Deerfield Academy
Encyclopedia
Deerfield Academy is an independent
, coeducational boarding school
in Deerfield, Massachusetts
, United States
. It is a four-year college-preparatory school with approximately 600 students and about 100 faculty, all of whom live on or near campus.
Deerfield is a member of the Eight Schools Association
(ESA), begun informally in 1973-74 and formalized in 2006, and of the Ten Schools Admissions Organization, founded in 1966. There is a seven-school overlap of membership between the two groups. Deerfield is additionally a member of the G20 Schools
group.
In 2007 Deerfield's endowment
was valued at US$415 million, or roughly $680,000 per student. Fees were around $33,000 for day students and $45,000 for boarders in 2010-2011.
services was required of boarding students until the 1970s, and school meetings included the singing of Christian hymns.
Deerfield Academy was founded in 1797 when Massachusetts
Governor Samuel Adams
granted a charter to found a school in the town of Deerfield. It began to educate students in 1799. The academy quickly established itself as one of the finest schools in the new republic, drawing boys from prominent families across New England
. The school produced influential men that occupied many congressional
and gubernatorial seats in New England
. By the end of the 19th century, the shifting trends in industrialization had left rural Deerfield
behind. The economic hardships of the times impoverished local farmers and drove them away to the wealthy cities. The board of trustees was considering closing the Academy, as there only remained nine students. These were the school's darkest times. With little support from local farmers and a dire economic situation, the 100-year-old school was on the brink of collapse.
In the early twentieth century, Deerfield's fortunes rose with the appointment of Frank Boyden
as Headmaster. He quickly re-organized the school and provided it with a sound financial basis. He recruited students actively from local farms and towns, promising the parents that their boys would be successful. Boyden had great confidence in the value of athletics
as a component of education. He often played on the varsity squads when there was a lack of players. He attracted and trained many teachers who would become masters and keep long loyalties to the academy. The prestige enjoyed by the school today is a direct result of the foundations he laid over seven decades, including training scores of men as teachers and headmasters in their own right. His success would not have been possible without the support and assistance of his wife, Helen Childs Boyden. After 66 years of service, Frank Boyden retired in 1968. Boyden's long career and legacy at Deerfield are reviewed in The Headmaster
(1966), by Deerfield alumnus John McPhee
.
In 1989, the Academy re-established co-education, which Boyden had discontinued in 1943.
Eric Widmer
'57 served as headmaster from 1994 to 2006. He stepped down in June 2006 and soon after assumed the position of Founding Headmaster at King's Academy
in Madaba
, Jordan
, a school inspired in part by HM King Abdullah II's Deerfield years in the 1980s. It opened in the fall of 2007.
The current Head of School, Dr. Margarita O'Byrne Curtis, previously Dean of Studies at Phillips Andover, is the first woman to hold the position.
The Koch Center for Mathematics, Science, and Technology, named after David H. Koch
, opened in 2007, and is Gold LEED certified. The building was designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill
.
Also traditional are the events the night before "Choate Day"; the final day of the fall athletics season when arch rivals Deerfield and Choate
play each other in every sport, at every level. In the Main Auditorium, the Deerfield Cheerleaders put on various skits mocking the other schools that Deerfield plays. Also included are speeches by Mr. Morsman, the spirit of Deerfield, Captain Deerfield,the step team, and the Head Cheerleader. Also, in the athletic building the seal of Deerfield Academy is surrounded by students so the members of the Choate teams will not step on it. After the events in the Main Auditorium are finished, the students rush down to the lower fields, where they are awaited by a bonfire, at the top of which rests a burning "C" (Choate). Captain Deerfield, the cheer leaders, and the Varsity Sports teams captains rile up the students with many Deerfield chants.
, Phillips Andover, Phillips Exeter Academy
, Cushing Academy
, Choate Rosemary Hall
, Loomis Chaffee
, Suffield Academy
, Kent School
, Tabor Academy
, Taft School, Brewster Academy
, Salisbury School
, Berkshire School
, Brunswick School, Williston Northampton School
, Hotchkiss School
, Avon Old Farms
, Northfield Mount Hermon
, and Hopkins School
. The athletic directors of Deerfield and the other members of the Eight Schools Association
compose the Eight Schools Athletic Council, which organizes sports events and tournaments among ESA schools. Deerfield is also a member of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council
(NEPSAC).
Traditionally, the Academy's athletic rival is Choate Rosemary Hall. The Fall athletics season culminates with Choate Day, which features matches with Choate at every level of every fall sport.
Around 2010 Deerfield Academy's lacrosse program had success, and was a perennial contender for the New England title along with rival Salisbury School. In 2009 Salisbury defeated Deerfield 7-6, resulting in a shared New England Championship title. In 2010, Salisbury defeated Deerfield 9-6. Salisbury went on to win the New England title. However, in 2011, Deerfield beat Salisbury 11-7 in the penultimate game of their season. Deerfield went on to beat Exeter in the last game of their season, securing both an undefeated season and the New England title. They secured the ranking of number one in the state of Massachusetts, and a ranking of number three in the nation. Deerfield The School's golf
, and men's water polo
and swimming
are strong. In 2008 Deerfield held the New England Prep School Championship title for men's swimming
, men's water polo
, and golf
.
Publications:
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
, coeducational boarding school
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
in Deerfield, Massachusetts
Deerfield, Massachusetts
Deerfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,750 as of the 2000 census. Deerfield is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area in Western Massachusetts, lying only north of the city of Springfield.Deerfield includes the...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is a four-year college-preparatory school with approximately 600 students and about 100 faculty, all of whom live on or near campus.
Deerfield is a member of the Eight Schools Association
Eight Schools Association
The Eight Schools Association is a group of leading private college-preparatory schools in the United States, begun informally during the 1973-74 school year and formalized in 2006 with the appointment of a president and an executive director...
(ESA), begun informally in 1973-74 and formalized in 2006, and of the Ten Schools Admissions Organization, founded in 1966. There is a seven-school overlap of membership between the two groups. Deerfield is additionally a member of the G20 Schools
G20 Schools
All the schools claim to have a commitment to excellence and innovation of some sort. The G20 Schools have an annual conference which aims to bring together a group of school Heads who want to look beyond the parochial concerns of their own schools and national associations, and to talk through...
group.
In 2007 Deerfield's endowment
Financial endowment
A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution. The total value of an institution's investments is often referred to as the institution's endowment and is typically organized as a public charity, private foundation, or trust....
was valued at US$415 million, or roughly $680,000 per student. Fees were around $33,000 for day students and $45,000 for boarders in 2010-2011.
History
Deerfield was never affiliated with a religion, but attendance at Congregationalist ChurchCongregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
services was required of boarding students until the 1970s, and school meetings included the singing of Christian hymns.
Deerfield Academy was founded in 1797 when Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
Governor Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams was an American statesman, political philosopher, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. As a politician in colonial Massachusetts, Adams was a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and was one of the architects of the principles of American...
granted a charter to found a school in the town of Deerfield. It began to educate students in 1799. The academy quickly established itself as one of the finest schools in the new republic, drawing boys from prominent families across New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
. The school produced influential men that occupied many congressional
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
and gubernatorial seats in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
. By the end of the 19th century, the shifting trends in industrialization had left rural Deerfield
Deerfield
Deerfield is the name of many places in the United States. In some cases, these places correspond to the previous locations of "deer fields" created by Native Americans.*Deerfield, Illinois*Deerfield, Indiana*Deerfield, Iowa*Deerfield, Kansas...
behind. The economic hardships of the times impoverished local farmers and drove them away to the wealthy cities. The board of trustees was considering closing the Academy, as there only remained nine students. These were the school's darkest times. With little support from local farmers and a dire economic situation, the 100-year-old school was on the brink of collapse.
In the early twentieth century, Deerfield's fortunes rose with the appointment of Frank Boyden
Frank Boyden
-Personal life:He attended Amherst College, class of 1902.He married Helen Sears Childs on June 29, 1907. She was a 1904 graduate of Smith College, which awarded her a Doctorate of Humane Letters in 1934....
as Headmaster. He quickly re-organized the school and provided it with a sound financial basis. He recruited students actively from local farms and towns, promising the parents that their boys would be successful. Boyden had great confidence in the value of athletics
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
as a component of education. He often played on the varsity squads when there was a lack of players. He attracted and trained many teachers who would become masters and keep long loyalties to the academy. The prestige enjoyed by the school today is a direct result of the foundations he laid over seven decades, including training scores of men as teachers and headmasters in their own right. His success would not have been possible without the support and assistance of his wife, Helen Childs Boyden. After 66 years of service, Frank Boyden retired in 1968. Boyden's long career and legacy at Deerfield are reviewed in The Headmaster
The Headmaster (book)
The Headmaster : Frank L. Boyden of Deerfield is a book by John McPhee, profiling Frank Boyden, the headmaster of Deerfield Academy, which grew out of a magazine profile in The New Yorker.ISBN 0-374-51496-8...
(1966), by Deerfield alumnus John McPhee
John McPhee
John Angus McPhee is an American Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, widely considered one of the pioneers of creative nonfiction....
.
In 1989, the Academy re-established co-education, which Boyden had discontinued in 1943.
Eric Widmer
Eric Widmer
Dr. Eric Widmer is an American scholar and educator. He was educated at Deerfield, Williams, and Harvard. After finishing his Ph.D, he joined the faculty at Brown teaching Chinese History and would then go on to spend much of his career there as a dean...
'57 served as headmaster from 1994 to 2006. He stepped down in June 2006 and soon after assumed the position of Founding Headmaster at King's Academy
King's Academy
King’s Academy is a co-educational private boarding school that opened in August 2007 in Madaba-Manja, Jordan. It is named in honour of Abdullah II of Jordan...
in Madaba
Madaba
Madaba , is the capital city of Madaba Governorate of Jordan, which has a population of about 60,000. Madaba is the fifth most populous town in Jordan. It is best known for its Byzantine and Umayyad mosaics, especially a large Byzantine-era mosaic map of The Holy Land...
, Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
, a school inspired in part by HM King Abdullah II's Deerfield years in the 1980s. It opened in the fall of 2007.
The current Head of School, Dr. Margarita O'Byrne Curtis, previously Dean of Studies at Phillips Andover, is the first woman to hold the position.
The Koch Center for Mathematics, Science, and Technology, named after David H. Koch
David H. Koch
David Hamilton Koch is an American businessman, philanthropist, political activist, and chemical engineer. He is a co-owner and an executive vice president of Koch Industries, a conglomerate that is the second-largest privately held company in the U.S...
, opened in 2007, and is Gold LEED certified. The building was designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill
Skidmore, Owings and Merrill
Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP is an American architectural and engineering firm that was formed in Chicago in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel Owings; in 1939 they were joined by John O. Merrill. They opened their first branch in New York City, New York in 1937. SOM is one of the largest...
.
Traditions
A favorite tradition of Deerfield students takes place on the Sunday of commencement at the end of the year; the night when the graduating senior class has left campus. The Deerfield students gather on the lower fields and celebrate the school, as well as the coming year, with a bonfire. This event is also the place of the debut of the new Captain Deerfield.Also traditional are the events the night before "Choate Day"; the final day of the fall athletics season when arch rivals Deerfield and Choate
Choate Rosemary Hall
Choate Rosemary Hall is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school located in Wallingford, Connecticut...
play each other in every sport, at every level. In the Main Auditorium, the Deerfield Cheerleaders put on various skits mocking the other schools that Deerfield plays. Also included are speeches by Mr. Morsman, the spirit of Deerfield, Captain Deerfield,the step team, and the Head Cheerleader. Also, in the athletic building the seal of Deerfield Academy is surrounded by students so the members of the Choate teams will not step on it. After the events in the Main Auditorium are finished, the students rush down to the lower fields, where they are awaited by a bonfire, at the top of which rests a burning "C" (Choate). Captain Deerfield, the cheer leaders, and the Varsity Sports teams captains rile up the students with many Deerfield chants.
Co-curricular activities
Students are required to participate in a co-curricular activity each semester. Some options include competitive or intramural sports, community service, dance, school play, yearbook, and many more. In addition, many students are involved in at least one of the more than 50 student-run clubs or organizations.Sports
Deerfield athletic teams compete with boarding schools and other private schools throughout New England, including Berwick AcademyBerwick Academy
Berwick Academy is a highly selective preparatory school located in South Berwick, Maine. Founded in 1791, it is the oldest educational institution in Maine and one of the oldest private schools in North America. The school sits on a 72-acre, 11-building campus on a hill overlooking the Salmon...
, Phillips Andover, 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...
, 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...
, Choate Rosemary Hall
Choate Rosemary Hall
Choate Rosemary Hall is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school located in Wallingford, Connecticut...
, Loomis Chaffee
Loomis Chaffee
The Loomis Chaffee School is a premier coeducational boarding school for grades 9–12 and postgraduates located on a 300-plus acre campus in the Connecticut River Valley in Windsor, Connecticut, six miles north of Hartford...
, Suffield Academy
Suffield Academy
Suffield Academy is a private coeducational preparatory school located in Suffield, Connecticut, USA. It was founded in 1833. The Headmaster is Charles Cahn III.-Overview:...
, Kent School
Kent School
Kent School is a private, co-educational college preparatory school in Kent, Connecticut, USA. The Reverend Frederick Herbert Sill, Order of the Holy Cross, established the school in 1906 and it retains its affiliation with the Episcopal Church of the United States.Students at Kent come from more...
, Tabor Academy
Tabor Academy
Tabor Academy is a highly selective independent preparatory school located in Marion, Massachusetts, United States. Tabor is known for its marine science courses...
, Taft School, Brewster Academy
Brewster Academy
Brewster Academy is a co-educational independent boarding school located on in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire USA, two hours north of Boston. It occupies 1/2 mile of shoreline along Lake Winnipesaukee...
, Salisbury School
Salisbury School
Salisbury School is an all-boys, private college-preparatory boarding school founded in 1901 and located in Salisbury, Connecticut. Its school newspaper is The Cupola. Its mascot is the Crimson Knight. The School's motto is Esse quam videri, which translates to To be rather than to seem to...
, Berkshire School
Berkshire School
Berkshire School is a prestigious, private, co-ed boarding school for grades 9 through 12 located in Sheffield, Massachusetts, USA. Berkshire's applications have doubled in the past few years with Mike Maher taking on the role as head of school...
, Brunswick School, Williston Northampton School
Williston Northampton School
The Williston Northampton School, or "Williston," is a private co-educational preparatory school for boarding and day students in seventh grade through postgraduate year located in Easthampton, Massachusetts. The campus offers a range of extra-curricular activities in the arts and athletics...
, Hotchkiss School
Hotchkiss School
The Hotchkiss School is an independent, coeducational American college preparatory boarding school located in Lakeville, Connecticut. Founded in 1891, the school enrolls students in grades 9 through 12 and a small number of postgraduates...
, Avon Old Farms
Avon Old Farms
Avon Old Farms is a single-sex boarding school for boys located in Avon, Connecticut. It was founded by Theodate Pope Riddle, an RMS Lusitania survivor and a master architect. It opened in 1927 and closed for a period during World War II to serve as a convalescent hospital for blind veterans. The...
, Northfield Mount Hermon
Northfield Mount Hermon
Northfield Mount Hermon School, commonly referred to as NMH, is a co-educational independent boarding high school for students in grades 9–12...
, and Hopkins School
Hopkins School
The Hopkins School is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational day school, located in New Haven, Connecticut....
. The athletic directors of Deerfield and the other members of the Eight Schools Association
Eight Schools Association
The Eight Schools Association is a group of leading private college-preparatory schools in the United States, begun informally during the 1973-74 school year and formalized in 2006 with the appointment of a president and an executive director...
compose the Eight Schools Athletic Council, which organizes sports events and tournaments among ESA schools. Deerfield is also a member of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council
New England Preparatory School Athletic Council
The New England Preparatory School Athletic Council was founded in 1942 as an organization of athletic directors from preparatory schools in New England.-Member schools:* The Albany Academy* American School for the Deaf* Applewild School...
(NEPSAC).
Traditionally, the Academy's athletic rival is Choate Rosemary Hall. The Fall athletics season culminates with Choate Day, which features matches with Choate at every level of every fall sport.
Fall Sports
| Winter Sports
| Spring Sports
|
Around 2010 Deerfield Academy's lacrosse program had success, and was a perennial contender for the New England title along with rival Salisbury School. In 2009 Salisbury defeated Deerfield 7-6, resulting in a shared New England Championship title. In 2010, Salisbury defeated Deerfield 9-6. Salisbury went on to win the New England title. However, in 2011, Deerfield beat Salisbury 11-7 in the penultimate game of their season. Deerfield went on to beat Exeter in the last game of their season, securing both an undefeated season and the New England title. They secured the ranking of number one in the state of Massachusetts, and a ranking of number three in the nation. Deerfield The School's golf
Golf
Golf 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....
, and men's water polo
Water polo
Water polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...
and swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
are strong. In 2008 Deerfield held the New England Prep School Championship title for men's swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
, men's water polo
Water polo
Water polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...
, and golf
Golf
Golf 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....
.
Deerfield Academy Press
The Deerfield Academy Press was founded in May 1997 with the publication of Deerfield 1797-1997: A Pictorial History of the Academy, the first written history of the school. The mission of the Press is to stimulate and nurture interest in creative and academic writing and to provide a formal outlet for student writings in English, history, and foreign languages.Publications:
- Deerfield 1797-1997: A Pictorial History of the Academy, Andrea and Robert Moorhead, editors
- The Headmaster's Series, focusing on the history of the school and current topics in international education
- The Art & Poetry Series, including poetry broadsides, exhibition catalogues, faculty poetry, and special student projects
- The Academy Series, featuring three annual student publications
See also
- Heads of Deerfield Academy
- List of notable Deerfield alumni