Not sure why Episcopal High School in Alexandria, VA is not on your list. Perhaps an oversight. Travel to is easy from CA since there are two airports in D.C. (Reagan National - 10 mins from campus, and Dulles - 20 minutes). Similar to SPS and SAS, 100% boarding, academically rigorous, much student diversity, and the right scale in terms of students, 435. I have a DD (rising sophomore) and DS (rising Senior) at EHS. Location provides incredible experiential learning opportunities. Finally very generous FA available to qualified candidates. Here are some links. Good luck with your search.
@CaliMex we just spent two years and thousands of dollars previewing boarding schools and answering the questions you have posed. We live west of the Mississippi and are a minority. If you PM me I will gladly share the info we gathered through our research, speaking with parents, students and campus visits and revisits.
I am by no means an expert, but I have a good friend whose daughter attends Emma Willard and is thriving. She’s a smart and very introverted kid who needed a push to try some new things, which she has, including with sports and an interesting summer program. She chose EW over Miss Porter’s and Westover.
I think Andover may be what you’re looking for! Contrary to popular belief, there actually isn’t a super-competitive atmosphere. But if PA isn’t a school you’re looking to consider, I have friends that attend 9/15 of the listed schools and am still willing to help if you PM me!
We/I would never claim expertise. There are simply too many variables from student to student and school to school. I do think that anyone who has been through the process can offer invaluable information and feedback. We have been through the process with day and boarding schools. My youngest is now at PEA. Happy to answer any questions
I am a current Berkshire student and I am from the California as well so I might relate to your daughter in that way… many of the things that you listed seem to perfectly line up with Berkshire and I would love to talk to you more about it but I want to protect my privacy as well. How do I pm you?