<p>Haha, I just want someone to talk to. I had a roommate at Duke TIP and she was great, and I loved it, and that was part of my reasoning.</p>
<p>As always, thanks for the great post D'yer. Interestingly, my son's answers to those initial questions - other than size - didn't narrow it down any. He is open to all of them. I thought he would say no to Saturday classes but he didn't. I tend to think he might be well suited for an all boys school and I was glad that he didn't rule that out right away. </p>
<p>I had to laugh at your spread sheet because I was just this weekend thinking about starting one to keep track of things - mostly to keep which school is which straight in my head!</p>
<p>I agree Linda S. - Dyer's posts are always worth reading (and we also ended up with a spreadsheet, ours focusing primarily on the pros and cons of each school when it came time to make a choice).</p>
<p>I would like to add one cautionary statement to this very productive discussion, and that is, take care not to become wedded to one place or to allow your student to become so. Firstly, because there are so many wonderful schools out there, and it will rarely be the case that only one of them will satisfy, and secondly because it can make for a broken heart if it doesn't work out. Kudos to Dyer's son for coming through rejection feeling very good about his choice for next year, but it is not always so. I know we all want to get our son or daughter to focus on what characteristics they consider essential in their secondary school experience, but there is a down side to that push for clarity.</p>
<p>I cringe at the thought of a spreadsheet! I would love to map it all out, with facts and figures and comparisons -- but I fear that I would become too obsessed, so I force myself to just make a few small charts and then take a break!</p>
<p>I haven't posted in a couple of weeks about boarding schools. My son's semester ended well and he has multiple activities he will be attending this summer, so I am guessing we won't be getting serious about BS until August. He is doing some study for the SSAT when he is in town -- but that is only for a few weeks. </p>
<p>We are planning on at least 3 trips to check out boarding schools -- one to Wisconsin to check out Conserve, one to California to check out Thacher and Midland and a final one to the east coast -- not sure where, yet. I am hoping he can see two or three schools in one trip, so he will need to narrow the list of schools on the east coast. I am sure that Fountain Valley (the local BS) will have a fall visiting day and we will attend that and this time bring Dad along.</p>
<p>smile dog -- good reminder! I am very good about reminding my older son about not getting set on a particular school (he is heading towards college in a few years) but I am not as good about that with my younger son. It will be very important since FA is critical -- and he may not get to go to BS at all. I am trying to emphasize the positives in his local school, just in case -- they send a good chunk of kids to top schools, multiple acceptances to all the ivies, he would still be going to school with his friends, he will graduate with an IB diploma and he would still get to see his dog everyday.</p>
<p>D'yer just read your post. I had a spreadsheet too. And your analysis is correct to me. Good advice in your post. All of the spreadsheet business went out the window when it was time to make decisions. Things do change through the process and what's really important comes through in the end.</p>
<p>D'yer just read your post. I had a spreadsheet too. And your analysis is correct to me. Good advice in your post. All of the spreadsheet business went out the window when it was time to make decisions. Things do change through the process and what's really important comes through in the end.</p>
<p>sorry - computer glitch! Rather, user glitch...</p>
<p>hsmomstef - I must confess, I haven't read the entire thread, so perhaps others have already said this, but I've heard some terrific things about Fountain Valley. A good friend of my younger son will be going there in the Fall and he's very excited about it. Also, one of the folks in the Admissions Office used to work at the middle school my 2 boys graduated from and he is a wonderful person, teacher, mentor.</p>
<p>smile dog -- thank you!!!! that is really good to hear! No one really knows anything about Fountain Valley other than what they can read on the internet since it is off the beaten path as far as boarding schools go. It was the first boarding school under consideration -- and the invitation to visit there is what started my son thinking about attending boarding school. We live 20 minutes from Fountain Valley and it is one of my son's top choices. We were very impressed during out visit. Because we need financial aid and we live in the same city, I am concerned that he might not get the FA to attend even if he gets accepted -- so I am encouraging him look at other schools, but Fountain Valley remains at the top of the list. It would be the only BS where we could regularly attend his sporting events and drama performances.</p>
<p>There is huge value (at least to us parents!) in being close enough to get to those games, concerts, plays, whatever else may come up for our children at BS! Our older son just graduated from a school that was about an hour and 45 minutes from home (sometimes 2-1/2 depending on traffic!) and, while one or the other of us was able to make it to pretty much everything, I will say now that it was hard!! That's just a bit too far for easy back and forth. Our younger son is going to go to a different school this coming fall that is only 40 minutes from home and that will be a snap. In fact, we even considered having him be a day student there, but in the end he decided that he would be missing too much of school life with that kind of commute. So I think you're wise to make note of the relative proximity of the schools your family is considering with an eye to being able to make it to games and performances. Would your son consider being a day student at Fountain Valley?
By the way, KulturWolf (at least I think that's the name) started a different thread on this board, commenting on BS from an alum's viewpoint, and I noticed that he/she went to Thacher. Might be worth asking him/her about the school.</p>
<p>My son would be a boarding student -- he really, really wants the "boarding" experience. I would love to have him attend so close -- I am just not sure it will work out. Fountain Valley is his only local option -- after that, the next closest is 18 hours away.</p>
<p>On the other hand -- he has found some schools that he really feels drawn to (right now, he talks about Midland and Conserve a lot) that have something that Fountain Valley doesn't offer -- and he may choose distance over proximity when it comes down to the final decision.</p>
<p>I think our strategy will be to apply to about 8 schools and see what happens. With financial aid crucial, we just don't know how this will all play out.</p>
<p>He and I talked yesterday and we decided that he would compare each boarding school to his local IB magnet school (where he would attend if he was local). He will look at the plusses and minuses -- and if he would rather attend the local school than the boarding school, he won't apply to the bs. It sounds simple -- but it is easy to get caught up in the viewbooks and websites and get drawn into applying and in some cases he would choose the local school over the bs when it came down to a final decision.</p>
<p>Our visits this fall should help confirm the list -- he has some great possibilities now and he would attend every school on his list over the local school right now.</p>
<p>Oh yes! it is very easy to get caught up in the whirl and shine of the boarding school viewbook, etc. But I would say your son is approaching this in a very sound manner (and you are too). Good for you, and good luck. It is such a long process with such large questions to be answered. It can be very fatiguing!</p>
<p>hsmomstef - </p>
<p>Don't you think it would harder to get Fountain Valley to give you enough FA for your son to board as opposed to being a day student if you are within commuting distance?</p>
<p>I don't know -- it would make sense that it would be harder to get FA if you live close, but I ask them about it last spring and they said it wouldn't make a difference.</p>
<p>He really wants to board and not be a day student -- even it that means that he only sees us for holidays and such. I don't know if he really comprehends the reality of the situation -- but I do know that he isn't the homesick kind of kid.</p>
<p>I actually think that it will be difficult to get FA from Fountain Valley simply because we live so close -- if they use their FA to help add diversity to the school or bring in something special, he won't really have it. There are quite a few kids that are local that attend -- both day and boarding.</p>
<p>However -- I know he will apply and see what happens.</p>
<p>If a school is hard up for boarders and trying to create a desirable boarder/day student ratio, they MAY be willing to create an incentive in terms of FA to have a "local" student become part of their boarding community.</p>
<p>that is good to know! He has good reasons why he wants to board -- and Fountain Valley has the lowest percentage of boarders of any of the schools he is looking at -- 68% boarding on BSreview -- so maybe it will work out for him.</p>
<p>Hi hsmom-</p>
<p>I haven't read this entire thread, but I did read your first post, and the way you described his wants in a school fits perfectly with Stevenson School in Pebble Beach, CA. This is where I currently attend. As a west coast boarding school, it has a more relaxed atmosphere (casual dresscode, etc.) as well as weather perks! It's just about 500 students, and it offers very good academics, perhaps not as competitive as you might find in some of the schools you listed. You certainly find well-rounded, grounded students who aren't preoccupied with reputation, something many people get caught up in. As for sports, you said he's not recruitable, and this is another good part of the Stevenson experience. Sports are a requirement throughout your time at Stevenson, and our teams are not extremely competetive. Everyone can be on almost all teams if they join, the only ones possibly making cuts being tennis and golf, both of which we are very strong in. Also, what really made me think of Stevenson in your comment is the outdoor education program that we have. We live in one of the most picturesque areas of California on the beautiful Pacific Coast only several miles from Big Sur. In Big Sur, we have the Ventana Wilderness, a huge preserved area that Stevenson makes use of. Every year, there is an 11-day expedition into the Ventana with about half of the sophomore class, led by junior and senior co-leaders as well as adult leaders. The planning and training for this is huge, and it is really a milestone moment in most Stevenson students careers here. Also, there are many other weekend-type trips taken, and there are lots of faculty dedicated to the outdoors. It sounds like the perfect match for your son. I am very happy here, and I would recommend checking it out. Please private message me for questions, and I'll also give you my email if you like in a private message. I really hope you consider it!</p>
<p>Connor-</p>
<p>conner -- thank you very much for the information on Stevenson. One of the reasons that it didn't make the list is that only 15% of the students are on financial aid -- so my thoughts were that it was unlikely that my son would receive enough aid to attend the school. I was also concerned about the low percentage of boarding students. Do you find the that day and boarding students separate into groups? Are you a boarding student?</p>
<p>again, thanks -- information is always good!</p>
<p>Hey,</p>
<p>I'm always glad to help, especially when it comes to my school. That's interesting about the financial aid. I know that it is on a need basis, so depending on your financial situation, you might be able to get aid. As for the 50-50 day and boarder issue, I'm a day student, and I actually think that it is a great balance. I don't find that day students and boarders seperate into groups. Some boarders may be slightly closer to other boarders as a result of seeing each other so much, but I'm a day student, and I have a lot of boarder friends, as well as day student friends. This is certainly the norm, and I know it would not be a problem at all if you are even moderately social. After all, all boarders take classes with day students, play sports, and spend days with them vice versa, so everybody ends up having close relationships. I have not found it to be a problem at all, but of course this depends on personality. I hope this helps, and ask anymore questions that you might have!</p>
<p>Connor-</p>