Chapin School (New Jersey)

Chapin School was founded in Princeton in 1931 by Frances Jordan Chapin. The school acquired its first permanent location in April 1951. In 1958, the school moved to its current site, having purchased the 5-acre (20,000 m²) Edgar S. Smith estate, which included the pre-American Revolutionary War Henry D. Phillips House.

The first decade of the "new" Chapin, incorporated in April 1951, saw a growing student body, administrative stability and the acquisition of a permanent site for the school. Following Mrs. Chapin's death, classes were held for three years in a rented house at 11 Mercer Street. In 1954, the school moved to "Snowden," which it leased from Bernard Kilgore, publisher of The Wall Street Journal and The Princeton Packet. In 1958, Chapin moved to its present location in northern Lawrence Township, having purchased the five-acre Edgar S. Smith estate, the centerpiece of which was the pre-Revolutionary War Henry D. Phillips House.

As the school "grew up," curriculum and institutional procedures matured. In 1991 Chapin received accreditation from the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, and in 2002, the school achieved dual accreditation from Middle States and the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools. In 2012 Chapin was re-accredited for ten years by both accrediting agencies.

Location:

4101 Princeton Pike

Princeton, New Jersey

Grades:

Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 8

Maximum Class Size:

Pre-K: 7:1 student to teacher ratio

Kindergarten: 14 students per class

Grades 1-4: 16 students per class

Grades 5-8: 17 students per class

Smaller groups (8-10 students) for language arts and math instruction

Faculty:

37 full-time teachers

5 part-time teachers

Average years of teaching experience = 10 years

60% of faculty hold advanced degrees

Secondary School Placement:

In the past five years, Chapin students have been chosen to attend the following secondary schools, including:

The Lawrenceville School

Deerfield Academy

Philips Exeter Academy

Peddie School

Hun School of Princeton

Pennington School

Princeton Day School

George School

Princeton High School

Campus:

In 2015, Chapin School completed renovating the Lower and Upper School buildings as well as construction of a new Upper School wing. The learning facilities include: Athletics:Cross-country Soccer

Basketball

Lacrosse

Chapin has a "no cut" participation policy, which affords all interested students the opportunity to be a member of either the junior varsity or varsity team. Many students compete and participate in various outside activities such as gymnastics, dance, music lessons and club teams while playing on a Chapin team.

Accreditation and Memberships:

Middle States Association of Colleges and School

New Jersey Association of Independent Schools.

National Association of Independent Schools (www.nais.org)

• Over 50 classrooms
• 2 technology centers
• 1 design lab
• 3 science labs
• 1 music lab
• 2 Libraries/Media Centers with 12000 books and online resources
• Auditorium
• Full size gymnasium
• 3 athletic fields
• 1 business office with conference room
• 1 dining pavilion

Chapin School launched its most ambitious capital campaign in history in 2012. This consisted of a number of Lower School and Upper School renovations and new facilities including classrooms, science labs, library/media centers and the commons area. By 2015, the capital campaign topped $8 million.

Chapin School built a new pre-school and kindergarten building, the Margaret Wilby Primary Building, replacing the old Pre-K building during the 2006-2007 school year.

• Bebe Neuwirth Star of Cheers and television, movies and Broadway.

• Chapin's website
• Chapin's Facebook
• Chapin's You Tube