{{Use American English|date=August 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox school | name = Sewickley Academy | seal_image = File:Sewickley Academy Crest.jpg | seal_size = 150px | picture = D6d0a569e5d5ec329d0e90a089123a173ee8ff52-500.jpg | image_size = 150px | location = 315 Academy Avenue<br />Sewickley, PA 15143 {{coord|40.54389|N|80.19083|W|type:edu|display=title}} | type = Independent college-preparatory school | motto = {{Langx|la|Amici, Honor, et Virtus}} | motto_translation = Friendship, Honor, and Achievement | established = {{start date and age|1838}} | founders = William Nevin & John Champ | status = Open | religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian | ceeb = 394475 | us_nces_school_id = {{NCES Private School ID|01197901|school_name=Sewickley Academy|access_date=27 February 2022}} | head_of_school = Ashley Birtwell<ref>{{cite web |title=Leadership |url=https://www.sewickley.org/about-us/leadership |website=About Us |publisher=Sewickley Academy |access-date=27 February 2022}}</ref> | faculty = 85.8 {{FTE}} | grades = PK–12 | gender = Coeducational | enrollment = 533<ref name="nces_psch" /> | enrollment_as_of = 2021–2022 | grade_preK = 18 | gradeK = 22 | grade1 = 28 | grade2 = 29 | grade3 = 24 | grade4 = 34 | grade5 = 31 | grade6 = 33 | grade7 = 46 | grade8 = 43 | grade9 = 54 | grade10 = 44 | grade11 = 64 | grade12 = 63 | ratio = 1:6.0<ref name="nces_psch" /> | hours_in_day = 7<ref name="nces_psch" /> | athletic_conference = PIAA, WPIAL | accreditation = NAIS<ref name="nces_psch" /> | endowment = $35.53 million<ref name="irs" /> | revenue = $21.37 million<ref name="irs">{{cite web |title=Form 990 |url=https://apps.irs.gov/pub/epostcard/cor/250965558_202006_990_2021041217923784.pdf |website=Tax Exempt Organization Search |publisher=Internal Revenue Service |date=2019}}</ref> | campus_size = {{Convert|17|acre|ha}} | campus_type = Suburban | colors = {{color box|#FF0000}} Red<br/>{{color box|#000000}} Black | nickname = Panthers | tuition = $18,995 PK<br>$20,655 K<br>$25,760 1-5<br>$29,980 6-8<br>$32,035 9-12<ref name="tuition">{{cite web |title=Tuition, Financial Aid, & Affordability |url=https://www.sewickley.org/admissions/affording-sewickley-academy |website=Affording Sewickley Academy |publisher=Sewickley Academy |access-date=25 April 2021 |date=2021–2022}}</ref> | website = {{URL|https://sewickley.org}} }}
'''Sewickley Academy''' is a private, independent, coeducational, college-preparatory academy located in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, United States. The Academy educates 594 students, from pre-kindergarten to twelfth grade.<ref name="nces_psch" /> It is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools.<ref name="nces_psch" />
== History == Founded in 1838 as a boys' school by William Nevin and John Champ, Sewickley Academy is the oldest independent school in western Pennsylvania. It was first located in a house owned by Squire John Way, a brick building still on Beaver Road in Sewickley. Boarding students came from several southern states, including Virginia and a few from as far south as New Orleans, Louisiana, arriving by steamboat and railway to study with local day students from the Pittsburgh area.
During its early history, the school went through several iterations, moving four times around the Sewickley area and even briefly closing three times (once during the Civil War, when southern students returned home and several of the remaining older boys and teachers joined the war effort). In 1865, the school reopened as a day school. Two local girls' primary schools closed in the early 1900s. After integrating these girls into its academic program, the Academy became a coeducational day school when it settled onto its present campus in 1925.
Under the leadership of Headmaster Cliff Nichols (1951 – 1981), the Academy expanded slowly from a neighborhood school into a more regional institution. For much of its history, the Academy had only educated students through Grade 9. At that point, they left to attend and complete their secondary education at other boarding and day schools in the Pittsburgh area. However, in 1963, Mr. Nichols hired James E. Cavalier. He delegated him to program and build a Senior School (one class year at a time). The first class graduated from this new Senior School in 1966.
Only four years later, on 10 January 1970, a fire destroyed the main building of the Middle School. Soon after this sad event, Nichols and the Board of Trustees initiated a capital campaign to fund significant repairs and expansion of the main building and to add several new buildings. Later, the Academy commissioned a comprehensive Campus Master Plan (1998 - 2000) that further transformed its education facilities, adding an entirely new classroom building for the Middle School and a central library for the Middle and Senior Schools, reconfiguring and reintegrating many other buildings on campus.
In 2013, the school celebrated the 175th anniversary of its 1838 founding and the 50th anniversary of the inception of its Senior School.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sewickley.org/Page/About-Us/Our-History|title=Our History|last=|first=|date=|website=|publisher=|access-date=}}</ref>
In 2021, in response to parent complaints about DEI initiatives, the school fired many black administrators and faculty, along with its head of school, Kolia O'Connor.<ref>{{cite web |author1=Kimberly Rooney |title=NAACP of Pa. criticizes firing of Black leadership at Sewickley Academy |url=https://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/naacp-of-pa-criticizes-firing-of-black-leadership-at-sewickley-academy/Content?oid=19965416 |website=News |publisher=Pittsburgh City Paper |access-date=27 February 2022 |date=6 August 2021}}</ref> The school subsequently settled a federal racial discrimination lawsuit.<ref>{{cite web |author1=Paula Reed Ward |title=Sewickley Academy settles with Black former administrator who filed race discrimination lawsuit |url=https://triblive.com/local/sewickley/sewickley-academy-settles-with-black-former-administrator-who-filed-race-discrimination-lawsuit/ |website=Trib Live |publisher=Trib Total Media |access-date=27 February 2022 |date=26 October 2021}}</ref>
== Extracurricular activities == === Cum Laude Society === Sewickley Academy has been a member of the Cum Laude Society since 1966. Faculty members of the Sewickley Academy Cum Laude Society select students from the senior class as candidates for induction into the Sewickley Academy chapter of the Cum Laude Society. These selections are made based on the student's academic achievement record through the end of their junior year. When evaluating candidates for induction, the Cum Laude Society instructs its member chapters ''not'' to consider service, athletics, leadership, or other non-academic factors, arguing that such qualities are recognized in many other contexts. Therefore, the Cum Laude Society recommendation focuses first and foremost on a student's record of ''academic achievement''.
=== Athletics === The Sewickley Academy Athletics Program fosters personal and team excellence among student-athletes. Outstanding coaches work with individuals and teams to improve performance and promote character, leadership, and sportsmanship. Over 85 percent of the student body at middle and senior schools participates in at least one athletic team each year, and many students play multiple sports.
The Academy has a no-cut policy, allowing any student to play on any team of their choosing. The campus has four athletic fields, including a turf field for softball, five tennis courts, two gymnasiums, and a fitness center that supports 22 varsity teams.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sewickley.org/Page/Athletics|title=Championship Pittsburgh High School Sports Program {{!}} Win Palmer|website=www.sewickley.org|language=en|access-date=2018-11-15}}</ref>
{{Col-begin}} {{Col-break}} '''Fall''' * Boys cross country * Girls cross country * Field hockey * Boys soccer * Girls soccer * Girls tennis * Golf {{Col-break}} '''Winter''' * Boys basketball * Girls basketball * Boys ice hockey * Girls ice hockey * Boys swimming * Boys diving * Girls swimming * Girls diving * Track {{Col-break}} '''Spring''' * Baseball * Boys lacrosse * Girls lacrosse * Softball * Boys tennis * Track {{col-end}}
Since 1986, the Academy has been a member of the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) and competes in District 7 of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA). The Academy's ice hockey team is a member of the PIHL and the Midwest Prep Hockey League. The Academy has been crowned the MSA Sports Cup Champion for nine of the past 11 years.
== Campus == Sewickley Academy is located approximately 12 miles northwest of Pittsburgh on a single 16-acre campus that includes 60 classrooms, 9 science labs, 5 computer labs, 2 robotics labs, 2 libraries (with a total of 33,600 volumes), 2 student publishing centers, a digital design lab, and a media center.
The campus also has five tennis courts, four athletic fields (including a turf field), two gymnasiums, and a fully-equipped fitness center that supports 22 varsity sports teams.
The school supports student art programs with visual and performing art studios, a ceramics studio, music practice rooms, a black-box theater with seating for approximately 130, Rea Auditorium with 570 seats, and the Campbell Art Gallery. The Academy utilizes two greenhouses and a school garden to create an outdoor classroom and experiential learning center.
'''Early Childhood, Lower, Middle, and Senior Schools''': 315 Academy Avenue, Sewickley, PA 15143
'''Frick Field''': 200 Hazel Lane, Sewickley, PA 15143
'''Nichols Field''': 624 Beaver Road, Sewickley, PA 15143
==Notable alumni== *Caitlin Clarke (1970) - Stage & screen actress{{citation needed|date=May 2016}} *Rusty Cundieff (1978) - Film and television director, actor, and writer *Spandan Daftary (1981) - Sports television producer *Mike Fincke (1985) - Astronaut<ref name="sa-distalum">{{cite web |url=http://www.sewickley.org/alumnisub.asp?pageid=101 |title=Distinguished Alumni |accessdate=2007-01-02 |work=Sewickley Academy Website}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/fincke.html |title=Astronaut Bio:Edward Michael "Mike" Fincke |date=March 2006 |accessdate=2007-01-02 |work=NASA Johnson Space Center Website}}</ref> *Valerie Gaydos (1984) - Pennsylvania House of Representatives<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.repgaydos.com|title=Representative Gaydos}}</ref> *David Hollander (1986) - Screenwriter *Trevor Long (1988) - actor<ref name="long">{{cite web|url=https://issuu.com/sewickley_academy/docs/77247_print_mang_sewickley_web/68|title=Trevor Long '88 Resident Bad Boy|date=25 October 2016 |accessdate=19 January 2025}}</ref> *Brian Hutchison (1989) - Tony award-winning actor<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.broadway.com/buzz/195829/the-boys-in-the-band-wins-2019-tony-award-for-best-revival-of-a-play/|title=The Boys in the Band Wins 2019 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play|date=June 9, 2019|website=Broadway Buzz}}</ref> *Rafe Judkins (2001) - ''Survivor: Guatemala'' contestant{{citation needed|date=May 2016}} *John Latta - 1st Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania *John Michael - Broadcaster for the Cleveland Cavaliers *Gregory Nicotero (1981) *James G. Webster (1969) - Professor at Northwestern University
==Gallery== <gallery mode="packed"> File:PantherSA.jpg File:Sports-cup.jpg File:Campus Fire1970.jpg File:Class1986 Leaves0001.jpg File:History Advertisement1860.jpg </gallery>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *{{Official website|http://www.sewickley.org/}}
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Category:Private elementary schools in Pennsylvania Category:Educational institutions established in 1838 Category:Private middle schools in Pennsylvania Category:Private high schools in Pennsylvania Category:Schools in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Category:Education in Greater Pittsburgh Category:1838 establishments in Pennsylvania Category:Preparatory schools in Pennsylvania