an international competition organized by FIRST for elementary and middle school students ....
teams.
Students also participate in Peer Group, and Tour Guide programs, serve on the Community Council, Student Ambassadors Committee, and Judiciary Committee, and become SysOps (student administrators for the computer and email systems).
Sports teams
Middle and Upper School Sports teams at PDS include:- Fall: Boys FootballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, Boys and Girls SoccerFootball (soccer)Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
, Girls TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, Boys and Girls Cross-Country, Girls Field HockeyField hockeyField Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks... - Winter: Boys and Girls BasketballBasketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, Coed SquashSquash (sport)Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...
(upper school only), Coed FencingFencingFencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
, Boys and Girls ice hockeyIce hockeyIce hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
, Girls VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive... - Spring: Boys BaseballBaseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, Boys and Girls LacrosseLacrosseLacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
, Boys TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, Girls SoftballSoftballSoftball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, Coed GolfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
(upper school only) , Coed Figure skatingFigure skatingFigure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...
(upper school only)
State championships
- Boys Ice hockey: 1981-82 1988-89, 1989-1990 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2011
- Coed Figure skating: 2000, 2001, 2006, 2008
- Girls Ice hockey: 1998-99, 2001–02
- Girls Softball: 1993, 1996, 2006
- Boys Tennis: 1980, 1981, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
- Girls Basketball: 1990, 1995, 2000
- Girls Lacrosse: 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1995
- Boys Football: 1973, 1974, 1975, 1980
- Boys Lacrosse: 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1985, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996
- Boys Basketball: 1973-74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1979–80, 1984–85, 1991–92, 1994–95, 1996–97, 1998–99
- Baseball: 1971, 1972, 1977, 1991, 1992, 1998, 2001, 2010
- Boys Cross Country: 1974, 1978, 1979, 1991, 1992, 2002,2009, 2010
- Boys Soccer: 1971, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 2010
- Golf: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995
- Fencing: 1995, 1996, 2008
- Girls Soccer: 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997, 2002, 2008, 2010
- Field Hockey: 1976, 1978, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998
- Volleyball: 1977, 1982, 1983, 1993, 1994
- Girls Tennis: 2002, 2008, 2009
Recent achievements:
- Boys Soccer won the 2010 Mercer County Tournament with a 1-0 win over three-time defending champion Princeton High SchoolPrinceton High School (New Jersey)Princeton High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Princeton Regional Schools district, which serves all public school students in the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township...
and took the Prep B State Championship with a 2-1 win over Gill St. Bernard's SchoolGill St. Bernard's SchoolGill St. Bernard's School is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational day school located in the Gladstone area of Peapack-Gladstone, New Jersey, United States, serving students in primary through twelfth grade...
, the program's first state title since 1986. - Girls Lacrosse won the 2010 Mercer County Tournament with an 11-8 victory over Stuart Country Day SchoolStuart Country Day SchoolStuart Country Day School of the Sacred Heart is an independent all-girls Catholic country day school located in Princeton Township, New Jersey, that serves students from pre-school through grade 12...
.
Notable alumni
- Trey AnastasioTrey AnastasioTrey Anastasio is an American guitarist, composer, and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish...
'82 - Singer and guitarist for PhishPhishPhish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
. - Alyssa Briody '03 - Two-time All-American lacrosse player.
- Mary Chapin CarpenterMary Chapin CarpenterMary Chapin Carpenter is an American folk and country music artist. Carpenter spent several years singing in Washington, D.C. clubs before signing in the late 1980s with Columbia Records, who marketed her as a country singer...
'76 - Country music singer-songwriter and guitarist. - Chris ConleyChris ConleyChristopher Lane Conley is an American musician and songwriter/composer, and the lead-singer/rhythm guitarist in Saves the Day...
'98 - Lead singer of Saves the DaySaves the DaySaves the Day is an American rock band from Princeton, New Jersey, formed in 1994. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Conley, guitarist Arun Bali, bassist Rodrigo Palma, and drummer Claudio Rivera....
. - Stefan HirniakStefan HirniakStefan Max Hirniak is a male swimmer from Canada, who mostly competes in the freestyle and butterfly events...
'03 - Professional swimmer for the Canadian national teams who holds two Canadian swimming records and set a world swimming record for butterfly. - Patrick KerneyPatrick Kerney-Atlanta Falcons:Kerney was drafted as the thirtieth overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons, wearing the number 97 jersey. The Falcons signed Kerney to a 5-year $5.6 million contract. As a rookie, Kerney started two games and recorded 25 tackles and 2.5 sacks...
'94 - Professional football player and Pro BowlPro BowlIn professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
defensive end for the Seattle SeahawksSeattle SeahawksThe Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
. Only played freshman season for PDS before moving on to the Taft School. - Tom MarshallTom Marshall (singer)Tom Marshall is a lyricist, keyboardist and singer/songwriter best known for his association with Trey Anastasio and the rock band Phish...
'82 - PhishPhishPhish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
lyricist. - Lyle and Erik MenendezLyle and Erik MenendezJoseph Lyle Menendez and Erik Galen Menendez are brothers who are known for their conviction in a highly publicized trial for the shotgun murders in 1989 of their wealthy parents, entertainment executive Jose Menendez and his wife Mary "Kitty" Menendez , residents of Beverly Hills, California...
- convicted murderers. - Ben MezrichBen MezrichBen Mezrich is an American author from Princeton, New Jersey. He graduated magna-cum-laude with a degree in Social Studies from Harvard University in 1991. Some of his books have been written under the pseudonym Holden Scott. Mezrich attended Princeton Day School, in Princeton, New Jersey...
'87 - Author of Bringing Down the HouseBringing Down the House (book)Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions is a book by Ben Mezrich about a group of MIT card counters commonly known as the MIT Blackjack Team. While represented as non-fiction by Mezrich and Free Press, the book contains significant fictional elements...
and The Accidental BillionairesThe Accidental BillionairesThe Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook, A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal is a 2009 book by Ben Mezrich about the founding of Facebook. Co-founder Eduardo Saverin served as Mezrich's main consultant...
, which were made into the movies 2121 (2008 film)21 is a 2008 drama film directed by Australian director Robert Luketic and stars Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Bosworth, Liza Lapira, Jacob Pitts, and Aaron Yoo. The film is inspired by the true story of the MIT Blackjack Team as told in Bringing Down the House, the...
and The Social NetworkThe Social NetworkThe Social Network is a 2010 American drama film directed by David Fincher and written by Aaron Sorkin. Adapted from Ben Mezrich's 2009 book The Accidental Billionaires, the film portrays the founding of social networking website Facebook and the resulting lawsuits...
, respectively. - Christopher ReeveChristopher ReeveChristopher D'Olier Reeve was an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, author and activist...
'70 - Late actor, director, and producer. He was best known for his role as the title character in the SupermanSupermanSuperman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
films. - David Soloway '97 - Member of Saves the DaySaves the DaySaves the Day is an American rock band from Princeton, New Jersey, formed in 1994. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Conley, guitarist Arun Bali, bassist Rodrigo Palma, and drummer Claudio Rivera....
. - Kara SwisherKara SwisherKara Swisher is an American technology columnist for the Wall Street Journal and an author and commentator on the Internet....
'80 - Technology columnist for the Wall Street Journal. Founded All Things DigitalAll Things DigitalAllThingsD.com is an online publication that specializes in technology and startup company news, analysis and coverage. It was founded as an extension of the D: All Things Digital conference in 2007 by Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg....
and serves as its co-executive editor with Walt Mossberg. - Marjorie WilliamsMarjorie WilliamsMarjorie Williams was a writer, reporter, and columnist for Vanity Fair and The Washington Post, writing about American society and profiling the American "political elite."...
'75 - Late editor and columnist for the Washington Post.
External links
- Princeton Day School Community Council home page
- The Spokesman Online
- Data for Princeton Day School, National Center for Education StatisticsNational Center for Education StatisticsThe National Center for Education Statistics is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States...