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发帖数: 5617 | 3 http://walnuthillarts.org/
Walnut Hill School for the Arts
12 Highland Street
Natick, MA 01760
Phone: 508.650.5020
Phone:(508) 653-4312
Walnut Hill School for the Arts is an independent boarding school for the
arts located in Natick, Massachusetts.
History and programs[edit]
Boarding School[edit]
Walnut Hill was founded in 1893 by Florence Bigelow and Charlotte Conant as
a college preparatory school for women and a feeder school for Wellesley
College. Even as a traditional private boarding school for girls, Walnut
Hill's arts programs were strong. The school was home to acclaimed Fenway
Studio artist and teacher Marion Pooke, class of 1901, and Pulitzer Prize-
winning author and Poet Laureate Elizabeth Bishop '30. It became
coeducational and arts-focused in the late 1970s in respond to changes in
the educational landscape.
Mission statement[edit]
The mission of Walnut Hill is to educate talented, accomplished and
intellectually engaged young artists from all over the world. The School
does so in a diverse, humane and ethical community.[1]
High School[edit]
Students at Walnut Hill major in one of five arts disciplines: dance, music,
theatre, visual art, and creative writing. With the exception of voice
students, music students at Walnut Hill take their weekly private lessons at
The New England Conservatory in Boston and perform in NEC's Preparatory
Ensembles. Admission to Walnut Hill is by academic application and artistic
audition or portfolio submission (depending on the artistic discipline).
In addition to pursuing expert training in one of five core arts disciplines
, students also engage in an innovative and rigorous college-preparatory
curriculum. The academic program is designed specifically to both leverage
and foster the excellent habits of a young artist’s mind—careful
observation, critical thinking, and a desire for deep and enduring
understanding. Students are able to pursue their academic and artistic
studies on a single campus, taught by faculty who respect and accommodate
the demands placed on each student.
Campus life[edit]
Boarding students at Walnut Hill are housed in eight single-sex dormitories.
Dorms range in size from 15 to 50 students, and all are supervised by
trained Dorm Parents. Approximately 20% of the students are day students who
come from nearby cities and towns.
All day and boarding students have access to dining services, a bookstore
and library, on-campus health services, a fitness center, and a wide array
of on and off-campus student activities and excursions. Many students
participate in student run organizations such as the Human Rights Club, Gold
Key, or AIDS Action. There is an active network of appointed and elected
student leaders who play a large role in building community at the school.
Summer and academy programs[edit]
Walnut Hill has a roster of highly selective summer program. National and
international students come for between two and five weeks for intensive
study in their arts discipline. Boarding programs are offered in dance,
youth dance, theater, opera, and creative writing. Other offerings include a
day program in summer visual art and the Chinese Performing Arts Academy.
The summer dance and theater programs consist of a full five weeks in
residence. The opera program spends a shorter amount of time at the Natick
campus before traveling with their faculty to Italy, where they continue
taking classes, tour areas historically associated with opera, and perform.
Walnut Hill also offers a year-round Community Dance Academy for youth ages
3-18 in Natick and the surrounding area.
Campus[edit]
Walnut Hill School campus
The Walnut Hill campus has thirteen buildings on 40 acres.[2] Stowe, Eliot,
Highland, Clark, New Cottage, Westerly, North House and Elizabeth Bishop
Hall are the school's dorms. The campus also holds the Academic and
Technology Center, the Dance Center, the Keiter Center for the Performing
Arts, the Office of Admission, and the Head's House.
Eliot is the largest building on campus; its second and third floors serve
as a dormitory. It contains Boswell Hall, the Keefe Library, the dining hall
, the student campus center and the school bookstore. Highland contains
music practice rooms (both regular and soundproof), the Visual Art studios,
Pooke Gallery, Amelia Hall and Highland Dormitory. Stowe, in addition to
being a dormitory, is the location of the switchboard and many
administrative offices, including the Head of School's office, external
relations and facilities.
Elizabeth Bishop Hall is the most recent addition to the campus. It began
construction in the 2006-2007 school year and was completed in November of
the 2007-2008 school year. This structure includes a dormitory as well as
faculty apartments.
Traditions[edit]
Mountain Day This tradition takes place in October and serves as a community
-building event for the senior class. The entire class ascends one of the
most hiked mountains in the world, Mount Monadnock. This event gives the
students a sense of accomplishment and class spirit.
Class Night After the seniors return from their hike on Mountain Night, they
are honored by their underclassman peers at a special as they assume
responsibility for leading and serving the School. After a reception, the
entire School, seated by class, dines together. Seniors are served first.
The Senior Class President and the Community Council President give speeches
stating their goals and expectations for the year. Then, to symbolize their
willingness to serve the community, seniors serve dessert to the entire
School. Proper dress is required.
Senior Privileges Each November, seniors make their request for specific
senior privileges through the Senior Class President. Typically, several of
these are approved by the administration. Senior privileges are extended on
the assumption that seniors have attained a level of maturity and self-
discipline that will allow them to exercise their privileges wisely. If
these privileges are abused, they will be revoked. Seniors whose grades fall
markedly may have senior privileges rescinded by the Academic Dean.
Boar’s Head Feast During December, Walnut Hill observes several holiday
festivities. These culminate in a formal dinner that takes place before
Winter Break begins. The dinner begins with a medieval ceremony, the Boar’s
Head Procession, performed by leadership students. A senior—chosen by the
faculty and senior class in recognition of his or her character and
contribution to the School—leads the procession and sings the Boar’s Head
song. Students are seated by dormitory. Proper dress is required.
Tree Day On a spring day, seniors invite faculty and students to participate
in the Tree Day ceremony. The class tree is planted along with a penny with
the year of the graduating class. The tree itself symbolizes the growth of
the seniors within the School and their continued growth, contributions, and
achievements after they leave the School. The Senior Class President reads
a poem, and another class year is inscribed on the Tree Day shovel.
Candlelight Service On one of the evenings the week prior to Graduation the
entire School assembles at dusk in the field by class for a candlelight
ceremony. Seniors are the last to extinguish their candles, as one by one
they say farewell to the School and to one another after singing the senior
song. New Gold Key members are announced. The Community Council President
and the Senior Class President speak.
Notable alumni[edit]
• Elizabeth Bishop, Poet Laureate of the United States, 1949-1950.
• Mei-Ann Chen, Assistant Conductor, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
• Ralph Farris, co-founder, artistic director and violist of the
string quartet ETHEL
• Christian Finnegan, stand-up comedian and actor
• Van Hansis,[3] soap opera actor
• Heather Hemmens, Alice Verdura in Hellcats
• Judith Hoag, actress, April O'Neill in Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles, and acting teacher[4]
• Jovanna Huguet actress and dancer [5]
• Benny Ibarra, singer, musician, producer and actor
• Rachelle Lefèvre, TV and Film Actress (Twilight film series and
Under the Dome television series)
• Jack McCollough, co-founder of Proenza Schouler
• Gillian Murphy, summer program alumna, Principal with American
Ballet Theatre
• Charlie Neshyba-Hodges, Marty in Come Fly Away and Dancer/Ballet
Master for Benjamin Millipied L.A. Dance Project.
• Chris Riggi, actor, Scott Rosson on Gossip Girl
• Matthew Risch, Joey in Pal Joey Broadway Revival, also on
Broadway in Legally Blonde and Chicago[6][7][8]
• Sasha Sokol, singer, composer, actress, and TV host.
• Joan Tower, Grammy-winning composer[9]
• Paige Turco, actress, April O'Neill in Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles 2: Secret of the Ooze
• Zac Young, Chef, was on Top Chef: Just Desserts and hosts Unique
Sweets on the Cooking Channel
References[edit]
1. Jump up ^ [1][dead link]
2. Jump up ^ "Walnut Hill School". The Independent. Jul 6, 1914.
Retrieved August 1, 2012.
3. Jump up ^ "Van Hansis : Biography". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2014-02-24.
4. Jump up ^ "Judith Hoag". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2014-02-24.
5. Jump up ^ "Jovanna Huguet". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2014-02-24.
6. Jump up ^ "Matthew Risch | Broadway Buzz". Broadway.com. 2008-12-11.
Retrieved 2014-02-24.
7. Jump up ^ [2][dead link]
8. Jump up ^ "Matthew Risch | IBDB: The official source for Broadway
Information". IBDB. Retrieved 2014-02-24.
9. Jump up ^ "Joan Tower - Short Biography - Music Sales Classical".
Schirmer.com. Retrieved 2014-02-24.
External links[edit]
• Official Walnut Hill School website
• The Blue Pencil Online
• Walnut Hill Facebook Page
• Walnut Hill YouTube Channel
• The Association of Boarding Schools profile
• Boston Globe article on the school |
