Big Happy Crowd at School's 100th Birthday Party

If only Leila Cooper and her sister Mabel could see their Mulholland Drive school now.

The two Christian Scientists founded Berkeley Hall School in Los Angeles’ Berkeley Square neighborhood and opened their doors to 46 kindergarten and early elementary students in 1911. 

Since then, the independent school has moved three times, including its 1980 relocation from Beverly Hills to its current site on Mulholland Drive just west of the 405. The picturesque, 66-acre mountaintop campus now serves a student body of 262, from nursery (age 3) to eighth grade.  And it isn’t going anywhere, except into the future and out into the world in the form of the many pupils it nurtures, shapes and inspires.    

Friday, the school invited its extended family to attend a special Centennial Celebration. True to the school’s reputation, the program was upbeat and positive.

 “When people come up to campus, they’ll often remark that it has just a really good vibe. They say you can feel the atmosphere up here,” Assistant Head of School Winnie Needham said after the event. “I really attribute that to the fact that as a school, the faculty and staff, we’re always trying to focus on the good in every student. We’re really careful about not labeling the student and really careful about keeping all conversations positive.

“It’s always problem-solving and not complaining. And I know that sounds rather simple, but I think that’s a rather unique habit to build. It’s all part of human nature that you slip into complaining and stereotyping and all of that, and I think we’re just so clear about how unnecessary that is and how much you just really have to see the good in people.”

According to school officials, about 15 percent of Berkeley Hall’s students are Christian Scientists. But the school has no official ties with the Christian Science Church nor any other religion, except for its adherence to the Cooper sisters’ original intent of promoting “the unlimited, intelligent nature of all children as expressions of God” and to teach from “a spiritual foundation of fellowship, respect and love.”

That philosophy and other features – including small class sizes, a tight-knit but welcoming school community, and specialized learning in music, art, drama, science, physical education, computers, Spanish and other subjects – has kept the school at or near its enrollment capacity on an annual basis.

Kieren Boyce is so enamored with the school she drives her daughter all the way from Burbank each morning – a one-way trip of up to 45 minutes – and then drives all the way back to Burbank to go to work.

“That is definitely a sign of dedication,” Boyce said with a smile and a chuckle. “Ashtyn has been here since kindergarten and last year, at one point, I thought the commute was just a little bit too rigorous, it takes a lot of wear and tear on me, but when I looked at what the options were… all the components that make this school the beautiful place that it is, made it worth it.

“I am willing to do the commute, obviously.  I am in year number two, looking forward to another six.”   

Many of the school’s students live in Sherman Oaks, including Rob Kirsch’s daughter. Kirsch said his wife has studied Christian Science, but that was a very small part of why the couple chose Berkeley Hall.

“What drew me to the school was the love and the people and the experience that my daughter was able to get in the early childhood development program,” he said.

Matt Celenza of Sherman Oaks has one son in junior kindergarten and another in third grade. His oldest has attended since he was 3.

“It’s been fantastic. This is a second family to us here at Berkeley Hall,” Celenza said. “Absolutely no stress from the moment you drop them off. … I’ve never woken up in the morning and had my kids tell me they didn’t want to come to school.”

Kiyomi Fischer, whose daughter is a kindergartener, said she toured a number of other schools before discovering Berkeley Hall.  She was initially attracted by the green grass and gorgeous landscape but has found there is much more to the school than its pristine physical environment.

“I’ve come to find it’s the most incredible school made up of the most incredible, quality teachers, staff and parents,” said the Sherman Oaks resident. “It’s a very unique, special school. It’s the most tender experience I’ve ever experienced in a large group of people.”

Deborah Duda, also of Sherman Oaks, said she fell in love with the school while attending its annual country fair when her daughter – now a fourth-grader – was just 18 months old.

“It’s a beautiful place to be,” Duda said. “It’s like you’re coming to a national park, and on top of that the people are so wholesome and care about each other and down to earth.  That’s why we came here.  It’s easy to be involved with people when they’re such good people.”

During Friday’s 90-minute program, students from each grade level presented special items to be placed in a time capsule for rediscovery in the year 2061. Nursery and kindergarten students made scrapbooks.  The junior kindergarten created a CD recording and also placed a CD player in the time capsule, just in case one isn’t available 50 years from now. 

The first-graders came up with an elaborate list of the 100 things they love about BHS.  Among them: friends, teachers, the woods (because they have deer), because it’s safe, good classes, the library, the opportunities to be creative and the special days when they get to eat ice cream.

The second-graders wrote a book entitled “The Legend of Cooper the Bobcat,” detailing a fictionalized history of the school’s mascot. The third-graders made artwork, the fourth-graders completed a mission keepsake box, the fifth-graders created their own state (known as “Fifthland”), the sixth-graders wrote predictions about the future and the seventh-graders created a centennial math game.  To wrap it all up, the eighth-graders presented the graduating class shield they created and sang their class song.

Berkeley Hall’s tuition prices range from $17,000 to $22,000, depending on the student’s grade level, and there is a waiting list in most grades for the 2011-2012 school year.  For more information, contact the school’s main office at 310-476-6421.