Founded in 1923, John Burroughs School (JBS) is a private, non-sectarian preparatory school with 600 students in grades 7-12. Its 47.5 acre (192,000 m²) campus is located in Ladue, Missouri (USA), an affluent suburb of Saint Louis. It is named for U.S. naturalist and philosopher John Burroughs.
John Burroughs has long had a school philosophy of liberal and progressive education. It has been recognized as one of the nation's premier preparatory schools. The school ranked among the nation's top 50 in sending graduates to eight top universities in a December 2007 survey by the Wall Street Journal.
The school operates on a campus of 47.5 acres (192,000 m2). Facilities include a main classroom building, a performing arts center, a library, a science building, an athletic center, and a fine arts facility. Burroughs also operates an outdoor education and biology facility in the Ozarks known as "Drey Land".
The faculty includes about 88 full-time and 31 part-time members. Since 2009, the Head of School has been Andy Abbott, formerly an English teacher and the school's head of college counseling. He replaced Keith Shahan, who held the job for 23 years.
Each class contains about 100 students, for a total student body of about 600. The primary admission level is grade seven, but applicants are considered for grades eight through 10 as openings permit. Admission is based on school records, recommendations, entrance examination results, and a personal interview. The school is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States.
Tuition for the 2014–2015 school year is $24,690. Twenty percent of students receive tuition aid annually in the form of grants and loans. The average award covers more than 70 percent of tuition.
Eighteen members of the Class of 2015 were named National Merit/Achievement Semifinalists, one was honored by the National Hispanic Recognition Program, and 16 received letters of commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. For more than a decade, Burroughs has had the highest percentage of semifinalists in the State of Missouri. Since 1995, four Presidential Scholars have been Burroughs graduates.
Nearly all students go on to attend four-year colleges, including a number to Ivy League schools.
The school has more than 6,200 living alumni.
The varsity sports teams are referred to as the "John Burroughs Bombers." The school colors are blue and gold. The school has an athletic rivalry with nearby Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School. John Burroughs also holds a cross-state rivalry with The Pembroke Hill School in Kansas City.
The Bombers football team has won the state championship in Division 2A in 1975, 1980 (tie), 1985, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1995 (tie) and 2001. They won the 3A title in 2015. Former NFL kicker Neil Rackers is an assistant coach on the football team. Former NFL quarterback Gus Frerotte was head football coach from 2011 to 2013. In 2016, the program was inducted into the Missouri Hall of Fame.
Clubs and Activities
Burroughs students take part in about 40 clubs and activities, including community service, Model U.N., a robotics club, a Quad Fun Club, a super-mileage vehicle club, and a business club.
Government and politics
Todd Akin, 1966: U.S. Congressman (R) for the 2nd District of Missouri (2001–2013)
Brittany Packnett, 2002: Black Lives Matter activist, appointed in 2015 by President Barack Obama to the President’s Commission on Twenty-first Century Policing, a White House task force for police reform.
Laura Stith, 1971: Chief Justice of the Missouri Supreme Court
Katie Wheeler, 1957: New Hampshire state senator in the 1990s.
Andrea R. Wood, 1991: Nominated by President Obama in 2013 to be a United States District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois.
Journalism and literature
William S. Burroughs (Class of 1931, alum non-grad): novelist, Naked Lunch.
Martha Gellhorn, 1926: combat journalist, novelist, and Ernest Hemingway's third wife. He dedicated For Whom the Bell Tolls (1940) to her
Jane Smiley, 1967: Pulitzer Prize-winning (1992) novelist, A Thousand Acres
Mary Wiltenburg, 1994: journalist, Little Bill Clinton project
Arts, sciences, and education
David D. Clark, 1962: computer scientist and internet pioneer
Edward T. Foote II, 1955: president, University of Miami (1981–2001); dean of Washington University School of Law (1973–1980); helped design St. Louis' desegregation plans.
Tom Friedman, 1983: conceptual artist
John Hartford, 1956: Grammy-winning folk musician, Gentle On My Mind.
James Peniston, 1992: sculptor.
Thomas H. Stix, 1941: Plasma physics pioneer, Princeton professor.
Andrew Volpe, 1998: guitarist and lead singer of St. Louis-based band Ludo.
Sports and entertainment
Fran Charles, 1986: television football reporter/host.
Sarah Clarke, 1989: actress, 24.
Ezekiel Elliott, 2013: Dallas Cowboys running back
Heather Goldenhersh, 1991: actress, nominated for a Tony (Featured Actress in a Play) for playing Sister James in Doubt.
Jon Hamm, 1989: Golden Globe-winning actor; Mad Men.
Ellie Kemper, 1998: actress, The Office (US).
David Lee (basketball), class of 1997 (alum non-grad): NBA basketball player.
Dave Sisler, 1949: MLB baseball player
Dick Sisler, 1938: MLB baseball player
Scott Van Slyke, 2005: MLB baseball player for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Erinn Westbrook, 2006: actress.
Jay Williamson, 1985: Professional golfer on the PGA Tour
Beau Willimon, 1995: playwright and screenwriter.
Leo Drey, 1935: timber magnate, conservationist, philanthropist. Was Missouri's largest private landholder until 2004, when his $180 million gift of land to a conservation foundation made him the U.S.'s sixth-most generous benefactor. Leases land to JBS for outdoor education.
Rebekah Harkness, 1932 (alum non-grad): Standard Oil heiress, philanthropist and founder of the Harkness Ballet
Sam Altman, 2003: President, Y Combinator
Joe Edwards, 1964: owner, Blueberry Hill and founder St. Louis Walk of Fame.
Timothy Luehrman, 1974: Professor, Harvard Business School; widely cited expert in corporate finance.
Danny Meyer, 1976: NYC restaurateur; Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, Blue Smoke, The Modern, Shake Shack.
Edward N. Ney, 1942: CEO of Young & Rubicam, U.S. ambassador to Canada.
Andrew C. Taylor: CEO and chairman of Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company.
James H. Howard, 1932: fighter pilot who flew with the Flying Tigers and later became the only one in the European Theater of Operations in World War II to receive the Medal of Honor.
Roslyn L. Schulte, 2002: Killed in action on May 19, 2009, she became the first woman to receive the National Intelligence Medal for Valor.
Margaret Bahe: teacher 1979–present, winner of Saint Louis Science Center and Carol B. and Jerome T. Loeb Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics award in 2011
Marion Rombauer Becker: JBS art department director (1929–32) and co-author (with mother Irma S. Rombauer) of American cookbook The Joy of Cooking (1936).
Fred Eiseman: Teacher from 1950–1961
John L. Loos: American historian who specialized in the Lewis and Clark Expedition, taught history at JBS from 1953 to 1955.
Wayne Salomon: Teacher 1987–2014, won 2011 Art Educator of the Year from the St. Louis Arts and Education Council.
Jon Hamm (Class of '89): For one year in the early 1990s, after he graduated from the University of Missouri, Hamm was a teaching intern in the Drama Department. Among his improv students was Ellie Kemper, later his costar in Bridesmaids.
