La Jolla Country Day School (known informally as "Country Day," "LJCDS" or "LJCD") is a highly selective private school in La Jolla

La Jolla, San Diego, California

La Jolla is an affluent, hilly seaside resort community, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean in Southern California within the northern city limits of San Diego. La Jolla had the highest home prices in the nation in 2008 and 2009; the average price of a standardized...

, a community of San Diego, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. It was founded as the Balmer School by Louise C. Balmer in 1926. The school contains a lower school (consisting of nursery through fourth grade), a middle school (grades 5-8), and an upper school (grades 9-12). The school's motto is "Scientia Pacifica" (peace through knowledge). Its tuition varies (depending on grade level) from $25000 to $30000 per year.http://www.ljcds.org/page.cfm?p=674 Its chief rivals are two private high schools, The Bishop's School in La Jolla and the Francis Parker School

Francis W. Parker School (San Diego)

Francis Parker School, also known simply as Parker, is an elite college preparatory independent day school in San Diego, California, serving students from junior kindergarten through twelfth grade. Parker was founded in 1912 by Clara Sturges Johnson and William Templeton Johnson, themselves recent...

 in San Diego. Country Day features basketball, volleyball, track and field, swimming, water polo, cross country, tennis, baseball, softball, fencing, ultimate frisbee, cheerleading, football, lacrosse, and soccer, among other sports. It is in close proximity to University of California, San Diego

University of California, San Diego

The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...

. It is also across the street from a JCC

JCC

JCC may refer to:* John Cooper Clarke, Mancunian punk-poet* China Basin Heliport, San Francisco, CA, USA * Jackson Community College* Jamestown Community College* Jane Coffin Childs Memorial Fund for Medical Research...

 and near University Town Centre. Richard C. Atkinson

Richard C. Atkinson

Richard Chatham Atkinson is an American professor of psychology and academic administrator. He is the former president and regent of the University of California system, and former chancellor of U.C...

 serves on the school's Board of Trustees http://www.ljcds.org/page.cfm?p=112. La Jolla Country Day School was voted the best private school in San Diego in 2007 by the San Diego Union-Tribune: http://www.ljcds.org/uploaded//Best_of_UT.pdf .

Athletics

The current Athletic Director is Jeff Hutzler. The school's athletic mascot is the Torrey Pine. La Jolla Country Day is an academic and athletic rival with The Bishop's School

The Bishop's School (La Jolla, California)

The Bishop's School is an independent college preparatory Episcopalian day school located at 7607 La Jolla Boulevard in La Jolla, a community of San Diego...

 and the Francis W. Parker School

Francis W. Parker School (San Diego)

Francis Parker School, also known simply as Parker, is an elite college preparatory independent day school in San Diego, California, serving students from junior kindergarten through twelfth grade. Parker was founded in 1912 by Clara Sturges Johnson and William Templeton Johnson, themselves recent...

.

Vision statement

"La Jolla Country Day School is the school of choice for families who value an education that develops people of good character and enables children to achieve their potential as scholars, artists and athletes of character."

La Jolla Country Day School has been a girls basketball and volleyball powerhouse in recent years with the girls volleyball team winning back-to-back State Volleyball Championships in 2009 and 2010.

Accreditation

La Jolla Country Day School is accredited by the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). In addition, the school is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).

Notable alumni

• Emma Caulfield
  Emma Caulfield
  Emma Caulfield is an American actress best known for her role as ex-demon Anya Jenkins on the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as well as Susan Keats, a love interest of Brandon Walsh's on the television series Beverly Hills, 90210.-Early life:Emma Caulfield was born Emma Chukker in San...
  
   ('91)
• Jared Polis
  Jared Polis
  Jared Schutz Polis is an American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and U.S. Representative for , serving since 2009. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
  
   ('93)
• Rashaan Salaam
  Rashaan Salaam
  Rashaan Iman Salaam is a former professional American football player. Salaam won the 1994 Heisman Trophy as a running back for the University of Colorado at Boulder, rushing for 2,055 yards by the end of the season. Salaam is the fourth major college football player to rush for over 2,000 yards...
  
   ('93)
• Alexandra Stevenson
  Alexandra Stevenson
  Alexandra Winfield Stevenson is a professional tennis player. She made her professional debut in 1999 at Wimbledon, two weeks following graduation from La Jolla Country Day School. At the Wimbledon Championships, Stevenson became the first woman qualifier in the Tennis Open Era to reach the...
  
   ('99)
• Shea Robertson ('01)
• Candice Wiggins
  Candice Wiggins
  Candice Dana Wiggins is American basketball guard for the Minnesota Lynx of the WNBA. She previously played for the Stanford University women's basketball team where she is the all-time leading scorer in Stanford women's basketball history and in the Pac-10 Conference women's basketball history....
  
   ('04)
• Chrystina Sayers ('06)

External links

• La Jolla Country Day School Official website