The Shady Hill School is an independent, coeducational day school in Cambridge, Massachusetts for students in prekindergarten through eighth grade. Founded in 1915 by a group of Cambridge residents, the school was first opened on the back porch of one of one of the founder's houses on Quincy Street. When enrollment outgrew the home setting, the Cooperative Open Air School—as it was originally known—moved to the Charles Eliot Norton estate in Cambridge.
The campus has a total of eighteen buildings: an art room, a wood shop, music center; library; gymnasium; science laboratories; and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics building known as “The Hub” which includes a Makerspace, an assembly hall and several classroom buildings.
Tuition is high at this charming, grounded, and academically engaging school, but Shady Hill offers need-based financial aid so as many students as possible can benefit from the school’s innovative and advanced curriculum.
The gray-shingled classroom buildings have porches for outdoor reading and gathering throughout the day. Additionally, the entire campus functions as a classroom. Students are encouraged to explore the entire campus and use the space as part of their studies. Parent involvement in Shady Hill's close knit community is also a source of pride and strength. Anything is possible at this grassroots community school, where Cambridge students have come to learn, play and grow for over 100 years.
Shady Hill School
Private Pre-K, Elementary, Middle School
|
Grade Pre-K-8
178 Coolidge Hl,
Cambridge, MA
West Cambridge Neighborhood
523
Students
A+
School Details
Student Teacher Ratio
4:1
Annual Tuition
$57,510
Niche Grade
A-
A
Source: Niche
Niche Grade Details
Teachers
|
Student Teacher Ratio
4:1
Teachers
140
|
Full Time Teachers
110
|
|
Part Time Teachers
30
|
|
GreatSchools Rating Details
Student Diversity
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Female
50.6%
|
Male
49.4%
|
|
White
39.8%
|
Two or more races
23.9%
|
|
Asian
18.9%
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Hispanic
10.8%
|
|
Black
5.4%
|
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
1%
|
|
Native American
<1%
|
|
This School’s Reviews
Niche Reviews
2/5/2026
I used to go here but when I come back to visit they are unwelcoming and everything has gotten worse. All the fun events we could attend are now unavailable and al the teachers are strict and unwelcoming.
9/30/2019
Shady Hill School—more specifically its teachers, students, and community—gave me a love of learning for its own sake which persists to this very day. It was demanding but not competitive. It prepared me well for Milton Academy, Harvard and life thereafter as a professional. Not incidentally, some of my closest friends are those I made in the ten years I was there.
3/10/2018
I found my time a shady hill amazing, but what really stood out were the teachers. I still can't go back and remember my favorite because I loved them all. For someone who wants more than just learning math, Shady Hill is perfect. They really make learning fun.
GreatSchools Reviews
7/19/2013
Shady Hill - possibly the best private school around. My children attended SHS and now as adults they tell me it was the best school experience they ever had. Most of what they know now was because of the intense central subjects. They still talk about Miss Prescott's Greek Mythology, and that was a...
5/5/2013
This school has everything to offer. It is excludes the parents a little as the comments below say, but that is all for good reason. the teachers don't want tension at home, and thus try to minimize school related conflicts. All of it's programs are top of the heap and it's community is very welcomi...
2/8/2013
I agree with the assessment below that SHS tends to treat parents as outsiders. I had high expectations for this school, especially considering its purported philosohphy and values, but after being there for 5 years, I have to admit that I am a bit disappointed. I also question the idea of the loopi...
10/19/2012
In my experience, this school has a tendency to treat parents as outsiders, rather than as partners. I was quite astonished to offer some limited feedback a few months back, then to be called in for a meeting with the teacher (at some inconvenience to me, as I did not request the meeting), and to re...
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Shady Hill School is a private school for students in grades Pre-K-8 located at 178 Coolidge Hl in Cambridge, MA. Annual tuition is $57,510. The school has a total enrollment of 523 and maintains a student-teacher ratio of 4:1. Shady Hill School has received feedback and ratings, with a Niche grade of A+. Discover additional schools in the area, like Buckingham Browne & Nichols School, German International School Boston, St Joseph Preparatory High School, and more. Learn more about what Cambridge has to offer, and browse homes for sale and for rent near Shady Hill School.