So much more than college prep.

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Mission Statement

Through commitment, scholarship, companionship, and service, each member of the Cate community contributes to what our founder called “…the spirit of this place… all compounded of beauty and virtue, quiet study, vigorous play, and hard work.”

The Spirit of Cate

Cate School combines the academic rigor of East Coast prep schools with the adventurous spirit of the West Coast. This was the vision of Curtis Wolsey Cate, a graduate of Roxbury Latin School and Harvard University, who crossed the country to found our beloved boarding school back in 1910.

Sure you could sum us up as a college-preparatory boarding school in California, but that fails to capture the spirit of the place, the community, and the culture. Where else can you wake up with mountain vistas and genuine excitement about heading to class? Feel both the ocean breeze and butterflies on your way to assembly to perform a skit on your recycling initiative?

No other school looks or feels like Cate, and the best way to know that is to be here and experience it.