This is my first time finally posting on CH, but I’ve been reading through posts for a while now and found them to be very helpful - thanks!
This might already be a thread that I couldn’t find, but I’d like to know a little more about single-sex, or more particularly, all-girls schools in the US.
As an eighth grader currently going through the 2018 application process, I’m curious about single-sex schools for my HS education.
Does anyone have any words of wisdom on single-sex education versus co-ed? How about recommendations of girls schools to look at?
For reference, I am applying to Madeira, Ms. Porter’s and Santa Catalina among other schools.
My daughter attends Salem Academy and loves it! She was a little concerned that an all-girls school would mean more drama since it’s all girls all the time, but she has found that to not be the case at all. She has commented that there is much less drama between the girls there then there was here at home! She was amazed that she lives with these girl 24/7 and there was less drama in a month then there was a week at her old co-ed school. They still have dances with boys school, have Homecoming and Prom, etc… They school she attends has approx 175 girls which is a perfect size for her and she says she wouldn’t switch her school for any other. She absolutely adores it there.
Miss Porter’s does a very good job of making their case. You can read up here and elsewhere about what MPS does just a bit differently than the coed schools. They get great results, and Porter’s students and families are among the most enthusiastic out there.
My daughter’s experience at Grier School is similar to what @RuralAmerica said.
During the admission cycle, we actually preferred co-ed schools because we wanted dd to experience everything that a high school can give, and dd thought co-ed would be more fun. But once she was there, she wouldn’t want co-ed any more. After a while there, she mostly stopped wearing make-ups. Girls at all-girls schools are far less judged by their looks and body shapes, and it promotes interests on whatever they are genuinely interested, and in turn, it promotes healthier community and better experience whether you have that good look or not. So I am very happy with dd in a all girls school school.
Santa Catalina is very close to our home. Just one hour driving. It was among the schools that we felt mostly warmly received when we visited there. Students were very engaging and supportive to each other when we were invited to a class. Santa Catalina has a state of art Aquarium. Students take projects with nearby UC campus and can program and monitor the aquarium’s functions and sensors. College Marine Biology departments would envy it. The downside was that it was too close to home for dd’s taste, and its required uniform skirt because dd prefers pants.
Someone on CC or maybe BSReview once posted the scholarships and awards given by the girls schools — there are ways to get $$ with these schools — Oh BTW - same for certain colleges - sometimes by being from a local county — worth exploring - but will let you or your DD do the research — there are scholarships and awards that are unique to these schools. Hmmmm — now you know why I’m such a good caddy >:P
@SculptorDad I’m happy that Salem doesn’t require uniforms and it sounds like maybe Grier doesn’t either? The girls at Salem have a dress code, but I like that there aren’t uniforms. I like that they’re allowed to keep their individuality by means of how they dress. The other amazing thing I’ve noticed is that none of the girls care about labels and there is often no distinction between how the FP girls and the FA girls dress!
@RuralAmerica Grier doesn’t require uniform. In fact, Santa Catalina is the only school I know that requires uniform. At Grier, there are a some wears designer cloths but it won’t matter or be cared by other girls. It’s not an important aspect of a person.