Eagle Hill School

Last updated
Eagle Hill School
Location
Eagle Hill School

01037

Coordinates 42°21′46″N72°12′1″W / 42.36278°N 72.20028°W / 42.36278; -72.20028
Information
Type Independent private school
Special education
Boarding school
MottoDiscere diverse, diverse docere
Religious affiliation(s)Nonsectarian
Established1967
NCES School ID 00603574 [1]
01612613 [2]
A9302549 [3]
HeadmasterErin Wynne
Teaching staff55.3 (on an FTE basis) [1]
65.3 (on an FTE basis) [2]
28.0 (on an FTE basis) [3]
Grades8-12 [1] [2] [3]
GenderCo-educational
Enrollment209, [1] 253, [2] 108 [3]
Student to teacher ratio3.8, [1] 3.9 [2] [3]
Campus Residential school
Color(s)White, Green
AthleticsNEPSAC
MascotPioneer
Nickname EHS
Affiliation National Association of Independent Schools
Website Eagle Hill School (Hardwick)

Eagle Hill School is an independently operated, private boarding school serving students in grades 8-12 with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, and other learning disabilities in Hardwick, Massachusetts, which was founded in 1967. Two other schools with the same name are located in Greenwich and Southport, Connecticut. [4]

Contents

History

In the early 1960s, Dr. James J.A. Cavanaugh, Director of the Department of Pediatrics at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Brighton, Massachusetts, began to devote his work to children with dyslexia or a specific learning disability. Eagle Hill School in Hardwick is a preparatory college program, which was conceived from Cavanaugh's recognition of the impact of this disability on the growing child and the limited facilities available for remediation.

Joining Dr. Cavanaugh to launch the school were Educational Director Mr. Charles Drake of Brandeis University and Headmaster Mr. Howard Delano, formerly of Fryeburg Academy. Nineteen children were in residence when the school opened its doors on family owned property in September 1967. All of them were housed in the Main House, which now contains the school's administrative offices. By the third year, a dedicated dormitory was constructed and one-hundred children were in residence. In 2009, the boarding enrollment for the school reached approximately 160 students.

On May 9, 2023, head of school Dr. PJ McDonald died. [5] About a month later, Erin Wynne was appointed as the school's 4th head of school. [6]

Program

The school enrolls 220 students in grades 8-12, and features exactly 119 faculty members, a student to teacher ratio of 2.5 to 1, and an average classroom size of 6 to 1. [7]

Teacher Induction Training

Held every summer on the Eagle Hill campus the EHS Institute for Teacher Induction is an induction training program primarily designed for first, second or third year public school teachers or seasoned teachers who are new to an urban district. Funded mainly by private organizations [8] the institute was a line budget item in the 2008 Massachusetts state budget. [9]

The STEM Center

In September 2019, the school opened a STEM center to include Makerspaces for academics in the fields of science, math, technology, and engineering.

The Cultural Center

In the fall of 2008, EHS opened a $15,000,000 Cultural Center complete with a new dining hall, classrooms, a black box theatre, and a 500-seat theatre. Professionals perform at the cultural center during the year and the students use it as well.

Greenwich school

260 students attend Eagle Hill School in Greenwich, Connecticut, who are in grades K-10, and have mild language-processing disabilities. The school consists of 75 teachers, and a student to teacher ratio of approximately 4 to 1. While the Lower School serves elementary school students, the Upper School educates middle and junior high school students. [10]

Founded in 1975, the school is accredited by the Connecticut State Department of Education and Connecticut Association of Independent Schools. They accept students from Fairfield and Westchester counties, as well as from Manhattan in its day program, and children from the tri-state areas of Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey in its five-day boarding program. [10]

It is also a school for students with learning disabilities. [10]

Southport School

The Southport School, previously known as Eagle Hill Southport School (EHSS), is a co-educational day school in historic Southport village, Connecticut, enrolling children ages 6 to 15. It was founded in 1985 by a group of educators from the Eagle Hill-Greenwich School, including the founding headmaster, Len Tavormina. EHSS is located in the former Pequot School Building on the same site where Southport's elementary school and community center have stood since 1855. The classic brick building was erected in 1918, replacing an older wooden structure. Closed as a school in 1972, the historic building was later acquired by the Southport Conservancy as a treasured landmark. The year 1985 saw its rebirth as a school when it was leased to EHSS under the direction of Headmaster Len Tavormina. EHSS holds a 99-year lease on the building.

Extensive renovations throughout the 1990s transformed the building's interior into a model day school environment. Classrooms, tutorial rooms, offices, staff resource center, curriculum center, and spacious common room were all specially adapted to comfortably serve Eagle Hill's unique educational offerings.

Tavormina retired in 2013, making way for EHSS’ second headmaster: Ben Powers, an educator with deep experience in language-based learning differences, like dyslexia, and ADHD and executive functioning differences. Under Powers’ leadership, EHSS has aligned its program with the huge shifts happening in the learning difference community, thanks to burgeoning brain-based research. Since his arrival, EHSS launched an updated middle school program for sixth, seventh, and eighth graders; focused on incorporating assistive technology into the program; integrated a speech and language pathologist into the program; and, instituted an executive function coaching model. In addition, all of the staff is trained and accredited in the Orton-Gillingham approach. [11]

In November 2017, the school changed its name to The Southport School through an all school community event. [12]

Related Research Articles

Special education is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates their individual differences, disabilities, and special needs. This involves the individually planned and systematically monitored arrangement of teaching procedures, adapted equipment and materials, and accessible settings. These interventions are designed to help individuals with special needs achieve a higher level of personal self-sufficiency and success in school and in their community, which may not be available if the student were only given access to a typical classroom education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franklin Academy (Connecticut)</span> Private boarding secondary school in East Haddam, Connecticut, United States

Franklin Academy is a co-ed special education boarding school in East Haddam, Connecticut, serving students in grades 8-12 as well as post-graduate students. The school's primary mission is to provide education to adolescents and young adults with nonverbal learning disabilities and autism spectrum disorders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Landmark School</span> Private, boarding school in Prides Crossing, Massachusetts, United States

Landmark School in Beverly, Massachusetts is a coed American boarding and day school offering a college preparatory program for students in grades 2–12 with language-based learning disabilities such as dyslexia and executive function disorder. Landmark School offers a day and boarding program, as well as a summer program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marvelwood School</span> Independent boarding high school in Kent, Litchfield, Connecticut, Connecticut, United States

The Marvelwood School is a college preparatory private boarding school located in Kent, Connecticut, United States.

The Forman School is a co-educational boarding and day school in Litchfield, Connecticut, United States offering a college preparatory program in grades 9 to 12 and a postgraduate program (PG) exclusively for students with learning differences such as ADD/ADHD and dyslexia. Forman School offers a 4-week summer program in July for students with learning differences.

Community School, located in Teaneck, New Jersey, is a private school, founded in 1968 to serve the bright child with learning and attentional disabilities. The school's primary goal is to help children achieve a level of performance in the classroom that is fully commensurate with their respective abilities. The Lower School program provides children in grades K-8 with skilled remedial help and challenging academic experience. The program is designed for children who have learning disabilities (LD), such as ADD/ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and Apraxia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Craig School</span> Private school in New Jersey

The Craig School is an independent, private coeducational day school located in Mountain Lakes and Montville, in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in second through twelfth grades.

In clinical diagnostic and functional development, special needs refers to individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. Guidelines for clinical diagnosis are given in both the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International Classification of Diseases 9th edition. Special needs can range from people with autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia, dysgraphia, blindness, deafness, ADHD, and cystic fibrosis. They can also include cleft lips and missing limbs. The types of special needs vary in severity, and a student with a special need is classified as being a severe case when the student's IQ is between 20 and 35. These students typically need assistance in school, and have different services provided for them to succeed in a different setting.

The Orton-Gillingham approach is a multisensory phonics technique for remedial reading instruction developed in the early-20th century. It is practiced as a direct, explicit, cognitive, cumulative, and multi-sensory approach. While it is most commonly associated with teaching individuals with dyslexia, it is highly effective for all individuals learning to read, spell, and write. In the US, it is promoted by more than 15 commercial programs as well as several private schools for students with dyslexia and related learning disabilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oakland School (Virginia)</span>

Oakland School is a coeducational day school in Troy, Virginia, specializing in the education of children with dyslexia, ADHD, difficulties with organization and study skills, or other learning disabilities. The school is ungraded, offering instruction from the early elementary school level through the ninth grade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trident Academy</span> Private, learning disabilities school in the United States

Trident Academy is a school for children with diagnosed learning differences in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.

The Greenwood School is a specialized boarding and day school for students in grades 6 through 12. Greenwood is situated on a 100-acre campus outside the village of Putney, Vermont in the southeastern part of the state. The Greenwood School is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), approved by the state of Vermont, and is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitby School</span> Independent school

Whitby School is an independent, co-educational school in Greenwich, Connecticut, that was founded in 1958 and is accredited by the American Montessori Society, the International Baccalaureate Organization, and the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools. The Head of School is Dr. John "Jack" Creeden, who joined Whitby in July 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brehm Preparatory School</span> Secondary school in Carbondale, Illinois, US

Brehm Preparatory School is a not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) co-educational college preparatory day and boarding school for students with learning disabilities, founded in 1982. Brehm Preparatory School is located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school enrolls students in grades 6-12+. The average class size is eight in core content classes and 5 in learning cognition classes. Brehm's student-teacher ratio is 6:1.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodland Hall Academy</span> Private school in Tallahassee, Florida, USA

Woodland Hall Academy was a small private school in Tallahassee, Florida, which catered to 1st to 12th grade students with dyslexia and ADHD. The campus was located approximately 2 miles north of I-10. At its closing, Woodland Hall had 8 teachers and 6 staff members, with a student-to-teacher ratio of 3.6:1.

The Hamlin Robinson School, located in Seattle, Washington, United States is an independent private school serving students who have dyslexia and other language-based learning differences, from Grade 1 through Grade 8.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lang School</span> School in New York, New York, United States

The Lang School is a private, nonprofit, K-12 school marketing itself as serving the needs of twice exceptional (2e) students located in New York City's Financial District. It was the first K-12 school to specialize in educating twice-exceptional (2e) students, though it later came to include a wider range of gifted students.

The Kildonan School was a private coeducational boarding and day school in Amenia, New York for students with dyslexia and language-based learning disabilities. It offered daily one-to-one Orton-Gillingham language remediation and a college preparatory curriculum for students in grades 2-12 and PG (post-graduate).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Woodhall School</span> Private, day and boarding, college-prep school in Bethlehem, Connecticut, United States

The Woodhall School, located in Bethlehem, Connecticut, United States, is a small, independent boys' boarding school for students in grades 9-12. The school's individualized approach to teaching is intended for the unconventional learner, and utilizes multi-modal strategies to support learning. It was founded in 1983 by Sally Campbell Woodhall and Jonathan A. Woodhall, former Headmaster at the Oxford Academy. Sally Campbell Woodhall served in this role from 1983 to 2007; Matthew C. Woodhall became the second Head of School in 2008.

The Windward School is a coeducational, independent day school focused on teaching students in grades 1-9 with language-based learning disabilities with campuses in Westchester and Manhattan. Windward is recognized across the country and around the world as a leader in providing instruction to children with dyslexia and is listed among the best schools in the New York City area.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Search for Private Schools – School Detail for EAGLE HILL SCHOOL". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Search for Private Schools – School Detail for EAGLE HILL SCHOOL". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Search for Private Schools – School Detail for THE SOUTHPORT SCHOOL". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  4. Reilly, Genevieve (November 22, 2017). "Eagle Hill has a new name and brand: The Southport School" . Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  5. "In Memoriam - Eagle Hill School | School for Diverse Learning Profiles".
  6. "New Head of School Announced".
  7. "About - Mission and philosophy". Eagle Hill School. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  8. "2007 Grants". The George F. and Sybil H. Fuller Foundation. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  9. "FY08 Budget Amendments". Archived from the original on August 9, 2008. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  10. 1 2 3 "About". Eagle Hill School. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
  11. "History of EHSS" . Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  12. "Eagle Hill Southport School changes name to the Southport School". 21 November 2017.