Jump to content

The Park School

Coordinates: 42°18′56.36″N 71°07′59.57″W / 42.3156556°N 71.1332139°W / 42.3156556; -71.1332139
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by HeyImLia (talk | contribs) at 23:34, 16 September 2023. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Park School
Address
Map
171 Goddard Avenue

,
Massachusetts
02445

United States
Information
School typeIndependent, coeducational, non-profit, non-sectarian day school Independent Elementary and Middle School
MottoSimplicity and Sincerity
DenominationNon-denominational
Founded1888
ChairpersonJoe Robbins
Head of schoolScott M. Young
Staff30
Faculty130
GradesPreKindergarten-Grade 8
Age range4-14
Enrollment540
Average class size14–16 students
Campus size34 acres (140,000 m2)
Color(s)green & white
AccreditationAISNE&NEASC
PublicationThe Park School Bulletin
NewspaperThe Park Parent
Websitehttp://www.parkschool.org

The Park School is an independent day school in Brookline, Massachusetts, for boys and girls in Pre-Kindergarten through eighth grade. Founded in 1888 as Miss Pierce's School, it is a 34-acre campus in Brookline, Massachusetts near Jamaica Pond.

History

Park's roots goes back to 1888, when Miss Caroline Pierce began a proprietary school on Walnut Street in Brookline. In 1923, it was incorporated and named to commemorate Julia Park, principal from 1910-1922. A gift of land from Dr. and Mrs. James M. Faulkner, former Park parents and grandparents, provided an opportunity for the School to move in 1971 from Kennard Road in Brookline to a 34-acre, country-like setting near Jamaica Pond and opposite Larz Anderson Park. (provided from school website).

Park's facilities span a 34-acre campus.

Park's library contains 30,000 volumes and audiovisual materials.

Across the campus at 255 Goddard Avenue is Faulkner House, which provides office space and PreKindergarten classes.

Construction

The Park School

The school's main building was constructed in 1971 from a modern architectural design by Earl Flansburgh & Associates under the direction of then Headmaster Robert S. Hurlbut Jr. Built of reinforced precast concrete as a stack of modular classroom and office spaces with wall-length windows for more natural illumination of rooms, it exemplifies the brutalist concrete construction style pioneered by Swiss architect Le Corbusier. But its brick wall accents and its preserved oaks and Roxbury puddingstone outcroppings pay homage to historical New England building traditions and topography. The building features an inner courtyard with a "Space Churn" stainless steel mobile sculpture by George Rickey, donated by a Park parent in 1971. In 1996, the West Building designed by Graham Gund and Associates, added two full-sized basketball courts, three modern science labs, and four classrooms to the school's facilities. In 2008, the school completed a major expansion and renovation of all of the Pre-kindergarten – grade 5 classrooms. A new wing houses Grade 4 & 5 classrooms, after-school program space, a conference room, and adjoins the newly renovated 5,400-square foot library.[1]

During the summer of 2018, several renovation projects took place including significant updates to the Early Childhood classrooms (PreK & K), the accompanying Early Childhood/Discovery Playground, and the transformation of a Conference Room into a state-of-the-art Makerspace.

In the fall of 2021, Park students returned to a transformed Upper Division learning environment. Summer construction focused on the dated and unrenovated classrooms on the fourth floor of the Main Building and an unused former locker room area on the first floor. Eleven new, expanded Upper Division classrooms and dedicated collaboration spaces are deepening student engagement, giving our teachers instructional flexibility, and fostering meaningful collaboration among students and adults. [2]

Program

The Park School is composed of two Divisions - Lower Division (PreK - Grade 4) and Upper Division (Grades 5-8)

Schedule

At Park, the academic year runs from September to June. School begins at 8:15 a.m. School is dismissed at 3:05 p.m. PreK and Kindergarten are dismissed at 12 p.m. on Friday.

Extracurricular activities

Various extracurricular activities are offered in the After-School Program for PreK – Grade 5. Families may sign up for two to five afternoons per week; pick-up times are 3:05 p.m., 4:30 p.m. or 6 p.m.

Students in Grades 6 – 8 are encouraged to participate in elective sports or after-school drama. In addition, clubs and a quiet study hall are offered until 4:30 p.m. Park offers three seasons of sports, as well as three seasons of theater production, that students may participate in.

Sports include Flag Football, Soccer, Field Hockey, Volleyball and Cross Country in the fall, Basketball, Wrestling and Ice Hockey in the winter, and Lacrosse, Softball and Track and Field in the spring.

Theater choices change term to term and include both modern and classical theater, with a musical in the winter term.

Annual events

School-wide events include Grandparents' & Special Friends' Day; Yule Festival – a longstanding holiday assembly that acknowledges both the common and varying traditions of the school's diverse community in songs and readings that capture the principles and spirit of Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa; and May Day – a special assembly welcoming spring for students in Pre-K through Grade 8. Graduation is held in June and features an alumnus/a speaker.

Notable alumni

Notable graduates of The Park School include:

References

  1. ^ Howland, Jay. The Park School: One Hundred Years, 1888-1988. Brookline, MA: The Park School, 1988.
  2. ^ "Exemplary Academic Spaces - the Park School".

42°18′56.36″N 71°07′59.57″W / 42.3156556°N 71.1332139°W / 42.3156556; -71.1332139