This article has been updated to reflect 2026 data and recent developments.
School mottoes speak to the noble purposes for which most schools were founded. School mottoes typically are Latin phrases attributed to some of the great writers of antiquity. You will also find mottoes that are taken from scripture. What is special about a school motto is that it captures the essence of the school in a short phrase of just a few words. Here are some school mottoes and a bit about the schools to which they belong. The list includes both boarding and day schools.
Admiral Farragut Academy, St. Petersburg, Florida
Admiral Farragut Academy's motto is Scientia Omnia Vincit, which means “Knowledge Conquers All”. The Academy was originally founded in Pine Beach, New Jersey, in 1933. It opened a second campus in Florida in 1945. The school is co-educational and offers grades K-12.
Choate School, Wallingford, Connecticut
Fidelitas et Integritas or "fidelity and integrity," is the original motto of Choate School, which was founded by Mary Atwater Choate in 1896 as a school for boys.
Fenn School, Concord, Massachusetts
Fenn School, which was established in 1929, is one of several day schools which uses its motto as a powerful tool to guide its students. "At the heart of the Fenn philosophy is our motto, Sua Sponte. When boys begin to understand what it means, not just as a motto, but as a way of life, they are well on the way to embodying the Fenn character." The school's motto translates as "On one's own responsibility."
Foxcroft School, Middleburg, Virginia
Foxcroft's motto, mens sana in corpore sano, comes from Satire X of the Roman poet Juvenal. It literally translates as "A healthy mind in a healthy body." It refers to one of the tenets of most boarding schools, which posits that students must exercise physically in order to succeed academically. Athletic activities are a major component in most boarding schools' offerings. Typically, some schools set aside Wednesday afternoons and Saturday mornings for sports. Every student participates, as sports are not optional.
This video offers a look at Foxcroft School.
The Hill School, Pottstown, Pennsylvania
"Whatsoever things are true” comes from St. Paul's Letter to the Church at Philippi. A noble motto befitting a school which was founded in 1851 as The Family Boarding School for Boys and Young Men.
Horace Mann School, New York, New York
Horace Mann's motto is the Latin verse Magna est veritas et prævalet, which comes from the Book of Esdras. It translates as "Great is the truth, and it prevails." Columbia University Teachers College founded Horace Mann School as a laboratory school for its education students. The school was named in honor of Horace Mann (1796 to 1859), who was an education reformer and legislator from Massachusetts.
Hotchkiss School, Lakeville, Connecticut
Maria Bissell Hotchkiss established the school, which bears her name in 1891. The school's motto is taken from Virgil's Aeneid, itself a story about a very long journey. Moniti Meliora Sequamur. The Hotchkiss School renders the English translation as “Guided by each other, let us seek better paths.” Indeed, Hotchkiss has done just that as it has progressed from a boarding school for boys nestled in splendid isolation in the foothills of the Berkshires to be the exemplar of global connectivity and environmental sensitivity it has become in the 21st century.
Kent School, Kent, Connecticut
Kent's motto reflects the philosophy of the school's founder. Father Sill was an Episcopal monk who believed that young men could be educated with a view to serving others. Temperantia, Fiducia, Constantia, loosely translated as "Simplicity of Life, Directness of Purpose and Self-Reliance," reflects those beliefs which hold true at Kent to this day.
Lick-Wilmerding High School, San Francisco, California
Lick-Wilmerding High School has an English motto, "Head, Heart, Hands," which is a fine match with its mission, namely, "LWHS is founded upon a legacy of serving, and being enriched by, students from all walks of life. The school furthers this purpose by producing graduates with the capacity, confidence, compassion, and commitment to change the world." The school was founded in 1895.
Madeira School, McLean, Virginia
One of the ancient Roman emperors, Augustus Caesar, is the source of Madeira School's motto: Festina lente, or “Make haste slowly”. It was adopted in 1907, the same year the school held its first commencement.
Miss Porter's School, Farmington, Connecticut
Sarah Porter (1813 to 1900) was a leading education reformer of her day, believing as she did in the education of women. Her school's motto, Puellae venerunt. Abierunt mulieres attests to that altruistic purpose. "They have come as young girls. They will leave as young women."
This video offers a look at life at Miss Porter's School.
Northfield Mount Hermon School, Mount Hermon, Massachusetts
Northfield Mount Hermon's Latin motto Discere et Vivere translates as "To Learn and To Live". The school was originally established as two distinct schools, Northfield School for Girls and Mount Hermon School for Boys. The two schools merged in 1972.
Phillips Academy Andover, Andover, Massachusetts
Andover's seal and motto were originally engraved by Paul Revere. Non sibi and Finis origine pendet are the two Latin phrases that come from ancient Latin writers Lucan and Manilius. Non sibi translates as "Not for self," while Finis origine pendet means "The end depends upon the beginning". Solid foundations determine how your life turns out and the idea of service to the wider world are the themes in Andover's historic motto.
Phillips Exeter Academy, Exeter, New Hampshire
Being the other school started by the Phillips Family, Exeter shares Non sibi and Finis origine pendet with its sister school, Andover. There are several other mottoes to be found at this famous old boarding school. The two, which for me encapsulate the way Exeter has moved with the times, are Huc venite pueri ut viri sitis and Hic quaerite pueri puellaeque virtutem et scientiam. These Latin phrases inscribed on the Academy Building show how Exeter started and how it evolved. The first phrase translates as "Come here, boys, so that you can become men," and the second: "Boys and girls, find knowledge and goodness here." Exeter began as an all-boys school in 1781. It went co-ed in 1970. These are noble thoughts beautifully expressed.
Poly Prep Country Day School, Brooklyn, New York
Poly Prep was founded in 1854 as The Polytechnic Institute. Originally a boys' school, Poly Prep became coeducational in 1977. The school's Latin motto Virtus victrix fortunae translates as "Virtue is the victor over fate."
St. Paul's School, Concord, New Hampshire
"Let us learn those things on earth the knowledge of which continues in Heaven." These words of St. Jerome in St. Paul's School's motto underscore the importance of education with a spiritual emphasis. The school was founded in 1856 and is affiliated with the Episcopal Church.
Washington School, Greenville, Mississippi
Washington School is the youngest school on this list. It was established in 1969 as a PK-12 school. Its Latin motto, Exitus Acta Probat, translates as "The Results Prove the Deeds."
