[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 22 (Thursday, February 9, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S491]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  RECOGNIZING WEST NOTTINGHAM ACADEMY

 Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I wish to recognize the 200th 
anniversary of the chartering and relocation of West Nottingham Academy 
in Colora, MD. West Nottingham Academy is recognized as the oldest 
boarding school in the nation 267 years after the school's original 
founding. West Nottingham Academy was founded in 1744 by Samuel Finley, 
a young Presbyterian minister from Ireland who later became president 
of Princeton. The school prepared boys for university study, and two 
early graduates, Benjamin Rush and Richard Stockton, went on to sign 
the Declaration of Independence. In 1812, West Nottingham Academy was 
granted a Charter by the State of Maryland, and moved to its present 
location. Notable alumni include Maryland Governor Austin Lane 
Crothers, Cincinnati founder John Filson, North Carolina Governor 
Alexander Martin, and Pennsylvania Congressman Peter Kostmayer.
  West Nottingham Academy has evolved from its humble beginnings as a 
log cabin addition to Samuel Finley's home to a modern campus that is 
home to 120 boarding and day students in grades 9-12 representing eight 
States and ten countries. Student life is enriched outside the 
classroom by interscholastic sports teams, service learning 
opportunities, student-led clubs, and educational excursions to 
Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Washington.
  West Nottingham Academy uses an innovative, student-centered academic 
approach which celebrates students' many learning styles through a 
variety of teaching methods. The student-centered approach is 
exemplified in West Nottingham's Chesapeake Learning Center, where 
students with learning differences receive support services uniquely 
tailored to help each student reach his or her full potential.
  I would ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating West 
Nottingham Academy on the bicentennial of its chartering and 
relocation, and on over 200 years of providing educational opportunity 
and leadership to Maryland and our Nation.

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