About Us
Welcome to University School
University School is a vibrant independent day school for boys in Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12, with two campuses in Northeast Ohio.
Established in 1890, University School (US) remains true to our founding vision of guiding students in all aspects of their growth, so they may forge their own path to fulfillment with confidence.
Our Mission
University School inspires boys of promise to become young men of character who lead and serve. Our dedicated faculty, rigorous curriculum, and experiential programs foster intellectual, physical, creative, and moral excellence. University School is a diverse and inclusive community where each boy is known and loved.
Our mission guides the intentional care and structures the School has built to support each boy in all aspects of his educational journey. Our faculty are invested in every boy's interests and abilities, his mental and emotional health, as well as his academic performance.
We believe when a boy is encouraged in a caring environment, there are no limits to what he can do.
University School serves 840 boys and maintains small class sizes across every grade level, for an average 7:1 student-to-teacher ratio. We take pride in our accomplished faculty, 77% of whom hold advanced degrees.
Our Motto
Responsibility, Loyalty, Consideration.
The three values of our motto are woven throughout the University School experience. US teachers and students model accountability, integrity, and respect. Guided by their teachers' example, US boys grow into leaders themselves – taking action in service to their communities while living these ideals. All in the US community strengthen empathy by listening generously, sharing openly, and uplifting others.
Our Community
University School believes students learn their most formative and enduring lessons through exposure to and experience with a broad range of perspectives.
We recruit and support faculty whose backgrounds and training bring local, national, and international perspectives to our school. We admit and support students who represent economically, culturally, and racially diverse communities within Northeast Ohio.
All students have many opportunities to explore their talents and develop their skills in new contexts. During his time at US, each student is encouraged to discover both his responsibility to others and his purpose in the world.
Our Campuses
University School is located on two campuses in the Greater Cleveland area.
The Shaker Heights Campus, tucked in a quiet and walkable neighborhood near the heart of this historic suburb, is home to our Lower School (Junior Kindergarten - Grade 4) and Middle School (Grades 5-8).
Due east about 15 minutes, our sprawling, wooded 220-acre Hunting Valley Campus is home of our Upper School (Grades 9-12).
Academic Achievement
Advanced Placement Courses
- University School offers more than 16 AP and post-AP courses.
- In 2024, students at the Upper School took a total of 516 AP exams, with 91% earning a score of three or higher.
- Also in 2024, 94% of the senior class took one or more AP exams, and 32% of this class took 5 or more AP exams during their high school years.
National Merit Scholars
Each year, a high percentage of US seniors are recognized for their achievement in the National Merit Scholarship program, based on their PSAT scores. In 2025, 14 students earned Commended status, and 13 achieved Finalist standing.
College Attendance and Counseling
University School graduates about 100 students each year, and 100% will continue their academic journey at a four-year college. Our College Counseling process is in-depth and individualized, with the goal of finding a good student-college match.
Athletic Excellence
Athletics and physical education are a cornerstone of the US experience. At the Lower School and Middle School, physical education classes are known as Field, and include rotations in the swimming pool as well as instruction in team sports, lifetime activities, fitness, and team-building.
US Athletics supports interscholastic competition for boys beginning in Grade 7. At the high school level, we offer 13 interscholastic programs, and each sport offers at least one JV team. Our varsity athletic teams have won 28 state championships since 1991 and eight national championships. Each year, between 15% and 30% of our graduates go on to compete in intercollegiate athletics.
US coaches and physical education faculty celebrate and encourage the values of self-discipline, respect for others, integrity, responsibility, and sportsmanship. US athletes are also supported by full-time staff members who are certified in the areas of strength and conditioning and athletic training.
| Affordability |
University School provides need-based financial assistance, and offers merit awards and scholarships to academically high-achieving students, including the Jarvis Scholarship, available to incoming freshmen each year. The school awards over $9.4 million in financial assistance annually, and about 50% of our families participate in our affordability program. |
| School Recognitions |
University School is perennially ranked as the #1 Private K-12 School in Ohio by Niche, along with several other #1 rankings. The Ohio Academy of Science selected our Middle School and Upper School for the Governor's Thomas Edison Award for Excellence in STEM Education and Student Research. Our Upper School was also honored by the Ohio Academy of Science with the Harold C. Shaw Outstanding School Award, one of only 12 high schools in the state to earn this distinction. US is proud to be recognized as a Top Workplace in Northeast Ohio year after year. |
| Accreditation and Member Associations |
| US is accredited by the Independent School Association of the Central States (ISACS) and by the Ohio State Department of Education. We are a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), the Ohio Association of Independent Schools (OAIS), the Cleveland Council of Independent Schools (CCIS), and the International Boys' Schools Coalition (IBSC). |
History
Established in 1890, University School has since served as a model for the American independent school. The vision we follow today—of educating a boy's mental and physical capacities, and his reflective side as well as his practical side—can be attributed to founding headmaster Newton Mitchell Anderson.
Raised in Cincinnati, Newton Anderson entered the inaugural class of the newly founded Ohio State College, now The Ohio State University, and studied applied sciences. In 1885, not yet 30 years old, he convinced a group of prominent Clevelanders to create, equip, and support the Cleveland Manual Training School, which opened in 1886 with Mr. Anderson as principal. There was a great need for vocational and commercial education programs at the time, and the city of Cleveland acquired the training school in 1887, setting the precedent for its vocational and technical high schools to follow.
His experience setting up the Manual Training School inspired Mr. Anderson to conceive a new school, this one comprehensive in its aims. This school, University School, would develop each boy's several aptitudes: intellectual, physical, moral, and civic.
Newton Anderson's clear vision evolved into our mission today:
University School inspires boys of promise to become young men of character who lead and serve. Our dedicated faculty, rigorous curriculum, and experiential programs foster intellectual, physical, creative, and moral excellence. University School is a diverse and inclusive community where each boy is known and loved.
Notes: Sidebar of School leadership contact info and links to their pop-up bios pulls from our directory. Unclear how this will be handled so this content is not copied here. Current website page: https://www.us.edu/explore/about-us
Explore Your Journey
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