{{Short description|Private prep school in Rome, Georgia, US}} {{For|the historic school in New Jersey|Darlington Schoolhouse}} {{More citations needed|date=June 2025}} {{Use American English|date=August 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}} {{Infobox school | name = Darlington School | image = Darlington School.jpg | image_size = 160 | alt = | caption = | motto = Wisdom More Than Knowledge Service Beyond Self Honor Above Everything | address = 1014 Cave Spring Road SW | city = Rome | state = Georgia | province = | postal_code = | zipcode = 30161-4700 | country = United States | country1 = | coordinates = {{coord|34.226|-85.183|display=inline,title|region:US-GA_type:edu}} | schooltype = Private, Pre-K to 12 | fundingtype = | type = | religious_affiliation = Nondenominational | denomination = | patron = | established = 1905 | founded = | opened = | founder = John Paul Cooper | us_nces_school_id = <!-- couldn't find in NCES database {{NCES Private School ID|(the ID number)|school_name=(School name at NCES site)|access_date=}} --> | chairperson = Scott Dozier ('73) | head = L. Brent Bell | grades = Pre-K to 12 | enrollment = 850 | ratio = 8:1 | houses = Summerbell, Cooper, Moser, Regester, Neville, Thornwood | athletic_conference = GHSA | sports = | mascot = Tiger | nickname = | team_name = Tigers | rival = | accreditation = AdvancED,<ref>{{cite web|title=Institution Summary|url=http://www.advanc-ed.org/oasis2/u/par/accreditation/summary?institutionId=23564|website=AdvancED|accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref> MSA,<ref>{{cite web|title=Member Directory|url=http://www.msa-cess.org/RelId/606553/ISvars/default/Member_Directory.htm|website=MSA-CESS|accessdate=11 February 2015|archive-date=9 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200609202821/https://www.msa-cess.org/RelId/606553/ISvars/default/Member_Directory.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> SAIS<ref>{{cite web|title=SAIS Member Directory|url=http://www.sais.org/?manualdirectory|accessdate=11 February 2015}}</ref> | newspaper = Darlingtonian | yearbook = Jabberwokk | head_label = Head of School | campus = <!-- Rural, Suburban, Urban, etc. --> | campus_size = 500 acres | colors = {{color box|#3E3378}} {{color box|#FFFFFF}} Purple, White | website = {{URL|https://darlingtonschool.org|darlingtonschool.org}} }} '''Darlington School''' is a private, coeducational, college-preparatory day and boarding school in Rome, Georgia. It was founded in 1905.
It serves students from pre-kindergarten to grade 12, and is divided into a Pre-K to 8 division and an Upper School division. The student body represents more than 20 countries each year. The Head of School is Brent Bell, the Upper School Director is Chad Woods, and the Pre-K to 8 Director is Hope Jones.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.darlingtonschool.org/4595791|title=Darlington School: About Darlington|author=|date=|website=Darlington School|accessdate=13 December 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=darlingtonschool.org |url=http://www.darlingtonschool.org/academics/us-welcome.aspx}}</ref>
== History == Founded in 1905 by John Paul and Alice Allgood Cooper, Darlington School was named in honor of a teacher by his former students at the J. M. Proctor School for Boys in Rome.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}}
The school opened Sept. 11, 1905, with Founding Headmaster Dr. James Ross McCain teaching 24 boys in eight classes in the upstairs room above the Rome Fire Department station in East Rome. The school moved to East Ninth Street in 1906.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}}
In December 1916, the current site of Darlington School, the 500-acre DeSoto Park was purchased by John Paul Cooper. The school was moved to its current location in 1923, and enrolled 30 boarding students in addition to continuing with day school.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}}
In April 1973, Darlington consolidated with Thornwood School for Girls. The Lower School was situated at the Thornwood campus on Shorter Avenue in downtown Rome, the Middle School continued in the former Junior School building, and the Upper Schools combined at the main campus.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}}
In 1980 and 1988, kindergarten and pre-kindergarten were added, respectively. In 2013, Darlington sold the Thornwood campus to Shorter University and moved the Lower School to the main campus. Annual total enrollment is approximately 750 students from 25 countries in grades PK-12.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Private Boarding and Day School in Georgia {{!}} Admissions FAQ |url=https://darlingtonschool.org/Admission/FAQ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250812021522/https://darlingtonschool.org/Admission/FAQ |archive-date=2025-08-12 |access-date=2025-09-29 |website=Darlington School}}</ref><ref>https://www.darlingtonschool.org/Admission/FAQ?utm</ref>thumb|Wilcox Hall (formerly Old Main) is the main administrative building for Darlington School. It houses the Head of School's office, other Administrators, and Moser and Neville Boys' Houses.|276x276pxDarlington's campus is the location of Alhambra-Home on the Hill, the oldest residence in Floyd County, and now the residence of every Head of School.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}}
Darlington School uses an English public school-style house system in the Upper School. Each house is led by a Head of House faculty member and resident and day student prefects. Boys' houses include Summerbell, Moser, and Neville. Girls' houses include Cooper, Regester, and Thornwood.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}}
The school participates in Greater Opportunities for Access to Learning (GOAL), a Georgia program which offers a state income tax credit to donors of scholarships to private schools.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://romenews-tribune.com/pages/full_story/push?article-GOAL+to+aid+private+schools-+donors-++Saturday+is+the+deadline+for+a+tax+break+to+benefit+schools+and+their+contributors-%20&id=4152577-GOAL+to+aid+private+schools-+donors-++Saturday+is+the+deadline+for+a+tax+break+to+benefit+schools+and+their+contributors-&instance=home_news|title=GOAL to aid private schools, donors: Saturday is the deadline for a tax break to benefit schools and their contributors.|last=Bell|first=Daniel|date=October 27, 2009|work=Rome News-Tribune|accessdate=2009-10-31|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715201729/http://romenews-tribune.com/pages/full_story/push?article-GOAL+to+aid+private+schools-+donors-++Saturday+is+the+deadline+for+a+tax+break+to+benefit+schools+and+their+contributors-%20&id=4152577-GOAL+to+aid+private+schools-+donors-++Saturday+is+the+deadline+for+a+tax+break+to+benefit+schools+and+their+contributors-&instance=home_news|archive-date=July 15, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>
== Sexual abuse allegations == In June 2017, in the wake of teacher-student sexual abuse allegations at Choate Rosemary Hall, Darlington announced an investigation into sexual abuse between its faculty and students. A student had reported sexually inappropriate behavior by a teacher who served as a dorm master in the 1980s. The student claims the inappropriate behavior was reported to the school administration and nothing was done at the time. Darlington hired a law firm to investigate the claims in 2016, and in 2017 sent a letter to former and current students informing them of the investigation.<ref>[Judd, Alan. "Sex abuse inquiry delves into private school's secret past" Atlanta Journal-Constitution June 2, 2017 http://www.myajc.com/news/state--regional/sex-abuse-inquiry-delves-into-private-school-secret-past/oGlTNJIPhjAqyTsoAqVgHP/]</ref> Twenty male students settled a lawsuit with the teacher in 2021, clearing the way to seek a settlement with the school's insurance company. In 2022 the school unveiled a monument dedicated to the victims of sexual abuse at the school.<ref name="Settled Sexual">{{cite news |last1=Judd |first1=Alan |title=Former Private school students seek $345M over alleged abuse |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114087115/former-private-school-students-seek-345/ |access-date=4 December 2022 |publisher=Atlanta Journal and Constitution |date=July 23, 2022}}</ref>
==Notable alumni and staff== * Jane Campbell – professional soccer player{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}} * Ron DeSantis – 46th governor of Florida, former faculty member<ref>{{Cite news |last=Robles |first=Frances |date=2022-11-05 |title=Pranks, Parties and Politics: Ron DeSantis's Year as a Schoolteacher |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/05/us/desantis-high-school-teacher-georgia.html |access-date=2023-02-02 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> * James Dickey – poet, novelist, author of ''Deliverance''. Post-graduate year from 1941 to 1942. Dickey denounced Darlington in a 1981 letter to the principal and asked to be expunged from the rolls saying "a more disgusting combination of cant, hypocrisy, cruelty, class privilege and inanity I have never since encountered at any human institution."<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jTQmNNdRjnsC&dq=james+dickey+darlington&pg=PT146|title=James Dickey: The World as a Lie|last=Hart|first=Henry|date=2001-09-08|publisher=Picador|isbn=9781466828650|language=en}}</ref> * Elson Floyd – 10th president of Washington State University<ref>{{cite web|url=https://president.wsu.edu/|title=President's Office - Washington State University - Washington State University|author=|date=|website=wsu.edu|accessdate=13 December 2018}}</ref> * Walter Gilbert – inductee of the College Football Hall of Fame<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-montgomery-advertiser-auburn-continu/127483514/ |title=Auburn Continues 'Suicide Schedule' on Nashville Field |newspaper=Montgomery Advertiser |page=6 |date=October 15, 1934 |accessdate=July 2, 2023 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-huntsville-times-tigers-name-walt-gi/127483378/ |title=Tigers Name Walt Gilbert |newspaper=The Huntsville Times |page=10 |date=December 19, 1935 |accessdate=July 2, 2023 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> * William M. "Sonny" Landham – actor, politician{{citation needed|date=July 2023}} * Bruce Levingston – concert pianist<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.darlingtonschool.org/4533472|title=Darlington School: April 9 declared Bruce Levingston ('79) Day in Mississippi, observed with Carnegie Hall performance|author=|date=|website=Darlington School|accessdate=13 December 2018}}</ref> * Adam Marcus – mathematician<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pagefoundation.org/page/STARRegWin19591|title=STAR Region Winners 1959-Present - PAGE Foundation|author=|date=|website=www.pagefoundation.org|accessdate=13 December 2018|archive-date=December 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215223622/https://www.pagefoundation.org/page/STARRegWin19591|url-status=dead}}</ref> * Will Muschamp – co-defensive coordinator for the University of Georgia’s football team and former head football coach at the University of South Carolina<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://scout.com/college/georgia/Article/Then-Now-Muschamp-an-Intense-Competitor-104844618|title=Then & Now, Muschamp an Intense Competitor|work=DawgPost.com|access-date=2017-07-27}}</ref> * Shawn Powell – NFL punter<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.darlingtonschool.org/3005251|title=Darlington School: NFL: Powell punts five times in NFL debut|access-date=2017-04-26}}</ref> * Tate Ratledge – NFL offensive guard for the Detroit Lions<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tate Ratledge (G): Bio, News, Stats & more |url=https://www.detroitlions.com/team/players-roster/tate-ratledge/ |access-date=2025-05-03 |website=www.detroitlions.com |language=en-US}}</ref> * Melanie Sumner – novelist and writer{{citation needed|date=July 2023}} * Cy Twombly – artist<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ibtimes.com/avant-garde-american-artist-cy-twombly-83-dies-rome-296151|title=Avant-garde American artist Cy Twombly, 83, dies in Rome}}</ref> * Ernest Vandiver – 73rd governor of Georgia<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-598 |title=New Georgia Encyclopedia: Ernest Vandiver Jr. (1918-2005) |access-date=2011-11-11 |archive-date=2013-02-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130201040355/http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-598 |url-status=dead }}</ref> * Calder Willingham – novelist and screenwriter (''The Graduate'')<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sqxpBgAAQBAJ&dq=%22calder+willingham%22+darlington&pg=PA101|title=Legendary Locals of Rome|last=Museum|first=Rome Area History|date=2014-12-01|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=9781439648674|language=en}}</ref>
== References == <references/>
== External links == * [http://www.darlingtonschool.org Darlington School website] * http://darlingtonian.com/ {{Rome, Georgia}} {{Education in Floyd County, Georgia}} {{GHSA Class A Division I Region 7}}
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Category:Educational institutions established in 1905 Category:Private high schools in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Schools in Floyd County, Georgia Category:Buildings and structures in Rome, Georgia Category:Boarding schools in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Preparatory schools in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:1905 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)