The Roxbury Latin School

Founded in 1645, Roxbury Latin is not only the oldest school in continuous existence in North America, it is also, by my reckoning, the oldest boys’ school on the continent. For all of our 374 years we have offered a program explicitly designed for the boys in our care. Our work has been steady and sure. Of Roxbury Latin’s singular qualities, however, none contributes more powerfully to the life of our school than the background and nature of our boys.

Long before other schools sought to demonstrate some semblance of diversity, Roxbury Latin pursued and welcomed a student body reflective of Greater Boston’s broad demographic. We offer admission without concern for a family’s ability to pay, and we provide whatever financial aid is necessary in order for a family to be able to send their son here. Over the last few years, we have successfully extended our financial aid to encompass all complementary features of the School program—activities, trips, counseling. This model makes for a dramatically democratic student body in which boys are measured by and appreciated for their talents, their character, their contribution to the life of the School, and their vibrant, eclectic personalities.

Because Roxbury Latin has redefined accessibility and affordability in this way, boys from all socio-economic groups have found a welcoming educational home here. Graduates will readily assert that the array of perspectives represented, the opportunities to know boys of quite different backgrounds, the bonds forged from experiencing in common this crucible of intense academic challenges, and regular reminders of possibility and duty—all contribute to a climate in which boys come to love and respect each other. They are a band of brothers.

We seek boys who will thrive in a challenging environment that emphasizes character development, academic excellence, and broad extracurricular involvement. Boys with outstanding talent in a defined extracurricular pursuit must still be able and eager to meet the School’s academic standards in order to be admitted. Those with exceptional intellectual power must show their desire to stretch their interests and engage fully in the program. We actively strive for racial, ethnic, religious, and socioeconomic diversity in our student body and admit boys of different backgrounds.

At Roxbury Latin, we care, most of all, what kind of person a boy is. We adhere to the original mission set forth by our founders: to prepare students intellectually, morally, and spiritually for service in the world as leaders of integrity and conviction. Every aspect of our program supports our core values of honesty, responsibility, humility, respect and concern for others.

We expect a great deal from our students. Roxbury Latin’s rigorous academic program trains boys in exacting analysis, disciplined reflection, aesthetic appreciation, and lucid expression. The faculty constantly challenges students to hone their natural talents and encourages them to compete against their own sense of excellence.

Founded in 1645, Roxbury Latin is a boys’ school by conviction with a curriculum tailored to the cognitive and emotional development of boys. We build on their intellectual curiosity, self-motivation, and capacity for hard work. Ours is a democratically gathered community, in which boys from a broad array of socioeconomic backgrounds and with different interests, talents, and perspectives, are admitted and enrolled on a need-blind basis, regardless of their family’s financial circumstances. Our small size ensures that each boy is known and loved.

Boys learn to respect and to applaud their classmates' successes—in sports, concerts, plays, debates, and publications. A brilliant performance at the piano has brought an audience to its feet just as quickly as a touchdown pass caught in the end zone. Boys also learn to recover quickly from the disappointment of losing a starting position in sports or a coveted stage role and find other ways to contribute to the team or the production.

Our goal is to have our students emerge both competitive and compassionate: tough enough to withstand the rigors of competition and endure the present pain of hard work in order to experience the joy of achieving something great, as well as empathetic and responsive to the needs and misfortunes of others.