Woodstock Academy Plans Expansion With Purchase Of Hyde School

Woodstock Academy officials will close on the $14.2 million purchase of Hyde School on June 15.

The addition of the 127-acre parcel of land with its classrooms, buildings, dormitories, and cultural center will position WA for expansion of its academic, performance-related, and dormitory offerings. Each has been identified as critical in long-range strategic planning sessions, according to Headmaster Christopher Sandford.

The private high school currently has more than 1,050 students, 94 of which are international students. With the addition of three dormitories at Hyde, WA will be able to offer 250 spaces for boarding students. That expansion will happen gradually and only as enrollments from sending towns decline.

The dorms will help WA diversify its boarding student population by welcoming students from across the country. Domestic boarders are looking for dormitory environments, Sandford said. Currently, WA boarding students live in homes and with families in the community. There has been a surge in applications with news of the additional dorms.

Sandford expects to house between 100 and 150 boarding students in the 2017-18 academic year. The availability of dorms should also draw student groups that travel in the summer. With a location close to Boston and New York City, Sandford hopes to draw the attention of young travelers in search of summer educational programs.

The Academy plans to use the 1,000 seat cultural center as the anchor for expanded music, drama, and arts programs. Between student productions, current partnerships that already use the center for opera, symphonic, and a host of cultural performances, the center will be busy. Sandford hopes to bring in other performances throughout the year.

"We feel we can position ourselves to be a pretty substantial program moving forward," he said.

Faculty from the music, drama, and arts programs will relocate to the new "south campus." Approximately 400 students take music classes at WA. Classes range from traditional band classes to more technically-difficult classes. Four full time musicians are on staff.

"It's a pretty big part of who we are as a school," Sandford said.

The new space will let the programs grow.

Classes in Italian, German, and Mandarin will be taught in the classrooms on the south campus. Some physical education classes are slated to be moved. The new campus has a gymnasium, fitness center, eight-lane track, and lighted fields for night games.

The contract for day-long shuttle service has been signed and Sandford envisions both campuses fully operational day in and day out. A two-mile, six-minute shuttle will transport students back and forth as needed.

"It's a unique situation," Sandford said.

An open house is scheduled for the south campus on June 21, from 5 to 7 p.m., and June 22, from noon to 3 p.m.