Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School

Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School

Columbia Grammar and Preparatory School ("Columbia Prep", "CGPS", "Columbia") is the oldest non-sectarian private school in the United States, located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan (5 West 93rd Street), in New York City, New York. It was founded in 1764 by Columbia University in order to properly prepare incoming freshmen in the fields of English, Greek, and Latin grammar. By 1865, the school had grown substantially and was no longer connected to the university.

The school was originally known as The Grammar School of King's College (relating to the former name of Columbia University), changing its name concurrently with the university during the American Revolution to Columbia Grammar School, adding the word preparatory in 1978. While grammar and preparatory have differing connotations, the entire school is known by its full name.

The school has existed in several locations over the centuries. In 1906, the school moved to its current location on 93rd Street, off Central Park West. It originally consisted of one building, adding five brownstones through the merger of the adjacent Leonard School for Girls in 1950. A building across the street was built in 1984, followed by two more in 1997 and 2001. Furthermore, an administration building was recently added to the school. In the past 10 years, the average size of the graduating class has more than doubled from approximately 45 to approximately 110. The current headmaster is Richard Soghoian, holding that position since 1981. Dr. Stanley Seidman was the grammar school director (resigned 2010). The current grammar school director is Simone Hristidis. Sue Kilmer is the prep school director.

As with other prestigious New York schools, tuition at Columbia Grammar School is quite expensive. In 2012, the New York Times cited a figure of $38,340 for a Grade 12 student.