Our History

List of 7 items.

• Newton M. Anderson (1890-1900)

  Founding headmaster Newton M. Anderson deplored the practice of sending boys away from home for the purely classical education of an East Coast boarding school.  He convinced 70 public-spirited Clevelanders to pledge $100,000 for his concept of a day school that would blend traditional education with training in the manual arts and a rugged athletic program to produce well-rounded and practical leaders for industry and commerce. The school’s first building was erected on 10 acres at the corner of Hough Avenue and East 71^st Street in downtown Cleveland.

• George D. Pettee (1900-1908)

  The school’s second headmaster, George D. Pettee was a visionary, the first to suggest that the school’s leading supporters should endow the current operation of the school, and he proposed a $300,000 target. He saw that the school had begun to outgrow its dense urban environs and urged the trustees to explore the idea of moving the school to what later became Shaker Heights.

• Harry A. Peters (1908-1947)

  The long legendary leadership of headmaster Harry A. Peters piloted US through two world wars, the Great Depression and, in 1926, a move to the 33-acre campus in Shaker Heights. Mr. Peters’ firm and credible adherence to the formation of character and creating good citizens was the essence of his 39-year career as headmaster.

• Harold L. Cruikshank (1947-1963)

  Harold L. Cruikshank was known for creating an atmosphere of welcome surrounding his office and his home, and for recruiting young faculty who had tremendous influence on the quality and direction of the school. His regime rode the wave of a number of athletic achievements, impressive college placements, and baby boom enrollments. He guided the school through the comparatively stable, prosperous period from the end of World War II to the beginning of the tumultuous 1960s.

• Rowland P. McKinley Jr. (1963-1988)

  Under the vigorous leadership of Rowland P. McKinley, Jr., University School was transformed. With the generous financial and moral support of US alumni, parents and friends, the Upper School moved in 1970 to more than 200 acres of meadows and woodland in Hunting Valley. During the last decade of his tenure, he oversaw a long-range plan, with the goal of national leadership and excellence, to be realized by 1990. By the time he retired, the number of courses offered in the Upper School increased from 39 to 65, the athletic program expanded from 16 teams in 8 sports to 35 teams in 12, the student body increased by two-thirds, minority enrollment went from 5 to 95, and financial aid students increased from 9% to 16%. Faculty grew by 95%, and faculty salaries had risen from the 25^th percentile of NAIS schools to the 99^th percentile.

• Richard A. Hawley (1988-2005)

  A dedicated teacher at US, Richard A. Hawley was named to be the sixth headmaster of the school. He brought to the position a national reputation as author and educator. He was committed to boys’ education and was one of the founders of the International Boys’ Schools Coalition. The primary building and Conway Hall on the Shaker campus and the William S. Kilroy ’43 Fieldhouse in Hunting Valley were built under Dr. Hawley’s watch, again with the dedicated support of the greater US community.

• Stephen S. Murray (2005-2015)

  A new era began at US under the inspirational leadership of its seventh headmaster Stephen S. Murray. A new long-range plan and $100,000,000 campaign were announced, with the goal to build the next generation of legendary teachers, attract the region’s most promising boys, develop leaders for the 21^st century, and invest in the future with superb learning spaces and state-of-the-art technology. One highlight of the campaign was the creation of a 52,000-square-foot Hunting Valley academic wing that opened in 2012.