Best private days schools in Greater Boston area

Prep School Admissions
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<p>Photodad, I think it’s possible you and etondad are both correct, each drawing on your own experience. It sounds as if etondad has been paying attention to boarding schools for a long time, whereas you are a current parent. Different time frames, different perspectives, different blind men viewing an elephant.</p>

<p>The new head has been in place since 2009. A change of head will always affect school culture. The new sports fields will have influenced the pool of applicants. I could well imagine some potential applicants who did not even apply in previous years, might apply now. </p>

<p>I think it is harder to find a school for a child who is primarily “artsy”. Even schools which are known to be “artsy” offer different programs. It’s much easier to find a school for a child who is athletic, because schools field teams of athletes. The schools might need (in general) one gifted ceramicist, but they field an entire softball team.</p>

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<p>Periwinkle, a school with a strong arts program needs more that one gifted ceramicist. It needs enough students interested in ceramics to fill up its ceramics classes, otherwise it would have to reduce its offerings. Concord has 6 ceramics classes. If you estimated an average of 5 different students in each class in a given year (probably an underestimate), you would need 30 students interested in ceramics. That’s more than are on the softball team. Being either a good softball pitcher or a gifted ceramicist will definitely help you get into Concord, but the school doesn’t specifically recruit students with either of these skills.</p>

<p>Concord has 4 or more classes in the areas of music, theatre, dance, drawing, painting, ceramics, fiber arts, photography, and film making. It has 3 classes in print making and art history. It has single classes in architecture, sculpture, and other areas. The highest level class in each area can generally be repeated for credit. I don’t know how many arts classes there were before 2009, but I know that the list of classes has actually slowly expanded since then. They need a lot of students interested in arts to be able to fill these classes.</p>

<p>The biggest complaint I hear by students is that they can’t take all the arts classes they want to take. The problem is not due to lack of offerings, but there are simply too many classes that they’d love to take and they just can’t fit them all in. If a student took two arts classes a term for all 4 years (difficult, when there are a lot of academic electives they may want to take), they would cover less than half of what’s available.</p>

<p>Both of my kids have contacted arts teachers for projects outside of their normal classes. The teachers have been enthusiastic and helpful (as has also been the case with academic teachers). I’ve been familiar with the school since the new head arrived. If he had instituted a new direction, it wouldn’t have happened overnight (especially at a school as decentralized as Concord), but probably would have most evident in his second and third years. I’ve seen no such changes.</p>

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<p>Ifax was on to something. Although it is Catholic, St. John’s Prep is probably the best of the Catholic schools, with low tuitiion, a beautiful campus, rigorous academics, first rate athletics, and a supportive and close-knit evironment. Brian Kelly, the coach at Notre Dame, and Bill O’ Brien, the former offensive coordinator of The New England Patriots, current Penn State coach, and Brown alum, is also a St. John’s alum. It’s really stunning that a school of this stature doesn’t get more recognition among Boston area day schools. From what I understand, the Catholicism is not pushed on non-Catholics.</p>

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<p>Since we’re already on the topic of Boston day schools, could anyone comment on the academia of Dexter-Southfield? Thanks</p>

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<p>It is a quite new school-- it is an extension of the Dexter/Southfield primary school. I would assume that it uses rthe same approach which is very old fashioned-- I don’t mean classical in the sense BUA would use it–but traditional. I have to admit I don’t know of any kid who has chosen to go there who was not a product of D-S-- that doesn’t mean there aren’t-- I am sure that there are–but it isn’t a school that parents and other speak about when such conversations occur. </p>

<p>We looked at Dexter (primary) for my eldest and it took us five minutes to know that the fit wasn’t right for him (and to give the school full marks, they know exactly who and what they are a-- and they agreed that the fit was wrong, even though as a student they would have loved to have had him–he’s the one who ended up as a scholarship student at Eton after Sage and the British School of Boston, all of which he loved) --nothing against Dexter, just that you know pretty quickly, at least on the primary school level, if the fit is right. Again as a primary school, no one has meh feelings about it. Some kids love it, some run in the other direction. </p>

<p>Go and see-- your child and you will know fairly straight away.</p>

46

<p>Etondad said: “Tony Jarvis WAS the heart and soul of RL for such a long period of time and his departure has caused a huge hole that is yet to be filled.”</p>

<p>I disagree. Kerry Brennan has stepped in ably and has been slooooooowly making positive changes in the school and in its culture.</p>

<p>Three additional points. Seems to me that Etondad’s critique is more about charisma of The Leader than about the school itself; someone who believes deeply in Mr. Jarvis is bound to be disappointed by any mortals who follow. </p>

<p>Second, the crack about it not being the Harvard feeder school it used to be is questionable. In 2012 “only” 3 students matriculated to Harvard. That’s the same number as in 2007. It’s been as high as 10 in 2009 (out of a class size of ~50.) The numbers vary year to year, and would have with or without Mr. Jarvis.</p>

<p>Last, what I like about Mr Brennan’s approach is that he is continuing Mr. Jarvis’ movement of the school away from a feeder school for the elite to send their boys to Harvard to educating the whole child. In the class of 2012, should the 3 boys who matriculated to service academies or to Oxford and not Harvard casue one to believe that the school is changing for the worse? Educating the whole child means accepting that students will go to places that are not on the narrow Harvard track. </p>

<p>And even if one doesn’t accept that view and believes that Oberlin and Pomona and Olin and Williams are “less than”, isn’t consistently sending 1/3+ of one’s students to Ivies/Stanford/MIT every year worth something?</p>

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<p>Would be interested in knowing the current scoop on Belmont Hill. Our son got accepted there even though his athletics is limited to recreational tennis. The school is close to our house so we are seriously considering it. Other sites on the web seemed to say that in 2012 they had a bunch of issues with 1-2 kids being thrown out for bad behavior/bullying and that some teachers and students were leaving as well. Does anyone know anything about this, the school or about where we might be able to get more info? </p>

<p>In terms of proximity to our home, class sizes, languages offered and weekday only classes this school seems to make sense for us. However we would like to know more about the school unofficially. Thanks</p>

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<p>Re Kei-o-lei and RL. You are correct that Kerry Brennan stepped in and has done a great job continuing the RL tradition. It was as seamless a transition as you will find with little to no faculty turnover which you often see when there is a new Headmaster. Regarding the myth of it being a feeder solely to the Ivy’s. it helps and encourages its students to find the school that is the right fit for them, be it as you noted the service academies, the LACs or the Ivys…
Had I lived in the Boston area I would have liked to have my sons’ apply there. The fact that so many alumni who graduated when Tony Jarvis was Headmaster are sending their sons there tells you that it had continued without losing its way.</p>

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<p>I’ll throw in my 2c worth on Concord Academy. We applied for Fall 2013 for our oldest son. He applied to five schools - four GLADCHEMMS and CA.</p>

<p>Pros - enthusiastic parents, nice campus, centrally located in a medium sized town. The tour guide was a parent of three CA students or alums. One parent even approached us in the local Starbucks to say how much they liked CA.</p>

<p>Cons - same impression as etondad. Teachers seemed unenthusiastic. Administration profiled CA as equal or superior to GLADCHEMMS, which was not our impression after the tour. Small campus, odd boarding situation, sports center 1 1/2 miles away from main campus, no AP classes. Felt like we were being sold, not welcomed during the visit.</p>

<p>Our impression - small artsy boutique school with growing pains trying hard to fit into the GLADCHEMMS model and coming up a bit short.</p>

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<p>Regarding the comment from IntlDadof2 on CA. With one child taking a load of AP courses in public high school, we see the lack of formally designated AP courses at CA to be a plus. We think AP courses focus too much on preparing kids to excel on a standardized test and not enough on really thinking about and understanding the material. And many teachers dislike teaching AP courses because the curriculum is so rigid. If you peruse the CA course catalog, you will notice that many courses typically taken by juniors indicate, at the end of the course description, that many students take the AP exam upon completion of the course. Many of these courses are labeled “Advanced” but not AP, so the teachers do not have to adhere to a rigid curriculum. The kids at CA are very bright and emerge well prepared for top colleges. The average SAT scores and the matriculation stats attest to that.</p>

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<p>Just read through etondad’s posts in this thread. I hope people keep in mind that his opinions are those of just one person. Doesn’t like CA but thinks highly of CSW? I would say it really depends on the kid - some will fit better at one than the other. But certainly with regard to academic challenge there is no comparison, imo. CA is much more selective, average SAT scores are very high. We happen to know CSW rather well, through our close friend’s daughter. In my opinion, the curriculum is less challenging than that at our public high school, where are 11th grade daughter goes. Did not even consider CSW for our younger one who needs more of a challenge. Didn’t think it had much to offer beyond the free local option. Not to malign one and promote another, as I firmly believe that fit is important, and one gets out of a school whatever one puts in. Just making the point that opinions will vary, so please do not take one person’s view as the be all and end all, no matter how articulately it is conveyed.</p>

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<p>^^ I like schools who have a fairly clear vision of who and what they are. CSW does–in my opinion CA doesn’t–others significantly disagree. Is CSW a top academic school?–no of course not-- but for the right student it is terrific at what it provides. This might come as a bit of a surprise to some but I also like Sudbury River School–and this from a parent whose kids chose Exeter. Again, why? Bc SVS knows what it is. My concern with CA is not that it isn’t a school that can’t educate kids but that it is undergoing (others disagree) a change in identity-- that’s all.</p>

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<p>Thanks for clarifying your views on CA. Undergoing change does not necessarily imply either changing for the worse or changing for the better. It also does not necessarily imply lack of a fairly clear vision of who and what they are. The world of education is not static, and I like to see evidence of flexibility and adaptation. Maybe it would be more fair and more helpful to simply say you think the school is undergoing change, without putting a negative spin on it?</p>

<p>We researched the schools to which our C applied fairly extensively, and I would have to say that I, too, suspect that with its new athletic facility, CA may be looking to attract some of the more athletic kids. But I don’t feel that is a bad thing at all. It wouldn’t detract from the outstanding (IMO) arts and academics, and I feel that either way, with or without some of the better athletes in attendance, it is still a good fit for my very bright, artistically talented, and somewhat athletic kid.</p>

<p>As for your prior comment that some artistically talented kids are “shying away” from CA: My impression is that it’s because CA academics are so challenging. Some people seem to equate artsy with “easy” or “alternative”. But CA is not easy, and when people in search of the artsy/easy combo discover that, they look elsewhere. CA seems to be a unique combination of artsy and “nerdy”, if you will. And although they may be recruiting more athletes, they are still recruiting artsy/nerdy kids. They certainly made it very clear they wanted my kid for artistic and academic abilities.</p>

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<p>except going from a boutique which is unique to just another GLADCHEMMS is a loss as far as I am concerned. I would hate to see SVS become another Greater Boston day school too–it is also unique and that is something to treasure. But enough about my feelings on CA–as I have said, they are just mine–FWIW.</p>

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<p>“except going from a boutique which is unique to just another GLADCHEMMS is a loss as far as I am concerned.”</p>

<p>Perhaps that could be considered a loss, but I just want to highlight the fact that not everyone sees CA as becoming just another GLADCHEMMS. This family looked at 3 of the GLADCHEMMS and saw them as much more similar to each other than to Concord.</p>

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<p>I’ll just reiterate my previous comments that as someone with kids at CA throughout the term of the current head, and who was familiar with the school for many years before since we had our eye on it as a good match for our kids, it has not changed in any substantial way. There have, of course, been minor changes but it has the same focus it has had for many years. It is not trying to transform itself into a St Grottlesex or ISL clone. It remains a place with rigorous academics in a casual and relaxed atmosphere where students call teachers by their first names; where students enjoy a student body where almost everyone is nice; where there are no class rankings, no honors, and no awards; where arts are highly important; and where the sports teams are competitive (at least some years) at the EIL level, not at the ISL level. </p>

<p>For anyone who doubts the arts commitment, I invite you to look at the course catalog and the recent issues of the student newspaper. For anyone who thinks the school is trying to turn into a sports powerhouse, I invite you to review the athletic policy (you can get through all 4 years without being on a sports team) and the web pages for the sports teams. You’ll see that the focus is more on breadth than depth; even without football, crew, and ice hockey, there are a large number of different sports for a school of its size, but not much depth within each each sport. There are no thirds teams and many sports don’t have JV teams.</p>

<p>The above is not intended to sell the school but to present it as I see it and as I think most people intimately familiar with the school see it. It is definitely not the right place for everyone. It may be too relaxed or casual or liberal for some students; some students may find the combination of rigorous academics and casual social atmosphere to be incongruous; some students may prefer a school where school spirit is more tied to sports events; some students may prefer a school where winning sports teams are considered a priority. And that’s fine. There are a lot of great schools. I know I’m not going to change the minds of people who already have a fixed view of CA, but for others not that familiar with it, I believe that this is an accurate picture of the school now and how it will be in the foreseeable future.</p>

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<p>I see many parents discussing CA, so I figured I’d add my thoughts. I graduated from CA last year and I have a sibling currently attending CA, so I can give the perspective of a recent/current student. </p>

<p>I absolutely loved CA. First and foremost, it is an academically rigorous school. Don’t let its reputation for being small and “artsy” fool you into thinking it is any less rigorous than any other private high school. The curriculum is very unique, with many fewer requirements and much more freedom to explore than you will find at most high schools. For example, there are required classes for freshman and sophomore year in English and History, but junior and senior year are all semester-long electives. Since students get to pick those classes, everyone in the class is there because they find it interesting. This leads to a great class environment and discussions. Just as important, teachers get to teach about what interests them. Some examples of electives I took include a history class about South Africa, a Shakespeare class, and a memoir class. I recommend you look at the course catalog to see all the other amazing offerings. When you are taking classes that you get to chose yourself, all of the work is more worth it. I am currently in my first year of college, and I can honestly say that so far I find it easier to get an “A” in college than I did at CA. This was sometimes frustrating, but it forced me to work hard and getting good grades was even more rewarding. The college counseling office makes sure that colleges know how rigorous CA is. All of the CA grads I know were extremely well prepared for college. I am so happy that CA does not have AP classes. Teachers don’t have to “teach to the test” so they can teach about what they and the students find interesting. Many of my classes prepared me well for AP tests, but I didn’t feel pressure to take a ton of tests (which are really expensive!).</p>

<p>CA does have a reputation for being “artsy.” Of course, not every student at CA loves art, but there is an arts requirement. My adviser was in the arts department and I took an art class every semester. I always loved my art classes and wish I could have taken more. The art teachers are all artists themselves with their own studios, and they are great mentors. The music, theatre, and dance departments are all very strong as well. I am constantly amazed by the quality of the theatre productions. I think CA’s productions are just as good as, if not better than, the productions I have seen at larger schools with more resources.</p>

<p>Athletics is not CA’s strong point, but that doesn’t mean that the athletics department is weak. I would guess that the new athletic campus might attract more athlete applicants, but that doesn’t mean that the admissions office will change their standards for admission. They are still looking for smart, motivated students who are well-rounded and have multiple interests (which may or may not include athletics). I played on a few JV sports teams while at CA. I had a great time and made a lot of friends on the teams. This is probably something I would not have been able to do at another school where I would have had to “try out” and make a team. That being said, some of CA’s varsity teams can be competitive in the EIL. Because the school is so small, the success of the sports teams varies year to year based on the mix of students.</p>

<p>One of my favorite aspects of CA is the community and the feel on campus. It is extremely welcoming and friendly, which is one of the main reasons I chose it over other top private schools in the area. The commitment of “common trust” gives the campus a safe, comfortable feeling. People leave their bags in the library and never worry about their phones or iPods being stolen. I also love the mix of day and boarding students. The presence of a boarding population means that there is always something to do on campus and brings a wealth of diversity and different experiences that everyone can benefit from. The fact that half of the students are day students means that they don’t feel like outsiders or excluded from campus, as can sometimes be the case at primarily boarding schools. It also means that CA doesn’t have Saturday classes. If a day student is at CA on the weekend (which happens often!) it is by choice–for an activity, event, or just to hang out with friends.</p>

<p>To address college admissions briefly, having just gone through that process myself, I am always impressed with the matriculation lists CA produces (which you can find online). The number of students attending Ivys might be lower than some of the more traditional top prep schools, but I believe this is because the majority of CA graduates are looking for a liberal arts college experience. (However, between 2007 and 2011 the college with the second-highest number of CA graduates attending was Brown at 17 students.) During the college process at CA, students are encouraged to look at a variety of schools and really pick the school that is the best fit for them as opposed to the one with the best name. I looked at a range of colleges, including Ivys, large universities, and liberal arts colleges. I think I had a more thorough search than most of my friends and as a result I believe I am happier with where I ended up.</p>

<p>This turned out much longer than I intended, but I hope some of you find it helpful. Let me know if you have any questions. I’m always happy to talk about my experience at CA.</p>

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<p>Great message smithie!</p>

<p>The other viewpoints on CA also have merit. The school is still a bit unsettled with the new head of school who many feel is relatively weak as a leader. One of the biggest issues with CA is the lack of self-reflection by the teaching staff and administration. CA’s administration is looking at their own BS and telling everyone how great it is. </p>

<p>There are some great teachers there and some not so good, but the process for selecting the good from the not so good is not working well. They probably need new blood on the Board but that will likely not happen.</p>

<p>The issue with arts has more to do with pressure from top colleges to load up on just academic majors. Top schools all demand four years of everything. The arts get squeezed out which is sad as the arts teachers are some of the best at the school. They have the strongest dance program of any of the schools mention by far.</p>

<p>The comment on grades is spot on. They have severe grade deflation which may effect college chances, but that is probably true at all/most of the top prep/boarding schools.</p>

<p>CA is a very different place than the other schools being discussed. The artsy/nerdy description is apt. However, for those interested in sports, you will find good facilities and plenty of opportunities.</p>

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<p>The Winsor School! It’s a girls day school and sister school to both Belmont hill and RL.
Rigorous academics, good sports/arts, mostly really, really nice girls! I just got accepted, and I’m so, so excited! I would highly recommend it, even though I’m not (officially) a student yet! </p>

<p>Yet another great school is BBN! Also really great academics here! The sports culture is more evident, as well as the excellent arts department. This is also a coed school, with great location next to Harvard Square. </p>

<p>Both amazing schools to definitely be taken into consideration for anyone!
Here is a great link to matriculation stats: [Top</a> 25 : Matriculation Stats](<a href=“http://matriculationstats.org/top-25]Top”>http://matriculationstats.org/top-25)</p>

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<p>Don’t buy this claptrap. The reason CA doesn’t offer APs is because of the biases of a few people in the academic office. They don’t like anyone outside CA telling them what to do. It’s a real hassle to take the AP test in most classes because the topics aren’t covered and you wind up having to do a lot of extra work - usually over Spring break. Maybe colleges know that and give extra recognition to CA students who have taken APs and done well - but that seems like really wishful thinking.</p>