Campus and Facilities

Cate’s understated Monterey Colonial architecture and the village-like campus let students appreciate the School’s magnificent setting. The natural splendor and serenity of the Mesa provide an appropriate backdrop for the extraordinary facilities available to students.

The Cate Arts Center houses the 450-seat Hitchcock Theater, where students and faculty gather for assemblies, concerts and plays. There are also wet and digital photography facilities, one recording studio and a sun-drenched art studio for student use. At the Bruno Art Gallery and Hooker Art Gallery, students can view work by fellow students and visiting artists. The ceramics barn is equipped with ten pottery wheels and three kilns.

The Seeley G. Mudd Science Building is the School’s center for scientific study and research. There are fully equipped labs, classrooms, preparation rooms, project rooms, and a seminar room.

The Keck Computer Lab accommodates individuals and classes through networked PC and Macintosh computers with word processing, spreadsheet, Java, and Japanese and Chinese software as well as science, mathematics, history, and art applications.

The McBean Library, which won ALA and AZA awards for its design when it was built in 1966, houses 28,000 volumes, 120 periodicals, and a variety of audiovisual materials. Through the online catalog students can access the Cate library collections as well as an additional 100,000 items in the Independent School Library Exchange of Southern California.   Three hundred full-text magazines and newspapers are available through ProQuest Direct, one of the library’s online databases.   The Johnson Library, with its fireplace, oak paneling, and  2,000 volumes in its special collection, serves as a quiet place to study and read.

At the Wiegand Community Center, students can gather informally to listen to music, watch a movie, or catch up with friends.

Cate has eight dormitories, many with stunning views of the Santa Barbara Channel and Santa Ynez Mountains. Almost all students live in single rooms, most with balconies or patios. The Katharine Thayer Cate Memorial Chapel, with its elegant stained-glass windows, provides a beautiful setting for concerts, Tuesday Talks, and contemplation.

Cate’s athletic and outdoor program facilities include two gyms: the Fleischmann Gymnasium with two squash courts and a basketball court, and the Caryll M. and Norman F. Sprague, Jr. Gymnasium, with two regulation-size basketball courts, two volleyball courts, and a fully equipped fitness center.

For outdoor sports, there are three athletic fields, an all-weather track, baseball and softball diamonds, eight tennis courts, and a heated swimming pool. The campus also boasts the Claire Andriveau Drake Memorial Ropes Course, a technical climbing tower, and a bouldering cave installed in 2010.

The Emmett/Horowitz Aquatic Center, to be finished in time for the Fall 2010 sports season, will be comprised of two pools. The first is a regulation-sized, heated swimming pool that will be used for Cate's Water Polo and Swim teams. The second, smaller pool will be heated year-round for recreational use by the Cate community.