Nichols School
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Nichols School is a private, non-denominational,
co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...
college- preparatory day school in
Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...
, United States. The average enrollment is 570 students with an average Upper School grade/class size of 98 students. The average classroom size is 14 students.


History

Nichols School was founded in 1892 by William Nichols. The school was founded as an all-boys school with its campus on Amherst Street in North Buffalo. After many years of remaining an all boys school, it joined with Nottingham Academy, an all-girls school, becoming a co-ed Middle and Upper School. The Upper School was located on the original campus, and the Middle School was located on Nottingham Terrace. In 2001, a new Middle School building was constructed on the main campus, attaching itself to an older building on campus. That building used to be home to the basketball court and swimming pool, which have been converted into the dance studio and music room, respectively. In addition to the new Middle School facility, two new gyms were built, with squash courts added to accommodate the school's squash team. In 2011, construction was finished on the new mathematics and science building, Center '63. This new building was built to replace Moot Hall, the old math and science building.


Location

Nichols School is located on in North Buffalo, within walking distance of the Buffalo Zoo, Delaware Park, and the
Albright-Knox Art Gallery The Buffalo AKG Art Museum, formerly known as the Albright–Knox Art Gallery, is an art museum at 1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York, in Delaware Park. the museum's Elmwood Avenue campus is temporarily closed for construction. It hosted e ...
. The Nichols campus includes seven separate buildings linked by tree-lined sidewalks and an indoor passageway. The campus consolidation project, completed in August 2001, joined the Middle and Upper school divisions. Each division has separate academic buildings, and shares dining, athletic, and performing arts facilities.


Students

Students are from the general Buffalo area, commuting from as far as
Southern Ontario Southern Ontario is a primary region of the province of Ontario, Canada, the other primary region being Northern Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada. The exact northern boundary of Southern Ontario is disp ...
,
Batavia, New York Batavia is a city in and the county seat of Genesee County, New York, United States. It is near the center of the county, surrounded by the Town of Batavia, which is a separate municipality. Batavia's population as of the 2020 census was 15,6 ...
, and
Ellicottville, New York Ellicottville is a town in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. The population was 1,317 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Joseph Ellicott, principal land agent of the Holland Land Company. The town of Ellicottville includes ...
, an organic expansion of its traditional turf according to Director of Admissions Nina Barone.


Accreditation and honors

Nichols 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), New York State. Founded in 1947, NYSAIS is the second la ...
and the
New York State Department of Education The New York State Education Department (NYSED) is the department of the New York state government responsible for the supervision for all public schools in New York and all standardized testing, as well as the production and administration o ...
. It received national recognition in the Secondary School Recognition Program and Exemplary Private School Recognition Program. Nichols is a member of 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 ...
. Nichols, along with other local private schools (including
Buffalo Seminary Buffalo Seminary (SEM) is an independent, private, college preparatory day and boarding school for girls in Buffalo, New York, United States. SEM is secular and non-uniform. Accreditations and memberships SEM is an accredited member of the N ...
,
Canisius High School Canisius High School is a Catholic, private college-preparatory school for young men run by the USA Northeast Province of the Society of Jesus in Buffalo, New York, United States, just north of the Delaware Avenue Historic District. Founded in 1 ...
, and Park School of Buffalo), does not administer
Regents exams In New York State, Regents Examinations are statewide standardized examinations in core high school subjects. Students are required to pass these exams to earn a Regents Diploma. To graduate, students are required to have earned appropriate credit ...
.


Faculty

Of the faculty at Nichols, 10% have
doctoral degrees A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...
; 75% have
master's degrees A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
; and 14% of the faculty are Nichols graduates. Faculty have an average of 20 years of service and serve as student advisers,
coaches Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...
, club advisers and mentors.


Athletics

The Upper School conducts an extensive interscholastic athletic program. Most teams have tryouts, mandatory practices and matches after school hours and play in competitive leagues throughout Western New York and Canada. Offered Sports: Fall: *Soccer (Men/Women) *Robotics *Cross Country (Men/Women) *Volleyball (Women) *Football (Men) *Field Hockey (Women) *Golf (Men) *Tennis (Women) *Sailing (Co-ed) Hockey (Men/Women) *Physical Education (Co-ed) Winter: *Hockey (Men/Women) *Basketball (Men/Women) *Squash (Men/Women) *Winter Track (Men/Women) *Robotics *Physical Education (Co-ed) Spring: *Lacrosse (Men/Women) *Crew (Men/Women) *Tennis (Men) *Golf (Women) *Baseball (Men) *Softball (Women) *Track & Field (Co-ed) *Physical Education (Co-ed)
Intramural Intramural sports are recreational sports organized within a particular institution, usually an educational institution, or a set geographic region. The term, which is chiefly North American, derives from the Latin words ''intra muros'' meaning " ...
sports where anyone can join a team dominate in the Middle School. The number of teams is dictated by the level of interest, practices take place during the daily sports period, and most teams play other local middle schools.


Arts

The 480-seat Flickinger Performing Arts Center is the centerpiece of the performing arts department, while visual arts studios support course offerings in drawing, painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video and graphic art. The arts are promoted as a serious course of study and the school requires that all students engage in some form of participation. Artistic achievement is highlighted not only in plays and exhibitions, but also in morning meetings, where students often share their talents with the rest of the school. Students are encouraged to use the arts as a vehicle through which to find their own voices. In addition to studying and performing the work of renowned artists, original student work is featured on the walls of every building on the campus and on the floorboards of every stage. Students have the opportunity to compose music, write plays, choreograph dances, make their own films or curate their own art opening.


Multiculturalism and international initiatives

Nichols School has four different exchange programs for upper school students:
Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
,
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
,
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, and
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. Nichols students host an international student for three weeks, and then travel abroad and stay with that student and their family for an average of three weeks. While abroad, students attend classes at the hosting institution and travel to historical and cultural sites of importance. Students can participate in more than one exchange: historically, many Spanish students travel to Costa Rica sophomore year and Spain in junior or senior year.


Extracurricular activities

Nichols offers a variety of extracurricular clubs, activities, trips and community service opportunities to students. There are more than 40 upper school campus clubs; clubs from recent years include Anti-Gravity Club, Art Activism for Social Change, BABEL Book Club, Backgammon Club, Broomball Club, Cheese Club, Star Wars Club, Chess Club, Chorus, Community Service Club, Dance Marathon, Drone Club, Fashion Design Club, Feministas, Fight Club, Film Club, Forensics Club, Free Draw Club, French Club, Fundraising Club, Gang Green, Green Key, HEART Club, Investment Club, Jazz Band, Jewish Cultural Awareness Club, Math League, Masterminds, Mock Trial,
Model UN Model United Nations, also known as Model UN or MUN, is an educational simulation in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations, and the United Nations. At a MUN conference, students work as the representative of a count ...
, Nordic Sports, Orchestra, Peace Club, Pen Pal Club, Photography Club, Robotics, Science Olympiad, SeeArtRun, Sexuality and Gender Awareness, Ski Club, SEA, Soup Kitchen Club, Student Council, SUMA, VIVE, and Young Democrats, as well as student publications like the Gleaner Literary Magazine, the Viking Gazette, and the school yearbook, the Verdian. Mock Trial and Model UN participate in local and regional competitions. Anti-Gravity Club, the school's outdoors and climbing club, sponsors multiple trips to the Niagara Climbing Center and Niagara Gorge in addition to an annual winter hiking, cross-country skiing and ice-climbing trip to Keene Valley in the
Adirondack Mountains The Adirondack Mountains (; a-də-RÄN-dak) form a massif in northeastern New York with boundaries that correspond roughly to those of Adirondack Park. They cover about 5,000 square miles (13,000 km2). The mountains form a roughly circular ...
. The Research Scholars Program provides students with the opportunity to engage in independent research projects at local institutions. The Science Scholar program works with
SUNY Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 1846 ...
,
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center is a cancer research and treatment center located in Buffalo, New York. Founded by surgeon Roswell Park in 1898, the center was the first in the United States to specifically focus on cancer research. The ...
, and the
Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute The Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute (HWI) is an independent, not-for-profit, biomedical research facility located in the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. Its focus is on structural biology with a strong history in methods development ...
. The Humanities Scholar program gives seniors the opportunity to conduct humanities research at
SUNY Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 1846 ...
. SeeArtRun is an entirely student-run art gallery. Students have the opportunity to display their art in a gallery on campus, and often host gallery openings as popular campus events. SEA, or Students for Environmental Awareness, works with organizations dedicated to providing drinking water and promoting environmental initiatives abroad. SEA also actively promotes environmental programs on campus and in the local community.


Notable alumni


Arts

*
Laylah Ali Laylah Ali (born 1968Baker, Alex (2007) ''Laylah Ali: Typology''. Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. p. 47. ) is a contemporary visual artist known for paintings in which ambiguous race relations are depicted with a graphic clarity and cartoo ...
1986, contemporary visual artist *
Michael Angelakos Michael John Angelakos (born May 19, 1987) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the frontman of the indietronica band Passion Pit. Career Passion Pit (2008–present) The first Passion Pit songs, ...
2005, lead singer of Passion Pit *
Cory Arcangel Cory Arcangel (born May 25, 1978) is an American post-conceptual artist who makes work in many different media, including drawing, music, video, performance art, and video game modifications, for which he is best known. Arcangel often uses the ...
1996, artist *
Nick Bakay Nicholas Bakay (; born October 8, 1959) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer and sports commentator. He is known as the voice of Salem Saberhagen on ABC/The WB's ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'', '' Sabrina: The Animated Series'', and No ...
1977, television actor, writer, and producer *
Nanette Burstein Nanette Burstein (born May 23, 1970) is an American film and television director. Burstein has produced, directed, and co-directed several documentaries including the Academy Award nominated and Sundance Special Jury Prize winning film ''On the R ...
1988, filmmaker *
Elizabeth Cappuccino Elizabeth Cappuccino is an American film and television actress. She is best known for starring in ''Super Dark Times'' and for playing a young Jessica Jones in the Netflix series of the same name. Family and early life Cappuccino was born o ...
2013, film and television actor * A. R. Gurney 1947,
playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...
*
Brigid Hughes Brigid Hughes is a Brooklyn, New York-based literary editor. Hughes is best known for assuming the executive editor role at literary journal ''The Paris Review'' after the death of founding editor George Plimpton and for founding the literary ma ...
1990, literary editor * Karl Koch 1987, recording artist;
Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing v ...
webmaster *
Adam Lippes Adam Lippes (born December 24, 1972) is an American fashion designer who came to prominence at Oscar de la Renta and has had his own company since 2004. Early life and education Lippes was born in Buffalo, New York, one of three children of Ge ...
, fashion designer *
David Milch David Sanford Milch (born March 23, 1945) is an American writer and producer of television series. He has created several television shows, including ABC's ''NYPD Blue'' (1993-2005), co-created with Steven Bochco, and HBO's '' Deadwood'' (2004-20 ...
1962,
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
-nominated television writer and producer *
John Michael Montias John Michael Montias (3 October 1928 – 26 July 2005) was a French-born American economist and art historian, known for his contributions to cultural economics, particularly related to Dutch Golden Age painting. Montias was part of the Annales ...
, art historian *
Brian Sacca Brian Sacca (born 1978) is an American actor, writer, and producer from Lockport, NY who creates both digital media as well as traditional film/TV content. He is most recently known for playing Robbie Feinberg in '' The Wolf of Wall Street''. He c ...
1997, actor and screenwriter *
David Shire David Lee Shire (born July 3, 1937) is an American songwriter and composer of stage Musical theater, musicals, film and television film score, scores. The soundtracks to the 1976 film ''The Big Bus'', ''The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974 f ...
1955, composer * John Wray 1989, novelist *
Suzi Yoonessi Suzi Yoonessi (born February 21, 1978) is an American filmmaker. She wrote and directed the award-winning feature film ''Dear Lemon Lima'', and directed the Duplass Brothers film ''Unlovable'' and ''Daphne and Velma'' for Warner Brothers. Yoones ...
1996(?), filmmaker


Athletics

* Peter Ciavaglia 1987,
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
player *
Jeff Farkas Jeffrey Thomas Farkas (born January 24, 1978) is an American former professional ice hockey center. He was drafted in the third round, 57th overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. He played 11 games in the NHL for the Mapl ...
1996, NHL player *
Christian Laettner Christian Donald Laettner (, ; born August 17, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player. His college career for the Duke Blue Devils is widely regarded as one of the best in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) hi ...
1988,
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
player, widely regarded as one of the best players in
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
history * Chris Mueller 2004, NHL player *
Brooks Orpik Richard Brooks Orpik (born September 26, 1980) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played for the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). A stay-at-home defenseman and locker ...
1998, NHL player, Olympic Silver Medalist *
Ray Peters Raymond James Peters (August 27, 1946 – May 4, 2019) was an American professional baseball player and a former Major League pitcher. Peters, a , right-hander born in Buffalo, New York, attended Harvard University, where he played college ba ...
1965,
MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
player, first round pick in 1970
draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vessel ...
*
Emily Pfalzer Emily Pfalzer Matheson (born June 14, 1993) is an American women's ice hockey player who was the first captain the Buffalo Beauts of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) from 2015-2017. Internationally, Pfalzer plays for United States women's na ...
2011, hockey player, Olympic Gold Medalist
United States women's national ice hockey team The United States women's national ice hockey team is controlled by USA Hockey. The U.S. has been one of the most successful women's ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating ...
* Emily Regan 2006, rower,
Olympic Gold Medalist This article lists the individuals who have won at least four gold medals at the Olympic Games or at least three gold medals in individual events. List of most Olympic gold medals over career This is a partial list of multiple Olympic gold medalis ...
*
Hayley Scamurra Hayley Scamurra (born December 14, 1994) is a women's ice hockey player who currently plays internationally for the USA Women's Ice Hockey team, and previously played for the Buffalo Beauts of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF). Before joining ...
2013, hockey player, United States women's national ice hockey team * Ryan Sittler 1992,
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
first round draft pick * Bobby Shuttleworth 2004,
MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
goalkeeper * Scott Thomas 1989, NHL player *
Ward Wettlaufer H. Ward Wettlaufer (October 31, 1935 – March 31, 2016) was an American amateur golfer with numerous titles to his name, including the Eastern Amateur, two Porter Cup championships, North and South Amateur, and the Walker Cup as a member of the "u ...
1954, amateur
golfer Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...


Business

*
Anson Conger Goodyear Anson Conger Goodyear (June 20, 1877 – April 24, 1964) was an American manufacturer, businessman, author, and philanthropist and member of the Goodyear family. He is best known as one of the founding members and first president of the Museum of ...
, businessman, philanthropist, author, founder of the
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...
*Robert T. Grieves 1972, Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong *
Charlie Jacobs Charles Marvin Jacobs (born September 16, 1971) is the chief executive officer of Delaware North's Boston Holdings, including the Boston Bruins. In 2009, Sports Business Journal named Jacobs to their "Forty Under 40" list. Jacobs is involved with ...
1990, CEO of
Delaware North Delaware North is a global food service and hospitality company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. The company also operates in the lodging, sporting, airport, gambling, and entertainment industries. The company employs over 55,000 people worl ...
's Boston Holdings, including the
Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
* Jerry Jacobs Jr. 1981, Co-CEO of
Delaware North Delaware North is a global food service and hospitality company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. The company also operates in the lodging, sporting, airport, gambling, and entertainment industries. The company employs over 55,000 people worl ...
*Lou Jacobs 1982, Co-CEO of
Delaware North Delaware North is a global food service and hospitality company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. The company also operates in the lodging, sporting, airport, gambling, and entertainment industries. The company employs over 55,000 people worl ...
* Robert E. Rich, Jr. 1959, Chairman of Rich Products Corporation * Sameera Fazili 1996, Deputy director of the
National Economic Council (United States) National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...


Politics

*
Piper Campbell Piper Anne Wind Campbell (born 1965) is an adjunct professor and former American diplomat. She was the 9th U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked count ...
1984,
United States Ambassador to Mongolia This is a list of United States ambassadors to Mongolia. The United States established diplomatic relations with then-People's Republic of Mongolia on January 27, 1987. The embassy in Ulaanbaatar was opened Apr 17, 1988, with Steven Mann as Char ...
*
William H. Donaldson William Henry Donaldson (born June 2, 1931) was the 27th Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), serving from February 2003 to June 2005. He served as Under Secretary of State for International Security Affairs in the Nix ...
1949, chairman of the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...
* Edward Rath III, member of the
New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan com ...


Science

*
Eric Berlow Eric L. Berlow is an American ecologist and data science, data scientist. He co-founded a visual data interface company, which was acquired by Rakuten Inc. in 2016. He now runs Vibrant Data Labs, a social impact data science group currently foc ...
1984,
ecologist Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...
, entrepreneur * Michael Roizen, MD 1963, Chief Wellness Officer at the
Cleveland Clinic Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit American academic medical center based in Cleveland, Ohio. Owned and operated by the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, an Ohio nonprofit corporation established in 1921, it runs a 170-acre (69 ha) campus in Cleveland, ...
, Cofounder of RealAge, Inc., TV guest expert and best-selling author


References


External links

* {{authority control Schools in Buffalo, New York Private high schools in New York (state) Private middle schools in New York (state)