Episcopal Academy

The Episcopal Academy, founded in 1785, is a private, co-educational school for grades Pre-K through 12 based in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. Prior to 2008, the main campus was located in Merion Station and the satellite campus was located in Devon. The Newtown Square facility is on a campus. Episcopal Academy has been consistently ranked as a top private school in the nation by various media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal. The Academy is affiliated with the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. History Early years The Episcopal Academy was founded in 1785 by the Rt. Rev. William White at Old Christ Church in Philadelphia as an all-boys school, focusing on classical education in Greek, Latin, religion, mathematics, and business. It was also a pre-missionary school. Trustees included two signers of the Declaration of Independence, as well as bankers, merchants, and ministers. It was founded two years after American Revolutionary War ended. The faculty was composed of notable figures such as Noah Webster Jr., who developed the Webster Dictionaries. Its first campus was located on the east side of Fourth Street and was directed by Rev. John Andrews, D.D., the Academy's first headmaster. When Dr. Andrews and several of faculty members left in 1798 to teach at the University of Pennsylvania, The Episcopal Academy was reconstituted as a free school. In 1816 it became a Second Classical Academy, and a free school again in 1828. During some years, the Academy did not operate as an educational entity.