The Summit Country Day School is a private,

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, PreK–12 co-educational school located in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, Ohio. In 2021, enrollment is 1,055 students from ages 18 months through 12th grade. Although located within the

Archdiocese of Cincinnati The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cincinnati () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction, or archdiocese, of the Catholic Church that covers all of the dioceses in the State of Ohio. As of 2025, the archbishop of Cincinnati is Robert Casey. T ...

, the school is run by the board of trustees and head of school.

Background

The Summit Country Day School was founded in 1890 by the

Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur (Congregationis Sororum a Domina Nostra Namurcensi) is a Catholic Church, Catholic Religious institute (Catholic), institute of religious sisters, founded to teaching order, provide education to the poor. The i ...

as a school for girls. The Summit Boys Middle School opened in 1941 and the upper school began admitting boys in 1972. In 1980, the school became a private, Catholic, independent school when an independent board of trustees assumed operations. Edward Tyrrell was named headmaster, the first layperson to lead the school, and retired in 2003 after 33 years of service to the Summit. The Summit is accredited by the

National Association of Independent Schools The National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) is a U.S.-based membership organization for private, nonprofit, K-12 schools. Founded in 1962, NAIS represents independent schools and associations in the United States, including day, board ...

, Ohio Association of Independent Schools, Independent Schools Association of the Central States and other agencies. The Summit continues to endorse the Hallmarks of a Notre Dame Education and maintains a relationship with the

. The school has four divisions. The

Montessori The Montessori method of education is a type of educational method that involves children's natural interests and activities rather than formal teaching methods. A Montessori classroom places an emphasis on hands-on learning and developing ...

program serves ages 18 months to kindergarten. The Lower School serves Grades 1–4. Middle School is Grades 5–8. Upper School is Grades 9–12. Rich Wilson served as head of school from 2010 through 2022. Following his retirement, Kelley Schiess has succeeded Rich Wilson as head of school as of July 1, 2022.

Architecture

Summit's main building, designed by architect

Edwin Forrest Durang Edwin Forrest Durang (April 17, 1829June 7, 1911) was an American architect. He kept offices in Philadelphia and specialized in ecclesiastical and theatrical design. Life and career Durang was born in New York City, into a distinguished theatrica ...

, was first constructed in 1890, then renovated in 1930. It was built in the Gothic Revival style and includes a chapel with seating for 500. In 1960 the school added a primary school building. In 1996, construction of a new middle school building was completed and the boys and girls middle schools were combined into one co-ed program. The athletic complex near Interstate 71 also opened in 1996. In 2003 Summit began another project at an estimated initial cost of $20 million to renovate many sections of the school, and build a new stadium, parking lot, and lower school. In 2004, the school suffered a partial collapse after excavation for an adjacent foundation wall undermined the structure. A renovation and expansion in 2015 included construction of a new a five-floor wing, renovation of all science labs in the middle and upper schools, expansion of the upper school library, and construction of an upper school art room and additional classrooms. In 2017, Pat and Joe Perin donated two antique brass

candelabra A candelabrum (plural candelabra but also used as the singular form) is a candle holder with multiple arms. "Candelabra" can be used to describe a variety of candle holders including chandeliers. However, candelabra can also be distinguished as b ...

to the school, items salvaged from the Albee Theater. The candelabra were made for

John Jacob Astor IV John Jacob Astor IV (July 13, 1864 – April 15, 1912) was an American business magnate, real estate developer, investor, writer, lieutenant colonel in the Spanish–American War, and a prominent member of the Astor family. He was among the most ...

, the wealthy financier, and stood outside the entrance to the dining hall of his New York mansion. Astor perished during the sinking of the

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

Programs and activities

The Summit Country Day Latin Club is a local chapter of both the Ohio Junior Classical League (OJCL) * and

National Junior Classical League The National Junior Classical League (National JCL or NJCL) is a youth organization of secondary school students sponsored and organized by the American Classical League (ACL). Founded in 1936, the NJCL comprises more than 1,000 Latin, Greek a ...

(NJCL). Summit Country Day holds the distinction of being the first Latin club to win the OJCL Convention state title after nearly three decades of consecutive wins from rival Stow-Munroe Falls. Prior to Summit's 2007 win, no other OJCL Latin Club had won the Overall Sweepstakes trophy since 1979 (the start of Stow's 28-year win streak). Summit went on to win the top prize again in 2009 and 2010. There are two academic centers in the high school, The Schiff Family Science Research Center and the Homan Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership.

Athletics

There is an athletic program for students beginning in kindergarten. Until Grade 7, the coaches are parent volunteers. In the high school, Summit fields varsity sports teams in 20 sports across three seasons. The school competes within the

Ohio High School Athletic Association The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) is the governing body of athletic programs for junior and senior high schools in the state of Ohio. The OHSAA governs eligibility of student athletes, resolves disputes, organizes levels of comp ...

and the

Miami Valley Conference The Miami Valley Conference (MVC) is an OHSAA athletic league whose members are located in the Ohio counties of Hamilton County and Butler County. The league was established in 1979. Purcell Marian and Roger Bacon are the most recent additio ...

. Summit has a "no cut" policy for athletics.

Ohio High School Athletic Association state championships

* Boys' 4x200m relay - 2022 * Boys'

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

– 1995 * Boys'

Soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

– 1999, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2024 * Boys'

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

– 2012 * Girls'

- 2011, 2015, 2017, 2023, 2024 * Boys' Cross Country - 2019

Other state championships

*Boys

Lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

- 2006 (Division II Ohio High School Lacrosse Association)

Notable alumni

* Austin Berry, former professional soccer player with the Chicago Fire and

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the Union began ...

, who won the 2012 MLS Rookie of the Year Award. *

Ciara Bravo Ciara Quinn Bravo (; born March 18, 1997) is an American actress and producer. She began her career as a child actress, starring in the Nickelodeon series ''Big Time Rush'' and the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox series ''Red Band Society''. She a ...

, actress * Joan Brugge, Director of the Ludwig Center at

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

* Dustin Cohen, former NFL linebacker with the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1995 through the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, California, where the team had played ...

Super Bowl XXXVI Super Bowl XXXVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion St. Louis Rams and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

* Cynthia Hogan, political advisor who served as counsel to

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

from 2009 to 2013 * Xavier Johnson,

Ohio State Buckeyes football The Ohio State Buckeyes football team competes as part of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, representing Ohio State University in the Big Ten Conference. Ohio State has played its home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, since 1 ...

player * Graham Nicholson, kicker for the

Miami RedHawks The Miami RedHawks are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Miami is a member of the Mid-American Conference ...

Osagie Obasogie Osagie Kingsley Obasogie (born August 21, 1977) is a law professor and bioethicist at UC Berkeley. He is the Haas Distinguished Chair, Professor of Law at Berkeley Law, and Professor of Bioethics in the UC Berkeley – UCSF Joint Medical Program ...

, professor at

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

* Lindsay Reynolds, former Chief of Staff for First Lady

Melania Trump Melania Knauss Trump (born Melanija Knavs, April26, 1970) is a Slovenian and American former model who is married to U.S. President Donald Trump. Since 2025, Melania Trump has served as the first lady of the United States, a role she previous ...

Kathleen Sebelius Kathleen Sebelius (; née Gilligan, born May 15, 1948) is an American politician who served as the 21st United States secretary of health and human services from 2009 until 2014. As Secretary of Health and Human Services, Sebelius was instrumenta ...

, former Governor of

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, and former

Secretary of Health and Human Services The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

in the

Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...

Amy Yasbeck Amy Yasbeck (born ) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Casey Chappel Davenport on the sitcom '' Wings'' from 1994 to 1997 and for having played the mermaid Madison in the television film '' Splash, Too'' in 1988 (the role ...

, actress

Notes and references

External links

School website
{{Authority control High schools in Hamilton County, Ohio Private schools in Cincinnati Catholic secondary schools in Ohio Educational institutions established in 1890 Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati 1890 establishments in Ohio