<p>I wonder if economically disadvantaged kids have a real shot at attending boarding schools. While some schools advertise that accepted kids from families with incomes below $75k will receive full aid, this lumps together kids who are on free lunch at public school and live below the poverty level with kids who are solidly middle class. I can't find any information online that addresses this question.</p>
<p>In addition to full aid, I know of some boarding schools which will also include some “extras” to make those from the lowest income levels a little more comfortable at boarding school. Some schools will pay for parents’ travel/hotel costs for parent weekends. They will also provide laptops, clothing allowances, free laundry, bedding, and books as well as a monthly stipend for spending money so the student can grab a burger, see a movie, or order in pizza with friends which helps alleviate a little socio-economic disparity. </p>
<p>That’s true, Creative1, but that’s assuming that the poorest students even get accepted. Kids from families on free lunch don’t get music lessons, SSAT prep classes, summer camp, help with essays and many other experiences that kids from the middle class take for granted.</p>
<p>Admissions officers review applications in context. They will consider background. Also, programs like Prep for Prep and A Better Chance feed applicants into the prep school, similar to Questbridge and the Posse program at the college level. These programs help with test prep, etc. There are also certain middle schools that service disadvantaged youth across the country that are feeders. Often, once a boarding school attracts one successful student to their boarding school they will go back to that school to look for other applicants. The top boarding schools’ admissions officers will travel in the Spring and Fall to get out there and find these students. Often, its getting parents of these students to allow their children to attend that can be a stumbling block. It’s a new and different world to them and many are not familiar with boarding schools and what they can offer. </p>
<p>I am most familiar with SPS but I know Exeter/Andover do the same. Here’s a travel schedule for SPS from Fall 2013. Notice all the outreach at the ABC fairs as an example: <a href=“http://www.sps.edu/podium/default.aspx?t=161818”>http://www.sps.edu/podium/default.aspx?t=161818</a></p>
<p>To your point, one group that I do feel can get overlooked is the rural poor as the programs I mentioned above seem to serve more urban children. </p>
<p>I can talk to you from personal experience about this topic. I lived in a rather rural area (now live in a small city), and I receive free breakfast and reduced lunch at school. When I was accepted at my school, I was awarded full financial aid plus extras. The application process took a bit more work on my part; I never had SSAT prep classes or private lessons, but I still got accepted. So yes, economically disadvantaged kids still have a chance at getting in to top notch boarding schools. It is definitely harder; I can attest to that. It takes a lot of passion and drive. If anyone has more specific questions, feel free to personal message me.</p>
<p>@omgjusttellme Did you apply through any programs? I don’t know about your case, but I think the OP is talking about kids who don’t have access to those for whatever reason. </p>
<p>@creative1 They might take money into account most of the way through, but if all else is equal between two kids they want, why would they choose the 90 SSAT over the 99?</p>
<p>They want to build a diverse class, both in terms of racial and socioeconomic diversity. No boarding school wants to be TOO homogenous. So, they will find the best candidates for each group - full pay, athletic standouts, artsy kids, economically disadvantaged, etc. SSAT scores are not as important as some people might think. The average SSAT scores at SPS are usually around 88%, so they are indeed taking students who don’t have tippy top scores. It’s a holistic process. IMHO, grades, recs, ECs are more important than test scores. I think there is a minimum threshold needed for SSAT scores but, beyond that, other factors weigh more heavily. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>There’s a difference between economically disadvantaged and minority. </p></li>
<li><p>There’s a difference between 75K and 25K, as @starzevMom said. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>This is a great question.</p>
<p>I think it is VERY difficult for an economically disadvantaged kid to be admitted to a selective BS, if s/he is not part of one of the programs out there like ABC or Prep for Prep (I’m sure there are others).</p>
<p>First of all, how does one even find out that BS is even a possibility? Second, how does one even start to navigate through the many options out there? And third, as you note: how can these kids compete with students who have been groomed from an early age for the BS admissions process…who have had the private lessons, private school advantages, camps, etc.</p>
<p>I think it is a question that many of the schools wrestle with — and as noted by creative1, some take a very active approach to finding kids from underserved communities.</p>
<p>Coming from a relatively rural community, I vented a few years ago about the lack of ABC type programs for kids from our local school district. Sure the kids aren’t minorities and are middle class, but I know of several that would have benefitted immensely from attending a BS vs. the LPS.</p>
<p>Edited…</p>
<p>@SevenDad </p>
<p>I agree. The school I would be attending (if I wasn’t being homeschooled) regularly makes the paper for prostitution, knife fights, gang violence, etc. There are smart kids there, but they don’t have involved parents to guide them through the process. You sort of have to do thing on your own if you come from my background, and the chance of finding the schools, much less getting in, is pretty much impossible. </p>
<p>The only outreach, advocacy program that I know of that is open to white kids is NJ Seeds. There are no racial requirements, just income…like questbridge. Prep for Prep and ABC are exclusively for minorities. </p>
<p>The internet has provided a lot of opportunities for rural kids to broaden their education through open coursework, etc. But it’s hard to get a letter of recommendation from Wikipedia. :)</p>
<p>@neatoburrito The internet is a great resource. That’s how I’ve figured out everything. It helps that applications are online too!</p>
<p>We have that early college high school in my area (Which I, as a straight A student with good scores didn’t get into) but it’s mainly for minorities and it’s just a safer version of the public school system. We don’t have any outreach programs to help kids find boarding schools or colleges. Even the local ‘prep’ school has an average SAT of 1550, only 20 points higher than the county schools. </p>
<p>Thanks for all the thoughtful responses. I have a few comments:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The important programs mentioned here such as ABC and Prep for Prep serve children of color only, and to the best of my knowledge they may or may not be economically disadvantaged. </p></li>
<li><p>There is a huge difference between the income limits for free and reduced lunch. For instance, the income limit for a family of 4 to receive free lunch in the contiguous US is $30,615 while it’s $43,568 to receive reduced lunch–a difference of nearly 50%! Obviously not all kids receiving reduced price lunch have family incomes at or near the maximum, but all kids receiving reduced price lunch live above the federal poverty level. </p></li>
<li><p>Rural isn’t necessarily economically disadvantaged.</p></li>
<li><p>The lower SSAT scores may or may not come from kids who are economically disadvantaged. They could also be from the extraordinarily talented violinist or star lacrosse player.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>starzeMom, I do think it is a timely question you pose. Colleges are increasingly focused on first generation and low income recruitment, hence the growing success of QuestBridge. I think URM enrollment is still important to many colleges, but enrolling economically disadvantaged youth from all quarters, especially first generation is the “hot” issue right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if boarding schools follow suit as it benefits them in the college placement game. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to see a prep school version of QuestBridge started?</p>
<p>I think the first generation thing is a little overrated. Most people in my area (pretty much everybody in my neighborhood qualifies for free lunch) went to some college. </p>
<p>And yet, my friend’s parents never went to college and yet her father owns a gardening company of sorts and they live in a nice area. </p>
<p>The BS definition of lower income includes families who are solidly middle class and not only the truly economically disadvantaged. I wish the BS would be more forthcoming about if or how they “take into account” an applicant’s family income, and if they are at all aware of the huge difference in opportunity a middle class family can offer their kids vs a family living at the poverty level. They boast about how they financially support those accepted from lower incomes (which includes the middle class!) but that doesn’t help the kids who applied and aren’t accepted because of a very uneven playing field. </p>
<p>It would also be helpful if those who are accepted on full scholarship disclose what programs they participated in. On more than one occasions I’ve noticed full-aid kids offering advice in one thread without mentioning that they benefited from a program such as ABC.</p>
<p>In Boston there is a program called Stepping Stones which feeds lower income students of all races into independent schools (k-9) in the Boston area. Once a child is at one of the schools, they can take advantage of the opportunities that will help them in secondary school admissions. I wonder if there are similar programs elsewhere?</p>