Sayre School is an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

, private, co-educational school in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

, US. The school enrolls 610 students from age two through twelfth grade. It has 68 full-time faculty members.

History

David A. Sayre, a

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

silversmith, migrated to Lexington where he eventually became a successful banker. He and his wife Abby founded the school as an all-female boarding school in November 1854 when he met with a group of businessmen in the offices of former Kentucky Secretary of State George B. Kinkead. Along with several other prominent members of the "McChord" (now First) Presbyterian Church, including

John C. Breckinridge John Cabell Breckinridge (January 16, 1821 – May 17, 1875) was an American politician who served as the 14th vice president of the United States, with President James Buchanan, from 1857 to 1861. Assuming office at the age of 36, Breckinrid ...

, the group drew up the school's articles of incorporation. In the fall of 1855, the school was moved to its current location on Limestone Street. The school remained an all-female boarding school until 1876, when boys were admitted as day scholars in the primary grades under the leadership of Major Henry B. McClelland, who was the school's principal from 1870 to 1904. In 1914, the nearby preparatory school of Miss Ella M. Williams merged with Sayre, and the name was changed to Sayre College and Conservatory of Music. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, the school struggled, but in 1942 it grew with the incorporation of the Hamilton Grammar School, and changed its name to Sayre School, dropping its collegiate degree program. The pillars outside the main entrance of the campus still show "Sayre College." In 1947 the high school grades were discontinued, and the boarding rooms were leased to the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

. In 1961 an English teacher from Lafayette High School, Donn D. Hollingsworth, was appointed headmaster and the high school was reinstated, in addition to the grammar school, beginning the "New Era." In March–April 2017, Sayre begun the demolition and reconstruction of the lower (elementary) school, only finishing in summer of 2018.

Academics

The Sayre School consists of three academic divisions, covering ages 2 through grade 12. The Lower School consists of a preschool program for ages 2–5, as well as Kindergarten through Grade 4. The Middle School covers grades 5–8, and the Upper School incorporates grades 9–12, like a traditional

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

. The Upper School offers 17

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Colleges and universities in the US and elsewhere ...

courses, and 85% of seniors who took an AP class earned a score of 3 or higher, with 60% being designated as AP Scholars; two were National AP Scholars.

People

Since Sayre is no longer a

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

, most of its students reside in

or its nearby counties, such as

Scott Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Sas ...

Bourbon Bourbon may refer to: Food and drink * Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash * Bourbon, a beer produced by Brasseries de Bourbon * Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit * Bourbon coffee, a type of coffee ma ...

, Jessamine, Madison, and Woodford counties. Students come from 13 Central Kentucky counties, including Fleming, and Estill counties, that are more than an hour commute away. There are also some students that reside in the county of Wolfe, which is also about an hour commute away.

Notable alumni

Notable past Sayre students include Nobel Laureate

William Lipscomb William Nunn Lipscomb Jr. (December 9, 1919April 14, 2011) was a Nobel Prize-winning People of the United States, American Inorganic chemistry, inorganic and Organic chemistry, organic chemist working in nuclear magnetic resonance, theoretical ch ...

, woman suffragist

Laura Clay Laura Clay (February 9, 1849June 29, 1941), co-founder and first president of the Kentucky Equal Rights Association, was a leader of the American women's suffrage movement. She was one of the most important suffragists in the South, fav ...

, settlement school founder Katherine Pettit,

Josh Hopkins William Joshua Hopkins (born September 12, 1970) is an American actor. His best known roles include Raymond Millbury on '' Ally McBeal'' (2001–2002), Grayson Ellis on '' Cougar Town'' (2009–2015), and Liam O'Connor on '' Quantico'' (2015–2 ...

Byrd Spilman Dewey Byrd "Birdie" Spilman Dewey (née Julia Bird Spilman; February 16, 1856 – April 1, 1942) was an American author, land investor, and co-developer of the Town of Boynton. She lived in Florida from 1881 until her death in 1942. Her best known w ...

, and actresses

Ashley Judd Ashley Tyler Ciminella, known professionally as Ashley Judd (born April 19, 1968), is an American actress and activist. She grew up in a family of performing artists, the daughter of country music singer Naomi Judd and the half-sister of country ...

and

Leah Lail Leah Lail is a retired American actress, best known for her role as Kay Simmons the communications and systems expert on the syndicated television series '' V.I.P.''. Early life Lail graduated summa cum laude from the University of Southern Cal ...

Athletics

Sayre's sports teams are called the

Sparta Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the Evrotas Valley, valley of Evrotas (river), Evrotas rive ...

ns. Their school colors are blue and gold. Notably, the school has a "no-cut" policy for its sports teams, meaning that any student can participate on an athletic team, regardless of ability, if he or she wishes to do so. Former NFL and

Marshall University Marshall University is a public university, public research university in Huntington, West Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1837 and is named after John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States, chief justice of the Uni ...

quarterback

Chad Pennington James Chadwick Pennington (born June 26, 1976) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. He is currently the head football coach of the Sayre School in Lexington, Ke ...

was hired in 2018 to be coach of Sayre's new football team. In his first year of coaching, he led the team to a 3–5 record. In 2023, the team would go 10–0 during the regular season and making it to the quarter-finals in the 1A tournament. This dominance would continue into the 2024 season, where the Spartans claimed their first Class 1A State Championship.

References

{{NRHP 1854 establishments in Kentucky Educational institutions established in 1854 History of women in Kentucky Preparatory schools in Kentucky Private elementary schools in Kentucky Private high schools in Kentucky Private middle schools in Kentucky Schools in Lexington, Kentucky National Register of Historic Places in Lexington, Kentucky School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky