Everything We Know About Brett Kavanaugh's High School, Georgetown Prep

From Town & Country

If Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed, two of the nine justices of the United States Supreme Court will have attended the same small elite all-boys high school, Georgetown Prep. (Justice Neil Gorsuch is an alum as well.) So perhaps it's fitting that Kavanaugh's hearing today will center around his experiences while enrolled there.

Earlier this month, Christine Blasey Ford, a professor and psychologist from California, went public with allegations that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a high school party in the 1980s.

“I thought he might inadvertently kill me,” Ford told the Washington Post. “He was trying to attack me and remove my clothing.” Kavanaugh vehemently denies the accusation.

While they were not classmates, Kavanaugh and Ford were both students at single-gender private schools near Washington, D.C.; Ford attended The Holton-Arms School, while Kavanaugh was enrolled at Georgetown Preparatory School, better known as Georgetown Prep.

In the days since Ford's story came out, the media has turned its attention to Georgetown Prep, and to conversations about the insular nature of elite institutions. On the day of Kavanaugh's hearing, here's what we know about the school.

Georgetown Prep is an all-boys Jesuit high school.

Located in North Bethesda, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C., the school was founded in 1798, making it the oldest Jesuit school in the country. It is also currently the only Jesuit boarding school in the country, though it has day students as well.

Being Catholic is not a requirement for attendance, and the school's website states explicitly, "We welcome students of all faiths, believing that conscious reflection on one’s faith, whatever it may be, leads to spiritual maturity and a commitment to serve others."

There are currently 491 students enrolled in grades 9-12.

The Georgetown Prep website offers a few demographics on the current student body. For example, 63 percent of current students are white, 11 percent are African American, 16 percent are Asian, and 6 percent are Latino.

The site also proudly shares that the average class size is 16 students; the average boy's SAT score is 1386; and students come from 14 states and 19 countries in total.

This isn't your average campus.

Not only does Georgetown Prep have 93-acre campus feature a nine-hold golf course, but it also has a swimming pool, an indoor track, and a recording studio.

Those amenities don't come cheap.

Tuition for the 2018-2019 school year costs $37,215 for day students and $60,280 for resident students; 26 percent of families receive financial aid.

Kavanaugh Has Said, "What Happens at Georgetown Prep, Stays at Georgetown Prep."

In the week since Dr. Blasey Ford's allegations became public, much has been written about the insular nature of elite private schools and how a school's culture may have fostered-and protected-behavior of the kind Ford describes. A clip of a 2015 speech by Kavanaugh seems to underscore this point, and has since gone viral. Kavanaugh, speaking at Catholic University, mentioned his time in high school and said, "We had a good saying that we’ve held firm to to this day, as the dean was reminding me before the talk, which is: 'What happens at Georgetown Prep, stays at Georgetown Prep.' That's been a good thing for all of us, I think." Watch that clip below:

In addition to Kavanaugh and Gorsuch, the school boasts several other notable alumni.

Comedian Mo Rocca, William Bidwill, who owns the Arizona Cardinals, and scientist Chalres Zubrod all attended the school, as did film producer James Whitaker, NBA star Roy Hibbert, Olympic Gold Medalist Chip Jenkins, Congressman Frank LoBiondo, Congressman Francis Rooney, and Momofuku owner David Chang, among many other politicians, artists, activists, and business leaders. Brian Murkowski, the younger brother of Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, also attended around Georgetown prep in the same era that Kavanaugh attended; Senator Murkowski is widely considered to be one of the few Republicans who might vote no on Kavanaugh's confirmation.

Georgetown Prep has yet to comment directly on the controversy surrounding Kavanaugh.

That said, the school's president has issued a public letter calling it "a challenging time for Prep."

Rev. James R. Van Dyke, S.J. writes, "It is a time for us to continue to evaluate our school culture, as we do each day, and to think deeply and long about what it means to be 'men for others,' what the vaunted Prep 'brotherhood' is really about."

He continues, "It is a time to talk with them honestly and even bluntly about what respect for others, especially respect for women and other marginalized people means in very practical terms-in actions and in words."

The leaders of Ford's high school have been a bit more explicit in their messaging. Susanna Jones, who is the head of the Holton-Arms School released a statement saying, "In these cases, it is imperative that all voices are heard. As a school that empowers women to use their voices, we are proud of this alumna for using hers."

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