Taft School

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title: "Taft School" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["taft-school", "boarding-schools-in-connecticut", "preparatory-schools-in-connecticut", "private-high-schools-in-connecticut", "schools-in-litchfield-county,-connecticut", "educational-institutions-established-in-1890", "watertown,-connecticut", "1890-establishments-in-connecticut", "ten-schools-admission-organization"] description: "School in Watertown, Connecticut, US" topic_path: "society/education" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taft_School" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary School in Watertown, Connecticut, US ::

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

Field	Value
name	The Taft School
image	Taftschoolseal.png
image_size	170px
motto	Non ut sibi ministretur sed ut ministret
motto_translation	Not to be served but to serve
established
founder	Horace Dutton Taft
type	Private, day and boarding, college-prep
gender	Co-educational
ceeb	070880
head of school	Peter Becker '95
streetaddress	110 Woodbury Road
city	Watertown
state	Connecticut
zipcode	06795
country	United States
coordinates
campus size	226 acre
enrollment	580
enrollment_as_of	2023–24
faculty	124
class	11
ratio	5:1
grades	9–12
colors	Yale blue and Harvard crimson
nickname	Rhinos, Big Red
endowment	$300 million (2023)
homepage
::

| name = The Taft School | image = Taftschoolseal.png | image_size = 170px | motto = Non ut sibi ministretur sed ut ministret | motto_translation = Not to be served but to serve | established = | founded = | founder = Horace Dutton Taft | type = Private, day and boarding, college-prep | gender = Co-educational | ceeb = 070880 | head of school = Peter Becker '95 | streetaddress = 110 Woodbury Road | city = Watertown | state = Connecticut | zipcode = 06795 | country = United States | coordinates = | campus size = 226 acre | enrollment = 580 | enrollment_as_of = 2023–24 | faculty = 124 | class = 11 | ratio = 5:1 | grades = 9–12 | colors = Yale blue and Harvard crimson | mascot = | nickname = Rhinos, Big Red | annual_tuition = | endowment = $300 million (2023) | homepage =

The Taft School is a private coeducational school located in Watertown, Connecticut, United States. It enrolls approximately 600 students in grades 9–12.

Overview

History

The school was founded in 1890 as Mr. Taft's School (renamed to The Taft School in 1898) by Horace Dutton Taft, the brother of U.S. President William Howard Taft. Horace Taft's friend Sherman Day Thacher (the founder of California's Thacher School) inspired Taft to start his own boarding school. The school was initially headquartered in Pelham Manor, New York, but moved to Watertown, Connecticut in 1893.

Along with Lawrenceville, Groton, Milton, and its athletic rival Hotchkiss, Taft was one of the first New England schools founded during the great boom in boarding schools at the turn of the twentieth century. In the school's first generation, around half of the student body came from Connecticut and New York. However, Horace Taft came from a famous Ohio political family, and the school developed a reputation for preparing children of the Midwestern gentry for Yale's entrance examinations.

The school's admission rate was 16% in 2023.

In 2015, Business Insider ranked Taft the 14th-most 'elite' boarding school in the US, based on a formula that equally weighted financial endowment, average SAT scores, and acceptance rate.

Student body

In the 2023–24 school year, Taft enrolled 580 students in grades 9–12, including 100 freshmen (in academy jargon, "lower mids"), 145 sophomores ("mids"), 155 juniors ("upper mids"), and 180 seniors ("seniors").

That year, 82% of the student body lived on campus. 45% of students identified as people of color and 18% came from abroad. 35% of students were on financial aid; 7.6% were on full scholarships; and 55% had previously attended public schools.

Campus

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/TaftAerial.jpg" caption="Aerial view of Taft School main campus."] ::

Taft is located on the grounds of a former hotel in Watertown, Connecticut; the school demolished the original hotel building in 1930. The Watertown campus began with six acres and has since grown to 226 acres. In 2018, Architectural Digest named Taft the most beautiful private high school campus in Connecticut.

The school owns several homes within the Watertown Center Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. However, Taft's core campus is not part of the historic district.

Finances

Endowment and expenses

Taft's financial endowment stood at $299.6 million as of June 30, 2023. In its Internal Revenue Service filings for the 2021–22 school year, Taft reported total assets of $447.9 million, net assets of $382.3 million, investment holdings of $283.8 million, and cash holdings of $24.1 million. Taft also reported $49.2 million in program service expenses and $10.4 million in grants (primarily student financial aid).

Athletics

Taft offers seventeen varsity sports and an intramural equestrian program. The school's athletic facilities include an 18-hole golf course, 16 tennis courts (four indoor), eight squash courts, two field houses, two tracks (one indoor, one outdoor), two ice hockey rinks (one Olympic-sized and one NHL-sized), and more than 10 playing fields.

Taft and its athletic rival Hotchkiss compete in the Founders League, a group of prep schools mostly located in Connecticut. Taft's athletic teams are known as the Rhinos (or the "Big Red Rhinos"), and its school colors are Yale blue and Harvard crimson.

Notable alumni

Main article: List of Taft School alumni

References

References

1. "Our History - Taft School".
2. Baltzell, E. Digby. (1987). "The Protestant Establishment: Aristocracy and Caste in America". [[Yale University Press]].
3. Sargent, Porter. (1920). "A Handbook of American Private Schools". Porter Sargent.
4. Taylor, Ihsan K.. (1999-02-24). "School Life: A Literary Pastiche".
5. "Director of Enrollment: The Taft School, Watertown, CT".
6. "The 50 Most Elite Boarding Schools In The US".
7. "Taft by the Numbers - Taft School".
8. "Frequently Asked Questions - Taft School".
9. Huber, Hannah. (2018-03-29). "The Most Beautiful Private High School in Every State in America".
10. (2001-04-12). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form".
11. (2013-05-09). "Taft School Corporation, Full Filing - Nonprofit Explorer".
12. "Teams - Taft School".
13. "About - Taft School".
14. "Facilities - Taft School".
15. "Taftisms and Traditions - Taft School".
16. "Founders League".
17. "Mascot and Colors - Taft School".

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