Denomination Episcopal Church Opened 1962 Affiliation Round Square Mascot Scotty | Established 1961 Phone +1 561-210-2000 Number of students 1,275 (2015–2016) | |
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Type Private, College-prep, Day & Boarding Motto Semper Stellas Spectemus (Latin)
(Always look to the stars) Founder Episcopal School Foundation (in conjunction with Saint Gregory's Episcopal Church, a local parish) Address 3900 Jog Rd, Boca Raton, FL 33434, USA Profiles | ||
Saint Andrew’s School, in Boca Raton, Florida, is a PreK-12 day and boarding college preparatory school with 1,275 students from over 40 countries.
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Saint Andrew's School is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools, Round Square, The Association of Boarding Schools, Florida Council of Independent Schools, Florida Kindergarten Council, and National Association of Episcopal Schools among others.
History
Saint Andrew's School began as a boarding high school for boys, and was founded by the Episcopal School Foundation in 1961, led by The Rev. Hunter Wyatt-Brown, Jr., who became the first headmaster. The late Alexander D. Henderson Jr., a retired Avon Products, Inc. executive, and his wife, Lucy (Lucia Maria Ernst), provided significant private donations during the early years. The School opened on September 21, 1962, with 122 students from as far away as Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and several states including Michigan, New York, and Ohio.
Girls were admitted in 1972 after which the school transitioned from a boarding school to a mix of boarding and day students. Saint Andrew's School added a Lower School in 2000 and a Junior Kindergarten program in 2008.
Today, the co-educational JK-12 school has over 20 buildings. Since 2003, approximately $30 million in new plant construction and renovation projects have been completed, including the $6.5 million Andrews Hall - The Center for Performing Arts, $6.5 million Malnik Family Athletic Center, $3.2 million Schmidt Family Science Center, and $8 million Moabery Early Years Learning Center. The school has also constructed a headmaster's residence and erected a chickee chapel, a symbol of school heritage. The Moabery Early Years Learning Center and renovations of the Nina and Edgar Otto Lower School Campus are LEED Certified, the Moabery Early Years Learning Center LEED for Schools certified at the Gold Level.
In 2010, the Saint Andrew's School began offering the International Baccalaureate Diploma program as an IB World School and in 2011, the school was accepted as a full international member of the Round Square Organization and was declared a "Green School of Excellence." Also in 2011, the school completed a new $750,000 track and field (meets IAAF standards) and renovated the Shapiro Family Adventure Gymnasium, adding a new rock climbing wall and dance studio. For 2012, the school constructed a $1.75 million middle school gymnasium, the Stoops Family Gymnasium. In 2013, Saint Andrew's School proudly hosted the Round Square International Conference with over 750 educators and international students attending, including Prince Andrew, Duke of York.
Leadership
Saint Andrew's School has had nine headmasters including The Rev. Hunter Wyatt-Brown, Jr. (serving 1962–1963) and Eugene Curtis, Jr. (serving 1964–1971). Dr. Ann Marie Krejcarek was the school's first female head of school (2007 -2012), replacing Reverend George E. Andrews II (serving 1989–2007). In 2013, Peter. B. Benedict II joined the Saint Andrew's community as its ninth headmaster. In August 2016, Dr. Jim Byer arrived at Saint Andrew's School to serve as interim headmaster as the Board of Trustees completes a national search for the next head of school.
The school has three chaplains, The Rev. Dr. David Taylor, The Rev. Charles Browning, and The Rev. Faye Somers, who officiate at the chapel services, which are held once per week. Upper and Middle School chapel services are officially held in the The Chapel of Saint Andrew the Apostle, which is also home to an active parish in the Episcopal Diocese of South-East Florida under Bishop Leo Frade, who is also an ex officio member of the Board of Trustees of the school.
Controversies
In August 2016, Saint Andrew's School issued a statement that it failed to take responsibility for the inappropriate behavior of a faculty member toward students in a 2014 fondling case. The school headmaster and dean of students was fired and the case was investigated by Boca Raton police. McLane Middleton was hired by Saint Andrew's School to conduct an independent investigation and reported that students "were all put at risk by a school culture that did not promote training on child abuse and by faculty and administrators who failed to report specific incidents". The school's protocols were changed to ensure the campus's safety. Mandatory annual child abuse training for faculty and staff was instituted in accordance with the Florida Department of Education training curriculum, experts were sent to oversee the restructuring of risk aspects in the school to protect students, and new resident life leaders were hired.