Robert A. Lake, Head of School
Crystal Land, Assistant Head of School
Carl Thiermann, Head of Upper School
College Counseling Office
Kate Augus, Director of College Counseling
510.531.1300, x2119 / kaugus@headroyce.org
4315 Lincoln Avenue r Oakland r California r 94602
www.headroyce.org r 510.531.1300
Carrie Horsey, Associate Director of College Counseling
510.531.1300, x2112 / chorsey@headroyce.org
CEEB Code: 050285
PROFILE 2012-2013
SCHOOL
Head-Royce School is a nonsectarian college preparatory day school with coeducational classes
from kindergarten through grade 12. Founded in 1887 in Berkeley, California as The Anna Head
School for Girls, it was relocated in 1964 to a six-acre campus in a residential area in Oakland,
six miles south of Berkeley. The Josiah Royce School for Boys was opened at an adjoining site in
1971 as a coordinate school. Since 1979, Head-Royce School has been fully coeducational. On July 1,
2010 Robert A. Lake joined Head-Royce as our tenth Head of School.
STUDENT BODY
Head-Royce School enrolls 880 students: 260 in the Lower School, 270 in the Middle School, and
350 in the Upper School. Students come from Oakland, Berkeley, and over 30 other communities in
the East Bay. Students of color comprise nearly 50% of our population. Over $4,000,000 in Financial
Aid was awarded to 30% of our student body for 2012-2013.
ACADEMICS
The purpose of a Head-Royce education is to inspire in our students a lifelong love of learning and
desire for academic excellence, to promote an understanding of and a respect for the diversity that
makes our society strong, and to encourage constructive and responsible citizenship. Upper School
graduation requirements include the following: four years of English; three years of history, math,
science, and world language; and at least one year of an advanced level fine or performing art.
Our 14 Honors and 15 AP classes, along with our advanced fine arts program, contribute to a
challenging and varied college preparatory curriculum. On average, Head-Royce students complete
four AP courses by the time they graduate.
GLOBAL MISSION
To promote our Global Education program, Head-Royce has recently undertaken two new initiatives.
STANDARDIZED
TESTING &
ADVANCED
PLACEMENT
o
The school is a founding member of the Global Online Academy (GOA), a consortium of
23 of the world’s leading independent schools whose mission is to translate into online
classrooms the intellectually rigorous programs and excellent teaching that are hallmarks
of its member schools. During our pilot year, 10 Head-Royce students participated; this year,
14 students will enroll in 20 GOA courses.
o
Head-Royce seniors can apply to participate in our Global Citizenship Certificate (GCC) program.
Candidates must have cross-cultural experience, language proficiency, demonstrated leadership
skills, and service commitment to global issues. GCC students produce a 7-10 page article for
publication, under the guidance of a faculty mentor.
Class of 2012 Middle 50% SAT scores: Critical Reading: 640-730, Math: 640-730, Writing: 660-760.
Mean SAT scores: Critical Reading: 691, Math: 689, Writing: 712
The Class of 2012 has 23 National Merit Commended Students, 4 National Merit semifinalists,
and 4 National Merit Scholarship finalists. There were 2 National Achievement Scholars in the
Class of 2012. In the spring of 2012, 222 students took 409 Advanced Placement tests in 24 subjects.
Ninety percent of scores were 3 or higher.
Upper School Curriculum 2012~2013
ENGLISH
9th
10th
11th
12th
English 9:
Intro to Composition
& Literature
English 10:
American Literature
English 11:
Western Classical
Literature (H)
English 12 Electives:
Alienation (Fall)
American Fiction & Poetry (Fall)
Modern Drama & Playwriting (Fall)
Shakespeare (Fall)
Women’s Literature (Fall)
The Big Book (Spring)
Japanese Literature (Spring)
Literature & Film (Spring)
Wit Lit: The Art of Satire (Spring)
World Mythology (Spring)
Expository Writing
(can be repeated each year for credit)
HISTORY/
SOCIAL SCIENCE
History 9:
Russia, China, India
& Globalization
History 10:
U.S. History (H)
AP U.S. History
History 11:
Western Culture &
Civilization (H)
History 12 Electives:
AP Art History (Fall/Spring)
Economics (Fall/Spring)
Asia Rising (Fall)
Comparative Politics (Fall)
Islam (Fall)
Race Relations (Fall)
The Constitution & the Law (Spring)
Environmental History (Spring)
Ethics (Spring)
Global Issues (Spring)
MATH
Geometry
Geometry (H)
Algebra II
Algebra II (H)
Precalculus
Precalculus (H)
Calculus & Statistics
AP Statistics
AP Calculus AB
AP Calculus BC
SCIENCE
Conceptual Physics
Chemistry (H)
Biology
AP Biology
Science 12 Electives:
AP Environmental Science (Fall/Spring)
AP Physics (Fall/Spring)
Astronomy (Fall)
Adv. Chem: Qualitative Analysis (Fall)
Neurobiology (Fall)
Eco Design (Spring)
Molecular Genetics (Spring)
Robotics (Spring)
LANGUAGES
Chinese I, II, III, IV (H), V/AP
French I, II, III, IV (H), French Literature & Cinema (H), AP Language
Latin I, II, III, IV/V (H), Advanced Latin Seminar (H)/AP Latin (in alternate years)
Spanish I, II, III, IV (H), Advanced Spanish Seminar (H), AP Language, AP Literature
FINE ARTS
Introductory Courses
2D Art: Drawing and Painting
3D Art: Intro to Sculpture
Intro to Dance
Tech
Theater
Drama
I
Drama
I
Tech
Theater
Photography
Theater
Production
Photography
Advanced Courses
Advanced 2D Art
Advanced 3D Art
Advanced Dance
AP Music Theory
AP Studio Art
Chorus
Colla Voce
OTHER
ELECTIVES
Intro to Computer Science
AP Computer Science
Advanced Computer Science
Advanced Program Design
Speech & Debate I and II
GLOBAL
ONLINE
ACADEMY
Digital courses offered in science, social science, math, and world language.
(see GOA profile following for more details)
Drama II
Filmmaking
Graphic Design
Jazz Band
Adv. Jazz Band
Orchestra/Wind Symphony
Photography II, III
Video Production
Features of the Curriculum and the Academic Program
Student Leadership Opportunities To foster an atmosphere of self-governance, Upper School students may apply to
serve one-year posts on several Faculty/Student committees in areas such as Curriculum, Global Citizenship, Diversity,
Key Club, and Honor Council. Additionally, Seniors Prefects serve as mentors to freshman homerooms, and Peer
Facilitators lead family groups (18 students and 2 faculty members) in monthly discussions.
Athletics Through our premier athletic program, Upper School students can play on over 25 interscholastic teams, while
Middle School students have 16 teams to choose from. Our competitive programs have captured over 100 league championships in the last 30 years. Sports offered in the Upper School include baseball, basketball, cross-country, golf, soccer,
softball, swimming, tennis, track, and volleyball. Middle school teams compete in baseball, basketball, cross-country,
soccer, and volleyball.
Fine & Performing Arts Students are actively involved in the arts, participating in school musicals and dramatic
productions, Orchestra, Jazz Band, Chorus and select vocal groups, as well as photography, graphic design, the video yearbook, and on-going studio art exhibits. FADE, our intensive, student-run dance program, stages a major production each
spring. Our Middle and Upper School musicians travel to heritage music festivals across the country. In Summer 2012,
our award-winning Chorus performed throughout South Africa.
Capstone Experiences
o
I-Search In the ninth grade, all students complete the I-Search, an extensive, 7-10 page research project in which
they investigate a contemporary topic through personal interviews and library and internet research. Recent
I-Search paper titles include “Forget the Homeruns and Strikeouts, Baseball is All Business,” “For the Last Time,
What Are You? Mixed-Raced Children and Identity,” and “Reel Revolution: Democratization of Filmmaking Tools.”
o
Senior Projects In May of the senior year, all students participate in structured internships of their choosing. The
senior project is designed to acquaint students with working life in a variety of areas. Each student must complete
80 hours of internship work and then summarize their experience in a presentation to the school community.
Recent graduates have held internships at a local television news network, at local architects’ offices, at restaurants
and catering companies, with a variety of social service and arts organizations, and with corporations like Pacific
Bell and PG&E. Others have pursued projects in medical research, finance, film production, and online journalism.
o
Global Citizenship Certificate Program Head-Royce seeks to prepare students to address the complex issues of
our increasingly interconnected world. Under the guidance of a faculty advisor, GCC candidates select a topic
pertaining to a global or regional issue of interest and craft essential questions to investigate. They spend
the spring semester honing their research and writing skills while producing a lengthy paper for publication.
Additionally, some GCC candidates target their Senior Project to complement their research.
Service Learning Students engage in a variety of service activities through grade-level projects. In grades 10 through 12,
all students have hourly commitments, completing a total of 40 hours by graduation. Senior Projects often include a
dimension of service to the community.
Study Abroad Head-Royce School is committed to promoting a global outlook in our students. To this end we have
developed a network of partnerships throughout the world, including School Year Abroad, which sponsors programs in
China, France, Italy, and Spain. Students may also participate in other study abroad programs; most recently we have
sent students to Cypress, Denmark, England, Iceland, Israel, and Japan. The school also participates in the ASSIST foreign
exchange program. In 2012-13 we will host a student from Spain. We offer several travel opportunities for our students;
many include service components, and students can apply for financial aid as necessary.
Technology Technology is used K-12 at Head-Royce. We have two dedicated computer labs plus multiple mobile laptop
and iPod carts, an Upper School graphic arts lab, a photo and video lab, a world language lab, and an expository writing
lab. Every classroom, K-12, has an LCD projector; many have document cameras, Smartboards and Apple TVs. Our Lower
School teachers have integrated iPads and Chromebooks into the curriculum. We teach Robotics in 2nd, 5th, and 12th
grade and field both Middle and Upper School Robotics teams. We offer a comprehensive high school Computer Science
program, including two courses for students who have completed the AP curriculum. Teachers are provided laptops to
communicate with students and parents, update their web pages, and create curricula.
Community Forums During the school year, special assemblies bring outside speakers and performers to campus.
Recent guests include death row exonorees and lawyers from the Innocence Project, author Michael Pollan, renowned
oceanographer Sylvia Earle, and Holocaust survivor and author Dora Apsan Sorell. Many assemblies are fully coordinated
by our own students.
College Admission: 2008~2012
The following is a partial list of colleges and universities that have offered admission to graduates of the Head-Royce
School, followed by the number of students enrolling in those colleges over the last five years. The 82 members of the
Class of 2012 will attend the colleges in bold type.
American University
Amherst College
Bard College (1)
Barnard College (5)
Bates College
Boston College (1)
Boston University (2)
Bowdoin College (1)
Brandeis University (1)
Brown University (7)
Bryn Mawr College
Bucknell University (1)
California College of Arts
California Institute of Technology
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (3)
CSU East Bay (1)
Carleton College (7)
Carnegie Mellon University (4)
Case Western Reserve (3)
Chapman University (4)
Claremont McKenna College (3)
Clark University
Colby College (1)
Colgate University (3)
College of William & Mary
College of Wooster (2)
Colorado College (2)
Columbia University (1)
Connecticut College (2)
Cornell University
Cornish College of the Arts (1)
Dartmouth College (3)
Davidson College
Denison University (3)
Drew University
Duke University (2)
Emerson College
Emory University (3)
Eugene Lang College
Fordham University
Franklin and Marshall College (3)
George Washington University (3)
Georgetown University (3)
Gonzaga University (1)
Hamilton College (1)
Hampshire College
Harvard University (5)
Harvey Mudd College (1)
Haverford College (1)
Howard University (2)
Ithaca College (1)
Johns Hopkins University (2)
The Julliard School
Kenyon College (2)
Lehigh University (1)
Lewis and Clark College (4)
Loyola Marymount University (5)
Loyola University of New Orleans (1)
Macalester College (2)
Miami University of Ohio
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (4)
Middlebury College (8)
Mt. Holyoke College (2)
New York University (9)
Northeastern University (5)
Northwestern University (4)
Oberlin College (8)
Occidental College (13)
Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering (1)
Parsons School of Design (3)
Pepperdine University (1)
Pitzer College (6)
Pomona College (3)
Pratt Institute (1)
Princeton University (5)
Purdue University (1)
Reed College (3)
Rensselaer Polytechnic University
Rice University (2)
San Jose State University (1)
Santa Clara University (2)
Santa Monica College (1)
Sarah Lawrence College (1)
Scripps College (7)
Seattle University (2)
Skidmore College (3)
Smith College (1)
Southern Methodist University (1)
St. Mary’s College of California
Stanford University (11)
Swarthmore College (1)
Syracuse University (4)
Trinity College
Tufts University (8)
Tulane University (3)
United States Coast Guard Academy (1)
United States Naval Academy (1)
University of Arizona (1)
University of British Columbia (1)
UC Berkeley (16)
UC Davis (15)
UC Irvine (1)
UCLA (14)
UC Merced (3)
UC Riverside (3)
UC San Diego (3)
UC Santa Barbara (4)
UC Santa Cruz (15)
University of Chicago (10)
University of Colorado, Boulder (3)
University of Illinois (1)
University of Maryland, College Park (2)
University of Michigan (5)
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
University of Oregon (3)
University of the Pacific (1)
University of Pennsylvania (11)
University of Puget Sound (6)
University of Redlands
University of Rochester (1)
University of San Diego
University of San Francisco (1)
University of St. Andrews (Scotland) (2)
University of Southern California (15)
University of Texas, Austin (2)
University of Vermont
University of Virginia (1)
University of Washington (5)
Vanderbilt University
Vassar College (2)
Villanova University
Wake Forest University
Washington University in St. Louis (5)
Wellesley College (7)
Wesleyan University (5)
Wheaton College
Whitman College (3)
Whittier College (1)
Willamette University (3)
Williams College (2)
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (1)
Yale University (4)