School Culture and Traditions

Beyond the physical growth of the school, the Abbey School, drawing from the charism of the monastic community and the Benedictine Tradition, quickly developed a distinctive school culture. From its earliest stages, influenced by the academic orientation and discipline characteristic of Benedictines and the intellectual aspirations of the earliest monks of St. Anselm’s, the Priory School very quickly developed a reputation for academic excellence. Father Michael Hall, OSB, one of the members of the first graduating class to use the new academic building, recalls conversations with family and teachers, surrounding where he would attend high school:

“It was a demanding school and we all knew that. And that was the reputation in the area […] I remember when I was in eighth grade at St. Francis Xavier Parish School in Southeast, the nun who taught me was determined that I would come to this school. She always wanted to get one of her students into St. Anselm’s, and I was it. Sister Mary Ruth Barrett said, ‘You know, that’s the school you gotta go to! Do you understand that?’ I said, ‘Yes, Sister.’ She said, ‘Now, Father [the young assistant pastor at that time] is gonna call you down. He’s gonna want to try to get you to go to St. John’s. Don’t listen to anything he says.’ I knew when it came down to listening to Father or listening to Sister, I would listen to Sister. It was a good call.”

“And my father sort of agreed with her. Basically just on the basis of a pamphlet from the school. He thought it was the right school for me. His boss, who was a good friend, read the brochure. And he said, ‘I wouldn’t send my kid to that school. It sounds like a prison to me.’ But my father said, ‘No, I think it’s the right place.’ And Sister thought it was the right place. She was determined it was the right place. And so I came. And I was always very happy here.”

St. Anselm’s tradition of academic excellence, including an emphasis on classical education, continues to the present day. The school is regularly recognized as among the most rigorous in the country. However, the school is and was far from joyless. From the beginning, the school intentionally created a close-knit, family environment, which was aided by the monastic presence within the school and the small (at first by necessity, later by design) class sizes. This allowed students to receive more individualized instruction from teachers, as well as opportunities for greater familiarity and support. When he was a student, Fr. Michael recalls one memorable occasion with Fr. Raymond Eibeck, OSB, a notoriously challenging Latin teacher.

During the weeks before Christmas, Father Raymond built up anticipation for a Christmas concert that was to take place during the last class before break. When he began the class, he placed a music box on the desk and proceeded to teach as usual. With a few minutes left in the period, he announced that it was now time for the Christmas concert. He then wound the music box, which started to play a tinny rendition of "Jingle Bells," to the amusement of everyone, especially Fr. Raymond.

In addition to being an alumnus, Fr. Michael would later join the monastery, teach religion and history at the Abbey School, and serve two different terms as headmaster, during which he introduced other distinctive parts of the culture of the Abbey School: the House System and Renaissance Day. Beginning in the mid-1980s and adapted from the House system of English boarding schools, students would be sorted into four houses named after prominent figures in the history of the school and monastery: Alban House, named after Fr. Alban Boultwood, the first Abbot of St. Anselm’s Abbey; Austin House, named for Fr. Austin McNamee, the school’s first Headmaster; Main House, named for Fr. John Main, the school’s fifth Headmaster; and Moore House, named for Fr. Thomas Vernor Moore, the founder of both the school and the monastery. The House System fosters a family spirit, allowing students to work alongside members of other forms and to compete for the House Cup. Students earn points for their House through competing in intramural athletics, academic performance, as well as community service and other extracurricular activities. New students and staff members are sorted at the beginning of the school year in a “House Draft” held on House Day, which is a full day of friendly contests between the Houses to inaugurate that year’s House Cup competition.

Another representative aspect of the culture of the Abbey School is Renaissance Day. The original impetus for the idea grew out of a recognition that the Abbey School has always had faculty members with a wide variety of qualifications and interests beyond what they have the opportunity to share on a daily basis. Renaissance Day provides an opportunity for staff members to model the attitude of intellectual curiosity, which is one of the key aspects of the culture of the Abbey School. On Renaissance Day, students and faculty members have the opportunity to offer seminars on topics of personal interest outside of the typical courses given at the school. These topics can range from motorcycle maintenance, stage combat, a Day in the Life of a Monk, and salsa dancing to songwriting, Christian existentialism, and taekwondo. Students are also invited to participate in community service, and the day concludes with a talent show and the student vs. staff basketball game. Renaissance Day represents some of the best aspects of the culture of the Abbey School: intellectual curiosity and the family spirit.

The school also claims some firsts among institutions in the DC area. Fr. Stephen Reid, a monk, priest, artist, and former teacher, claimed that the “Priory Players,” the theater organization at the school, were the first theatrical troupe in DC to use a theater-in-the-round approach. In early productions, a stage would be set up in the middle of the gym floor, surrounded by chairs. Actors would make their entrances to the stage through the crowd, trying not to trip over members of the audience. The school also hosts the longest-running invitational basketball tournament for boys in the Metropolitan DC area. The tournament has been hosted by St. Anselm’s since 1948.