<p>A different perspective on the remote vs. town schools is our experience–we live very far from NE so wanted a school not too far from Boston or NYC for more convenient travel to and from school. What we did not consider is that, as a result of being relatively closer to Boston and NYC, there is many more students who simply clear out on the weekends (easy enough for kids to go home), and the campus is more dead. Had she chosen a more remote school, I think the staying on campus and BS as a community in and of itself would have been higher. Similarly, based on our experience, I suggest that if you have a S/D who’s hometown is farther away, don’t pick a school with a relatively high day school population.</p>
<p>Erlanger makes an excellent point. Generally we’ve de-emphasized schools with day student populations over 25%.</p>
<p>Regarding Williston-Northampton - They have an interesting tour set-up, in that there are two tours, one with a faculty member and another with a student. Problem is that the faculty member tour focuses on things that would probably best be saved for first day of school orientation - such as the academic counseling and deans’ offices. The administrative building was the last thing either my son or I wanted to see on our tour. We were interested in classes, performing arts facilities, student center and so forth - places where we’d be able to see, and possibly interact with, students. Some of this was included in the student tour, but some wasn’t. An opportunity missed . . . with the result that we were also left feeling underwhelmed.</p>
<p>Regarding boarding vs. day populations: my son and I agree that the ideal is where there is so much going on within the campus on weekends that the day students wish they could spend more time on campus - rather than the boarding students wishing they could spend less!</p>
<p>@kraordrawoh: FWIW Middletown is about as far from Philadelphia as Groton is from Boston (a little over 1 hour). And it’s only 35 minutes from Wilmington.</p>
<p>I liked SPS’s campus a lot because it feels private and secluded, but is really just a short car ride to Concord. In general, the campuses that were more open (with public streets that cut through campus) were not as appealing to us.</p>
<p>@Seven, I found Middletown to be one of the least appealing areas I encountered in visiting schools. SAS has a lovely campus, but there’s not much else in the area to recommend it. I also liked SPS’s campus and felt that Concord’s presence was a plus. That said, I haven’t visited in February.</p>
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I would try to accomodate the kids’ needs for easier access to some activities outside campus. They are already very much living “in a bubble”. It helps if they could get off the school area to do some shopping and have some fun with friends for a change sometimes.</p>
<p>@DAndrew: I totally agree. That’s why I think 15 minutes by car is the outer limit for a decent town.</p>
<p>@kraordrawoh: SAS felt like the Groton of the Mid-Atlantic to us in terms of the privacy/intimacy of the campus. The fact that it’s 100% boarding, like SPS, was also appealing.</p>
<p>@Seven, I agree with your assessment. We liked the school, but my daughter felt it was too small. We also have kids in school in NE, so logistically it just didn’t work well at all. There’s no quick way to get there.</p>
<p>My wife boarded at a high day student percentage school and loved it. She went home with day students many weekends, and had a much more balanced experience between on- and off-campus socializing. It depends on the kid, the school community, and how day students are integrated into that community.</p>
<p>Just a clarification. Choate does have Saturday classes. Not every Saturday, but when sports away games are on Wednesday, they have makeup classes all day Saturday.</p>
<p>@RBGG: What percentage of the time do you estimate Choate’s Wednesday classes shift to Saturday?</p>
<p>Something to consider in terms of radius to shops, etc. is that Exeter, and I assume many other schools, absolutely will NOT allow students to drive other students. There’s a complicated procedure (which I’m grateful for) to even allow other adults to drive students off campus. So walking distance is much more significant for students than driving distance. As pointed out earlier, while my kid thought he’d be bopping into Boston on the train once a month or so, in fact he’s much too busy, so I’m happy that Exeter has dances, movies, coffee house, restaurants available for quickly accessed week-end fun.</p>
<p>^^Yes, that’s what I was going to say. Driving distance of any is just not “good enough”. Ideally the coffee house, restaurants & shops are part of the expanded campus, as with some schools located in nice suburban towns. Students then don’t need to get permissions for a quick walking CVS visit or hang out in the coffee house in town. They may be too busy to do that often, but especially on weekends that convinience provides a good chance for a change of scene.</p>
<p>Actually, a student at PEA can hop I’m a car with a friend’s parent without telling a soul as long as they stay within 10 miles of campus and are back by check in. Yes, there are prohibitions about drivers under 18, but I imagine they’re pretty easy to skirt considering students aren’t required to tell anyone when they stay within 10 miles. It is kind of inconvenient when they need a special permission to go with a parent to the WalMart that is exactly 11 miles away. The students have a great deal of mobility…a mixed blessing. It’s nice to be able to visit your child and take him and a friend to a restaurant that is just a bit too far to walk to without the friend having a hassle, but still…it seems like there is quite a bit of room for abuse with little chance of getting caught. Not that I’d worry about my angel breaking breaking the rules… ;)</p>
<p>SPS has fairly easy access to downtown Concord. It is definitely bikeable in nice weather and kids do walk to town although it isn’t the quickest walk. The school offers free shuttles on the weekend. Students will also go in groups by taxi and split the cost. There are many restaurants downtown offering typical American fare like pizza and burgers but there are also a couple of excellent Japanese restaurants along with Mexican, Thai, Indian, Chinese, Middle Eastern, candy shops, bakeries, ice cream, etc. Kids also like to take cabs or the shuttle to the local mall, movie theaters and Target, etc. SPS has a bucolic, contained campus but all the amenities are closer than you would think.</p>
<p>DA is really not that remote. DA students go to Greenfield all the time without special permission. Greenfield has a grocery store, restaurants, department store, pharmacy, movie theatre, etc. You can’t walk, but it is a short cab ride and easy to find someone to share the fare. Also, the school runs a shuttle to the mall or to Northampton more weekends than not. Northampton is an artsy college town with probably 30 retaurants and another 10 coffee shops, bookstores, clothing stores, ice cream shops, candy stores, art galleries, etc. It is actually a bit of a tourist town, particularly in the summer. </p>
<p>Day student seniors at DA can drive senior boarders with permission from the boarders parents. Very useful for visits to day student homes. Although sometimes a little annoying for day students who end up as designated driver for grocery store runs, etc.</p>
<p>Choate has Saturday classes only 5 or 6 times a year. It actually doesn’t have to do with sports, it has to do with “special programs” during the week, or coming back from a vacation on a Monday night. The kids are guaranteed two “sleep ins” a week no matter what the schedule.</p>
<p>^^I’d like to add that Northampton is like THE place around here to get most stuff not at a mall.</p>
<p>Okay, Neato (radical law bender that she is–who knew? 
) made me check the e-book, and the specific rules for Exeter:</p>
<p>Day students are not allowed to drive boarding students except under the
following conditions: A day student driver who is 18 years old or older may give
a ride to a boarding student guest to and from the day student’s home for an
overnight visit. A written invitation is necessary from the host family. For the
boarder, appropriate out-of-town permissions from the Dean’s Office and
parents are also necessary.</p>
<p>Boarding Students: Boarding students may not possess or rent motor vehicles
on campus or in the Exeter vicinity. Students may not accept rides from
passing motorists. However, rides are permitted if:
- The licensed driver is a faculty member;
- For day trips in the Exeter vicinity, the licensed driver is at least 21
years old and the boarder has informed the faculty member on duty in
the dorm; or - For overnight weekend trips, the licensed driver is at least 18 years old
and appropriate out-of-town permissions have been obtained from the
Dean’s Office and the boarder’s parents.</p>
<p>In short…I’m glad that they have a Walgreens, restaurants, and a coffee shop in walking distance to keep MY angelic child on the straight and narrow. :)</p>