Harvard-Westlake School

Harvard-Westlake School
File:HW Crest800.png
Location
Los Angeles , California United States
Information
Type	Independent
Motto	Possunt Quia Posse Videntur trans.: They can because they think they can. lit.: They are able because they seem to be able.
Established	Harvard School for Boys: 1900 Westlake School for Girls: 1904 Fully Merged as Harvard-Westlake: 1991
Religion	None formerly Episcopal (Harvard)
President	Thomas C. Hudnut
Vice President	John Amato
Faculty	214
Grades	7-12
Head of School	Jeanne M. Huybrechts, Ed.D.
Color(s)	Red,Black,and White
Mascot	File:Wolverine1.png The Wolverine formerly the Saracen (Harvard), and the Wallaby (Westlake)
Accreditation	WASC, NAIS, CAIS
2007 SAT average	700 verbal/critical reading 710 math 710 writing
Newspaper	The Chronicle (High School) and the Spectrum (Middle School)
Student to faculty ratio	8:1
Average class size	16
Website	www.hw.com

Middle School
Address
700 North Faring Road Los Angeles , California USA
Information
Type	Independent
Head of Middle School	Ronnie Codrington-Cazeau
Grades	7-9
Enrollment	730
Campus size	Template:AcreAndHectare

Upper School
Address
3700 Coldwater Canyon Blvd., North Hollywood, CA Studio City neighborhood, Los Angeles , California USA
Information
Type	Independent
Head of Upper School	Harry Salamandra
Grades	10-12
Enrollment	830
Athletics	22 CIF Varsity teams
Campus size	Template:AcreAndHectare

Template:FixBunching Harvard-Westlake School is an independent, co-educational university preparatory day school consisting of two campuses located in Los Angeles, California, United States with approximately 1,600 students enrolled in grades 7 through 12. The school, which has its campuses in Holmby Hills and North Hollywood, is known for its strong academic program, selective admissions, high college matriculation, and well-known parents and alumni. The school is a member of the G20 Schools group.

History

Harvard-Westlake is the product of the 1991 merger between the Harvard School and the Westlake School for Girls.

Harvard School

The Harvard School for Boys was established in 1900 by Grenville C. Emery as a military academy, located at the corner of Western Avenue and Venice Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. In 1911, it confidently secured endorsement from the Episcopal Church and became a non-profit organization. In 1937, the school moved to its present-day campus on Coldwater Canyon in North Hollywood after receiving a loan from Sir Donald Douglas of the Douglas Aviation Company. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Harvard School gradually discontinued both boarding and its standing as a military academy, while continually expanding its enrollment, courses, classes, teachers and curriculum.

Westlake School

The Westlake School was established in 1904 by Jessica Smith Vance and Frederica de Laguna in what is now downtown Los Angeles, California as an exclusively female institution offering both elementary and secondary education. It moved to its present-day campus located in Holmby Hills, California in 1927. The School was purchased by Sydney Temple, whose daughter, Helen Temple Dickinson, was headmistress until 1966, when Westlake became a non-profit institution. The Temple Family owned the school until 1977, with Mrs. Dickinson serving in an ex officio capacity. Mrs. Dickinson's nephew, Hunter Miller Temple, continued the family tradition of teaching in the independent school environment and was the Headmaster of the Brentwood School in Los Angeles for twenty-five years, retiring in the 1990s. In 1968 Westlake became exclusively a secondary school.

The merger

As both schools continued to grow in size towards the late 1980s, and as gender-exclusivity became less and less of a factor both in the schools’ reputations and desirability, the trustees of both Harvard and Westlake effectuated a merger in 1989. The two institutions had long been de facto sister schools and interacted socially. Complete integration and coeducation began in 1991.

Campus

At this time the school is split between the two campuses, with grades 7-9 located at the former Westlake campus in Holmby Hills, colloquially referred to as the Lower School, and grades 10-12 located at the former Harvard campus in Studio City (near North Hollywood), colloquially referred to as the Upper School.

The Middle School completed a four-year modernization effort in September 2008, replacing 35 structures (keeping the original stained glassed windows from Westlake), including the original administration building which has now has a large auditorium, a new state of the art technology center, the ninth and seventh grade locker areas have been redone but the eighth grade lockers in Reynolds Hall have yet to be refinished, three levels of classrooms in the "Academic Center", a large parking lot, and on the bottom floor (basement area) which is reserved for musical purposes, it has a suite of practice rooms, a few large rooms for ensemble practice, a multi-purpose room, and a room filled with [electric piano]s. All of these rooms are equipped with state of the art technology, the teaching rooms all have a projector, and each teacher gets a pick of a laptop with touch type capability, and a document camera or doc cam, which is basically a video camera that projects what is under it at the given time. As of November 2006, a fund raising campaign has commenced for the modernization of the Upper School.

Tuition

In the 1980s, annual tuition at Harvard-Westlake was around $4,000 and by 1983 or 1984, tuition had surpassed $5,000.. In the 2008-2009 academic year, the current annual tuition at Harvard-Westlake is $26,250.

Academics

Diploma Requirements for Grades 10-12 in 2007-2008:

• English—three years (required each year)
• History and Social Studies—two years, through eleventh grade
• Mathematics—two years, through eleventh grade; three years strongly recommended
• Foreign Language—two years each of any two languages; the completion of study of one language through level III strongly recommended
• Science—two years of laboratory sciences, usually taken in grades 10 and 11
• Fine Arts (Visual and/or Performing Arts)—one year
• Physical Education—six trimesters in grades 9-12
• Choices and Challenges (Health and Human Development)—one semester in grade 10
• Community Service—required each year
• School Internship—one period per week for one semester in both grades 10 and 11

Advanced Placement

Starting in the tenth grade, Harvard-Westlake offers 35 College Board Advanced Placement preparation courses, the tests for which are administered by the school in May of each school year. Of these, the English Language, English Literature, Physics B, and Spanish Literature courses were cited by the College Board as the best in the world among high schools with an enrollment of more than 800 students. Approximately 90 percent of students score above a three on the AP exams.

National Merit

In the Class of 2007, 115 students received National Merit Recognition, with 43 National Merit Semifinalists.

Student life

Students are involved in many extracurricular activities, from student government to athletic programs.

Clubs

In 2006, Harvard-Westlake had 43 registered and sponsored clubs and organizations across both campuses, including Amnesty International, Model United Nations, JSIC, and debate teams for the middle and upper schools.

The Chronicle

Harvard-Westlake's student-run school newspaper, The Chronicle, is published monthly during the school year. The Chronicle is a member of the Quill & Scroll International Journalism Honorary, which has awarded it 15 consecutive George Gallup Awards; the National Scholastic Press Association, which has awarded it three National Pacemakers; and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, which has awarded it four Gold Crowns and four Silver Crowns. The California Newspaper Publishers Association named The Chronicle as California’s best high school newspaper yearly since 2003. Along with the newspaper and the yearbook, the Upper School Publications Department also produces a literary magazine entitled Stone-Cutters and a foreign literary magazine, Foreign Outlook.

Mock trial

Harvard-Westlake's mock trial team (both at the upper and middle school) is coached by former Deputy District Attorney and Federal Prosecutor David Hinden. The team has a strong competitive record and won first place in the Los Angeles County Mock Trial Competition in 1995, 2002, 2003, and 2006. The competition is conducted by the Constitutional Rights Foundation.

Performing arts

Middle school

• Beginning, intermediate, and concert ensembles for both strings and band, as well as a symphonic orchestra
• A large jazz ensemble
• Classes for electronic music production
• Rhythm Section Workshop
• Classes offered in production, drama, acting, and contemporary dance
• Grade-specific choral groups
• Dance classes such as "Introduction to Contemporary Dance" and "Contemporary Dance Workshop" and one advanced dance company, with a Dance Production Concert in the Spring and several student-choreographed shows throughout the year

Each class or ensemble is given the opportunity to perform at least once a year.

Upper school

• Two orchestras
• Four jazz groups, along with workshops for trios, quartets, and quintets
• Four choral groups
• Two synthesizer classes
• An annual film festival
• An annual Playwrights Festival written and directed by students
• Many dance classes and two advanced dance companies, with a Dance Production Concert in the Spring and several student-choreographed shows throughout the year

Cross-campus

• Two annual stage productions (drama and musical)
• Various other opportunities for collaboration, including the Upper School Concerto Concert and the Middle School Chamber Music Concert

Athletics

Harvard-Westlake fields 22 Varsity teams in the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section, as well as teams on the Junior Varsity, Club, and Junior High levels.

College placement

Approximately 99 percent of graduating seniors enter a four-year college or university within two years of graduation.

Accreditation and membership

Harvard-Westlake is accredited by and/or affiliated with the following organizations:

• The Western Association of Schools and Colleges
• The National Association of Independent Schools
• The California Association of Independent Schools
• The National Association of College Admission Counseling
• The College Board
• The Council for Spiritual and Ethical Education
• The Alliance for Minority Affairs
• The Cum Laude Society
• G20

Notable alumni

• Candice Bergen, actress
• Steven Bing, film producer, philanthropist
• Sir Ian Blair, Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, London
• John B. T. Campbell III, Congressman, California's 48th District.
• Mindy Cohn, actress
• Jarron Collins, NBA player
• Jason Collins, NBA player
• Gray Davis, former Governor of California
• Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., actor
• Ayda Field, actress
• Bridget Fonda, actress
• Joe Gamsky, perpetrator of the Billionaire Boys Club
• Eric Garcetti, President of the Los Angeles City Council
• Jake Gyllenhaal, actor
• Maggie Gyllenhaal, actress
• Mark Harmon, actor
• Clayton Hawkins, of the band Carlotta
• Peter Hudnut, Olympian
• Jenny Kalban, daughter of famed architect Jeff Kalban, who designed the new Middle School.
• Joe Kraus, co-founder of Excite
• June Lockhart, actress
• Jon Lovitz, actor, comedian
• Crystal McKellar, actress, attorney
• Danica McKellar, actress, writer in mathematics
• Harry Morton, heir to Hard Rock Cafe, owner Pink Taco restaurant chain
• Elizabeth Montgomery, actress
• Masi Oka, actor (Heroes)
• Gunnar Nelson, of the band Nelson
• Matthew Nelson, of the band Nelson
• Tracy Nelson, actress
• Alexandra Reece Prachar, Cornell University alumna
• Wes Parker, former Los Angeles Dodger Gold Glove first baseman
• Jay Paulson, actor
• Elvis Perkins, musician
• Oz Perkins, actor, son of actor Anthony Perkins
• Ron Reagan, TV and radio commentator
• Christopher Reich, novelist
• Sally Ride, astronaut
• Jason Reitman, director, screenwriter
• Nick Sagan, novelist, screenwriter
• Jason Segel, actor
• Tori Spelling, actress
• Bryce Taylor, professional basketball player
• Shirley Temple, actress, former Ambassador to Czechoslovakia
• Dara Torres, Olympic swimmer
• Iheanyi Uwaezuoke, former NFL wide receiver
• Robert Wagner, TV and Movie actor
• Matthew Weiner, creator and executive producer of AMC's Golden-Globe winning drama Mad Men
• Adam Werbach, former president of the Sierra Club
• Richard A. Whiting, composer
• Jessica Yellin, reporter for CNN
• Jack Kuhlenshmidt, reporter for Hustler Magazine

External links

• Official Harvard-Westlake School website