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Student Life
Student Life
Life at US
Each Boy Has a Home Here
Our school is a vibrant and welcoming community that fosters true belonging. Our students, faculty, and staff are empowered to share their voices, experiences, and ideas openly and authentically. In this supportive community, each boy develops confidence, integrity, respect for others, and an appreciation of himself.
Life at US is fun and full of exciting opportunities of all kinds! We plucked twelve favorites here. Take a brief scroll here for a glimpse into some of the good stuff (or great things) that makes us US.
Things to Do Before You Graduate
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Climb the Tower
Take in the 360° view from the Shaker Campus Tower. Every eighth grader ascends to the top of the Shaker Tower to soak views that stretch to downtown Cleveland and Lake Erie. With their friends in their sponsor group, they sign their names on a class board that will reside in the reaches of the Tower. This lofty experience is a memorable end of their Shaker Campus journey. -
Navigate Kilroy Lake
Spend an afternoon paddling in a student-crafted birchbark canoe. Enjoyed by students of all ages, the Upper School’s Kilroy Lake serves as a hub for science research, supporting fishing, canoeing, and a trout hatchery. The lake also serves as inspiration for budding poets and for artists painting en plein air! -
Experience a Mindfulness Session
Connect with yourself and the world around you through a mindfulness session. US provides an interconnected system of support to provide for each student's academic success, emotional health, and social well-being. Mindfulness is integral to this system, allowing students to develop self-awareness, emotional regulation, and stress reduction skills. -
Start a Club
There isn’t a club for that? Create your own! Learning extends beyond the classroom through a wide array of clubs and activities. Students have the freedom to join existing groups or form their own, gathering peers to enjoy shared interests and passions. -
Simulate the E.R.
Button up your lab coat with Young Surgeons to get first-hand look into the medical field. In this signature extracurricular program, Middle School students engage with Cleveland’s distinguished medical community by attending clinics with guest physicians, participating in dissection labs, and visiting medical facilities. -
Explore, Create, Innovate
From basic hand tools to cutting-edge machines, US facilities are outfitted to help you create anything you can think up! Students are encouraged to collaborate and pursue their creative ambitions in the STEAMworks innovation lab, art studios, and woodshops, where the possibilities for making art, solving real-world problems, or both, are endless. -
Take to the Seas
Become an expert on whales and then get your feet wet in Nantucket. In their Whaling theme, fourth grade students learn about the ins and outs of life on the water through the lens of a nineteenth-century whaler. To round out their studies, boys travel to Nantucket, with adventures ranging from climbing a masthead, to holding a harpoon, to watching for whales. -
Address Your Peers
Use your voice to speak about something you are passionate about. Middle and Upper School boys write and deliver speeches on topics of their choice under the helpful guidance of faculty mentors in the Eighth Grade Speaking Contest, Sherman Prize Speaking Contest, and Senior Speech Program. -
Span the Pool
Swim the length of the Shaker Campus pool, then refine your skills to join the State Championship-winning Upper School swimming and diving team! Swimming is a foundational skill taught in the US physical education program. Teachers provide a safe and supportive environment, helping students find their stride in the water. -
Tap a Maple Tree
Learn the trick to making maple syrup, then celebrate a successful syrup season with pancakes in the Sugar House! US’s longstanding maple sugaring tradition, dating back to 1971, gives students the experience of tapping maple trees, collecting sap, boiling it into maple syrup, and bottling it for sale. This syrup is a beloved pantry staple of many US families. -
Learn to Bike
Go from learning to balance on two wheels to riding confidently! Kindergarteners navigate the All Kids Bike Learn-to-Ride Program during field class, featuring eight lessons focusing on balance and pedaling. They develop spatial awareness and motor skills while learning how to bike safely, empowering them to achieve their full riding potential. -
Win Founders' Day
Hoist the Founders’ Day Cup with friends in this yearly competition! Founders’ Day, a beloved tradition, presents a day for spirited competition between houses through games such as tug-of-war, dodgeball, obstacle courses, and more. Each student is assigned to a house, fostering unity and belonging across all grades. -
Be a Buddy
Make a new friend through the Senior Buddies program! Junior K to Grade 2 boys are paired with seniors in their house who serve as buddies. Seniors offer assistance during Founders' Day opening events, and join boys at the Shaker Campus for playground fun and special activities throughout the school year. -
Step into the Spotlight
Make your debut in a performing arts group! Students refine their performing skills through a rich variety of performing arts programs. Whether it’s lacing up sneakers to sing with the High Tops Ensemble, hitting all the right notes with the Flying Mallets, or portraying a role in the latest musical, the avenues for artistic expression are boundless.
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The Possibilities are Limitless
Everyone in the US community, past and present—students, parents, faculty and staff—have contributed to our evolving, enduring, and excellent scholastic environment.
Hugh, Upper School Student
Who you are doesn't define what you can do or who you can be friends with.
Shaker Heights Campus JUNIOR K – GRADE 8
20701 Brantley Road, Shaker Heights, Ohio 44122Phone: (216) 321-8260
Hunting Valley Campus GRADES 9 – 12
2785 SOM Center Road, Hunting Valley, Ohio 44022Phone: (216) 831-2200
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