Hawken School
Encyclopedia
Hawken School is an independent, coeducational, college preparatory day school in Northeast Ohio
.
Hawken currently has two main campuses, the Lower and Middle Schools in Lyndhurst
and the Upper School in Gates Mills
, plus a third, an urban campus in University Circle
, The Sally & Bob Gries Center for Experiential and Service Learning, which will be utilized by all grade levels. Hawken's motto is quoted from John Lancaster Spalding's Education and the Higher Life: "That the better self shall prevail, and each generation introduce its successor to a higher plane of life"; although a sign with the secondary motto, "Fair Play," hangs in every classroom on either campus. A new middle school complex in the Lyndhurst campus was built for the 2006–2007 school year. D. Scott Looney is the current Head of School, having assumed the position on July 1, 2006.
Hough neighborhood in 1915. First housed at 1572 Ansel Road, the school later moved to 1588 Ansel Road, shortly before relocating to its current Lyndhurst campus. Because James Hawken believed in one-on-one education for the boys at his school, the original building on the Lyndhurst campus, now containing part of the middle school, has many rooms designed to seat between eight and ten boys. The school became coed in 1975. In the fall of 2006, Lincoln Hall was added on to the Middle School, adding much-needed classroom space. The Sally & Bob Gries Center for Experiential and Service Learning, located in University Circle
, opened on August 29th, 2010.
Hawken School is an independent, college preparatory day school serving approximately 950 students in preschool through grade 12. Hawken has long-standing rivalries with the three other founding members of the Cleveland Council of Independent Schools
: Laurel School
, Hathaway Brown School
, and University School
.
The Hawken Speech & Debate Team is a member of the National Forensic League
, and has won multiple OHSSL State Championships (most recently in Public Forum Debate in 2010) as well as qualifiers to the NFL's annual National Tournament.
Hawken's Latin Club functions as a local chapter of both the Ohio Junior Classical League (OJCL) and National Junior Classical League
(NJCL).
There are new tennis courts in construction as of August 2011.
Besides the two main shows, each year Hawken puts on a Spring Theatre performance that is led by Ms. Julia Griffin. This performance, in the spring, is a smaller show anywhere from the range of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to 30 Plays in 60 Minutes.
Alan B. McElroy
, screenwriter
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
.
Hawken currently has two main campuses, the Lower and Middle Schools in Lyndhurst
Lyndhurst, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 15,279 people, 6,642 households, and 4,397 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,480.1 people per square mile . There were 6,855 housing units at an average density of 1,561.4 per square mile...
and the Upper School in Gates Mills
Gates Mills, Ohio
Gates Mills is a village in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,270 at the 2010 census. Gates Mills is an affluent suburb of Cleveland...
, plus a third, an urban campus in University Circle
University Circle
University Circle, is a neighborhood located on the east side of Cleveland, Ohio. It is best known for its world-class cultural, educational and medical institutions, including the Cleveland Orchestra, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Museum of Art, Lakeview Cemetery, and University...
, The Sally & Bob Gries Center for Experiential and Service Learning, which will be utilized by all grade levels. Hawken's motto is quoted from John Lancaster Spalding's Education and the Higher Life: "That the better self shall prevail, and each generation introduce its successor to a higher plane of life"; although a sign with the secondary motto, "Fair Play," hangs in every classroom on either campus. A new middle school complex in the Lyndhurst campus was built for the 2006–2007 school year. D. Scott Looney is the current Head of School, having assumed the position on July 1, 2006.
History
The school's founder and namesake, James A. Hawken, opened his school for boys in Cleveland'sCleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
Hough neighborhood in 1915. First housed at 1572 Ansel Road, the school later moved to 1588 Ansel Road, shortly before relocating to its current Lyndhurst campus. Because James Hawken believed in one-on-one education for the boys at his school, the original building on the Lyndhurst campus, now containing part of the middle school, has many rooms designed to seat between eight and ten boys. The school became coed in 1975. In the fall of 2006, Lincoln Hall was added on to the Middle School, adding much-needed classroom space. The Sally & Bob Gries Center for Experiential and Service Learning, located in University Circle
University Circle
University Circle, is a neighborhood located on the east side of Cleveland, Ohio. It is best known for its world-class cultural, educational and medical institutions, including the Cleveland Orchestra, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Museum of Art, Lakeview Cemetery, and University...
, opened on August 29th, 2010.
Hawken School is an independent, college preparatory day school serving approximately 950 students in preschool through grade 12. Hawken has long-standing rivalries with the three other founding members of the Cleveland Council of Independent Schools
Cleveland Council of Independent Schools
The Cleveland Council of Independent Schools is a consortium of independent schools in Northeast Ohio, serving more than 4,500 learners from over 50 communities...
: Laurel School
Laurel School
Located in Shaker Heights, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio,Laurel School is a school for girls Kindergarten through Grade 12, with a coeducational pre-primary program. Laurel’s mission is to “inspire each girl to fulfill her promise and to better the world". While this is their mission statement,...
, Hathaway Brown School
Hathaway Brown School
Hathaway Brown is an all-girls private school in Shaker Heights, Ohio, founded in 1876. It is also Ohio's second oldest college preparatory school for girls. The HB experience spans the early childhood program, primary school, middle school, and upper school.-History:Founded in 1876, Hathaway...
, and University School
University School
University School, commonly referred to as US, is an all-boys K - 12 school with two campus locations in the Greater Cleveland, Ohio area...
.
Student life
Students have been divided into two different groups: red and gray in the middle school, and Vikings and Cyclops in the lower school. Once they have advanced to the middle school, Vikings turn into red and Cyclops turn into gray. In 4-6th grade, games such as capture the flag or soccer are played and the winner receives points. All students, 4-8th grades, compete once a year at "field day". This is competed at the Lower school. Every student chooses a sport to compete in, along with an assigned relay. At the Upper School, students are sorted by advisory into four houses: Ansel (derived from the name of the original campus at Ansel Road), Bolton (derived from the name of the lower school campus), Chester (referring to Chesterland, the location of the Upper School), and Mather (referring to the new campus at University Circle). The houses each have their own colors, mascots, and crests, and compete for house points through a variety of different activities. The system was codeveloped by Alex Dobay '08 and Meredith Allenick '08, and the winning house receives the Dobay Cup, named after Alex Dobay, who died of cancer in August 2008. The school implemented a new schedule in the fall of 2010. It replaced a float schedule with 6 50-minute classes with 4 block classes per day, ranging in length from 60 to 85 minutes. In addition, the time of day in which the block occurs changes in a six day cycle. For example, one day a student would have his "A" block class at 8:30 but the next day he would have it at 12:15. Also, for the last 3 weeks before Winter and Summer break also students participate in the intensive study of one course for the entire school day. An intensive counts for one semester's credit.Clubs and activities
The Academic Challenge Team won Academic Challenge Television Finals in 2008 and placed third at regionals the same year.The Hawken Speech & Debate Team is a member of the National Forensic League
National Forensic League
The National Forensic League is a non-partisan, non-profit educational honor society established to encourage and motivate American high school students to participate in and become proficient in the forensic arts: debate, public speaking and interpretation. NFL is the America's oldest and largest...
, and has won multiple OHSSL State Championships (most recently in Public Forum Debate in 2010) as well as qualifiers to the NFL's annual National Tournament.
Hawken's Latin Club functions as a local chapter of both the Ohio Junior Classical League (OJCL) and National Junior Classical League
National Junior Classical League
The National Junior Classical League is a youth organization of secondary school students sponsored by the American Classical League...
(NJCL).
Athletics
Before the 2007 football season, the football field was updated and renamed Walton Stadium, in honor of longtime coach Cliff Walton. New turf was installed, and lights were put up. Since then, the Hawks have played their home games under the lights on Friday nights. The Hawks were undefeated 1965, 1985, and 1986. They were division five regional finalists in the 1986 season and state runner up in the 1987 season. Former Miami Dolphins Wide Receiver O.J. McDuffie led the team to the state runner up that year and then continued his career at Penn State. Hawken also has the only turf baseball field in Northeast Ohio. In the 2009 season, Hawken finished 8-2 and defeated Independence in the first round of the playoffs. They finished 9-3 and had multiple all district players and John Wilson was voted to the all-state team.There are new tennis courts in construction as of August 2011.
Ohio High School Athletic Association State Championships
- Girls TrackTrack and fieldTrack and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
- 1999, 2000 - Girls SwimmingSwimming (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...
- 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 - Boys SwimmingSwimming (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...
- 1988, 1989 - Boys 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....
- 1977, 1978 - Boys Soccer – 2000
- 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...
- 2002
Performing arts
The school has a strings class, run by Liesel Langmack, as well as salsa class, chorus, chamber chorale, and concert band, all run by Sergio Castellanos, a professional cellist. There is also a Jazz Combo run by Chad Komocki, a Math and Spanish teacher and drummer.Theatre
The theatre program at Hawken, known as HPS for Hawken Players Society, is run by Mr. Michael Larochelle. This program each year puts on a Fall Play and a Winter Musical. The Hawken theatre program has had the following shows in the three years past: Rumors, An Inspector Calls, Noises Off, RENT, Footloose, and Hairspray. The casts are entirely students, responsible for nearly all of the technical aspects of each show, including lighting, sound, scenery, costumes, makeup, and props.Besides the two main shows, each year Hawken puts on a Spring Theatre performance that is led by Ms. Julia Griffin. This performance, in the spring, is a smaller show anywhere from the range of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to 30 Plays in 60 Minutes.
Accreditation and membership
- Accredited, Independent Schools Association of the Central States
- Accredited, Ohio State Board of EducationOhio State Board of EducationThe Ohio Department of Education is the state education agency of Ohio, headquartered in Columbus. The Ohio State Board of Education is the governing body of the department....
- Member, National Association for College Admission CounselingNational Association for College Admission CounselingThe National Association for College Admission Counseling , founded in 1937, is an organization of more than 11,000 professionals from around the world dedicated to serving students transitioning from secondary to postsecondary education, including professional school counselors, college access...
- Member, National Association of Independent SchoolsNational Association of Independent SchoolsThe National Association of Independent Schools is a U.S.-based membership organization for private, nonprofit, K-12 schools. Founded in 1963, NAIS represents independent schools and associations in the United States, including day, boarding, and day/boarding schools; elementary and secondary...
- Member, Ohio Association for College Admission Counseling
- Member, College BoardCollege BoardThe College Board is a membership association in the United States that was formed in 1900 as the College Entrance Examination Board . It is composed of more than 5,900 schools, colleges, universities and other educational organizations. It sells standardized tests used by academically oriented...
Notable alumni
Tim HayesAlan B. McElroy
Alan B. McElroy
Alan B. McElroy is an American writer, film director and producer.McElroy was born in Cleveland, Ohio and is a graduate of Miami University with a degree in Psychology.He is the creator of Wrong Turn.- External links :...
, screenwriter
- Arthur LafferArthur LafferArthur Betz Laffer is an American economist who first gained prominence during the Reagan administration as a member of Reagan's Economic Policy Advisory Board . Laffer is best known for the Laffer curve, an illustration of the theory that there exists some tax rate between 0% and 100% that will...
, 1955, economist - Nick MinchinNick MinchinNicholas Hugh "Nick" Minchin is a former Australian politician, serving as a Liberal member of the Australian Senate representing South Australia from July 1993 to June 2011, and a former cabinet minister in the Howard Government....
, 1971, Australian SenatorAustralian SenateThe Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
and Minister for Finance and Administration - Scott HealyScott HealyScott Healy is a Los Angeles-based keyboardist and composer best known as the keyboardist for the Jimmy Vivino and the Basic Cable Band on Conan on TBS. His long association with O'Brien dates back to the original Late Night with Conan O'Brien show, and the subsequent The Tonight Show with Conan...
, 1978, The Max Weinberg 7 keyboardist - Richard J. Green, 1983, American chemist known for his work against Holocaust denial
- Molly ShannonMolly ShannonMolly Helen Shannon is an American comic actress best known for her work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1995–2001 and for starring in the films Superstar and Year of the Dog. More recently, she starred in NBC's Kath & Kim from 2008–2009 and on the TBS animated series Neighbors from...
, 1983, actress - Evan WrightEvan WrightEvan Wright is an American writer, journalist, author and television writer and producer. He has reported extensively on subcultures for Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair. His latest work is American Desperado, a book he co-wrote with Jon Roberts, who was featured in the documentary the Cocaine...
, 1983, Rolling StoneRolling StoneRolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J... - William DaroffWilliam DaroffWilliam Daroff is the Vice President for Public Policy and Director of the Washington Office of The Jewish Federations of North America formerly known as United Jewish Communities.-Childhood:...
, 1986, Jewish community leader - Melanie ValerioMelanie ValerioMelanie Valerio, born May 7, 1969 in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, is a United States swimmer, who graduated from Hawken School in Gates Mills, Ohio and the University of Virginia....
, 1987, OlympicSwimming at the 1996 Summer OlympicsThe swimming competition at the 1996 Summer Olympics was held at the Georgia Tech Aquatic Center in Atlanta, United States, which was built for the Games...
gold medalist - O.J. McDuffie, 1988, NFL wide receiver
- Michael CassaraMichael CassaraMichael Andrew Cassara is an American casting director, director and producer of musicals, plays and films.-Career:...
, 1999, Casting Director and Producer - Peter HarroldPeter HarroldPeter Jacob Harrold is an American ice hockey defenseman for the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League. Harrold was raised in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio where he attended Hawken School. Upon graduation from High School, Harrold attended Boston College where he was the captain of the...
, 2002, Los Angeles KingsLos Angeles KingsThe Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
defenseman