I was talking to a colleague this morning and he asked me how many students leave boarding school before graduating – i.e. what’s their attrition rate? I couldn’t answer that question and while I’m sure there’s a variety of reasons why students leave, there must be a recurring theme at some schools. Does anyone have any information, even anecdotal, they might share? Are some schools seeing students leave in droves because of the pressure? Home sickness?
A couple of years ago, Andover school administration in a news piece mentioned their attrition rate was less than 2%.A poster often mentions Thacher School in CA has a very low attrition rate… I tend to think that most of the schools in great financial shape with no enrollment shortage (which translates to healthy operation) should have fairly low attrition across the board. There could be a spike in the year when there’s a major scandal or disciplinary actions against a bigger group of students.
This is yet another one of those stats that probably needs some color to be meaningful.
Why do kids not return? Because they don’t like the environment? Because they are doing poorly academically? Because their families can no longer afford it? Most of the kids I know who have voluntarily left BS have done so because of depression/anxiety, which may say something about how stressful the school is, but ultimately, medical leave isn’t really something either the school or the student can control.
What if the school asked them to leave? Nobody likes to know that a school has had a problem that has resulted in a half dozen kids being asked to leave. But then again, nobody wants kids who are disruptive/destructive to the community to remain in it. I think I’d rather have my child at a school that protected its students rather than its stats.
I don’t really know how to sift through these stats, and I think your question is a good one – especially around trends at certain schools. Curious to hear what others say.
I asked that question a few years ago at all the schools we visited. All answered it is a very small number. Very few are asked not to return at the end of the year for academic reasons (if the grades are unsatisfactory after periods of help/tutor/support) or disciplinary reasons (after several disciplinary actions.) Some violations are immediate such as 5 juniors being kicked out at one school from time to time for drug/alcohol. I don’t think droves leave but a few leave or take a leave for one year for personal or medical reasons such as discovery of a new disease (diabetes, e.g. until treatment/management plan can be made at home.)
You can figure attrition rate pretty closely by adding up the incoming freshman for one year and then adding in the incoming sophomores and juniors the next two years and then, finally, subtracting that sum from the size of the graduating class those freshman belong to. Getting those numbers isn’t very difficult; getting the reasons for the attrition is a bit trickier.
Stats can be manipulated and sliced and diced. For example, is the 2% at Andover yearly or over 4 years? I’d find 2% over 4 years for a whole class unbelievably small.
I’ve seen students leave for the following reasons, both voluntary and involuntary: kicked out for various behavior/rule breaking issues typically a second strike, kicked out for academic dishonesty, asked not to come back for academic underperformance, left because it wasn’t for them, transferred to a different boarding school (rare) for a specific sport or other reason, uncontrolled psychological issues like anxiety/depression, self harm and eating disorders (often after returning from short term leaves of absence to address the situation and having things still not resolved).
I have seen instances of financial difficulties and major health issues like cancer where the school has bent over backwards to do everything they can to insure that the student graduates.
I do think most schools will do all they can to work with a student before parting ways while keeping the best interests of the larger community at the forefront. No adult in the community likes to see a student leave and any departure is disruptive to the community and the friendships and connections that have been formed.
It is interesting to see the somewhat large number of sophomores some schools bring in each year and I wonder if it’s indicative of students not adapting well to the BS environment after the first year. Student success is a tricky measure at all levels of education. The stakes are high at some of these schools for sure!
The addition of new sophoremores is planned. The class size gets bigger every year. In my experience, once a kid is through the first year, they’re likely motivated to stay, and all stakholders including teachers and parents are helping them stay because it’s to the school’s benefit to retain tested students, and transferring in the middle of one’s high school is bad for families and students. Disciplinary actions are the major cause of leaving, and occasionally for academic reasons. Which is why I am not surprised that most of the schools “in shape” have low attrition rates.
The large influx of sophomores also has some historical antecedents. It used to be quite common that private days schools went K-9, and then kids would start at boarding school in 10th grade. There are still some schools that have this structure (some of the NYC boys’ schools, Park School in Boston, etc), but it’s less common than it used to be. Still, I think that as a result there are some parents who just think of boarding school as being a three year thing.
Don’t forget that there are still several Junior Boarding Schools now that run through the 9th grade that send their kids up to the big leagues.
Yes my kids attended a k-9 in NYC. Some left after 8 for boarding for 9th and some left after 9th for 10th. And some repeat 9th…
I’m a proponent of looking at attrition and yield as intently as the other more common stats, maybe even more so. Consistent low attrition and high yield indicate an admission’s team that knows its school well and is adept at matching. The all important result, in my view, is a healthier, happier community. There is also less opportunity for a student to have niche success in a <300 member school so even more pressure on the Admission’s team to get right the academic and cultural match.
I agree with @gardenstategal’s comment above however that an attrition rate doesn’t tell all. Some attrition can be seen as an administration taking care of the community. No attrition can indicate an administration that is looking the other way. It is common for teenagers to exhibit risk taking and experimenting behavior. Due to that, there is bound to be some fallout.
To me, it can be equated to looking at safety statistics at colleges. For example, does a higher reported sexual assault rate equate to a truly less safe environment? Sometimes it does but other times it indicates an institution who is being more forthright and transparent and an environment where individuals feel empowered to report. Statistics can be misleading.
Just as an aside, Title IX has all but virtually eliminated colleges from sweeping sexual assaults under the carpet.
Are you sure about that? There are many lawsuits pending from students unhappy with their own attempts at reporting (and those are the ones brave enough to take that step.) Additionally, at least 167 schools are under federal investigation.
“As of last week, federal authorities were investigating 208 sexual violence cases at 167 colleges and universities under Title IX, a federal law that prohibits gender discrimination.”
http://my.chicagotribune.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-86077448/
I highly recommend reading up on the issue. John Krakauer’s Missoula is a readable foray into this difficult and still relevant subject: http://my.chicagotribune.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-86077448/
That’s why the number has increased ten-fold. Under the new regs (as a result of issues at places like Duke) even if a student that reports an assault off campus from an individual that’s not even a student, the institution must investigate and include it in their Jeanne Clery report. They must also issue timely reports of all incidents. Some colleges and universities are still trying to wrap their heads around these new regulations but they are still liable nonetheless.