Catlin Gabel School

With roots that go back to 1859, the school was formed by the 1957 merger between the Catlin Hillside School (founded in 1911 as Miss Catlin's School, named after the founder Ruth Catlin) and the Gabel Country Day School (originating as the Portland Academy, named after founder Priscilla Gabel).[6] The school had initially hoped to expand onto the Gabel school property, but lost it to eminent domain. Since the Catlin property was too small to support the school, Catlin Gabel purchased the Honey Hollow Farm in 1958, relocating the Upper School there in the fall. Nine years later, the Middle School relocated there, followed by the Lower School a year later, in 1968. The school sold the Catlin Hillside buildings to the Portland Art Museum for its art school. The buildings were later converted to a community center for the Hillside neighborhood.[7]

In 2005, the Malone Family Foundation endowed Catlin Gabel with a $2 million grant for financial aid under its Malone Scholars Program.[8]

As of the 2020-2021 school year, there were 780 students.[9] The student body is divided into three groups: Upper School (grades 9–12), Middle School (grades 6–8), and Beginning and Lower School (preschool–grade 5).[10]

In the last four years, (2017-20), a Catlin Gabel student has been named a U.S. Presidential Scholar, a recognition given each year to 161 high school seniors nationally for their accomplishments.[11][12][13][14]

Catlin Gabel is accredited by the Northwest Association of Independent Schools (NWAIS).

Catlin Gabel has operated a team in the FIRST Robotics Competition since 2005, called "The Flaming Chickens". The team has consistently qualified for the FIRST World Championships competition almost every year.[19]

Catlin Gabel has been a successful participant in the Oregon Mock Trial competition, and has often gone to the national competition.[20]

Catlin Gabel's traditional rival in athletics is the Oregon Episcopal School.[21] The Middle School fields teams of soccer, volleyball, cross-country, basketball, and track. The Upper School competes in soccer, cross-country, basketball, baseball, track, golf, swimming, skiing, women's volleyball, and tennis. The CGS Eagles are currently ranked #1 in the state for both boys and girls soccer.[22][23]

Some of the early traditions at Catlin Gabel School included the beginning-of-the-year “Bacon Bat” picnic. Bacon Bat is an event involving games, competitions and a cookout with the intention of building school spirit.[24]

The first “Clean-Up Day” took place in 1937, and the school has continued that tradition since. Though the name of this tradition has been renamed to Campus Day, the central idea of taking care of the school's campus is still at the heart of it.

Additionally, in 1931 students first performed “St. George and the Dragon,” a tradition which has been going on since. Students still remember “St. George” as one of the highlights of their time in middle school.

One of the most common traditions has been the recitation of the School Chapter, a tradition dating back to 1935 for ninth graders to memorize I Corinthians 13 in their English 9 classes.[25]

This rummage sale was similar to a large garage sale –– people would donate items that would be sorted and then later sold. The “Rummage Sale” became a school tradition.[24]

Beginning in 2017, several former students began writing about sexual abuse by faculty on social media. Coinciding with the Me Too movement, the number of accounts increased, prompting the school to commission an investigation in October 2019.[26]

The investigation issues a report on November 11, 2019. It found that at least 21 Catlin Gabel faculty had taken advantage of their positions at the school in committing various degrees of sexual impropriety. This ranged from the rape of a 6th grade minor to generally inappropriate behavior and relationships between faculty and students that went back as early as the 1960s and was recorded occurring as recently as 2016.[27] In December 2019, the Washington County Sheriff's Department opened a criminal investigation of the school.[28] In January 2020, The Oregonian documented allegations by over 15 former students from age 21 to 61.[26] Six more former students sued the school in April 2020 saying they were fondled, groped, and sexually abused by former teachers Richardson Shoemaker, Robert Ashe, Art Leo and Sam Crawley.[29] A total of 16 former students have filed suit against Catlin Gabel.[30]

• Megan Amram, 2006,[6] comedian and writer
• David Bragdon, 1977,[6] former president of Metro (regional government)
• Caroline Burke, 1933, actress, theater producer, and art collector[31]
• Gretchen Corbett, 1963,[6] actress
• Winslow Corbett, 1998, film and stage actress
• Kevin M. Esvelt, 2000, biologist at the MIT Media Lab[32]
• Roger Gantz, 1989, Portland Timbers midfielder
• Max Handelman, 1991, film producer and author
• Margaux Hemingway, 1973, model and actress, granddaughter of novelist Ernest Hemingway
• Mayo Methot, 1919, actress and second wife of Humphrey Bogart
• Sadako Ogata, 1946,[6] former United Nations high commissioner for refugees
• Nadya Okamoto, 2016, founder of PERIOD.org, author of Period Power: a Manifesto for the Menstrual Movement, former Chief Brand Officer of JUV Consulting.
• David Shipley, 1981,[6] deputy editorial page editor and op-ed editor, The New York Times
• Olaniyi Sobomehin, 2003, NFL football player
• J. Mary Taylor, 1948,[6] science educator
• Gus Van Sant, 1971,[6] film director
• Charis Wilson, 1932, writer, model for, and wife of photographer Edward Weston

• Official website
• Charity Navigator data on Catlin Gabel School