The Albany Academy

"Albany Academy" redirects here. For other uses, see Albany Academy (disambiguation).
The Albany Academy

Honor Integritas Officium
Honor, Integrity, Service
Address
135 Academy Road
Albany, New York 12208
USA
Information
Type Private, College-prep, Day
Established 1813
Sister school Albany Academy for Girls
CEEB Code 330035
Head of school Douglas M. North
Faculty 50+ teachers
Grades P–12
Gender Boys
Enrollment 376 students
Average class size 16 students
Student to teacher ratio 9:1
Campus size 25 acres (100,000 m2)
Campus type Suburban
Color(s) Red and Black
         
Athletics 13 interscholastic sports teams
Athletics conference Colonial Council; NEPSAC
Mascot Cadets
Affiliation The Albany Academies
NYSAIS
Website www.albanyacademies.org

The Albany Academy is an independent college preparatory day school for boys in Albany, New York, USA, enrolling students from Preschool (age 3) to Grade 12. It was established in 1813 by a charter signed by Mayor Philip Schuyler Van Rensselaer and the city council of Albany. In July 2007, the administrative teams of The Albany Academy and Albany Academy for Girls merged into The Albany Academies. Both schools retain much of their pre-merger tradition and character and each continues to give diplomas under its own name.

History

The Albany Academy is the oldest boys day school in the New York Capital Region, chartered in March 1813 to educate the sons of Albany's political elite and rapidly growing merchant class. In the Census three years prior, Albany was the tenth-largest city in the United States, and would remain so through the 1850s due to the prominence of the Erie Canal.

Old Academy Building, now the Joseph Henry Memorial

Classes began within months after the charter was granted, offering a college preparatory track (including intensive study of Ancient Greek, and Latin) and an arithmetic-based track to prepare young men for Albany's role as a center of commerce. Two years later, in 1815, a purpose-built building was completed in present-day Academy Park, adjacent to the New York State Capitol. The Federal-style building, now known as the Old Academy and headquarters of the City School District of Albany, was designed by renowned Albany architect Philip Hooker. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its architectural significance and role as home to scientist Joseph Henry's laboratory.[1]

In 1870, in response to a lack of military preparation institutions in the north during the American Civil War, the Albany Academy adopted the Battalion Leadership Program, instructing the "cadets" in military procedure and the art of leadership. In 2005 the school ended compulsory involvement in the program in favor of a House-based leadership program commonly found in English preparatory schools. The four houses, named for prominent historical Academy figures (Beck, Gates, Henry, and Olcott), compete against one another in the fields of academics, athletics, community service, and extracurricular involvement for honor and special privileges awarded to the leading house.

The Academy's cupola rises above the main building and is topped with a fish and pumpkin.

In 1931, the school moved from its original downtown building in present-day Academy Park to its current location on the corner of Hackett Boulevard and Academy Road, in the University Heights section of Albany. Designed by Marcus T. Reynolds in the neo-Georgian style, the building incorporates many elements of the Old Academy building, namely the main entryway and cupola. The school stands approximately two miles from the city center, allowing students access to the resources of the State University of New York at Albany, Russell Sage College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the state capitol, and the state museum and library. The red-brick Academy building's marble cornerstone was laid by the then Governor and future President Franklin D. Roosevelt. All grades enrolled in The Albany Academy are housed under the same roof, a point of pride for the Academy Community.

In 2005, The Albany Academy ended its long standing Army JROTC program. This decision came due to declining enrollment among other factors. Certain military aspects are still available to students, but are all "electives."

The Board of Trustees announced that The Albany Academy and Albany Academy for Girls would merge into The Albany Academies in July 2007. Single-gender education will continue under the present form in Lower and Middle Schools, while Upper School students may continue to cross-register for coed classes and certain extracurricular activities.

On July 1, 2009, the Board of Trustees announced the appointment of Douglas M. North AA'58, President of Alaska Pacific University, to the position of Head of School of The Albany Academies, effective July 2010.[2]

Facilities

An ornate three-story brick building with a pedimented front section and tall gray cupola
Current Academy Building

The main Academic building houses 40 classrooms, two libraries, Mac and Windows computer labs, the cafeteria (called the Buttery), the school book store, the auditorium (known as Caird Chapel), the Wellness Center, the Black Box Theater, a darkroom, the Joseph Henry Science Wing, student and faculty lounges, board rooms, art and music studios, the school's archives, and various administrative offices. The school's athletic facilities include 11 team locker-rooms, 1 soccer/lacrosse field, 1 baseball diamonds, 2 football fields, the 400-meter Robison Track, the Robison Hockey Arena (formerly home to the Albany Cougars, a special needs hockey team who now play at the Albany County Hockey Facility), 6 outdoor tennis courts, the 6-lane, 25-yard (23 m) Standish Pool, the Rea Fitness Center, 2 indoor gymnasiums, 2 squash courts, conference rooms, long- and high-jump pits, a discus court, and a shot-put court. Other on-campus facilities include Leonard House, the Head of School's residence.

Student body

Drawn predominately from a six-county area and from within a radius of 65 miles (105 km), the student body is ethnically, religiously, and economically diverse. The total 2005–06 school population is 340 boys, including 82 in the Lower School, 71 in the Middle School, and 187 in the Upper School. There is a total of six countries represented in the school. Students are encouraged to actively participate in all aspects of school life; they are expected to conduct themselves responsibly and treat each other and their teachers with respect. Students are responsible for upholding school rules. The Albany Academy adheres to a school-wide honor code. Student Council members, especially seniors, occupy important leadership positions at Albany Academy. Its Leadership Development Program prepares students to hold leadership positions at school and beyond by providing formal classes on leadership, advising/student mentoring, community service, and involvement in co-curricular programs—all within the structure of a British-modeled House System.

Mission statement

The Albany Academies—Albany Academy for Girls & The Albany Academy—are Preschool-Grade 12 independent college-preparatory single-gender schools committed to developing the potential of the whole individual by building a community that fosters scholarship, leadership, character, service and integrity. The schools' core values include responsibility, self-discipline, compassion, ingenuity, respect, service, integrity and perseverance.

Accreditation and memberships

The Albany Academies are accredited by the New York State Association of Independent Schools and recognized by the Regents of the State of New York.

The Albany Academies are a member of the following associations: the College Board, the Cum Laude Society, the National Association of Independent Schools, the Educational Records Bureau, the Capital Region Independent Schools Association, the Association of Boys' Schools, the Secondary Schools Admission Test Board, and the New England Prep School Athletic Association.

Alumni

Noted alumni include nine U.S. Congressmen, five Professional Athletes, three College Presidents, two Poets Laureate, one U.S. Supreme Court Justice, and one Medal of Honor recipient:

Government, law, business, and public policy

Learned Hand, Class of 1889

Medicine and academia

Literature and journalism

Andy Rooney, Class of 1937

Science and technology

Arts, sports, and entertainment

Military

Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., Class of 1905

Theology

Faculty/administration

Noted former faculty and administration include inventors, politicians, and seven College Presidents, including four Presidents of Amherst College:

Headmaster Merrill Edward Gates

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.nationalhistoricalregister.com/NY/Albany/state.html
  2. ↑ http://www.albanyacademies.org/news/news_full.cfm?ID=223

External links

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