Private school
Germantown Friends School
Type Private Motto Behold, I have set before thee an open door. Established 1845; 179 years ago (1845 ) Head of school Dana Weeks Faculty 87 Full Time
24 Part Time Grades K–12 Enrollment 1021 Color(s) White, blue, orangeAthletics conference Friends School League Mascot Tiger Affiliation Religious Society of Friends Website
www .germantownfriends .org
40°01′58″N 75°10′18″W / 40.03278°N 75.17167°W / 40.03278; -75.17167
Germantown Friends School (GFS ) is a
coeducational independent PreK–12 school in the
Germantown neighborhood of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , in the
United States under the supervision of Germantown Monthly Meeting of the
Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). It is governed by a School Committee whose members are drawn from the membership of the Meeting, the school's alumni and parents of current students and alumni. The head of school is Dana Weeks.
History
Germantown Friends School was founded in 1845 by Germantown Monthly Meeting. The school was founded in response to a request from the Philadelphia
Yearly Meeting . Until the early 20th century, Germantown Friends was a "select" school, meaning that only the children of Quaker parents were admitted. Germantown Monthly Meeting was an Orthodox meeting and valued
classical education . Athletics and the arts were considered a diversion from the essentials needed by young people.
Notable alumni
John "Skip" Barber , 1954: Racing Instructor.
Emily Bazelon , 1989: Journalist (
Slate ,
New York Times ), Truman Capote Fellow at
Yale Law School .
Eric Bazilian , 1971: Musician and songwriter of the band
The Hooters .
Henry Bean , 1963: Film director, scriptwriter.
Jesse Biddle , 2010: Left-Handed Pitcher selected by the
Philadelphia Phillies 27th overall in the
2010 Major League Baseball Draft .
Sandra Boynton , 1970: Cartoonist, songwriter, and best-selling author.
Sarah Chang , attended but did not graduate: Violinist.
Owen Chamberlain , 1937: Discoverer of the
antiproton and
Nobel Laureate in Physics for 1959.
C. West Churchman : Philosopher, System Theorist, and a founding father of
Management Science .
Walter Cope : Architect known for academic buildings.
Kathryn Davis , 1964: Novelist.
Erica Armstrong Dunbar , 1990: Historian and author, National Book Award Finalist.
Garrett Dutton III , aka
G. Love , 1991: Musician and front man of the band
G. Love & Special Sauce .
Michael Friedman , 1993: Composer.
William Newport Goodell , 1926: Artist, craftsman, and educator
Janet Brown Guernsey , 1931: physicist
Nathaniel Kahn , 1981: Filmmaker. Writer and director of
My Architect , a film about his father,
Louis Kahn .
Christopher P. Long , 1987: American academic and Dean of the College of Arts and Letters and Honors College at Michigan State University.
Stacy Levy : Sculptor.
Ted Mann (journalist) , 1998: Reporter for the
Wall Street Journal , credited with breaking the
Bridgegate controversy involving New Jersey governor
Chris Christie .
Rob Monster : Dutch-American technology executive
Tom Myers , 1976: Nominated for two Academy Awards.
[1]
Scott Pagano , 1996: Video artist.
Saul Perlmutter , 1977: Astrophysicist; winner of the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on the
accelerating universe .
Edmund R. Purves , 1914: architect and executive director of the
American Institute of Architects
Beatrice Simcox Reiner , 1923: psychiatric social worker
Esther Biddle Rhoads , American educator, relief worker
[2]
Mortimer Sellers : American philosopher
Sam Smith : Author, editor, journalist.
Merrie Spaeth : Political public relations consultant; appeared in the film
The World of Henry Orient while a sophomore at GFS.
[3]
Dan Sterling , 1989: Television producer
Makiko Tanaka : Japanese Foreign Minister, 2001–2002.
Michael Grant Terry , 2001: Actor (
Bones ).
Rebecca Traister , 1993: Journalist (
New York Magazine ,
Elle )
Daniel Spielman , 1988: Sterling Professor of Computer Science at Yale, Macarthur Fellow
Ira Wolf Tuton , 1997: Fretless Bass Player
Yeasayer
Elizabeth Gray Vining :
Newbery Medal winner and English tutor to
Emperor Akihito of Japan during his early adolescence.
PJ Vogt , 2004: Journalist, Host of
Reply All podcast
Kristen Welker , NBC News journalist
Santi White , aka
Santigold , 1993: Musician.
Risë Wilson , activist
Dan Wolf , 1976: Massachusetts state senator, founder of Cape Air
William Wright : Author
Notable staff
Entertainment
The main character from the TV series
Twin Peaks , FBI Agent
Dale Cooper , supposedly grew up in Germantown and attended Germantown Friends School (as created by director
David Lynch , who spent many years in Philadelphia).
[5] They were also referenced in
The Goldbergs ' spinoff show,
Schooled , in the fifth episode of the first season, "Money for RENT".
References
^
"Tom Myers" . IMDb .
^ Rombeau, John L.; Muldoon, Donna (1997).
Jonathan E. Rhoads, M.D. : Quaker sense and sensibility in the world of surgery . Internet Archive. Philadelphia : Hanley & Belfus. pp. 16–21.
ISBN
978-1-56053-252-1 .
^
"The Girls of Henry Orient" , Time , May 15, 1964
^ Heck, Shari.
"LinkedIn of Shari Heck" . Retrieved 28 October 2023 .
^ Frost, Scott: The Autobiography of F.B.I. Special Agent Dale Cooper: My Life, My Tapes , page 1, Pocket Books, 1991.
External links
5-12 schools 6-12 schools 7-12 schools Neighborhood high schools Alternative high schools K-8 schools Middle schools Elementary schools
Former high schools/ 6-12 schools Former K-8/middle/ elementary schools