The Miller School of Albemarle
Encyclopedia
The Miller School of Albemarle is a coeducational day and boarding college preparatory school outside Charlottesville, Virginia
for students in grades 8 - PG. It first opened its doors in 1878 with 33 students. One of the nation's oldest coeducational boarding schools, girls first enrolled in Miller in 1884. In 2006-2007, Miller School entered its 129th year with 145 boys and girls from around Virginia, around the nation, and around the world. The School is situated 12 miles (19 km) west of Charlottesville and the University of Virginia
, on a gently rolling campus of 1600 acres (6 km²).
Proud of being a small school with small classes, Miller boasts a vigorous academic college preparatory program and a unique “mind, hands, and heart” curriculum. There is an emphasis on character, honor, and individual responsibility; arts education; community service; and athletics for both boys and girls.
, who, as a boy, romped with his brother on the very area on which the school bearing his name is now situated. Near the village of Batesville, Virginia Samuel Miller was raised in abject poverty by a mother who realized the value of education and who used as much of her resources as possible to ensure that Samuel was tutored by a teacher who lived nearby. Samuel Miller learned well and, as an adult, used his education and his keen intelligence to earn a very handsome living as a merchant and market-oriented business person. Along the way, his charity became legendary in his adopted hometown of Lynchburg, Virginia
.
The Last Will and Testament of Samuel Miller provided for the majority of his estate to be used for the establishment of a boarding school for orphaned children, a school to be located very near his birthplace in Albemarle County. By 1874, following Mr. Miller’s 1869 death and the resolution of several legal disputes that arose as children of Mr. Miller’s sought to challenge his bequest, architects and builders were ready to begin work in designing and constructing The Miller Manual Labor School, as it was then known. This work culminated in August, 1878, with a grand opening and dedication of the central portion of “Old Main”, an august and impressive structure of [Victorian architecture], around which much of Miller School life still revolves. "Old Main" is now on the Virginia Historic Landmarks Registry
2006: Miller's boys varsity baseball team won its first state championship title.
at Miller School is direct and to the point: "I will not lie, steal, or cheat, nor will I tolerate any violation of the honor code by any other student."
The Honor Code is administered in large part by an Honor Committee of student and faculty members. These individuals sacrifice their time and energies to serve the School in this vitally important capacity. It is the Honor Committee, which conducts hearings with respect to allegations of Honor Code violations. These hearings are conducted in private as an educational and dispositive exercise, with many basic due process principles being a fundamental part of each proceeding.
, English Language
, U.S. History, Modern European History, Environmental Science, United States Government, Calculus
AB, Calculus
BC, French Literature
, Spanish Literature
, Spanish Language
, Economics
, Photography, Performance Arts, Woodworking
, Guitar Making, Music
, and Drama
The student run Miller School Publications distributes The Devil's Advocate, the school newspaper which includes student activities, world news, movie reviews, and interviews. Light upon the Hill, the art literary magazine showcases student prose, poetry, photography and art work. "The hill" is the nickname that students call the campus.
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
for students in grades 8 - PG. It first opened its doors in 1878 with 33 students. One of the nation's oldest coeducational boarding schools, girls first enrolled in Miller in 1884. In 2006-2007, Miller School entered its 129th year with 145 boys and girls from around Virginia, around the nation, and around the world. The School is situated 12 miles (19 km) west of Charlottesville and the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
, on a gently rolling campus of 1600 acres (6 km²).
Proud of being a small school with small classes, Miller boasts a vigorous academic college preparatory program and a unique “mind, hands, and heart” curriculum. There is an emphasis on character, honor, and individual responsibility; arts education; community service; and athletics for both boys and girls.
History
Miller School was founded in 1878 with a bequest of $1.1 million from Samuel MillerSamuel Miller
Samuel Miller may refer to:* Samuel Miller , professor at Princeton Theological Seminary and author of The Ruling Elder * Samuel Miller , inventor of the circular saw in 1777 * Samuel F...
, who, as a boy, romped with his brother on the very area on which the school bearing his name is now situated. Near the village of Batesville, Virginia Samuel Miller was raised in abject poverty by a mother who realized the value of education and who used as much of her resources as possible to ensure that Samuel was tutored by a teacher who lived nearby. Samuel Miller learned well and, as an adult, used his education and his keen intelligence to earn a very handsome living as a merchant and market-oriented business person. Along the way, his charity became legendary in his adopted hometown of Lynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 75,568 as of 2010. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River, Lynchburg is known as the "City of Seven Hills" or "The Hill City." Lynchburg was the only major city in...
.
The Last Will and Testament of Samuel Miller provided for the majority of his estate to be used for the establishment of a boarding school for orphaned children, a school to be located very near his birthplace in Albemarle County. By 1874, following Mr. Miller’s 1869 death and the resolution of several legal disputes that arose as children of Mr. Miller’s sought to challenge his bequest, architects and builders were ready to begin work in designing and constructing The Miller Manual Labor School, as it was then known. This work culminated in August, 1878, with a grand opening and dedication of the central portion of “Old Main”, an august and impressive structure of [Victorian architecture], around which much of Miller School life still revolves. "Old Main" is now on the Virginia Historic Landmarks Registry
- 1878: the first curriculumCurriculumSee also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...
is designed; students are to receive instruction in the classicsClassicsClassics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
as well as instruction in agricultureAgricultureAgriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and such trades as carpentryCarpentryA carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
and metal work
- 1882: Miller’s first 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...
team wins its initial game, a 55-0 victory over Fishburne Military School
- 1883: Thomas EdisonThomas EdisonThomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
’s company personally designs and supervises the installation of Miller School’s first electric power plant, two Edison Style “K” dynamos and 250 incandescent light bulbs
- 1884: Girls begin to board at the School, making Miller School one of the first co-educational private boarding schools in the South perhaps the very first in Virginia
- 1891: Miller becomes the model for other boarding schools in America that are committed to providing a “mind, hands, and heart” education for children in need
- 1915: The School begins to feel the economic pinch of having no tuition revenues to supplement its growing operational and maintenance expenses
- 1927: With mounting operational expenses and little fund-raising, Miller School begins to cut its programs; the girls program is the first to go; young ladies will not return to Miller School until the early 1990s
- 1939: Miller School begins to phase out its own farming operations and, instead, leases its land in an effort to generate income
- 1941: Direct American involvement in World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
begins; many, many Miller School graduates serve bravely and honorably; some lost their lives in defense of the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
; others survive the war and return home with decorations for their bravery
- 1948: Miller School wins the annual interscholastic boxing championship
- 1950: Miller School begins to charge tuition to supplement its trust funds, which no longer generate sufficient yearly revenues to support the School
- 1951: As military schools reach new heights of popularity in post-World War II America, Miller School goes military with its program; for several years, this program is wildly successful
- 1964: 224 boarding boys are enrolled at Miller School, many of them 5th and 6th graders supervised and guided by the legendary Thomas F. Hart
- 1967: Miller School is integrated; Caucasian students live and study freely with students of color
- 1970: The School again faces another financial crisis, this one related to the exorbitant costs associated with fire prevention remodeling; somehow, the School makes its financial ends meet and remains open
- 1984: Miller proudly becomes a founding member of the Virginia Association of Independent Schools and begins to chart a course toward a college preparatory curriculum
- 1992: The School accepts a limited number of boy and girl day students
- 1994: The total student population grows; a girls boarding program begins; the military program is de-emphasized (and eventually eliminated); the curriculum is modified so that preparation for college is fused with the School’s historic commitment to developing the “mind, hands, and heart” of each student
- 1999: New state legislation is passed to give Miller School more flexibility and authority in the appointment of members of its own Board of Trustees; sports teams begin to win championships again; Miller’s community service program sets the standard for volunteerism in the central Virginia area
- 2001: Senior Heidi Swan is awarded the first-ever Emily CouricEmily CouricEmily Couric was a Virginia Democratic state senator from Charlottesville.Couric was born to Elinor Couric, a homemaker and part-time writer, and John Martin Couric, a public relations executive and news editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the United Press in Washington, D.C....
Award for Leadership, given annually to a young woman in central Virginia who demonstrates by her good deeds the high ideals, work ethic, and leadership qualities of the late State Sen. Emily Couric - 2003: Point Guard Linas Lekavicius from Silale, Lithuania was named VIS Division II Player of the Year.
- 2004: With its student population at 150, college acceptances at very encouraging levels, more boarding girls than at any time since the early 20th century, and an accomplished faculty (over 50% of whom have advanced degrees), Miller School positions itself for the future by adopting a new Strategic Plan, expanding its Board of Trustees, recommitting to its college preparatory curriculum, and funding its Development Office.
- 2006: Point Gaurd Danny Manuel from Waynesboro, Virginia was named VIS Division II Player of the Year.
- 2007: The largest senior class in Miller School's history is established with a total of 42 students.
2006: Miller's boys varsity baseball team won its first state championship title.
- 2007: The passing of the school's historian, Peggy Flannagan. She died at the age of 101 years old.
- 2007: Power Forward Marshawn Powell from Newport News, Virginia was named VIS Division II Player of the Year.
- 2008: Miller School changed its colors from maroon and gray to teal and green. Also the mascot is no longer the Red Devil; Miller School's athletic teams compete as the Mavericks.
- 2008: Power Forward Marshawn Powell from Newport News Virginia was named VIS Division II Player of the Year.
- 2009: Miller's boys varsity basketball team won its first state championship title.
- 2010: Miller's girl varsity basketball team won its first state championship title.
- 2010: Miller's Brandon Bolden is ranked as the #1 HS basketball player in Virginia on virginia.rivals.com
- 2011: Miller's girls' basketball team wins back to back state championships.
Honor Code
The 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...
at Miller School is direct and to the point: "I will not lie, steal, or cheat, nor will I tolerate any violation of the honor code by any other student."
The Honor Code is administered in large part by an Honor Committee of student and faculty members. These individuals sacrifice their time and energies to serve the School in this vitally important capacity. It is the Honor Committee, which conducts hearings with respect to allegations of Honor Code violations. These hearings are conducted in private as an educational and dispositive exercise, with many basic due process principles being a fundamental part of each proceeding.
AP Course Offerings
English LiteratureEnglish literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
, English Language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, U.S. History, Modern European History, Environmental Science, United States Government, Calculus
Calculus
Calculus is a branch of mathematics focused on limits, functions, derivatives, integrals, and infinite series. This subject constitutes a major part of modern mathematics education. It has two major branches, differential calculus and integral calculus, which are related by the fundamental theorem...
AB, Calculus
Calculus
Calculus is a branch of mathematics focused on limits, functions, derivatives, integrals, and infinite series. This subject constitutes a major part of modern mathematics education. It has two major branches, differential calculus and integral calculus, which are related by the fundamental theorem...
BC, French Literature
French literature
French literature is, generally speaking, literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than French. Literature written in French language, by citizens...
, Spanish Literature
Spanish literature
Spanish literature generally refers to literature written in the Spanish language within the territory that presently constitutes the state of Spain...
, Spanish Language
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...
, Economics
Elective Offerings
Visual ArtsVisual arts
The visual arts are art forms that create works which are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, and often modern visual arts and architecture...
, Photography, Performance Arts, Woodworking
Woodworking
Woodworking is the process of building, making or carving something using wood.-History:Along with stone, mud, and animal parts, wood was one of the first materials worked by early humans. Microwear analysis of the Mousterian stone tools used by the Neanderthals show that many were used to work wood...
, Guitar Making, Music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, and Drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
Community Outreach
Miller School students do a service project from 13:00 to 15:00 (EDT/EST) every other Wednesday. Students assimilate into different organizations such as Habitat for Humanity or the local surrounding Hospitals and other need based organizations. Miller School also awards 35% of the student body with need based financial aid.Extracurricular Programs
The Miller School of Albemarle has a National Honor Society Chapter. Membership in the National Honor Society is based on a combination of factors, including overall GPA, leadership within the school community and service to the wider community. Students who are inducted into the NHS serve as peer tutors during their time at Miller. In addition, the Society performs some sort of community service each year, whether by volunteering with a local organization or raising money to support a local charity.The student run Miller School Publications distributes The Devil's Advocate, the school newspaper which includes student activities, world news, movie reviews, and interviews. Light upon the Hill, the art literary magazine showcases student prose, poetry, photography and art work. "The hill" is the nickname that students call the campus.
Student government
The Miller School of Albemarle has a student government which consists of a student body President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Each student grade also has two class representatives which represent their respective classes during student government meetings. The student government works directly with the school's administration to represent the views of the students in decisions made which affect the student body as a whole, or in part. The student government also works with the school's administration and board of directors to raise money and orchestrate student activities such as dances and balls with other boarding and day schools, and student requested dress down days, which are days where the school's dress code does not apply.Miller school in popular culture
- The Miller School of Albemarle was also used for the exterior and interior scenes of the boarding school attended by the characters in the film, Toy SoldiersToy Soldiers (1991 film)Toy Soldiers is a 1991 American action-drama film directed by Daniel Petrie, Jr. and starring Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, Louis Gossett, Jr., Andrew Divoff and Mason Adams. The plot revolves around an elite, independent all-male boarding school, the Regis High School, which is overtaken by terrorists...
- The Miller School of Albemarle was also used for the exterior and interior scenes of the boarding school attended by the characters in the film, Major PayneMajor PayneMajor Payne is a 1995 comedy film, starring Damon Wayans. The film is a loose remake of the 1955 film The Private War of Major Benson, starring Charlton Heston....
- The Miller School of Albemarle was also used for the opening sequence of the boarding school attended by the characters in the film, Morgan Stewart's Coming Home
- The Miller School of Albemarle was also used for the opening credits fly-over sequence in the film, Cry Wolf