Saint Andrew's School began as a boarding high school for boys, and was founded by the Episcopal School Foundation in 1961, led by The Rev. Hunter Wyatt-Brown Jr., who became the first headmaster. The late Alexander D. Henderson Jr., a retired Avon Products, Inc. executive, and his wife, Lucy, provided significant private donations during the early years. The Henderson's donated a substantial portion of the start-up funding while the property itself, which was located on an unused section of the Butts Farm west of Boca Raton, was donated by the ARVIDA corporation and the Butts family with the condition that a Christian school be established there. This agreement later included in the school by-laws that the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida be an ex officiomember of the Board of Trustees. The School opened on September 21, 1962, with 122 boarding and day students from as far away as Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and several states including Michigan, New York, and Ohio using the English system of Forms 1 through 6. The School served as the original full-time training camp and practice facility for the Miami Dolphins in the mid 1960s through 1969 and in 1968 served as the training facility to the Baltimore Colts for Super Bowl III. The campus and facilities also served as the filming location for the 1968 movie Paper Lion starring Alan Alda, Lauren Hutton, Roy Scheider, and Alex Karras adapted from the George Plimpton autobiographical pro football book of the same name. In 1977, the School served as camp HQ for the PGA National Academy of Golf that included exhibitions and instruction by Julius Boros and Andy North. In 2011, the Scots Summer Tennis camp included an exhibition by David Wheaton. The first group of girls as boarding students were admitted in 1972. Saint Andrew's School added a Lower School in 2000 and a Junior Kindergarten program in 2008. In 2010, the Saint Andrew's School began offering the International Baccalaureate Diploma program as an IB World School and in 2011, the school was accepted as a full international member of the Round Square Organization and was declared a "Green School of Excellence." In 2013, Saint Andrew's School hosted the Round Square International Conference with over 750 educators and international students attending, including Prince Andrew, Duke of York. Over the last fifteen years, more than $30 million in new plant construction and renovation projects have been completed. The capital projects include a new Welcome Center, Stoops Family Gymnasium, Shapiro Family Adventure Gymnasium featuring a rock climbing wall and dance studio, a track and field facility, Moabery Early Years Learning Center, Andrews Hall – The Center for Performing Arts, Malnik Family Athletic Center, and Schmidt Family Science Center. The school has also constructed a new Head of School residence and erected a replica of the original Chickee Chapel that had been built by the Miccosukee Seminole Indian tribe with which the early school had a close relationship. The idea for that chapel and several 'carports' of the same construction that dotted the campus in its early years was the brainchild of Father Raymond M. O'Brien, an original founding faculty member and the school's chaplain, Latin/Theology teacher, and Classical Language Department Head, as a continuing symbol of School heritage. The original alter front, a Seminole princess painted native nativity scene commissioned by Fr. O'Brien, now hangs on display in Saint Andrew's Chapel on campus. In 2012, SAS embarked on a new campus master plan. The inaugural project under this exciting plan is the Dr. Albert Cohen Family Center for Entrepreneurial Studies. This innovative facility opened in January 2018.
Leadership
Saint Andrew's School has had ten headmasters including The Rev. Hunter Wyatt-Brown Jr. and Eugene Curtis Jr.. Dr. Ann Marie Krejcarek was the school's first female head of school, replacing Rev. George E. Andrews II. In 2013, Peter. B. Benedict II joined the Saint Andrew's community as its ninth headmaster. In July 2017, Ethan Shapiro arrived at Saint Andrew's School to serve as interim headmaster and named Head of School on January 1, 2019. The school has three chaplains, Rev. Dr. David Taylor, Rev. Charles Browning, and Rev. Faye Somers, who officiate at the chapel services, which are held once per week. Upper and Middle School chapel services are held in the Chapel of Saint Andrew, which is also home to an active parish under Rev. Charles Browning in the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida.
