Few people know that famous filmmaker and Baltimore native John Waters finished his high school career at Boys’ Latin. In a recent (May 27, 2010) YPR Midday interview with Dan Rodricks as well as in his recent Role Models book, John Waters reflected on his BL experience. John left another Baltimore-area private school (reportedly due to his hair!) and stated about his experience there “I think really every interest I ever had was discouraged.” John finished up at Boys’ Latin where “they more understood me- understood me- better.” Click here to listen to the interview.
Enos S. Stockbridge, Class of 1904 was a founding partner with the firm Mullikan, Stockbridge and Waters which in 1953 merged with Miles, Walsh, O'Brien & Morris becoming known as the firm of Miles & Stockbridge, which to this day is one of Baltimore’s finest.
J. Carroll Mansfield, Class of 1916 was an accomplished painter. The Maryland Historical Society houses many of his works.
John Sharpe Dickinson, Class of 1909 earned his undergraduate degree at Johns Hopkins, his graduate degree from Princeton University, and then devoted himself to history, political science and law. He served as Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania and eventually became a member of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration.
He was a frequent visitor to Boys’ Latin School after his graduation. According to a 1935 Inkwell, John Dickinson received the first special award from the school for 'Achieving Success in Life.' At the BL 1944 Commencement Day ceremony Dickinson had this to say to the graduates: “…what impresses most about the boys who went to the (Boys’) Latin School in my time, as I look back on them, is their spirit of personal independence and individuality. They had characters of their own. There was no striving for a school pattern of personality, no effort to sink to a level of conformity, and above all no hero worship with its surrender of personality to the will and tastes of others…Each youngster was himself…The Boys’ Latin School has had a long history. It is now crossing the centennial mark, a span of life which is most unusual for a preparatory school in this country of rapid changes and few traditions. It owes its longevity not to buildings or athletic prowess or to sentiment, but undoubtedly to the soundness of its methods, the intelligence of its purposes and the sincerity and integrity of those who have been connected with it, whether as masters or scholars. There will always be a need for these things in the future as in the past. The life of the school will be prolonged while it continues to supply them. May we all hope that will be for a very long time indeed. For another hundred years at least.”
Dr. Arthur L. Bloomfield, Class of 1904 served as Associate Professor of Medicine at Hopkins until 1922 when he left to become a Professor of Medicine at Stanford University. In 1926, Bloomfield became Professor of Medicine and Executive Head of the Department of Medicine at Stanford until his retirement in 1954. He was a pioneer and expert in the use of penicillin, becoming one of the first medical professionals to use penicillin in the cure of patients with bacterial endocarditic, a previously fatal disease. Stanford now has the Arthur L. Bloomfield Chair of the Medical School named in his honor and each year gives out the Arthur L. Bloomfield Award to recognize excellence in the teaching of clinical medicine.
Robert B. Craven, Class of 1961 was a 1966 graduate of the University of Virginia. After his years in Charlottesville Bob attended, and in 1970 graduated from, the University of Maryland Medical School in Baltimore.
Bob became an expert in the field of infectious diseases. He worked for the National Center for Infectious Diseases and eventually became the Chief, Epidemiology Section - Arbovirus Disease Branch for Infectious Diseases.
John Knight Waters, Class of 1925 served as the Commandant of Cadets at West Point. He was later promoted to Brigadier General in 1952 when he was deployed to Korea as Chief of Staff for I Corps.
Robert Graff Merrick, Class of 1912 became one of the leaders in the Baltimore financial market. He worked as president of Equitable Trust Bank for nearly 40 years, eventually becoming Chairman of the Board. He grew the bank from a small bank with $20 million in assets and five branches to a $438 million operation with 53 branches in the Baltimore metropolitan area.
Charles Snowden Piggott, Class of 1911 was a true pioneer in the scientific community for changing and expanding the world of marine biology and oceanography. He has been called the founding father of ocean floor marine research and served as a scientist at the Carnegie Institution of Washington Geophysical Laboratory for twenty two years of his professional life.
Hanson W. Baldwin, Class of 1920 won the Pulitzer Prize in 1943 for Correspondence for his reporting in the southwest Pacific. A 1941 Inkwell reported that Baldwin was written up in a national publication regarding the U.S. Air and Naval power. The magazine wrote: ”Among the handful of journalists in the country who are true careerists in the field of military writing, Mr. Baldwin is outstanding. He is best known as the military and naval correspondent of the New York Times and his articles in that paper and the several books which he has written are very well known as authoritative and highly informative writings on the topic which is perhaps of greatest interest to the average American citizen today – national defense.” He wrote for the Times through the War and after maintaining his reputation as a military affairs expert.
Joseph Sedgwick Sollers, Jr., Class of 1947 greatest contribution to lacrosse was his help in developing the modern day lacrosse stick. He also was one of the founders of the STX lacrosse company. And his polyurethane stick, which came out in the early 1970s, has revolutionized the game.
Ral Parr, Class of 1896 was one of the founding partners of Parr & Parr, which in 1924 Parr & Parr merged with the well established insurance agency Maury & Donnelly and the new combined firm became known as Maury, Donnelly & Parr. The firm is still in downtown Baltimore. It’s current president is BL’s Leigh Brent ’72.
Calvin H. Goddard, Class of 1907 uncovered the technology that today solves thousands of crimes involving the discharge of firearms. Goddard established the Bureau of Forensic Ballistics with colleagues C. E. Waite, Phillip O. Gravelle, and John H. Fisher. Colonel Goddard began to write and speak extensively on the subject of firearms identification gaining him an international reputation as a ballistics expert. “Science has shown,” Goddard said, “that bullet-markings are as valuable as finger prints of criminals.” This theory was developed from the fact that no two things in the world are exactly alike. Marks, grooves, lines and scratches determine whether a certain projectile has been fired from a particular firearm. The St. Valentine’s Day massacre eventually became a dead issue and there would be no more arrests. However, the event was the birth of firearms identification becoming a vital element in putting thousands of future criminals involved in shootings behind bars when no eyewitness evidence was available. Goddard’s theories were used to identify the shooter involved in the bloody St. Valentine’s Day massacre in Chicago involving Al Capone’s and his gang. Goddard later became the Managing Director of the Scientific Crime Laboratory, at Northwestern University in Chicago. During his lifetime and after is untimely death in March of 1955, Baltimorean, Boys’ Latin and Johns Hopkins graduate Calvin Goddard was and is still referred to in the scientific world as the - “Father of Forensic Ballistics.”
Jack B. Dunn III, Class of 1939 bought the International League Orioles for $70,000 in 1910.
Thomas J. S. Waxter, Class of 1917 attendedAmherst College in 1918 but left after one term to attend officer’s training camp at Princeton, N.J. He eventually graduated from Princeton University in 1921 and was a member of the prestigious Cap and Gown group. He then did a year of post-graduate work at Johns Hopkins University in political science and political economics and eventually attended and graduated from the Yale University Law School in 1924. He was ranked number one in his class of 430 and was selected as a member of the Order of the Coif, a legal honorary fraternity at Yale. In 1987 the Baltimore Sun declared Thomas J. S. Waxter as one of the “150 People Who Shaped the Way We Lived.” The Sun reported: “There is hardly an area of social awareness in Baltimore that did not benefit from “Jake” and wife Peggy Waxter’s unwavering commitment to improving the quality of life for all Marylanders. As chief of the City of Baltimore and later the State of Maryland’s welfare departments Judge Waxter was the champion for the interests and needs of people that had little or no voice in how government was run or resources were allocated.
Senior Farewell Ceremony - Our "goodbye to seniors' day" is a special event and is representative of the close personal community which thrives at Boys' Latin. Seniors, underclassmen, faculty, administrators, and senior parents gather for a final toast and goodbye to the seniors. All assembled listen to toasts from a few selected faculty and students, and seniors announce their senior internship and college matriculation plans. The ceremony ends with a the audience forming an enormous human circle around the gymnasium and seniors walking around the circle to shake hands, "high-five" and hug their classmates, faculty and parents goodbye. Needless to say, this is an emotional and deeply personal experience for all involved.
Senior Retreat is a unique experience in which seniors spend four days evaluating and reflecting on themselves,their relationships, their past and their future. While details of the retreat are not divulged, students unanimously agree that this is an exceptional and life changing experience, one wrought with deep emotion, self reflection and meaningful growth as young men, brothers and sons
Despite our small size, Boys' Latin is consistently amongst the best schools in national lacrosse polls which existed since the mid 1990's. Of note,the 1997 and 2006 teams were undefeated at 17-0 and 21-0 respectively and the #1 teams in the USA. Annually, Boys' Latin host our 'Invitational' lacrosse tournament and have attracted teams from CA, MI, PA, CT, NJ, OH, NY, DC, in an attempt to expose our teams to some of the finest high school lacrosse areas in the country. Each year, the team plays a national schedule and has played teams from the above states as well as teams from NC, FLA, VA, TX, CO, and ILL. We will add TN to the list this year.
Outdoor Education is very much alive and well at Boys' Latin. Students in and grades participate annually in overnight camping trips. Our grade trip is a 4 day, 3 night trip in the Shenandoah National Park and teaches a combination of things: living in the woods, cooperation, outdoor food preparation, and physically demanding activities including rock climbing, hiking and handling inclement weather. The 5th grade has an outdoor education camping trip to Genesee Valley Outdoor Learning Center.
Lower School boys in grades 3-5 have the opportunity to participate in the selection of the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award. During the '05-'06 school year, 29 boys volunteered to be readers involved in the selection process. As a group they read 117 books, entirely on their own time, in addition to reading required for class.
Boys in K and Pre-1st learn nursery rhymes. In library they listen to them, sequence them, recite them, and act them out. In music class they sing the rhymes, and in gym class they participate in an 'Olympic event' by doing a Jack Be Nimble relay (leaping over cones with paper flames), Jack Horner race (upside down as pie plates and purple whiffle balls as plums), and a Diddle Diddle Dumpling shoe scramble, to name a few of the events.
We understand what boys like to read! We have responded to the latest research about boys and reading by increasing our magazine subscriptions, and adding both graphic novels and audio books to our collection.
Seventh graders can access information about their English class by visiting Mrs. McGinn's website, which is available on the Faculty Web Pages link and on the Homework Site. If they are absent, they can view notes and PowerPoint presentations. If they lose their homework handouts, they can print off extra copies. If they are late to class, they can access the 'Warm Ups' that are done at the beginning of class every day. They can even take advantage of opportunities for extra credit, online study activities, and reminders about homework and upcoming tests or quizzes.
Middle School students experience numerous different styles of teaching every day, such as whole class discussions, teacher-led lecture and instruction, cooperative groups, games and competitions, technology-based activities, and student-led discussions and activities. There's something for every learning style and every interest level!
Mrs. McGinn recently led a half-day technology workshop for AIMS that focused on integrating technology into the English classroom. One teacher from a school on the Eastern Shore of Maryland said that it was worth the drive because she will be able to implement what she learned in the workshop immediately!
Boys' Latin students performed with The Norwood School in Bethesda for an International Fine Arts Festival.
Guest Artist Daveed Korup visited Boys' Latin to teach techniques for Integrating Core Curricular Subjects Through Drumming, Grades K-5.
The annual Lower School Winter Holiday Program is renowned for the quality of the choreography and expressive group performance of holiday music and dance.
Grades K-1 performs frequently at nursing homes and retirement communities. Their lively performances are cherished by young and old alike.
Multi-platinum recording artist, RUSTED ROOT's Jim Donovan presents an interactive workshop for grades 4-5 and presents an assembly for grades K-2.
We have a Parent/Son book club that meets in the evenings for parents, teachers and boys to share thoughts on the selected reading. In the 7th grade independent reading class, boys may have an oral book talk with the Middle School librarian, rather than writing a traditional book report. This teaches the boys how to discuss books on an adult level and is far more rewarding to the boys. The 'Get Caught Reading' contest has grown over the last three years. We are amazed at the photos of students and teachers caught reading all over the globe.
Pre-first students create a special Mothers in May poem presentation every year for moms and grandmothers.
Pre-first students have Mr. Schell’s economics class over to visit and play math games a couple of times each year.
Pre-first students complete two full-length reports each year - one on Dinosaurs and the other on Pond Life.
The pre-first is small and an amazing growth and development takes place each year. They have a tremendous enthusiasm and great love for learning.
BL is one of the only school’s that offers an architectural program in art to Middle School students and has a tour of a working day at local architectural firm as well as a critique of student projects by professional architects.
Every grade, from grade 5 through grade 8, tours a local or regional art museum or art gallery.
Each and every student, grade 5 through 8, has at least three works of art in the annual divisional art show.
Students have art classes inside and outside of the school buildings (weather permitting).
Artist of the Month: a way to honor outstanding art students for each month of the school year. This program is for students in grades five, six, seven and eighth and they are recognized during assembly time. A student may be recognized for outstanding skill, effort or interest in classroom art.
All 7th graders take Latin.
Sixth grade is able to have several opportunities to hear BL’s own storyteller, Brian Higginson.
The students in sixth grade are exposed to a wide variety of teaching styles, methods and teachers. They are also taught how to manage their time with the long-term 'Big Six' projects.
The students are given the opportunity to go to the computer lab for writing and proofreading skills with Kurzweil Program – and make a presentation of their work for self-evaluation.
Students are able to participate in a Reading Auction in May run by authentic auctioneer to reward extra reading.
The Family Life course in 5th grade includes a special “Baby Day” when moms and babies, mostly from the BL community, join a class for a discussion/sharing/baby-holding experience.
Each year, students participate in Project Clean Stream under the leadership of school nurse, Mrs. Wilson. Students and faculty work side by side to clean neighboring watershed areas.
Three faculty members teach the 7th and 8th grade Decision Making course where life skills, comprehensive health, values and character education are the focus.
BL US has several music ensembles; classical duo, jazz band, instrumental rock, and electric band.
BL MS has 2 electric bands and all 7th graders learn to play the guitar.
BL instrumental music program has received over $20,000 of private donations (in the past year) to support the new programs growth.
School wide, there are over 75 students taking private music instruction.
Learning Specialists in each division help to maximize each student’s learning and support teachers as they develop their own instructional practices.
Brain-based research and the educational implications for understanding and teaching to the learning styles of boys is becoming an integral component of our classroom instructions.
Open Resource offered during Study Hall in MS enables all boys to get their questions answered and receive support in all areas.
8th grade boys are exposed to two theater productions as they move into the reading of Shakespeare.
Parent/son book club meets every six weeks to discuss a novel selected by the students.
Every boy reads an independent reading book each marking period in MS. The 6th and 7th grade boys enjoy the reward of a Reading Auction based on their independent reading pages.
Language Lab classes are offered to any 7th or 8th grade boy who demonstrates a need for skill support in reading, writing, grammar, and study skills.
Faster paced English and Math sections are offered to MS students who demonstrate talent in any of these areas.
Slower paced Latin class is offered in 7th grade for those who require more direction.
Kurzweil software for reading fluency and writing editing is available in the MS computer lab.
One 6th grade reading section gets additional reading instruction in phonetics in order to improve reading fluency and spelling.
US History students enter National History Day, Yoga day in the Asian section of the Non-Western Curriculum.
The Non-Western class was visited by, Mr. Le Bouder, Former Prime Minister of Central African Republic.
Students design historical travel brochures to exotic places in North Western History.
US History Honors visits Mount Vernon, Virginia, home of President Washington.
Amazing English electives for seniors are offered.
In US, we tie literature to social, political, artistic, musical, etc. culture of the time period.
Sophomores read two novels of their own choice in each marking period, and deliver book talks to their classmates.
Every senior delivers a speech to the entire school.
There is intensive instruction in art, particularly, in the Renaissance Period, in European History (Honors) culminating in an extensive visual test of paintings and sculpture.
In US Government students study landmark judicial cases on a case-by-case basis presented to the Supreme Court. Students will team up before the semester ends and make a presentation on a case arguing it before the class.
There are many opportunities for faculty professional development, with BL’s awareness that we must stay current with up-to-date teaching strategies and research.
BL has a diverse student population and a true cross-section of the community.
Teachers are allowed and encouraged to be creative and innovative. We can make learning fun and multi-sensory.
Grades 4 and 5 have science classes four days a week.
Lower School has a Science Fair for grades K-5.
Students participate in the Olympiad National Competitions.
4th grade has a field trip on the Living Classrooms boat to learn about Chesapeake Bay ecology and history.
The culture at Boys' Latin is one of inclusion – wrapped up in 'respecting' all who are part of the BL family.
Lower School has field trips once a month in primary grade to complement the curriculum.
Lower school has above grade level in reading and math opportunities.
Upper School boys give of their free time to assist lower school boys with learning and homework.
All students in grades three, four, and five compete in a National Mathematics Contest.
All boys at Boys’ Latin serve the community by participating in a variety of programs that focus on economic and health related issues. For example, collecting turkeys at Thanksgiving Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Scientist Wax Museum – The 4th grade students study a scientist, then make a puppet of the scientist and to complete this unit of study, dress as the scientist and provide a presentation to his teachers and classmates about the scientist's life and accomplishments.
We foster Advisor/Advisee relationships that help nurture the boys toward future success.
In Mr. Maisel’s Military History course, students receive hands-on experience with articles of the 'Common Soldier' throughout the many wars.
Original films are written, directed and acted by the upper school students each spring.
Upper School junior English students attend productions at Center Stage three times a year.
The 9th grade class presents three annual drama scene showcases.
Senior students present Senior Speeches on Fridays to the Upper School. Three speeches are presented per week. These speeches are written by each student, practiced with the director of Theater Arts who serves as their public speaking coach and delivered to the entire Upper School faculty and student community of approximately 350. The speeches are powerful, passionate, at times entertaining,and often quite emotionally charged.
Student honor and disciplinary heads attend two conferences annually to keep BL’s system for evaluating honor and disciplinary offenses in line with best practices of other AIMS and NAIS schools.
Honor and serious disciplinary offenses have markedly declined as a result of the school entrusting honor to the student body representatives and teaching them how to govern themselves.
The student council and the Upper School began a tradition on class-wide community service last year sending the entire senior class on a designated clean-up effort. Last year seniors planted over 100 trees on Druid Hill Park; this year seniors thoroughly removed invasive plant species from 1.5 acres on Chinquapin Park.
The US annually runs numerous assemblies relevant to educating our students outside the traditional curriculum; in the past 3 years we have heard from experts on AIDS, homelessness, and Testicular Cancer.