<p>Yes but...it's not guaranteed you'll have Mr. Feng as a teacher right?</p>
<p>Congratulations to your son, Jamismom!</p>
<p>Thank you, X___________infatuation. I appreciate the thanks, and lack of negative comment towards the schools he applied to. He is just 15 and we let him choose the school he felt the most comfortable at. He has been at junior boarding school for the last 2 years. He's a great kid. I know he will make us prpoud as will all my children. My oldest is at her dream school, University of Miami and is loving every minute of her time there. She wanted a school close to a city, but not in one, with lot's of school spirit.</p>
<p>GO CANES!!!!!!!</p>
<p>Question for the parents: What were/are the reactions of your friends regarding the acceptance of your child to boarding school? We have been receiving luke warm responses. I think we are being questioned about sending our child "away".</p>
<p>well, I'm not a parent...and I'm not going to boarding school...but I am going to a $25,000 a year private school so I could sort of relate...
Everyone's calling my parents "elitists" and me a spoiled brat.</p>
<p>I appreciate the response. Thanks!</p>
<p>Especially because we have the number one high school in the state around the corner, but my son has been away since 8th grade, when I took him out of a day school in our area. I don't pay much attention. I tell tehm it's a privelege not a punishment and they shut up.</p>
<p>Sometimes we try to explain our reasons, and the friends listen, but it has put a strain in our relationships. Parenthetically, most of our friends have children in our child's grade/class.</p>
<p>Same, Jamismom...if I was going to public school...I'd be going to one of the top ten high schools in the state...and a lot of parents send their kids there, so they don't understand my decision for private school.</p>
<p>I went to Exeter for 4 years and being the only child of a single mother....she and I took tons of negativity......I was the only student from my state for 3 years and then came one other kid. Hang in there....it was the greatest academic + social experience of my life. I am now at an Ivy and it is also a great experience....I was well prepared. Don't listen to the naysayers....they don't know what you and your child are striving for.</p>
<p>Both my children are in relatively expensive privates. 11yo ds got rejected from Roxbury Latin last week for 7th grade so he will continue at his local private next year. Although it is not boarding school, we have definitely been the receipient of "attitude" because our kids are in local privates. We live in a middle class town and people just don't get spending that kind of money for education, especially before HS. I am sure if either of my kids goes to boarding school people will think we are snobs. </p>
<p>Because we choose right from the beginning to send our kids to private school, we have seen and experienced the opportunities they offer kids that the public schools cannot. Most of neigbors think privates/prep and boarding schools are just for rich kids. (something we are not). Once you get sucked into the private school system, it is hard to give up all that it has to offer.</p>
<p>coolblue - from what I learned from my Exeter interview, Mr. Feng is the math team coach, so if you join the math team you'll have him as a coach. If I remember correctly, Exeter's math team meets 2 or 3 times a week.</p>
<p>Jamismom. I like that. It's a privilege and not a punishment. If I may, I will utilize that line.</p>
<p>My wife and I are comforted by the responses received. We will celebrate within the confines of our family. We thought perhaps most friends would be happy. </p>
<p>We have seen the resources available at the schools our child has been accepted to, Exeter, Andover, and Choate. We are amazed. We want to provide our child with opportunities that we did not have.<br>
Thank you hazmat, mamom, x_infat, and jamismom</p>
<p>Our situation is not boarding schools. Both my D's went to a small catholic school. Our city schools are not great, some are, but there is no guarantee your kid will go to a neighborhood school, hence many many kids in our city do independent and parochial.</p>
<p>There are some great independents- $20,000plus tuition, and catholic schools, and then the public schools. When our kids leave the 8th grade, it is a real adventure figuring out where to go. The independents require one test, the catholic another, and the public a third (for the magnet schools)....the most popular catholic takes 1 in 4 (with siblings getting preference if qualified), the others take about 50%, the independents (the top 4) take 1 in 8 or 10!!! The publics, if you have a sibling, you can get into the neighborhood one, if not, and you don't test well to get into the magnet, then you could end up anywhere...</p>
<p>Anyway, all this is a mess; and so it is assumed sibs will get in to the school of choice, that usually happens but not always, so everyone is nervous for about a month</p>
<p>So on Monday, every kid knows where they are going in the fall, many get waitlisted at their first choice but accepted at 2 others(no more out right rejections), parents being a little resentful cause my kid got into the most popular school and theirs did not, but got into another great school, just not as "popular"- (and that popularity is not necessarily always deserved) - so it makes for some uncomfortable conversations the first few days...then all is well!! The one other thing that happens is that kids say they dislike the "popular" one. All last year and the beginning of this year, everyone wanted to go there, but when it gets closer and those admission numbers hit home, the kids loyalty switch to another equally great school. So when they get that acceptence letter, they are really happy. </p>
<p>So parents come up "so your D is going to <strong><em>, right" Now what if she didn't get in? And then I say, So where is your D going" and they say _</em></strong>. And I congratulate them because it is a great school and a good fit for child. But then, the parents feel like they need to justify the choice, and there is no reason for that. There are lots of reasons kids choose to go where they go, and I just wish the parents didn't feel the need to support their choices, they should be proud and happy!!! After about a week everyone settles into the results and the kids are all generally happy. All weekend they are IMing each other.</p>
<p>I know this post is a mess, but its early Sunday morning, and the reality has hit my D is going to a great school with her big Sis!!!</p>
<p>Well, I just wanted to post again here, but I actually only applied to Thacher as a boarding school...For one thing, I didn't want to go to the East Coast (too far away from my friends and family for my liking)..For another, Thacher's background and way of teaching really called to me. They have their horse program (which teaches responsibility), the community-environment is wonderful, and (as my favorite added plus) their Latin teacher is amazing! I can't wait to go!!</p>
<p>But...34,600 a year!! AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!! I got waitlisted for Financial Aid....We called them up and they said that this sort of thing doesn't happen often. Did any of you go through the same thing? Did you get financial aid at the end? I really hope so!! 34,600 is a lot of money to pay!!</p>
<p>swordchic: you got accepted or waitlisted to Thacher?</p>
<p>I got accepted to Thacher but waitlisted on Financial Aid, which we applied for.</p>
<p>This is a very late response, but yes, other schools implement the teaching through discussion method, just not to the extent that Exeter does. I know that Andover uses it too, but not in the maths/sciences.</p>
<p>lawrencville, OMG deerfiled more prestigous. lawrenceville school is a very fine school. every bit as good as any. go with your heart, with how you feel. no one knows more of how you feel then you. if deerfield does that for you then go. when you revisit see which one moves your inner self. it may be the hill. the hill school by numbers is not stellar, but the acadmics are marvelous.</p>