Frederick U. Conard High School is a

public high school A state school, public school, or government school is a primary school, primary or secondary school that educates all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in part by taxation and operated by the government of the state. State-f ...

West Hartford West Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, west of downtown Hartford. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region. The population was 64,083 at the 2020 census. The town's popular downtown area is colloquiall ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. It opened in 1957, and was named after Frederick Underwood Conard, president of Niles-Bement-Pond Company and chairman of the local Board of Education when plans for the school were approved. Conard is one of two West Hartford public high schools, the other being Hall High School.

History

Conard's first classes were held on September 4, 1957. While Conard was originally designed to accommodate 1,100 students, it now accommodates 2,870. On February 23, 2015, fans of Conard and Hall High School badminton were involved in a physical conflict at their annual end-of-season rivalry game. At the end of the 2021-2022 School Season, the students, staff, and Board of Education of West Hartford Public Schools were prompted to vote for mascots which Conard and Hall High Schools would change theirs to, respectively. For Conard, "Red Wolves" won with a substantially higher vote.

Academics

* Blue Ribbon School in 1984–85.

Athletics

Conard High School is part of the Central Connecticut Conference (CCC), competing in the West Division. The Board of Education added varsity sports for girls in January 1972. Conard's Gavin Sherry was three time Gatorade POY (Player of the year) recipient. The boys cross country team won the CIAC Class LL title and runner up at the CIAC state open championship in the fall of 2019. The boys ice hockey team won the CIAC Division II ice hockey championships in 1985 and 1996. The girls horse polo team won the CIAC Division I horse polo championships in 1976 and 1983. The horse polo team was abolished in 1987.

CIAC State Championships

Notable alumni

David Naughton David Walsh Naughton (born February 13, 1951) is an American actor and singer. He is known for his starring roles in the horror film ''An American Werewolf in London'' (1981) and the Disney comedy '' Midnight Madness'' (1980), as well as for a lo ...

, class of 1969, actor (''

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'') *

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, actor, winner of the

Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actors for quality leading roles in a Musical ...

(1990, 1997) * Robert Romanus, actor Fast Times at Ridgemont High, class of 1974 * Jimmy Shea, class of 1987, 2002 Olympic

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winner * Matt Sinatro, class of 1978,

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player and coach * Kevin Galvin, business/health care advocate ( CVS) *

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, professional basketball player (transferred before graduating) * Jack Sonni, class of 1972,

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ist for

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* Peter Dante, actor (" Grandma's Boy," " Big Daddy," " Mr. Deeds," " Little Nicky") * Justin R. Clark, class of 1993, Director of the

White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs The White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs (IGA) is a unit of the White House Office, within the Executive Office of the President of the United States, Executive Office of the President. It serves as the primary liaison between the White ...

* Brett McGurk, class of 1991;

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, Director for Iraq * Mike Joy, auto racing announcer * Seth Waxman, class of 1969, Solicitor General of the United States *

Paul Lieberstein Paul Bevan Lieberstein (born February 22, 1967) is an American actor, screenwriter, television director and television producer. A Primetime Emmy Award winner, he is best known as a writer, executive producer, and supporting cast member on the ...

, class of 1985, actor (''

The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...

'') *

Nancy Dow Nancy Maryanne Dow (July 22, 1936 – May 27, 2016) was an American television and film actress. She was married to actor John Aniston and was the mother of actress Jennifer Aniston. Early life Dow was born in West Hartford, Connecticut, one o ...

, class of 1958, actress, mother of

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom ''Friends'' from 1994 to 2004, which earned her Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, and Scr ...

* Veronica Belmont, class of 2000, internet personality

References

External links

* {{authority control Buildings and structures in West Hartford, Connecticut Schools in Hartford County, Connecticut Educational institutions established in 1957 Public high schools in Connecticut 1957 establishments in Connecticut