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OUTSTANDING PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOL

A History of Achievement
While students push themselves to excel, Horace Mann pushes them to explore

“You have to work to be bored here,” said Dr. Thomas Kelly, head of school at Horace Mnn .

He was speaking in this instance of the more than 85 clubs that flourish among the 713 students in the school’s upper division in Riverdale. But this statement could be applied to just about any aspect of the academic and student life as it is practiced at this elite private school—“the Ivy League of high school,” as one dean put it. Horace Mann’s well-earned reputation as a first-rate, academically challenging institution is one that administrators are not shy about endorsing.

“I don’t apologize for the rigorous academics,” Kelly said. “Having these expectations is good for them. It’s honoring their intelligence. You don’t want to under-use these extraordinarily able and exuberant students. They came here to be challenged.”

Students at work in Horace Mann's library. Photo by Andrew Schwartz

The school’s curriculum is designed on a college model and, beyond the standard Advanced Placement courses, students can also explore a rich array of intellectual and artistic disciplines through electives. Teens have the opportunity to study subjects ranging from the history of film music to Mandarin Chinese and economics. For this reason, the school encourages students to limit the amount of Advanced Placement courses each year to ensure a wide variety of learning experiences.

“We’re not afraid to push the envelope,” Kelly said.

And while administrators acknowledge the school’s reputation as a “pressure cooker,” they say that the intense environment is why its high-achieving students chose to come to Horace Mann in the first place.

“The kids we get put the pressure on themselves,” said Eric Eilen, dean of faculty. This, in turn, allows the faculty to “engage and motivate the students at the highest level and, given the ability of the students, that level can be quite impressive.”

Dr. David Schiller, head of the upper division.

Located at the end of the 1 subway line, Horace Mann’s beautiful, 18-acre, suburban campus is covered with trees and offers plenty of open space to relax on a warm, fall afternoon. The stone buildings that line the campus, though relatively new, give the campus the feel of an old New England college. In the main building, Horace Mann keeps on display an impressive collection of books from the more than 300 authors, including such luminaries as Jack Kerouac and Robert Caro, counted among alumni. Students also recently had the opportunity to spend a day with former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins.

Founded in 1887 as a coeducational experimental unit at Teacher’s College in Manhattan, the Horace Mann School for Boys moved to the school’s current location in Riverdale in 1912. The school severed its ties with Teacher’s College in the 1940s, and in the 1970s, Horace Mann once again welcomed women on the Riverdale campus. Named after the 19th century education reformer and abolitionist, the school maintains the progressive spirit that Horace Mann embodied.

As an example of this spirit, Kelly points to the school’s long-standing awareness and commitment to environmentalism and sustainability, which dates back to the 1960s. Since 1965, the school has operated the John Door Nature Laboratory, a 225-acre outdoor education facility in Connecticut where students engage intellectually with the world outside of the classroom.

“It teaches leadership, initiative and resolve,” said Dr. David Schiller, who, after 26 years with the school, is in his first year as the head of the upper division.

The laboratory is a green facility, and the school is working to move the Riverdale ?campus in that direction, too. Following a push from students, the cafeteria is slated to introduce reusable dishware instead of paper and plastic.

Despite the demanding nature of life at Horace Mann, Head of School Kelly stresses that the school is not preoccupied with numbers and success. The core value at Horace Mann is striking a balance between individual achievement and caring for the community.

“Here they learn a little about themselves and who they are going to be as adults,” said Ron Logan, the 11th grade dean and a studio art teacher. “We want them to see that yes, you can get along, yes, you can think big thoughts, yes, you can make mistakes and learn from them.”

Admission to Horace Mann is highly competitive, and the school’s expectation is that prospective students be a notch above the rest. There is also an active push to maintain a diverse student body. The school offers nearly 20 percent of the students financial aid, and the administrative body includes an office of diversity. While the majority of the students come from Manhattan, some travel from as far as New Jersey and Connecticut to attend Horace Mann. Administrators are proud to note that the student body comes from more than 140 zip codes.

Never one to rest on its laurels, the school spent the last decade renovating and rebuilding all of the upper school buildings, and in 2002 Horace Mann built a new arts complex with multiple theaters and studios.

Students relax on Horace Mann's 18-acre campus. Photo by Andrew Schwartz

“If we’re going to do it,” Kelly said, “we want to be the best or on our path to becoming the best.”

— Nicholas Sabloff