Morristown–Beard School


Morristown–Beard School is a coeducational, independent, college-preparatory day school located in Morristown, in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. Serving students in sixth through twelfth grades, the school has two academic units: an Upper School and a Middle School.
The present-day Morristown–Beard School was formed from the 1971 merger of two single-sex schools: the Beard School for Girls and the Morristown School for Boys. The Commission on Secondary Schools at the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools has accredited the school since 1973.
Peter J. Caldwell has served as Morristown–Beard School's headmaster since 2011.

Student body and faculty

As of the 2018–19 school year, Morristown–Beard School has an enrollment of 575 students. The student body come from 90+ towns in New Jersey.
Ninety-two faculty members teach at Morristown Beard School as of the 2018–19 school year. The school has a faculty–to-student ratio of 1:7 and an average class size of 13 students. Seventy-two percent of the faculty hold advanced degrees, and nineteen percent hold PhDs.

History

Morristown School

The Episcopal Church founded Morristown School as St. Bartholomew's School in 1891. Rev. Frank E. Edwards, a graduate of Harvard University, served as the school's first headmaster, and classes took place in Morristown's Normandy Park area. St. Bartholomew's school was noted for hosting a speech by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes novels, in 1894.
Three years later, St. Bartholomew's School moved its classes to Whippany Road after building a new campus near the Morristown railroad station. Designed by architects Edward Lippincott Tilton and William A. Boring, the buildings for this campus required only 90 days to construct. The blended Colonial Revival and Classical Revival architecture styles reflect the colonial history of the Morristown area. Ford Mansion in Morristown served as one of George Washington's headquarters during the American Revolutionary War.
When St. Bartholomew's School faced financial challenges in late 1897, three of its teachers from Harvard University Class of 1888 reorganized St. Bartholomew's School as the Morristown School. These three co-founders of Morristown School were Francis Call Woodman, Arthur Pierce Butler, and Thomas Quincy Browne. Aiding their work to start the new school, a large donation from wealthy businessman Henry Lee Higginson provided critical seed funding. The school also benefited from large financial gifts of three other notable philanthropists: businessmen Charles Francis Adams III, Larz Anderson III, and Joseph Lee. Adams and Anderson graduated from Harvard in the same class year as Morristown School's co-founders.
Morristown School prepared its students for Harvard University, other Ivy League schools, and engineering schools. The school opened in September 1898 with 23 students and eight staff members. Just two years later, enrollment more than tripled to educate 75 students; the student body increased to 173 by 1923. In 1908, Morristown School achieved recognition as one of only two schools outside New England to send students to Harvard for ten consecutive years. Strengthening the connection with Harvard, Morristown School leaders hosted the Harvard Club of New Jersey. The club's April 1909 meeting brought visits from Harvard President Charles Eliot, New Jersey Governor John Fort, and New Jersey Chancellor Mahlon Pitney. Eleven years later, the Morristown School ran a $500,000 fundraising campaign to establish an endowment. Several Harvard graduates served on the campaign's executive committee, including graduates of Harvard and the Morristown School.
During World War I, 65 of Morristown School's first 103 graduates served in the U.S. military. Their service reflected the value of community service emphasized by Morristown School to its student body. During the war, students at the school raised funds to purchase and equip the Morristown School Ambulance. They then presented this ambulance to the American Field Service for use in France. The American Field Service awarded Morristown School a certificate and a brass plaque to show its appreciation for the ambulance. In 1913, 40 of Morristown School's students helped the Morristown Fire Department extinguish a forest fire that had spread over three miles on Horse Hill; the students used portable chemical extinguishers to fight the flames. Nine years later, the full student body helped fight a large fire that had destroyed two nearby houses. In 1957, the basketball team donated a trophy to Delbarton School to honor Paul Kreutz, a Delbarton player who drowned in 1956.

Beard School

In 1891, sisters Lucie Beard, Eliza Mills Beard, and Ettie Beard Foster started a school for kindergarten students on Claredon Place in Orange, New Jersey. The three sisters were cousins of historian James Truslow Adams, a Pulitzer Prize winning writer. Eliza Beard oversaw the school's financial management, and Lucie Beard ran the educational activities. Their mother, Hester Truslow Beard, also assisted with the establishment of the school. The Beard school had an initial enrollment of 13 students. The all-girls school moved to Berkley Avenue in 1900 and continued adding grades until it graduated its first class in 1903. Taking the role of a preparatory country day school, Beard School prepared its students for the Seven Sisters and other colleges and universities.
Earning notoriety for this purpose, the Beard School received financial support from capitalist Sidney Morse Colgate of Colgate-Palmolive. In 1928, the school hosted a speech by Rev. Harry Emerson Fosdick, a social justice activist, at its commencement ceremony. Fosdick's visit reflected Beard School's commitment to service for its student body. During World War I, the students made bandages and wound dressings and began a tradition of sewing and knitting items to donate to the American Red Cross. This tradition extended into and past the Great Depression of the 1930s. During World War II, Beard School's students worked for the Junior Red Cross and assisted the American war effort by contributing their time and money.
On November 30, 1953, a large fire swept through Beard School's campus in the middle of the night. Reaching a peak of fifty feet in the air, the fire engulfed two of the school's five buildings and left them unusable. The fire destroyed an auditorium, 16 classrooms, and Beard School's gymnasium. After calling the fire department, Headmistress Edith Sutherland awakened the 20 boarding students and led them to safety on the school's front lawn.
Salvaging wood from the school's ruined buildings, a machinist repairman who lived nearby built a two-story garage for his family's home. His daughter later penned an essay about her childhood that described her memories surrounding the fire. Submitting the essay to Unico National, an Italian-American service organization, she earned second place in their Ella T. Grasso literary contest. Rebuilding, Beard School launched the Beard Fund campaign in Fall 1954 to fund construction of a new building to replace the two buildings devastate by the fire. The campaign hosted a Hawaiian-themed benefit dance on October 22, 1954 to raise some of the funds. In the spring of that school year, the Beard School opened the new fireproof building for use by classes. Eleven years later, the Beard School had discussions with Short Hills Country Day School about a potential merger of the two schools. The two schools did not merge, however. Short Hills Country Day School later merged with the Pingry School in Bernards, New Jersey.

Morristown–Beard School

The all-boys Morristown School merged with the all-girls Beard School in 1971. The new co-ed school elected to use Morristown School's campus in Morristown and close the Beard School's campus in Orange. On Prize Day, June 5, 1971, the Morristown School officially transitioned into Morristown–Beard School, a name chosen to reflect the importance of the history of its predecessor schools.
Recognizing their collective legacy, Morristown–Beard School adopted the Beard School's Latin motto of and the Morristown School's school shield. Morristown–Beard School also renamed its Main Building as Beard Hall. The first class of the school graduated in June 1972. Twenty-two years later, the school expanded its Middle School's student body from two grades to three.
In recent years, many notable figures have visited Morristown–Beard School to speak to students, faculty, and staff. Colonel Jack H. Jacobs, a Medal of Honor recipient, spoken on the Friday before Memorial Day weekend in 2015. Jacobs received the medal for bravery during the Vietnam War. Other notable speakers have included: businesswoman Bobbi Brown, authors Rachel Simmons and Bryan Burrough, and Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen.

Facilities

Supported by a $16.2 million capital campaign, Morristown–Beard School constructed the Middle School building and Founders Hall, a performing arts facility. The Middle School building opened during fall 2008, and Founders Hall, which houses a 630-seat surround-sound theatre, opened during winter 2009. In 2011, Morristown–Beard School transformed Wilkie Hall, which had previously contained the performing arts center, into a technology center with multiple computer labs.
Renovated in 2004, Grant Hall now houses the Center for Academic Writing, the English Department, and the World Languages Department. That year, Morristown-Beard also opened the renovated Beard Hall with space for Anderson Library and offices for the History Department, College Counseling, Admissions, and the Headmaster. In 2007, the school renovated South Wing, which now houses the MBS Center for Teaching and Learning and visual arts classrooms. Morristown–Beard School's students have access to a film production studio with a green screen, a studio for multi-track digital audio recording, and a post-production studio.

School-wide iPad program

2010–2011 iPad pilot
In the fall of 2010, Morristown–Beard School became one of the first schools in the U.S. to integrate the iPad tablet made by Apple Inc. into its curriculum. For their pilot program, six teachers and 60 students used iPads inside and outside the classroom. During the pilot program, executives from Apple, Inc. visited Morristown–Beard School to observe how their iPads enhanced instructional practices and stimulated students' learning.
Campus iPad integration
Beginning with the 2011–2012 academic year, Morristown–Beard School now requires all students to purchase an iPad and use the tablet device to assist schoolwork. The school's curriculum includes multiple electives that teach software development for iOS, the operating system that drives iPads, iPhones, and Apple TVs. Morristown–Beard School also runs a dedicated 1000 Mbit/s Wi-Fi network to enable students' and faculty iPads to access the Internet.
In 2013, Morristown–Beard School equipped all classrooms on its campus and many of the school's public spaces with ceiling mounted LCD projectors and wireless media streaming through Apple TV. That year, students Graham Dyer and Lena Rajan created the app for iPads to help members of the school community quickly access information about school happenings. The MBS Now app provides information on class schedules, homework assignments, school calendars, lunch menus, extracurricular activities, athletic competitions, and school news. The app also provides school forms for various activities and information on senior projects. Members of the Morristown–Beard School community contribute content to MBS Now by posting updates at the app's . Publication of the source code for each update to MBS Now on GitHub enables students at other K-12 schools to develop similar iOS apps.

Clubs and extracurricular activities

Community service
Upper School students must complete at least eight hours of community service during each semester and write reflections on their experiences. Fulfilling their service requirement, many Morristown-Beard students organize campus blood drives or assist local programs like Adopt-A-Trail. Other students volunteer for area nonprofit organizations, such as The Seeing Eye, Neighborhood House, Habitat for Humanity, and the Matheny Medical and Educational Center.
Campus clubs
The Crimson Sun, the student newspaper, has won three gold medalist awards from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association. Salmagundi, the school's yearbook, has published annually since 1904. The debate team has competed against area schools since a 1923 competition among Morristown School, Pingry School and Montclair Academy. The Quiz Bowl team has become increasingly prominent in recent years, hosting the first ever Morristown-Beard Fall Invitational tournament in 2019. Other clubs and extracurricular activities at MBS include: Art Club, Business Finance and Investment Club, Contemporary Music Workshop, Drama Club, Film Club, Foster Care Club, GLOW Club, Mariah, Mu Alpha Theta, Model United Nations, Service Committee, Young Republicans Club, Progressive Caucus, and the Student Government Association.
Theatre and arts
In recent years, Morristown–Beard School's theatre program has received multiple nominations from Paper Mill Playhouse's Rising Star Awards program. In 2012, student Carina Steficek won a Student Achievement Award for her role as a master electrician and board operator in . The following year, Morristown–Beard School captured two awards at Montclair State University's Theatre Night Awards Ceremony. The school received an award for Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for its performance of William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream. Student Alexa Rojek also received an award for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Classical Work for her role in the play.
In 2013, student Jack Lindberg earned two awards for his singing accomplishments. He won first place for high school men singing classical voice at the Doris Lenz Festival for High School Students. Lindberg also captured a special commendation at the New Jersey All-State High School Opera Festival.

Athletics

The Morristown–Beard School Crimson compete against other public and private high schools in the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference, which operates under the supervision of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Prior to the NJSIAA's 2010 realignment, the school had participated in the Colonial Hills Conference which included public and parochial high schools covering Essex County, Morris County and Somerset County in west Central Jersey.
Cheered on by the bear, Morristown–Beard School's teams compete as the Crimson, a reflection of historical ties with Harvard. The school's 20 varsity teams have captured championships in several sports. Five of Morristown–Beard School's teams have attained undefeated seasons in their athletic histories. During the 1990s, the athletic facilities at Morristown–Beard School played host to floor hockey competition of the New Jersey Special Olympics Winter Games.
In 2012, Lou Lamoriello, general manager of three Stanley Cup-winning New Jersey Devils teams, presented the keynote address at the induction ceremony for the school's Athletic Hall of Fame. The following year, Tony Siragusa, a former NFL player who played on a Super Bowl-winning Baltimore Ravens football team, spoke at Morristown–Beard School. Siragusa, father of Morristown–Beard School student Samantha Siragusa '15, worked as a sideline reporter for NFL games on Fox Sports from 2003-2016.

Ice hockey

Boys' Ice Hockey Team
As one of the oldest hockey programs in the U.S., the boys' ice hockey team traces its history to the late 19th Century. Since its founding, the boys' ice hockey team has captured 16 NJISAA Prep B Titles. The team won the Gordon Cup of the Gordon Conference in 1965 and 1966. Jon Vlachos, star center on those teams, received induction into the NJ High School Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012.
Since joining the Morris County Conference, the boys' ice hockey team has won 10 Mennen Cups. Head Coach John Puskar earned the NJ Boys Ice Hockey Coach of the Year Award twice during his tenure from 2003 to 2009. In 2009, Former NHL player Randy Velischek took over as Head Coach of the boys' ice hockey team. Under his leadership, the sixth-ranked 2013–14 boys' ice hockey team defeated Delbarton School to reach the non-public state championship for the first time in school history. After tying Christian Brothers Academy in overtime of the state championship game on March 9, 2014, Morristown–Beard School earned a share of the non-public state title. They finished the 2013–14 season with an overall record of 21-5-2. On April 7, 2014, the New Jersey Devils honored Morristown-Beard's hockey team during a game at Prudential Center played against the Calgary Flames.
During the late 1920s and early 1930s, the hockey team competed against Kent School in holiday rivalry games played at Madison Square Garden. They played for the Ranger trophy donated by Colonel John S. Hammond, first president of the New York Rangers. After receiving a personal message of good luck from President Franklin Roosevelt, the team went on an overseas tour in Europe during the 1933–1934 school year. They competed against several club and school teams from Switzerland, Germany, and France.
Girls' Ice Hockey Team
The girls' ice hockey team began competition in the Women's Interscholastic Hockey League of the Mid-Atlantic in 2005. Since then, the team has won the league championship seven times. The girls' hockey team notched their fifth straight WIHLMA title in a game played against Portledge School from Locust Valley, New York on February 16, 2014. The team finished as the runner-up to Shady Side Academy in 2015,
On April 13, 2014, the New Jersey Devils awarded player Kendall Cornine '15 their High School Ice Hockey Girls' Player of the Year Award during a game against the Boston Bruins. Cornine, who played the position of forward, notched 26 goals and 24 assists during the season and earned All-State selection from The Star-Ledger. In 2015, NJ.com selected Cornine as their Girls Ice Hockey Player of the Year for 2014–2015 after she became Morristown-Beard's all-time scoring leader. During her high school career, Cornine notched 104 goals and 94 assists to accumulate 198 total points in 75 games.
During the 2010–2011 school year, the girls' hockey achieved an undefeated 18-0 season during the 2010–2011 academic year. The girls' ice hockey team also notched 45 consecutive victories during the period from January 10, 2010 to February 15, 2012. Former NHL player Bruce Driver, who played on a Stanley Cup-winning NJ Devils team, has coached the girls' ice hockey team since the 2000–2001 season. He received the NJ Girls Ice Hockey Coach of the Year Award in 2007 and earned his 200th win in December 2013. Driver's daughter Whitney, Morristown-Beard Class of 2004, played on the girls' ice hockey team, as well as on the softball and girls' soccer teams. She also helped create the school's sportsmanship award.

Football

Morristown–Beard School's football team also has a lengthy history that dates back to 1898. Coached by Princeton graduate Irvin Dickey and then Dartmouth graduate D.B. Rich, Morristown School's football team won 22 of 25 games during the 1898–1900 seasons. Speedy Harold Hathaway Weekes, who graduated in 1899, played a pivotal role in the team's success during the 1898 season. After playing his college career for the Columbia Lions football team of Columbia University, Weekes received induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1954. His brother, Bradford Gage Weekes, followed in Harold's footsteps during his own notable football career at Morristown School.
Continuing this success through the 20th Century, the football team achieved 11 undefeated seasons. They won the state championship in 1987 and finished as runner-up for the state championship at Giants Stadium in 2007. Theatre critic John Mason Brown, who received the superlatives of "Best All-Around", "Most Popular", Wittiest", at graduation, played guard on the football team during his years at the school.

Baseball and softball

Morristown–Beard School's baseball team won the 2005 and 2010 NJSIAA Non-Public North B state championships. They also captured the 2007 Prep B state championship. John Sheppard, Head Coach of the baseball team, notched his 400th win in 2016, defeating Randolph High School to win the Morris County Tournament, the first tournament title in school history. On March 30, 2014, he received induction into the New Jersey Scholastic Coaches Hall of Fame. Pitching coach Mike Sturgeon trained Boston Red Sox pitcher Rick Porcello during his days at Seton Hall Preparatory School.
In 1984 and 1986, Morristown–Beard School's softball team won titles. Spike Billings, who served for many years as the school's athletic director, and visual arts teacher Laurie Hartman coached those teams. Morristown–Beard School elected Billings to its Athletics Hall of Fame in 1998.

Boys' and girls' soccer

In 2014, the girls' and boys' soccer teams finished runner-up for the Non-Public North B state title at DePaul Catholic in Wayne, New Jersey. The girls' soccer team won the Prep B Title in 2004 and 2013. The boys' soccer team won the state championship in both 1968 and 1974. George Tilghman, who served as headmaster of Morristown School, played on the soccer team during his years as a student at the school.

Boys' and girls' basketball

The boys' basketball team debuted in the 1910–1911 school year. In 2011 and 2012, the team won consecutive conference championships in under Head Coach Eddie Franz. Franz netted his 300th win as Head Coach in 2013. He also received induction into the New Jersey Scholastic Coaches Association Hall of Fame that year.
In 2014, the girls' basketball team won their conference in 2014 for the first time in school history. The team reached the quarterfinal round of the Morris County Tournament for the first time after defeating Morris Knolls High School. On March 15, 2015, the girls' basketball team defeated the Pennington School to capture the Prep B title for the first time in school history.

Other sports

;Cross Country and Track
The boys' cross country team achieved consecutive undefeated 17-0 seasons in 1960 and 1961. They won the Prep B title in both seasons.
;Lacrosse
The boys' lacrosse team defeated Immaculata High School to win the Non-Public B state championship in 2008 and won the Prep B Title in 2008 and 2009. The girls' lacrosse team won the Prep B title in 2009, 2010, and 2014.
;Tennis
The girls' tennis team won the Prep B title and the conference championship in an undefeated 12-0 season in 2011.
;Volleyball
The girls' volleyball team went undefeated in the 1986 season and captured the state championship.
;Golf
The golf team won the school's first Prep B Title in the sport in 2009.
;Field hockey
The girls' field hockey team has won the Prep B title in both 2008 and 2011.

Discontinued sports

;Wrestling
Before its merger with the Beard School, Morristown School had a highly successful wrestling team. The wrestling team won three consecutive NJSIS Class B Championships from 1964 to 1966. In 1999, Morristown–Beard School honored the 1965 wrestling team by electing it to the Athletics Hall of Fame.

Notable alumni

Morristown–Beard School alumni have collectively received election to selective national societies for achievements in the arts, literature, science, theatre, and athletics. They have also attained several nationally prestigious awards. Morristown–Beard School alumni have received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Distinguished Service Cross, the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal, the Distinguished Honor Award, the Medal for Merit, and France's Legion of Honour and Croix de Guerre for achievements in governmental and military service. For achievements in literature and journalism, they have attained a Newbery Medal, two Caldecott Honor Awards, The Bollingen Prize, the Peabody Award, three Emmy Awards, and the Library of Congress' Children's Book of the Year Award. Morristown–Beard School alumni have attained the Vetlesen Prize, the American Chemical Society's Industry Award, the Alexander Agassiz Medal, and a Rhodes Scholarship for achievements in science, innovation, and scholarship. Their humanitarian accomplishments have earned Lions Clubs International's Lions Humanitarian Award and the National Coalition of Hispanic Mental Health and Human Services' National Humanitarian Award. Morristown–Beard School alumni have also captured gold medals in the Olympics and the Pan American Games.
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St. Bartholomew's School
Rev. Frank E. Edwards
Morristown School
Beard School
Morristown–Beard School