Founded by Maria Bowen Chapin in 1901, Chapin is an independent day school, grades Kindergarten through 12, dedicated to the intellectual and personal growth of young women. Under the direction of Dr. Patricia Hayot, a rigorous liberal arts program prepares students for further academic study and encourages the development of curiosity, creativity and integrity.

The Chapin School prepares a diverse and talented community of young women to thrive and lead in a global society through its dedication to academic excellence, personal integrity and community responsibility. Chapin cultivates in each student a love of learning, independent thinking, emotional resilience and a dedication to serving others.

Chapin is committed to diversity in its culture, curriculum and program. Believing that an equitable, inclusive community is essential to learning, Chapin actively seeks families, faculty and staff who bring a range of experiences to the school. Chapin embraces and respects differences in age, ethnicity, gender, learning style, physical ability, race, religion, sexual orientation and socioeconomic class. Expecting and requiring respect for others are hallmarks of our educational process.  

LOCATION

All Chapin students, Kindergarten through Class 12, attend school under one roof, creating a unique sense of continuity and community. The school building, located at 100 East End Avenue, features 49 classrooms, a two-story library, eight science laboratories and a greenhouse, four art studios including a photography darkroom and a ceramics studio, two music studios, a black box theater, a dance studio, and four gymnasiums.

Chapin has cultivated a student body and faculty that reflect the diversity of the world in which our students live. Each member of the school community takes an active role in confirming diversity's primary place among Chapin values.

Our current enrollment is 769. Students come from Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Westchester, Long Island, and New Jersey. The student-to-teacher ratio is 7 to 1. Young women of color make up 34% of the student body and 20% of the girls receive tuition assistance. 

Our faculty includes 125 teachers; 18% are male, 82% are female and 78% hold advanced degrees. Our teachers have an average of 16 years teaching experience and an average of 11 years at Chapin.

The wheel on The Chapin School seal was chosen by Miss Chapin because it is the symbol of St. Catherine of Alexandria, the patron saint of philosophers, thinkers and educated women. Chapin's motto is "Fortiter et Recte," Bravely and Rightly.

Chapin is a member of Interschool, a non-profit, tax-exempt consortium of eight Manhattan independent schools — Brearley, Browning, Chapin Collegiate, Dalton, Nightingale-Bamford, Spence and Trinity — known for their high academic standards, outstanding teaching and traditions of quality. 

The purpose of Interschool is to share the special resources and talents of each of the schools with the other schools in the consortium, thereby supplementing what each school can do on its own. Interschool runs collaborative curricular and extracurricular programs that serve students, teachers, administrators, trustees and parents and link the schools to the great New York City community. The eight Heads of School compose the Board of Directors.