Episcopal High School (Alexandria, Virginia)
The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia established a new school in 1839. They purchased land for five thousand dollars in the Seminary Hill neighborhood of Alexandria. The Rev. William N. Pendleton became the first principal that same year. Boarding facilities opened on the 15th of October 1839. Thirty-five boys attended classes during that initial year under Pendleton and three assistant heads. Student numbers tripled by 1840 to exceed one hundred pupils. The central administration building dates to around 1805. Elizabeth Parke Custis Law built this structure known as Hoxton House. It was originally called Mt. Washington before becoming the heart of the campus. Episcopal remained the only high school in the region for thirty years. Locals affectionately referred to it simply as The High School.
Union Army forces occupied Alexandria in 1861. Episcopal closed immediately following this military action. Five hundred students served as soldiers during the conflict. Many fought for the Confederacy including Rev. Pendleton who rose to brigadier general rank. Fourteen alumni chose sides with the North instead. A memorial hall named after Pendleton honors sixty-eight student or alumni deaths fighting for the South. School buildings converted into a large hospital for Union troops over the next five years. Poet Walt Whitman worked as a nurse within those walls. The institution reopened in 1866 under Principal William Fowler Gardner. This period marked a complete pause in academic operations while the community healed from war.
Launcelot Minor Blackford led the school from 1870 until 1913. He initiated modern academic curricula and pioneered interscholastic sports in the South. Football, baseball, and track became part of the regular schedule. Episcopal enrolled its first international students from China in 1892. The school adopted black and blue colors in 1888 before changing to maroon and black. An Honor Code foundation has existed since the beginning of the institution. September 1968 saw the admission of African American students under Archibald R. Hoxton Jr. Regi Burns and Sam Paschall were the first two to enroll that fall. The Stouffer Foundation supported recruitment efforts across Southern prep schools. Fourty eight girls joined the campus in 1991 as The First 48. A coeducational class graduated in 1993 marking a new chapter for diversity.
James Crawford Neilson designed Liggett Hall starting in 1891. Frederick H. Brooke updated the main hall during the 1910s. Stewart Gymnasium cost thirty thousand dollars when erected in 1913. It replaced an earlier gym built in 1877 and now serves as the student center after renovation. Callaway Chapel opened in 1990 with five hundred eighty seats. Architects Walton Madden Cooper designed this postmodernist structure featuring stained glass oculus windows. Hummel Learning Center arrived in 1970 followed by Hummel Bowl stadium. Baker Science Center received LEED certification upon completion in 2005. Two dormitories named North and West added seventy two thousand seven hundred square feet in 2023. These buildings utilized geothermal systems costing forty five million dollars total.
Ninety six full time faculty members teach four point six students per teacher. Average class sizes remain at eleven pupils across one hundred fifty plus courses. Seventy five of these classes offer honors or advanced levels. The school does not currently offer AP courses but allows exam taking for advanced students. Eight academic departments provide instruction in eight foreign languages daily schedules include a flex block. This twenty five hour period occurs in afternoons and evenings for Washington area visits. The McCain-Ravenel Center established in 2018 connects students to real world experiences. Senator John McCain and William Bee Ravenel III inspired its name. Students participate in experiential learning programs through this hub located on campus.
Episcopal fields fifty two interscholastic teams across nineteen sports. Boys compete in the Interstate Athletic Conference while girls join the Independent School League. Fourty eight IAC Championships were won since 1979. Seven Virginia Independent School State Championships followed from 1996 onward. Football matches against Woodberry Forest School began in 1901. This rivalry remains the longest running consecutive high school game in the South. Episcopal played its first official match in 1881 defeating Kendall by a score of zero to nothing. Panos Voulgaris coached back to back championships in 2015 and 2016. Soccer teams achieved perfect seasons including a 23-0-0 record in fall 2008. Twenty seven athletes have gone to colleges since 2013 alone.
John McCain attended classes here before graduating in 1954. He later became Republican senator from Arizona and presidential nominee in 2008. Harry Klinefelter graduated in 1930 becoming a rheumatologist known for medical discoveries. Langhorne Bond served as FAA administrator between 1977 and 1981 after earning his degree. T. Berry Brazelton created the neonatal behavioral assessment scale used globally today. President Theodore Roosevelt's son Quentin also walked these halls. Current alumni include NFL players like Danny Coale and Tim Hightower. Business leaders such as Louis Bacon and Julian Robertson built fortunes through their education. The Chronicle newspaper has published monthly since 1888 while Whispers yearbook began annually in 1903.
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Common questions
When was Episcopal High School in Alexandria Virginia established?
The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia established the school in 1839. Boarding facilities opened on the 15th of October 1839 with thirty-five boys attending classes under Rev. William N. Pendleton.
Who founded Episcopal High School and when did it open its doors to students?
Rev. William N. Pendleton became the first principal when the school opened in 1839. The institution purchased land for five thousand dollars in the Seminary Hill neighborhood of Alexandria that same year.
What happened to Episcopal High School during the Civil War period from 1861 to 1866?
Union Army forces occupied Alexandria in 1861 causing Episcopal to close immediately while buildings served as a hospital for Union troops. The institution reopened in 1866 under Principal William Fowler Gardner after a complete pause in academic operations.
When did Episcopal High School admit its first African American and female students respectively?
September 1968 saw the admission of African American students Regi Burns and Sam Paschall under Archibald R. Hoxton Jr. Forty eight girls joined the campus in 1991 as The First 48 before a coeducational class graduated in 1993.
Which notable alumni attended Episcopal High School and what are their achievements?
John McCain attended classes here before graduating in 1954 and later became Republican senator from Arizona and presidential nominee in 2008. Harry Klinefelter graduated in 1930 becoming a rheumatologist known for medical discoveries while Langhorne Bond served as FAA administrator between 1977 and 1981.