Springside School

The Springside School
Location
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
United States
Information
Type Private
Motto For Excellence. For Girls.
Established 1879
Headmistress Priscilla Sands
Faculty 97
Gender Girls
Enrollment 668
Student to teacher ratio 5:1
Campus type Urban/Suburban
Color(s) Blue and Gold
Athletics conference Inter-Academic League
Mascot Lioness
Website www.springside.org

The Springside School is a non-sectarian, all-girls school (pre-K through 12th grade) in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood, in the northern section of Philadelphia in the United States. The oldest all-girls school in the Philadelphia region, Springside is renowned both locally and nationally as a top college preparatory institution through renowned academics, arts, and athletics.[1]

Springside's brother school is the all-boys Chestnut Hill Academy. Although an all-girls school, Springside students in grades 9-12 have the opportunity to take coeducational classes in the Springside-Chestnut Hill Academy, which is the unified upper school of Springside and Chestnut Hill.[2]

History

Springside was founded in 1879 by Ms. Jane Bell and Ms. Walter Comegys as a French and English boarding school for young ladies and little girls. The school was located on Norwood Avenue in Center City Philadelphia. At a time when girl's education was frowned upon, Springside ignited the idea of girl's single-sex education to the Philadelphia region. By 1900, several other girl's schools were established nearby.

Springside was initially a boarding school, and attracted students from across the northeast, particularly in New England, where most boarding schools were only for boys. However, due to the growth of the Philadelphia region and rise of day student enrollment, Springside dropped the boarding program in 1921. The school moved to its current location in Chestnut Hill in 1958, with the opening of a middle school serving grades 5-8. Later on, a lower school was added in the same building.[3]

Location and neighborhood

Springside is located in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The area is among the wealthiest in the Delaware Valley in terms of family income and home value. The school is located approximately 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Center City. Springside is served by the SEPTA regional rail system at St. Martins station. Additionally, as the only all-girls school in the northern suburbs of Philadelphia, several Springside students come from the I-276 corridor and Bucks County.

Academics

The curriculum offered by Springside is rooted in liberal arts, with applications in an array of subjects ranging from STEM to the humanities. Most classes are taught in the Harkness table format, with no more than 13 girls.

Springside and nearby all-boys Chestnut Hill Academy are unique in that upper school (grade 9-12) students take co-educational classes with each other. The system was implemented in 2010 to build upon leadership skills taught early on into a real-world setting. Very few schools offer such a system; a notable example of this is the Brunswick School and Greenwich Academy in Connecticut, which also pool students together from the two schools in co-educational classes and activities. The all-girls philosophy of Springside is not unique to the Philadelphia region; Agnes Irwin and Baldwin both offer non-sectarian girls’ education, though their upper schools are not co-ed.

Historically this school had an exchange program with the Jules-Fils Lycee in Carcassonne, France. It was suspended in 2003.[4]

Athletics

The Springside Lionesses play as a member of the Inter-Academic League, which consists of competitive private schools from across the Philadelphia region. The school’s most notable sport is its crew program, which has produced Olympians.[5] Springside's primary athletic rival is the Baldwin School in Bryn Mawr, though in recent years has seen rivalries develop with the Episcopal Academy in Newtown.

In 2018, Springside was the PAISAA state champion in track/field and softball.[6]

Sports offered are:

  • Cross Country
  • Field Hockey
  • Soccer
  • Tennis
  • Volleyball
  • Golf
  • Diving
  • Crew
  • Squash
  • Swimming
  • Basketball
  • Indoor Track
  • Softball
  • Lacrosse
  • Track and Field

Notable alumnae

References

  1. ↑ https://www.phillymag.com/articles/2006/08/23/philadelphia-magazine-top-schools-2006/
  2. ↑ https://www.sch.org/page/about-sch
  3. ↑ https://issuu.com/ktracy/docs/ushb_10-11.rev
  4. ↑ Woodall, Martha. "E-mail galls French school A teacher cited hostility in U.S. for suspension of an exchange program." Philadelphia Inquirer. June 11, 2003. Retrieved on May 16, 2014.
  5. ↑ https://www.sch.org/page/alumni/athletic-halls-of-fame/springside-athletic-hall-of-fame
  6. ↑ https://www.sch.org/page/athletics

Coordinates: 40°03′38″N 75°12′46″W / 40.0606°N 75.2129°W / 40.0606; -75.2129

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