Saint David's School is an independent primary and pre-primary

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

for boys on the

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 96th Street to the north, the East River to the east, 59th Street to the south, and Central Park/Fifth Avenue to the wes ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of counties in New York, origin ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. The school educates boys from

pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called Pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool o ...

through to

eighth grade Eighth grade (or grade eight in some regions) is the eighth post-kindergarten year of formal education in the US. The eighth grade is the ninth school year, the second, third, fourth, or final year of middle school, or the second and/or final ye ...

. Saint David's was founded in 1951. The current headmaster is P. David O'Halloran.

History

St. David’s was originally the home of Ruth Hunter Cutting, daughter of

Robert Fulton Cutting Robert Fulton Cutting (June 27, 1852 – September 21, 1934), was an American financier and philanthropist known as "the first citizen of New York." Cutting and his brother William started the sugar beet industry in the United States in 1888. He ...

, known as a prominent financier (he and his brother

William Bayard Cutting William Bayard Cutting (January 12, 1850 – March 1, 1912), a member of New York's merchant aristocracy, was an attorney, financier, real estate developer, sugar beet refiner and philanthropist. Cutting and his brother Fulton started the sugar ...

brought the sugar beet industry to the United States), philanthropist and as “the first citizen of New York.” The school officially opened on February 5, 1951, and Saint David's began with one teacher and four students. Its purpose, according to its nine founding families, was "to provide a sound substantial education for the growing boy, equal to the best, derived from institutions of a similar level." While a school in the Roman Catholic tradition, Saint David's has always been lay-run and independent.

Chaplains A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intelligence ...

that serve and have served the school are: Msgr. Thomas Leonard (1968-2003), Rev. Stephen Katsourous, S.J. (2003-2011) Rev. Patrick Bonner, S.T.B., M.S., J.C.L., and Father Christopher Keenan. In the decades since its founding, Saint David's has undertaken several expansions, adding facilities for its academic and athletics programs. Today, the school community includes 400 students and more than 130 faculty and staff.

Academics

Saint David's School is accredited by the

New York State Association of Independent Schools The New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) is an association of 201 independent schools and organizations, ranging from nurseries to high schools, in New York State. Founded in 1947, NYSAIS is the second largest state associ ...

, the

National Association of Independent Schools The National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) is a U.S.-based membership organization for private, nonprofit, K-12 schools. Founded in 1962, NAIS represents independent schools and associations in the United States, including day, boar ...

, and the

Educational Records Bureau Educational Records Bureau (ERB) is an educational services Non-profit Organization that offers assessments for both admission and achievement for independent and selective public schools for Pre K-grade 12. ERB was founded in 1927, and is h ...

. Boys have largely moved onto day schools in New York City, such as

Regis Regis or Régis may refer to: People * Regis (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Regis (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Regis (musician), full name Karl O'Connor, an English ...

or Collegiate, while others moved onto boarding schools; boys have gone to

Deerfield Academy Deerfield Academy is an elite coeducational preparatory school in Deerfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1797, it is one of the oldest secondary schools in the United States. It is a member of the Eight Schools Association, the Ten Schools Admiss ...

Kent School Kent School is a private, co-educational, college preparatory boarding school in Kent, Connecticut, United States. Frederick Herbert Sill established the school in 1906. It is affiliated with the Episcopal Church of the United States. Acad ...

Trinity-Pawling School Trinity-Pawling School, founded in 1907, is an independent college and preparatory boarding school for boys from 7th grade to 12th grade. The 230 acre campus is situated in Pawling, New York, a small hamlet in southern Dutchess County. It is l ...

, Phillips Exeter,

Choate Rosemary Hall Choate Rosemary Hall (often known as Choate; ) is a Independent school, private, Mixed-sex education, co-educational, College-preparatory school, college-preparatory boarding school in Wallingford, Connecticut, United States. Choate is currently ...

Lawrenceville School The Lawrenceville School is a coeducational preparatory school for boarding and day students located in the Lawrenceville section of Lawrence Township, in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. Lawrenceville is a member of the Eight Sch ...

, and

Phillips Andover ("Not for Self") la, Finis Origine Pendet ("The End Depends Upon the Beginning") Youth From Every Quarter Knowledge and Goodness , address = 180 Main Street , city = Andover , state = M ...

Athletics

The school offers a

sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, t ...

program, including

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

, cross-country, flag football,

floor hockey Floor hockey is a broad term for several indoor floor game codes which involve two teams using a stick and type of ball or disk. Disks are either open or closed but both designs are usually referred to as "pucks". These games are played either o ...

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is t ...

squash Squash may refer to: Sports * Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets * Squash (professional wrestling), an extremely one-sided match in professional wrestling * Squash tennis, a game similar to squash but pla ...

, and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

. They have three gymnasiums on-campus (including one that is middle school regulation size) As an after-school elective, Saint David's also offers an

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

program which begins in kindergarten and is available until 8th grade. In the 2018-2019 hockey season, Saint David's won its first ice hockey championship in the Hudson Valley Hockey League by defeating North Park. In early June 2019, the school was visited by

Justin Tuck Justin Lee Tuck (born March 29, 1983) is a former American football defensive end. He played college football at Notre Dame, and was drafted by the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft, ...

, formerly of the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

, to speak at an athletics networking event for alumni, parents, and students.

Community service

Saint David's participates in many

community service Community service is unpaid work performed by a person or group of people for the benefit and betterment of their community without any form of compensation. Community service can be distinct from volunteering, since it is not always performed ...

initiatives, some of which include their annual Halloween candy drive, their bottle cap drive, and other fundraising projects. They work with

New York Cares New York Cares is a nonprofit organization focused on volunteer management and was founded by a group of New York residents in 1987 who wanted to take action against social issues in New York City. The organization currently engages 65,000 volunt ...

for their annual coat drive, the Graham Windham Mitten and Hat Collection, Project Cicero for book donations, City Harvest for annual food drives,

Ronald McDonald Ronald McDonald is a clown character used as the primary mascot of the McDonald's fast-food restaurant chain. He inhabits the fictional world of McDonaldland, with his friends Mayor McCheese, the Hamburglar, Grimace, Birdie the Early Bird and ...

's Fun Run, Florence Nightingale Nursing Home and Terence Cardinal Cooke Nursing Home for nursing home visits and carols, and It's My Park Day to rejuvenate New York City Parks. In 2004, the school raised more than $10,000 for the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, an ...

and their South East Asia Tsunami Fund. In 2010, they raised $36,000 for Haiti's Recovery Fund. And in 2011, they began a new initiative to raise money to build a school in the

Tigray Region The Tigray Region, officially the Tigray National Regional State, is the northernmost regional state in Ethiopia. The Tigray Region is the homeland of the Tigrayan, Irob, and Kunama people. Its capital and largest city is Mekelle. Tigray is ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the no ...

with the help of Mimi's Building Blocks and

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic ...

. They raised more than $120,000 and Saint David's Kalina School opened in Ethiopia in the fall of 2013.

Notable alumni

Andrew Giuliani Andrew Harold Giuliani (born January 30, 1986) is an American political commentator and golfer. He was a special assistant to the President and associate director of the Office of Public Liaison, during the Trump administration.Abigail Johnson He ...

, Special Assistant to President Trump and Associate Director of the

Office of Public Liaison The White House Office of Public Engagement is a unit of the White House Office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States. Under the administration of President Barack Obama, it was called the White House Office of Public ...

; son of

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 19 ...

(mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001).A study in smutty; Porn perused at posh prep: bias suit
Nypost.com, January 31, 2011. * Ryu Goto, concert violinist *

John F. Kennedy Jr. John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr. (November 25, 1960 – July 16, 1999), often referred to as John-John or JFK Jr., was an American lawyer, journalist, and magazine publisher. He was a son of the 35th president of the United States, John F. Ken ...

, son of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy * Prince Ali-Reza Pahlavi, son of the last

Shah of Iran This is a list of monarchs of Persia (or monarchs of the Iranic peoples, in present-day Iran), which are known by the royal title Shah or Shahanshah. This list starts from the establishment of the Medes around 671 BCE until the deposition of th ...

and second in line to the succession of the throne of Iran until the

Islamic Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

Andrew Rossi Andrew Rossi is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker, known for directing and writing ''The Andy Warhol Diaries'' (2022). Career Rossi is the founder oAbstract Productions a company that produces film and television. He was nominated for three Emmy Aw ...

, documentary filmmaker *

Dick Wolf Richard Anthony Wolf (born December 20, 1946) is an American film and television producer, best known for his ''Law & Order'' franchise. Since 1990, the franchise has included six police/courtroom dramas and four international spinoffs. He is al ...

, television producer
* Robert Chambers (criminal), Robert Chambers, criminal

Headmasters

*Thomas F. Herlihy (1951-1953) *David D. Hume (1953–1990) *Timothy Burns (1990–1992) *Dr. Donald T. Maiocco (1992–2004) *Dr. P. David O'Halloran (2004–Present)

References

External links

Saint David's School Website

Saint David's School Headmaster's Blog

Saint David's School Facebook Page
{{New York Interschool Boys' schools in New York City Educational institutions established in 1951 Private middle schools in Manhattan Roman Catholic elementary schools in Manhattan Private K–8 schools in Manhattan 1951 establishments in New York City