The Bolles School

The Bolles School is an American private and independent college preparatory day and boarding school in Jacksonville, Florida governed by a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees. It has a lower school (including pre-kindergarten), a middle school, and a high school, spread across four campuses around the Jacksonville area, and enrolls about 1,800 students a year.^[2] The school was founded in 1933 as an all-boys military academy. It dropped its military focus in 1962 and its athletics programs have been recognized as some of the best in the Florida High School Athletic Association by Sports Illustrated magazine.

The school was founded as an all-boys' military academy for grades 7-12 in 1933 by Agnes Cain Painter, an associate of Richard J. Bolles. The original campus, now known as the San Jose Campus, was formed from the San Jose Hotel, a former hotel on San Jose Boulevard near the east bank of the St. Johns River.^[3] Bolles announced that it would drop its military status in 1961 and the graduating class of 1962 ended the military era. It began admitting girls in 1971. Today, male and female students are enrolled in relatively equal numbers.^[1] The lower school opened with a kindergarten class in 1981, expanding one grade each year, finishing in 1986 with 5th grade or 1987 with 6th grade. Pre-K was added after 2005.^[4] The Bartram School became the Bolles Middle School grades 6-8 in 1991.^[5]

International students have enrolled at Bolles since the late 1930s,^[6] and the school maintains separate boys and girls boarding facilities for 90 students from other states and 22 foreign countries.^[7] The school also has an active student exchange program with schools in China, Japan, France and Spain. Participants live with the host family while attending school.^[6]

The Glynlea School was founded by four Jacksonville families in 1934 at the home of Madeleine Downing Knight on the Arlington River. Four years later it was renamed the Bartram School when it moved to a location on Little Pottsburg Creek.^[5] Bartram School merged into the Bolles School in 1991 and the Bartram campus became home to the Bolles Middle School. The Bolles girl's boarding program was at that location until 2021 when the Bartram Residence Hall for Girls was dedicated on the San campus.^[5]

Harry M. deMontmollin Jr. was the fifth headmaster from 1976 to 2000, the longest tenure of any president.^[8] John E. Trainer, Jr. served as the sixth Bolles President/Headmaster from 2002 to 2012, overseeing the growth of the Bartram campus, creation of an elementary school in Ponte Vedra Beach, and boosting the school's endowment.^[9] He was succeeded by Brian E. M. Johnson for the 2012–2013 school year, who was succeeded by Bradley R. Johnson '79, who was succeeded by David J. Farace who was then succeeded by the previous Assistant Head of School Tyler Hodges the ninth head of school since its founding.

• Upper School (grades 9–12) – San Jose Campus (Jacksonville)
• Middle School (6–8) – Bartram Campus (Jacksonville)
• Lower School (pre-kindergarten–5) – Ponte Vedra (Ponte Vedra Beach) & Whitehurst (Jacksonville) Campuses

Bolles has been a fully accredited Florida high school since 1934. Bolles operates on a two-semester academic year, with each semester split into two quarters. Bolles offers 38 Honors courses and approximately 30 Advanced Placement courses each year, depending on enrollment and student interest.^[10] In May 2024 AP exams, the average score was 4.0 and 91% of students earned at least a 3.0. There are 295 faculty/staff positions; 42% have master’s degrees and 4% have doctoral degrees.^[11] The student-teacher ratio was approximately 12:1 and the average class size was 15 in 2023-2024.^[12]

The Sanchez & Fender Center for Innovation contains the Bolles STEM programs. The courses they offer are advanced study in robotics, engineering & design, computer programming & IT. In addition to classrooms, there are 12 specialty labs and areas for biology, chemistry and anatomy.^[13]

The school considers Fine Arts to be integral to human experience and history. Every student is required to be adept in at least one art discipline to acquire a broad historical and cultural perspective. Study of performing and/or visual arts enable students "to communicate clearly, analyze abstract images, make discriminating judgments, and understand their world."^[14]

The school considers World Language skills essential for future success in college, travel and the profession they choose. The program provides the student with the skills to listen, read, speak and write the language while becoming aware of cultural aspects of the language. Six advanced languages are offered including Mandarin, French, Japanese, Latin, Spanish and Arabic.^[15] The school has ten domestic and international programs for travel.^[16]

Graduation requires a minimum of 22 core credits with a C− average, including 4 English, 4 Mathematics, 3 Science, 3 Social Studies, 2 Language, 1 PE/Fitness, 1 Fine Arts, 3.5 Electives and .5 Wellness.^[17]

In 2005, Sports Illustrated named Bolles's athletic program the ninth best in the country, and second best in Florida. Of the top twenty-five schools, Bolles was the only one with an Upper School enrollment of under 1,000 students.^[18] As of the 2024-2025 school year, Bolles has received the Florida High School Athletic Association's Dodge Sunshine Cup/Floyd E. Lay All-Sports Award (given to the best overall athletic program in each school type/size classification in Florida) 29 times.^[19][20] Following the 2023–2024 school year, Bolles had won 160 state titles, 101 state runner-up and 543 district titles.^[19]

The outdoor field where its seven outdoor sports teams practice is called "George H. Hodges Field" and in 2016 it was converted to an artificial turf.^[21]

The swim team was coached by Gregg Troy who went on to coach at the University of Florida and 2012 US Olympic men's team. Troy was followed as head coach by Olympic medalist Sergio Lopez until 2014 when Lopez left to become the Singapore national swimming team's head coach. The current Bolles coach is Peter Verhoef. The school's swimming facility has its own offices, weight room (separate from the weight room that the rest of the school uses), and two swimming pools (one Olympic-sized). As of 2016, the boys swim team has won 39 consecutive Florida state championships and 9 national championships, while the girls' team has won 37 consecutive state championships and 9 different national titles.^[22] Bolles has had at least one alumnus or student competing in every Summer Olympics since 1972, including 2016 Summer Olympics gold medal winners Ryan Murphy and Joseph Schooling.^[23] The Bolles Sharks, Bolles's club swim team, compete and practice year-round.

The school's football team was coached by Charles "Corky" Rogers from 1989-2016. Rogers is the all-time winningest Florida high school football coach with 466 wins. The team has won eleven state championships, ten under Rogers. He compiled a record of 325-46 during his tenure at the school^[24] and his teams never had a losing season.^[25]

The upper school has five performances each year, 13 gallery shows, eight musical concerts, three dance performances, two Coffeehouse performances, two drama showcases and five community art shows. 70% of upper and middle school students participate in the arts. Music, drama and art classes are required in lower school. The school offers 22 performing arts classes and 28 visual arts classes^[16][27]

Compassion and service are core values at Bolles.^[28] There are over 85 Service Clubs with participation opportunities for students in middle and lower schools.^[16]

• List of high schools in Florida

• bolles.org, the school's official website
• The Association of Boarding Schools profile