Tilton School
Encyclopedia
The Tilton School is an independent, coeducational, college preparatory school in Tilton
, New Hampshire
, in the United States
, serving students from 9th to 12th grade and postgraduates. Founded in 1845, Tilton's student body of 258 consists of 51 day students and 192 boarding students from 20 states and 16 countries.
, which is just across the Winnipesaukee River
from the present campus. In the 1860s a fire burned part of the school and forced relocation across the river, to the present campus. Several brick buildings were erected, to be replaced in the 1880s by Knowles Hall.
In the early days, several different names were used for the school, each describing its function and, at times, its location. First, the school was called the New Hampshire Conference Seminary, because it was founded by Methodists, and its primary purpose was to train boys and girls for work in the church. In 1852, "and Female College" was added to the already long name. College degrees were granted to women until 1903, when the name was changed to "Tilton Seminary". The present name, Tilton School, was adopted in 1923.
Over the years, Tilton School has served many purposes, which were always related to the needs of the times. It has been a co-educational boarding school, a boys' boarding school, a public school, a female college, a junior college, and a secondary school with both college and general courses. In 1939, Tilton ceased serving as the local high school and became strictly an independent boarding and day school for boys. In 1958, the "general diploma" was dropped and only college preparatory courses were offered. In 1970, Tilton once again became co-educational.
Tilton maintains an active chapter of the Cum Laude Society
, one of only 368 chapters of this scholastic achievement honor society world wide.
philosophy which is a framework for designing curriculum, performance assessments, and classroom instruction.
Winter
Spring
which consists of seven New England preparatory schools that compete athletically and academically. Tilton is also a member of the New England Prep School Athletic Conference (NEPSAC) as well as the Evergreen League for football.
In 2008 Tilton and New Hampton School
resumed a long-standing rivalry known as the Powder Keg. The competition between the two schools dates back to 1895 and is among the oldest rivalries in prep school athletics. Other traditional athletic opponents include Phillips Exeter Academy
, St. Paul's School
, St. Mark's School
, Kents Hill School
, Cushing Academy
, and other prep and boarding schools from across the northeast.
A new academic building, constructed in 2007, is located just west of Plimpton Hall and connects to that building. It is a 38000 square feet (3,530.3 m²), wireless, state-of-the-art building that is four stories high. The lower level houses a 100-seat lecture hall that is SAT certified. The first floor comprises a biology laboratory (complete with two-story greenhouse), a chemistry laboratory and the 9th grade FIRST Program seminar room with a connecting outdoor classroom space. The second floor houses the physics laboratory, math classrooms, integrated math/science faculty work spaces, which enhance cross-discipline collaboration, and the Head and Assistant Head of School offices. The third floor has the world languages classrooms and language laboratory and resource rooms, as well as the Learning Center, which encompasses 10 one-on-one tutorial rooms, computer terminals and common space.
Maloney Hall, a new dormitory, also constructed in 2007, that occupies 15000 square feet (1,393.5 m²) and houses 20 12th-grade girls, as well as three faculty apartments. There is a recreation room and two-story common room with a fireplace and a kitchenette, as well as laundry and storage facilities. Double rooms all share a bathroom, and proctors’ rooms have a private bathroom, the top-floor private bathroom with a skylight as well. The new dormitory marks a shift in housing toward smaller, family-style living and addresses Tilton’s ongoing commitment to high-quality housing.
Knowles Hall is the oldest building and the center of Tilton's campus for over 120 years. It houses over half of the student body. The East side of Knowles houses junior boys, the West side of Knowles houses freshman and sophomore girls, and the entire 1st floor of Knowles houses sophomore boys.
Beaumont Hall has two functions. The upper floors of Beaumont Dormitory are the main residential rooms for 9th-grade boys. The ground floor houses the school's main dining room. It was built in 1909, when the current dining room replaced a smaller, wooden structure.
Tilton Hall was originally built by Charles Tilton in 1861. Tilton School purchased the building 101 years later. Tilton Hall, or "the Mansion," currently houses the Lucian Hunt Library. In 1980, the attached carriage house was renovated to house the Helene Grant Daly Art Center.
George L. Plimpton Hall, built in 1926, houses the majority of Tilton's classrooms, the admission office and the administrative offices, including Tilton's college counseling center.
Pfeiffer Hall, constructed in 1938 and 1939, presently serves as a dormitory for 12th grade boys.
Moore Hall, constructed in 1988, serves as a dormitory for 11th grade and post-graduate girls.
Hamilton Hall is home to Tilton's theater and music departments, and was originally the school gymnasium.
The Fred Andrew Smart Chapel was transported in 1965 to Tilton's campus from its original home in Canterbury, New Hampshire
. The building serves as a school meeting place and is often a gallery for student art.
The Memorial Gymnasium was built shortly after World War II to honor those who had served and died for their country. In 1998, the building was completely renovated and rededicated as the Memorial Athletic and Recreational Center (M.A.R.C.). The building contains three basketball courts, a climbing wall, a weight room, locker rooms, a training room, and a student center including a snack bar. A 2008 construction has extended the social area of the M.A.R.C, adding more couches, a larger television set, a pool table, and a fooseball table. The previous wrestling room has been moved to the second story of the M.A.R.C.
The John F. MacMorran Field House, originally built in 1978, provided Tilton with its first indoor hockey arena. In 1999, Tilton completed a two million dollar renovation of the facility.
Tilton, New Hampshire
Tilton is a town located on the Winnipesaukee River in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 3,567 at the 2010 census. It includes the village of Lochmere. Tilton is home to the Tilton School, a private preparatory school.-History:...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, serving students from 9th to 12th grade and postgraduates. Founded in 1845, Tilton's student body of 258 consists of 51 day students and 192 boarding students from 20 states and 16 countries.
History
Tilton School was founded in 1845 as a secondary school for boys and girls. Both dormitory students and day students were accepted. About 76 boys and girls formed the first student body. Two buildings, a boarding house and a classroom building, were built for the school in Northfield, New HampshireNorthfield, New Hampshire
Northfield is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,829 at the 2010 census.-History:The area was settled in 1760 as a part of Canterbury. In the late 1770s the residents of the "north fields" of Canterbury petitioned the State Legislature to become their...
, which is just across the Winnipesaukee River
Winnipesaukee River
The Winnipesaukee River is a river that connects Lake Winnipesaukee with the Pemigewasset and Merrimack rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire. The river is located in the Lakes Region of central New Hampshire. The total drainage area of the river is approximately .There are two distinct sections of...
from the present campus. In the 1860s a fire burned part of the school and forced relocation across the river, to the present campus. Several brick buildings were erected, to be replaced in the 1880s by Knowles Hall.
In the early days, several different names were used for the school, each describing its function and, at times, its location. First, the school was called the New Hampshire Conference Seminary, because it was founded by Methodists, and its primary purpose was to train boys and girls for work in the church. In 1852, "and Female College" was added to the already long name. College degrees were granted to women until 1903, when the name was changed to "Tilton Seminary". The present name, Tilton School, was adopted in 1923.
Over the years, Tilton School has served many purposes, which were always related to the needs of the times. It has been a co-educational boarding school, a boys' boarding school, a public school, a female college, a junior college, and a secondary school with both college and general courses. In 1939, Tilton ceased serving as the local high school and became strictly an independent boarding and day school for boys. In 1958, the "general diploma" was dropped and only college preparatory courses were offered. In 1970, Tilton once again became co-educational.
Academics
At Tilton classes are held Monday through Saturday, with half-days on Wednesday and Saturday; the afternoons are reserved for athletics and club activities. Tilton has a student-to-teacher ratio of 5:1 and an average class size of 11 students.Tilton maintains an active chapter of the Cum Laude Society
Cum Laude Society
The Cum Laude Society is an organization that honors scholastic achievement at secondary institutions, similar to the Phi Beta Kappa Society, which honors scholastic achievements at the university level. It was founded in 1906 as the Alpha Delta Tau fraternity and changed its name in the 1950s...
, one of only 368 chapters of this scholastic achievement honor society world wide.
Understanding by Design
Tilton School has adopted the principles of the Understanding by DesignUnderstanding by Design
Understanding by Design, or UbD, is a tool utilized for educational planning focused on "teaching for understanding". The emphasis of UbD is on "backward design", the practice of looking at the outcomes in order to design curriculum units, performance assessments, and classroom instruction...
philosophy which is a framework for designing curriculum, performance assessments, and classroom instruction.
Athletics
Tilton's athletic program requires students to participate in intramural or interscholastic athletic programs. The school offers 16 interscholastic sports with teams at the varsity and junior varsity level as well as intramural sports squads and opportunities for independent study.Interscholastic sports
Fall- Coed Cross CountryCross country runningCross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
- 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...
- 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...
- Coed Mountain BikingMountain bikingMountain biking is a sport which consists of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially adapted mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain.Mountain biking can...
- Boys Soccer
- Girls Soccer
Winter
- Boys 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...
- 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...
- Boys 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 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...
- Boys Alpine SkiingAlpine skiingAlpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
- Girls Alpine SkiingAlpine skiingAlpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
- Coed SnowboardingSnowboardingSnowboarding is a sport that involves descending a slope that is covered with snow on a snowboard attached to a rider's feet using a special boot set onto mounted binding. The development of snowboarding was inspired by skateboarding, sledding, surfing and skiing. It was developed in the U.S.A...
- WrestlingWrestlingWrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
Spring
- 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...
- 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 CyclingCyclingCycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, or for sport. Persons engaged in cycling are cyclists or bicyclists...
- Boys 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...
- 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...
- 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....
- 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 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...
Opponents
Tilton School competes in the Lakes Region LeagueLakes Region League
The Lakes Region League is composed of seven New England preparatory schools that compete athletically and academically. Its members are also members of the New England Prep School Athletic Conference . The league's name comes from the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, where most of the schools are...
which consists of seven New England preparatory schools that compete athletically and academically. Tilton is also a member of the New England Prep School Athletic Conference (NEPSAC) as well as the Evergreen League for football.
In 2008 Tilton and New Hampton School
New Hampton School
New Hampton School is an independent college preparatory high school located in New Hampton, New Hampshire, in the New England region of the northeastern United States...
resumed a long-standing rivalry known as the Powder Keg. The competition between the two schools dates back to 1895 and is among the oldest rivalries in prep school athletics. Other traditional athletic opponents include Phillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy is a private secondary school located in Exeter, New Hampshire, in the United States.Exeter is noted for its application of Harkness education, a system based on a conference format of teacher and student interaction, similar to the Socratic method of learning through asking...
, St. Paul's School
St. Paul's School (Concord, New Hampshire)
St. Paul's School is a highly selective college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school in Concord, New Hampshire affiliated with the Episcopal Church. The school is one of only six remaining 100% residential boarding schools in the U.S. The New Hampshire campus currently serves 533 students,...
, St. Mark's School
St. Mark's School (Massachusetts)
St. Mark’s School is a coeducational, Episcopal, preparatory school, situated on in Southborough, Massachusetts, from Boston. It was founded in 1865 as an all-boys' school by Joseph Burnett, a wealthy native of Southborough who developed and marketed the world-famous Burnett Vanilla Extract . ...
, Kents Hill School
Kents Hill School
Kents Hill School is an independent college-preparatory school located in Kents Hill, Maine, outside of the state capital of Augusta. Kents Hill School instructs students in grades nine through postgraduate. Students attend Kents Hill from across over 50 communities in Maine,...
, Cushing Academy
Cushing Academy
Cushing Academy is a coeducational college preparatory boarding school for grades 9 through 12 plus an optional postgraduate year located in Ashburnham, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1865 in fulfilment of a bequest by Thomas Parkman Cushing and opened in 1875, and is sometimes cited as the...
, and other prep and boarding schools from across the northeast.
Championships
In 2009 and 2011, the school's Varsity Basketball team won the High School Prep National Championship.Campus
The school sits on 146 acre (0.59084156 km²) on a hill overlooking the village of Tilton. The campus comprises more than 15 buildings, including five residential dormitories, a multi-purpose athletics center, an indoor ice hockey arena, several academic buildings, a school chapel, library, and visual arts center.A new academic building, constructed in 2007, is located just west of Plimpton Hall and connects to that building. It is a 38000 square feet (3,530.3 m²), wireless, state-of-the-art building that is four stories high. The lower level houses a 100-seat lecture hall that is SAT certified. The first floor comprises a biology laboratory (complete with two-story greenhouse), a chemistry laboratory and the 9th grade FIRST Program seminar room with a connecting outdoor classroom space. The second floor houses the physics laboratory, math classrooms, integrated math/science faculty work spaces, which enhance cross-discipline collaboration, and the Head and Assistant Head of School offices. The third floor has the world languages classrooms and language laboratory and resource rooms, as well as the Learning Center, which encompasses 10 one-on-one tutorial rooms, computer terminals and common space.
Maloney Hall, a new dormitory, also constructed in 2007, that occupies 15000 square feet (1,393.5 m²) and houses 20 12th-grade girls, as well as three faculty apartments. There is a recreation room and two-story common room with a fireplace and a kitchenette, as well as laundry and storage facilities. Double rooms all share a bathroom, and proctors’ rooms have a private bathroom, the top-floor private bathroom with a skylight as well. The new dormitory marks a shift in housing toward smaller, family-style living and addresses Tilton’s ongoing commitment to high-quality housing.
Knowles Hall is the oldest building and the center of Tilton's campus for over 120 years. It houses over half of the student body. The East side of Knowles houses junior boys, the West side of Knowles houses freshman and sophomore girls, and the entire 1st floor of Knowles houses sophomore boys.
Beaumont Hall has two functions. The upper floors of Beaumont Dormitory are the main residential rooms for 9th-grade boys. The ground floor houses the school's main dining room. It was built in 1909, when the current dining room replaced a smaller, wooden structure.
Tilton Hall was originally built by Charles Tilton in 1861. Tilton School purchased the building 101 years later. Tilton Hall, or "the Mansion," currently houses the Lucian Hunt Library. In 1980, the attached carriage house was renovated to house the Helene Grant Daly Art Center.
George L. Plimpton Hall, built in 1926, houses the majority of Tilton's classrooms, the admission office and the administrative offices, including Tilton's college counseling center.
Pfeiffer Hall, constructed in 1938 and 1939, presently serves as a dormitory for 12th grade boys.
Moore Hall, constructed in 1988, serves as a dormitory for 11th grade and post-graduate girls.
Hamilton Hall is home to Tilton's theater and music departments, and was originally the school gymnasium.
The Fred Andrew Smart Chapel was transported in 1965 to Tilton's campus from its original home in Canterbury, New Hampshire
Canterbury, New Hampshire
Canterbury is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,352 at the 2010 census. Canterbury is home to Ayers State Forest and Shaker State Forest. On the last Saturday in July, the town hosts the annual .- History :...
. The building serves as a school meeting place and is often a gallery for student art.
The Memorial Gymnasium was built shortly after World War II to honor those who had served and died for their country. In 1998, the building was completely renovated and rededicated as the Memorial Athletic and Recreational Center (M.A.R.C.). The building contains three basketball courts, a climbing wall, a weight room, locker rooms, a training room, and a student center including a snack bar. A 2008 construction has extended the social area of the M.A.R.C, adding more couches, a larger television set, a pool table, and a fooseball table. The previous wrestling room has been moved to the second story of the M.A.R.C.
The John F. MacMorran Field House, originally built in 1978, provided Tilton with its first indoor hockey arena. In 1999, Tilton completed a two million dollar renovation of the facility.
Notable alumni
- John Charles DalyJohn Charles DalyJohn Charles Patrick Croghan Daly John Charles Patrick Croghan Daly John Charles Patrick Croghan Daly (generally known as John Charles Daly or simply John Daly (February 20, 1914 – February 24, 1991) was an American journalist, game show host and radio personality, probably best known for hosting...
, host of the game show What's My Line?What's My Line?What's My Line? is a panel game show which originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, with several international versions and subsequent U.S. revivals. The game tasked celebrity panelists with questioning contestants in order to determine their occupations....
, reporter and news executive - John W. GowdyJohn W. GowdyJohn W. Gowdy was a Scottish American Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church and The Methodist Church, elected in 1930...
, Methodist bishopBishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the... - Donald M. MurrayDon Murray (writer)Donald Morrison Murray was a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist, and long-time teacher of English at the University of New Hampshire. He wrote for many journals, authored several books on the art of writing and teaching, and served as writing coach for several national newspapers...
, Pulitzer PrizePulitzer PrizeThe Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning journalist, columnist for The Boston GlobeThe Boston GlobeThe Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
and Professor Emeritus of English at the University of New HampshireUniversity of New HampshireThe University of New Hampshire is a public university in the University System of New Hampshire , United States. The main campus is in Durham, New Hampshire. An additional campus is located in Manchester. With over 15,000 students, UNH is the largest university in New Hampshire. The university is... - John Perkins, author of Confessions of an Economic Hit ManConfessions of an Economic Hit ManConfessions of an Economic Hit Man is a book written by John Perkins and published in 2004. It provides Perkins' account of his career with consulting firm Chas. T. Main in Boston. Before employment with the firm, he interviewed for a job with the National Security Agency...
(Berrett-Koehler, 2004) - M. Emmet WalshM. Emmet WalshMichael Emmet Walsh is an American actor who has appeared in over 100 film and television productions.-Life and career:Walsh was born in Ogdensburg, New York, the son of Agnes Kathrine and Harry Maurice Walsh, Sr., a customs agent...
, character actor who has appeared in dozens of films, including Slap ShotSlap Shot (film)Slap Shot is a 1977 film comedy starring Paul Newman and Michael Ontkean directed by George Roy Hill. It depicts a minor league hockey team that resorts to violent play to gain popularity in a declining factory town.- Plot :...
(1977), The JerkThe JerkThe Jerk is a 1979 American comedy film. Directed by Carl Reiner, the film was written by Steve Martin, Carl Gottlieb and Michael Elias. This was Steve Martin's first starring role in a feature film. The film also features Bernadette Peters, M. Emmet Walsh and Jackie Mason.-Plot:The film begins...
(1979), BrubakerBrubakerBrubaker is an American 1980 film about a prison in distress and the Warden Henry Brubaker who attempts to reform the system....
(1980), Blade RunnerBlade RunnerBlade Runner is a 1982 American science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, and Sean Young. The screenplay, written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, is loosely based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K...
(1982), and Blood SimpleBlood SimpleBlood Simple is a 1984 neo-noir crime film. It was the directorial debut of Joel Coen and the first major film of cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld, who later became a noted director...
(1984)