An update on DD2 and DD3

Oh happy day!! @Calliemomofgirls , I’m so happy for you!! I’m so pleased that D2 is having a great experience so far, and that D3 will join her.

The past few years I have hosted a brunch or dinner for 9th grade girls and moms; you might be too far away for that, but we’ll DEF have to gather in town, with @buuzn03 , @comtnmom , @busymommyof4 for a coffee or glass of wine after Inbound (orientation) registration.

Congrats again; welcome to Mercersburg. We’re so happy to have you all part of our community!

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@Calliemomofgirls thanks for sharing your story with us!

Yay! Thank you for the amazing update! It is so wonderful that your daughters and your family found the perfect fit! Congratulations and your daughters are going to do amazing things!

Hey congratulations - this is so amazing! SUPER happy for you, and DD2 and DD3. What a great outcome!

And very happy too that you were able to see so many schools up close. Truly does make a difference.

And @novaboymom will have a 9th grade boy starting in the fall too! So fun!

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We should start a Mercersburg 2025 thread!

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We had a similar experience with Mercersburg Academy many years ago. Great school, beautiful campus, very nice kids, friendly, caring faculty & administrators.

Narrowed our search down to Andover, St. Paul’s School, Mercersburg Academy, and Deerfield Academy. Ended up choosing a school most similar to Mercersburg Academy in terms of nurturing & caring of students, but more intense academically.

Truthfully, the intensity found at other schools is not necessary while the nurturing & caring aspect of MB is.

Looking back, I suspect that Mercersburg Academy allows students to discover who they are & what they like, while more intense academic atmospheres demand the best.

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^^ can’t agree with you more, @Publisher . That’s why I love George as I do. I feel like it’s one of those things most families only “get” once they’ve experienced it. Or maybe that was just us!

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You make me want to drag my kid to mercersberg…

We didn’t look out of state for either kid because of sports but I really wish this was the description of my kids’ BS experience. Don’t get me wrong, they are happy, I just don’t think the stress is necessary or worth it. At all.

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@one1ofeach I literally kept saying to my husband: I cannot believe this is for 440 kids. And @Publisher you hit the nail on the head when you said the intensity isn’t necessary but the nurturing and caring is. That may not ring true for everyone. I honor that for some folks more is just more. But your words ring in my heart very deeply. Exactly THIS.

And I’ll add: I think it’s easy to confuse intensity for rigor, and while sometimes there is overlap, they are not the same. (And as my DD2 pointed out, she feels like class discussions at MB are richer because kids aren’t as concerned with making sure they “sound smart” so there is more participation.)

@gardenstategal
You know that I am a HUGE George School fan too! And it was a joy finally to visit GS last week!!! It is a different culture from MB. Maybe I would describe MB as a little more “classic NE boarding school vibes, without some of the intensity and New England tight preppy culture.” George I would say is a little more: international (in a deep, meaningful, diverse way), a little more quirky (e.g. dyed hair, fun outfits, not preppy), less scaffolded (so no seated meals, come and go). What George and MB had in common: deep humanity throughout our experience, across kids, admissions members, faculty, everywhere. GS felt a little too independent for my DD3 who I think will do better with some more structure, and seeing the same people in class as she sees in her dorm. (meaning higher boarding population.). She is an explorer, and wants to do new things and explore her love of engineering – for that, a solid safety net felt right for her. (Also: TBH – the AMAZING snowboarding/skiing program at MB might have been the kicker that sealed the deal.)

To be clear: we made some wonderful friendships and met people at PA we loved too. But there wasn’t scaffolding by design, nor the deep empathy and human connection across the board for us there. (And they were honest about being for “independent kids” up front, so no bad feelings about that on my end. The miscalculation was ours; not theirs.)

We are connectors over here in our house. Like, I really did tear up when I sent the farewell emails yesterday. And when a school writes back “well good luck, see ya” (or not at all sometimes), it hurts my feelings that after 7 months of getting to know us, it’s ends so abruptly. And when some schools write back lovely, wonderful emails, even after we turn them down, it fills my heart with so much love and joy. (one school director of admissions actually said: “if DD3 ever gets stuck at XYZ airport in her travels to MB, you know where to reach me!” I mean can you imagine?)

There are some wonderful people out there in the boarding school world for sure.

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I think people are just convinced that more is more and don’t realize that sometimes if you free yourself from that false thought you can actually be/have more.

I am currently having this argument about colleges and trying to push back on the school culture around college choices.

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I am a long-time lurker (well, since January) but only recently joined CC officially. But BrimJr is also a future Mercersburger! Because of COVID she was only able to visit one school–not MBurg–but ended up choosing Mburg due to many of the same reasons you posted. Every single one of our online interactions with people there, from the students right on up to the Head of School was simply great. We are a little hesitant to be shipping her off without having seen the campus but definitely wouldn’t be able to do it if we did not feel it would be a very kind community. Looking forward to meeting you all someday!

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Is she a freshman? We started a little chat - we’ll add you!

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Yep, she is. Hard to believe that something like 10% of freshman girls are represented right here on this thread. I’ll see if I can figure out the chat thing. Thanks!

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What a wonderful story! Thanks for sharing it and congratulations to your girls!

Mercersburg was the one that was really hard for us to say goodbye to a few years ago for my D23. Similar story of connection and warmth with everyone we encountered. They have something very special there!

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@Calliemomofgirls I think DD will be bringing the quirk to Mercersburg!

Absolutely this! This is what we’ve been searching for, also.

A kid can be independent but still need nurturing and human connection…but I sometimes wonder if some aspects of society cannot meld the two for fear of creating “weakness”.

Anyway-- lovely story @Calliemomofgirls! And for the rest of the MBurg crew – can’t wait to meet y’all!

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Congratulations!!! I am so happy for you and your daughters! How wonderful that they will be together in such a fantastic place that they both love.

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@buuzn03
and to continue your conversation about society seeing the desire for connection as weakness…YES agree with you. It’s in society with how we talk about schools/college/jobs with high pressure, for example. Often the language even here around BS is something like “if you can’t take the pressure, you won’t like XZY school.” It’s language that turns tolerating unrelenting pressure and zero-margin scheduling into a badge of honor. Instead, we could (as a society) use language like “if you choose not to accept a life filled with constant stress and pressure…” (rather than a moral failing: “you can’t take the pressure.”).
I know it’s “just language” but language matters.

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`so true, @calliemomofgirls.

I always appreciated that when DS was at George, the first question on the course planning guide was “Am I getting enough sleep?” Self-care, and intentional choices, are important. The earlier in life you realize the importance of that, the better.

I am grateful that there are schools that show kids that being their best selves isn’t simply about grinding themselves down and that there are other ways of bonding with people than surviving a miserable experience together!`

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@Calliemomofgirls I hope one of your daughters does track, as i would love to race them in MAPL events haha

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