Spence School

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Private, all-girls, college-prep school in New York City

title: "Spence School" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["educational-institutions-established-in-1892", "girls'-schools-in-new-york-city", "preparatory-schools-in-new-york-city", "private-k–12-schools-in-manhattan", "upper-east-side", "1892-establishments-in-new-york-city"] description: "Private, all-girls, college-prep school in New York City" topic_path: "society/education" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spence_School" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Private, all-girls, college-prep school in New York City ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox school"]

FieldValue
nameSpence School
imageSpence_School_(48236942811).jpg
captionEntrance to the Upper School (2019)
established1892
typePrivate, Day, College-prep
genderGirls
motto
motto_translationNot for school, but for life we learn
founderClara B. Spence
tuition$68,480 (2025-2026)
principal_labelHead of School
principalFelicia Wilks
streetaddress56 East 93rd Street (Lower School)
22 East 91st Street (Middle/Upper School)
cityNew York City (Manhattan)
stateNew York
countryU.S.
zipcode10128
campusUrban
faculty210 (2014–15)
enrollment736
enrollment_as_of2014–15
ratio7:1
gradesK–12
accreditationNYSAIS
nicknameSabers
colorsBlue, Gold and White
conferenceAAIS (most sports)
NYSAISAA
affiliationsNew York Interschool
coordinates
homepage
::

| name = Spence School | image = Spence_School_(48236942811).jpg | caption = Entrance to the Upper School (2019) | size = | established = 1892 | type = Private, Day, College-prep | gender = Girls | motto = | motto_translation = Not for school, but for life we learn | founder = Clara B. Spence | tuition = $68,480 (2025-2026) | chair = | head_label = | head = | principal_label = Head of School | principal = Felicia Wilks | viceprincipal_label = | viceprincipal = | viceprincipal_label1 = | viceprincipal1 = | viceprincipal_label2 = | viceprincipal2 = | streetaddress = 56 East 93rd Street (Lower School) 22 East 91st Street (Middle/Upper School) | city = New York City (Manhattan) | state = New York | country = U.S. | zipcode = 10128 | campus = Urban | faculty = 210 (2014–15) | class = | enrollment = 736 | enrollment_as_of = 2014–15 | ratio = 7:1 | grades = K–12 | accreditation = NYSAIS | nickname = Sabers | colors = Blue, Gold and White | mascot = | conference = AAIS (most sports) NYSAISAA | newspaper = | yearbook = | affiliations = New York Interschool | coordinates = | free_label = | free_text = | free_label1 = | free_text1 = | free_label2 = | free_text2 = | homepage =

The Spence School is an American all-girls private school in New York City, founded in 1892 by Clara B. Spence.

Spence has about 740 students, with grades K-4 representing the Lower School, 5-8 representing the Middle School, and 9-12 representing the Upper School. Lower school average class sizes are 16-18 and middle and upper school average class sizes are 13–14. The student: teacher ratio is 7:1 and students of color in all grades make up approximately 33 percent of the student body.

For the 2025–26 academic year, tuition and fees total $68,480 for all grades. Its sister schools are the all-girls Brearley School, the all-girls Chapin School and the all-boys Collegiate School, all in New York City. Forbes magazine ranked Spence ninth on its "America's Best Prep Schools" list in 2010.

History

The Spence School was founded in 1892 by Clara B. Spence, who was its head for 31 years. The school's motto is non scholae sed vitae discimus (Latin for 'Not for school, but for life we learn'). The first building was located on New York City's West 48th Street. The school once had a boarding option, but all current girls are day students.

Clara B. Spence described her school as: "A place not of mechanical instruction, but a school of character where the common requisites for all have been human feeling, a sense of humor and the spirit of intellectual and moral adventure."

Spence read from Shakespeare in dramatic declamation every week. She was known for her conservative comportment and strictness, but also her devotion to women's rights. She arranged for Edith Wharton, Helen Keller, and George Washington Carver to speak at the school. Isadora Duncan taught dance classes.

In a commencement address from an unknown year, Spence said that cultivating imagination was an important skill, since “sympathy, that great bond between human beings, is largely dependent on imagination—that is, upon the power of realizing the feelings and the circumstances of others so as to enable us to feel with and for them.”

The school has been located on East 91st Street since 1929.

In 1987, renovation and expansion of the 91st street campus was completed by FXCollaborative, including the additon of a three-story building on the western side of the campus. When the school wanted to expand and build on the lot in the 1990s, they built a new playground on the roof of the new building to meet the stipulations of the gift. In 2004, the Lower School (Kindergarten through Grade 4) was moved to a beautifully restored landmark five-story building at 53 East 93rd Street. In 1999, the school purchased the William Goadby Loew House at 53 E 93rd Street for use as its Lower School building. In 2008, Spence acquired the adjoining Wanamaker-Munn townhouse on 90th street for use as its Upper School facilities.

Academics

Spence offers a liberal arts and science curriculum, including programs in the arts and foreign languages. In a Worth magazine study, out of the 31,700 private and public high schools in the United States, Spence ranked the sixth most successful school in the country in placing its graduates in Harvard, Yale and Princeton.

Notable alumnae

Affiliated organizations

References

References

  1. [https://www.spenceschool.org/admissions/tuition-and-financial-aid Tuition and Financial Aid]. The Spence School.
  2. [http://www.spenceschool.org/Page/About-Spence/At-a-Glance Spence School. At a Glance]
  3. Hymowitz, Kay S.. (Spring 2001). "Survivor: The Manhattan Kindergarten". City Journal.
  4. FAQ]
  5. Laneri, Raquel. (April 10, 2010). "A profile of one of America's 20 best prep schools.". Forbes.
  6. History]
  7. Gordon, Meryl. (2014). "The Phantom of Fifth Avenue. The Mysterious Life and Scandalous Death of Heiress Huguette Clark". Grand Central.
  8. {{citation
  9. (31 May 1987). "If You're Thinking of Living in:; CARNEGIE HILL (Published 1987)".
  10. (2005). "Fox & Fowle Architects: Designing for the Built Realm". Images Publishing.
  11. "Our History".
  12. "Timeline". Spence School.
  13. [http://www.auap.com/prepschoolclass.html CollegePrepUSA (from Worth magazine)] {{webarchive. link. (December 27, 2008)
  14. (August 10, 1999). "Frances Baldwin". Hearst Communications.
  15. [[Bill Dedman]], Paul Clark Newell, Jr., ''Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Loss of one of the World's Greatest Fortunes'', London: Atlantic Books, 2013, pp. 105-108
  16. "Dawn French bio".
  17. Ciaran Brown. (April 2008). "Ciaran Brown Meets the Stars(Dawn French)".
  18. Trebay, Guy. (March 6, 2013). "Michelle Harper, a Woman of Mystery".
  19. [https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/126045.htm Bonnie Jenkins U.S. State Department bio] (though no mention of Spence)
  20. "Elizabeth Montgomery Bio". Biography Channel(UK).

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educational-institutions-established-in-1892girls'-schools-in-new-york-citypreparatory-schools-in-new-york-cityprivate-k–12-schools-in-manhattanupper-east-side1892-establishments-in-new-york-city