Established 1908 Enrollment 625 (PK-12) Phone +1 717-392-2916 Mascot Cougar | Head of School Steven D. Lisk Average class size 14 students Founded 1908 Colors Grey, Maroon | |
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Motto '"Fax mentis et cordis incendium gloriae"(The spark that kindles the mind and heart illuminates a lifetime.) Similar Lancaster Catholic High Sch, Lancaster Mennonite School, Linden Hall School For Girls, Lancaster County Christian, J P McCaskey High Sch Profiles | ||
Lancaster country day school
Lancaster Country Day School (LCDS) is a private, secular, coeducational college preparatory school in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It serves 625 students in preschool through twelfth grade. All grades are housed under one roof.
Contents
- Lancaster country day school
- Founding
- Headmasters
- Academics
- Extracurricular Activities
- Athletics
- Current Layout
- Expansion Plans
- Community Outreach
- Notable Alumni
- References
Founding
The school was founded in 1908 as a girls' school known as The Shippen School for Girls, the result of a merger between Lancaster College and Miss Stahr's School. In 1943, with the closing of nearby Franklin and Marshall Academy for Boys, the Shippen School changed its charter to become coeducational and adopted its current name. In 1949, it moved to its current location on Hamilton Road.
Headmasters
Academics
LCDS' class size averages 14 students. The LCDS lower school program (preschool through fifth grade) includes skill-based grouping for math and reading instruction, and emphasizes art, music and physical education in parallel with academics. Spanish language instruction begins in preschool. In the middle school (grades six to eight), French is offered, and students are encouraged to participate in the fine and performing arts programs. In the upper school, Advanced Placement courses are offered in 11 subjects, and the foreign languages taught are French, Latin, Chinese, and Spanish. The school reports a 100% acceptance rate to four year colleges/universities by its graduating seniors.
The school provides iPads to students from eighth to twelfth grade. The school retains the ability to look at all information on every iPad and to remotely disable certain features. The eighth grade receives iPads without App Stores and with limited Safari functionality.
Extracurricular Activities
Since 1980, LCDS has regularly sent senior students to The Hague for International Model United Nations conferences. In 2009 it was one of just six U.S. schools invited to participate in this annual program.
Athletics
LCDS competes in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association. The school sponsors the following sports:
Fall
Winter
Spring
It has a cooperative agreement with the School District of Lancaster where LCDS students can participate in baseball, football, bowling, cross country, swimming, track and field, and wrestling for McCaskey. LCDS students can compete on Lancaster Catholic High School's girls volleyball team, while students from Lancaster Catholic may join the LCDS boys and girls lacrosse teams. The school mascot is a cougar, and the school colors are maroon and grey. Teams from the school have competed in the PIAA District III and PIAA State playoffs.
Current Layout
Lancaster Country Day School sits on 26 acres of land in the School Lane Hills neighborhood at 725 Hamilton Road. The property was bought by Lancaster Country Day School in 1949. The academic section of the school consists of three wings: One wing houses the Lower School, constructed in two phases in the 1950s and 1960s; another wing houses the Science Department, constructed in 1960; the third wing houses the Upper School and dining commons as well as several conference rooms, constructed in 2005. The school partners with a local tennis club to allow for cooperative use of tennis courts on-campus. Additionally, the school owns space enough for around 5 fields, whether it be soccer, field hockey, or lacrosse. A theatre, constructed in 1971, sits between the Science Wing and the newer Upper School wing. The school has two gymnasiums, one built in 1975 and the other built in 1992.
Expansion Plans
In January 2015, the school's plan to proceed with a construction project estimated to cost around $21 million received zoning approval. The expansion plan received attention from some neighbors, as the new main entrance and parking lots were considered possibly disruptive. Because the school's Board of Trustees sought a more financially feasible option, the governing board opted for a cheaper plan, with the potential to have several phases. The first approved phase, which began in summer 2016, included
In the fall of 2016, the second phase of construction will begin with a new Physical Education and Athletics Complex, which will include locker rooms, a sports medicine and trainer room, visitor restrooms, fitness center, concessions, and a multipurpose dance/yoga/early-childhood studio. A new front entrance from President Avenue via Clay Street with safer drop-off lane at the Lower School entrance will also be created, and the science wing and arts center will be air conditioned.
In the winter 2016 construction will continue with the building of five regulation squash courts and seating for fans. Previous plans to construct a new theatre and rebuild the Lower School and Science Wing were postponed. On January 5, 2016, the school did receive approval from Manheim Township to renovate the theater during a later construction phase, the timing of which is still to be determined.[1] The school administration invited neighbors and parents to attend multiple discussions regarding the new expansion.