University School of Nashville
University School of Nashville | |
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Location | |
Nashville, TN United States | |
Information | |
Type | Private |
Established | 1975 (originally established as Peabody Demonstration School in 1915) |
CEEB code | 431725 |
Director | Vince Durnan |
Faculty | 59 |
Enrollment | 1022 |
Campus | Urban area |
Color(s) | Garnet and Columbia blue[1] |
Athletics conference | TSSAA[2] |
Mascot | Tiger |
Website | http://www.usn.org/ |
University School of Nashville is a private K-12 school located in Nashville, Tennessee.
History
Referred to colloquially as USN, the school was founded in 1888 by the Peabody Board of Trustees.[3] The school was first founded as Winthrop Model School; in 1915, it became Peabody Demonstration School (PDS), a part of Peabody College intended to demonstrate the operation of a school. The school was founded by Dr. Richard Thomas Alexander.[4] While it was Peabody Demonstration School, it became the second high school in Nashville to be desegregated, following Father Ryan High School, and the first one to be fully desegregated, meaning that extra-curricular activities were desegregated in addition to academics. The demonstration school was closed in 1974, several years before Peabody merged with adjacentVanderbilt University. The students' parents bought the school; by a student vote, the school was established as University School of Nashville.
The school is now one of the most prestigious independent schools in the Nashville, Tennessee area. Historically, along with and alternating with Montgomery Bell Academy, USN has more students recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Program than any other Nashville high school. In the Class of 2011, with 91 students, there were 12 semifinalists and 13 commended students recognized by the program. In 2010, both Presidential Scholars for Tennessee were USN students. USN also produced a Presidential Scholar in 2012.
Facilities and campuses
Perhaps the largest addition to the school in its history came in 1998, when an 80-acre (32 ha) external campus was purchased for the purpose of housing athletic facilities. The River Campus currently houses a baseball field, a softball field, a full-sized track, and 5 multi-purpose fields that are rotated between men's and women's soccer, lacrosse, and ultimate frisbee. Construction has recently finished on tennis courts. In addition, this site originally had a 15-acre (61,000 m2) sum of wetland, situated on the Cumberland River and Whites Creek. The original wetland was filled in for athletic fields and a new one of equivalent size was excavated and filled with water.
In 2003, USN, with the intention of furthering its mission, opened the Christine Slayden Tibbott Center for the Visual Arts. The center also included a sizeable fitness center.[5]
In 2004, USN opened the Hassenfeld Library. This 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m2) addition now houses 25,000 books, 2400 educational videos, and 147 periodicals.[6]
In 2011, University School of Nashville did a major renovation of the Sperling Cafeteria, a facility originally constructed in 1989, to expand eating space and the kitchen. The facility is now LEED-certified. The new facility was completed soon after the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year in August 2011.
In 2014, University School of Nashville renovated the Gordon Wing entrance and created a new welcoming facility for visitors. This renovation also created more classrooms, meeting rooms and business offices. This coincided with the school's 100th year.
Notable alumni
- Jad Abumrad, host of NPR's Radiolab and 2011 MacArthur fellow
- Richard Thomas Alexander, founder of the Peabody Demonstration School and the New College for the Education of Teachers
- Jenny Boucek, WNBA coach with the Sacramento Monarchs and former player
- Ned Davis, founder of Ned Davis Research
- Gabe Dixon, vocalist and keyboardist with the Gabe Dixon Band, has performed with Paul McCartney
- Phillip "Phil" Everly - Grammy Award-winning singer with the 1960s duo The Everly Brothers, member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, 1957 graduate.
- Christian Floyd, legendary Super Smash Bros Player, member of 2011-14 Fitzpatrick Advisory
- Russ Freeman, jazz guitarist, founder of The Rippingtons
- Bruce Henderson, founder of Boston Consulting Group
- Shooter Jennings, country music singer
- Mark Levine, broadcast journalist and host of the nationally syndicated radio/television show Inside Scoop on Washington.
- Robert K. Massie, author, historian, winner of the 1981 Pulitzer Prize
- Stanford Moore, chemist and winner of the 1972 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Arnold Myint, executive chef from Top Chef
- Michael Puett, professor of Chinese history at Harvard University
- Donald M. Thieme, professor of geosciences at Valdosta State University
- Richard Darius Thieme, translator of Japanese for White & Case law firm in Tokyo, president of Transword
- William Tyler, folk musician and guitarist and owner of The Stone Fox, 1998 graduate
- Elise Tyler, owner of The Stone Fox and younger sister of William Tyler, 2002 graduate
- David Vise, journalist, author, senior advisor to New Mountain Capital
- Gideon Yu, a high-technology investor and executive, a former Chief Financial Officer of YouTube and Facebook
References
- Notes
- ↑ "University School of Nashville ~ History of PDS and USN". Retrieved 2013-03-01.
- ↑ "University School of Nashville ~ Athletic Philosophy". Retrieved 2011-02-06.
- ↑ The USN website's history page
- ↑ George W. Lucero (2012). Begin with the Child, the Story of New College, Unpublished manuscript, Illinois State University, Normal, IL.
- ↑ USN Facilities and Campuses
- ↑ The Hassenfeld Library