Packer Collegiate Institute

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Packer Collegiate Institute is an independent, private, college preparatory school for students from prekindergarten through grade 12. Formerly the Brooklyn Female Academy, Packer has been located at 170 Joralemon Street in the historic district of Brooklyn Heights since its founding in 1845.

The Packer Collegiate Institute
Established 1845
School type Private
Headmaster Dr. Bruce Dennis
Assistant Headmaster Mr. Matt Nespole
Head of Admissions Mr. Jason Caldwell
Chairman, Board of Trustees Mr. Tony Bowe
Location 170 Joralemon Street
Brooklyn, New York, USA 11201
Enrollment Total: 942 Students
Faculty Fulltime : 131

Part-time: 15
Mascot The Pelican
Homepage The Packer Collegiate Institute

After a fire destroyed the school on January 1, 1853, Harriet Putnam Packer (1820-1892), the widow of William S. Packer, a former trustee offered $65,000 to rebuild the school, provided it be renamed for her late husband. At the time, this was the largest gift ever made for the higher education of women. An extension to the main building, designed by the noted architect of Brooklyn churches, Minard LaFever, opened in November, 1854.

From 1919 to 1972 the school also operated a junior college. Packer abolished the college in 1972 after it accepted male students and became co-educational.

Packer is the oldest independent school in Brooklyn. Its nearly 1,000 students, including grades preschool to 12th, represent all five boroughs of New York City and parts of New Jersey and its campus contains over 65 classrooms, two libraries, two gymnasiums, a fitness center, a theater, a dance studio, a dining commons, and a Gothic Revival Chapel with notable stained glass windows designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The campus of Packer contains a large open courtyard, two playgrounds, and a basketball court. The former St. Ann's Church has been renovated and transformed into a new space for the middle school. The new space opened in the 2003/2004 school year. Packer has a laptop program as well. Every student grades 5th through 12th owns a laptop and uses it both inside and outside the classroom. The middle school uses Apple computers and the high school uses Dells.

[edit] Notable alumni

Packer's website: www.packer.edu