<p>She wants a smaller campus school (so she doesn't get lost, she said :P). She's really artistic and she's more a math-and-science type person, so she'll want a great arts program and math and science program/facilities. She told me she wants a school that teaches "history, not social studies." I'm not sure what she means but maybe you do. And she'd like to take Japanese. Can anyone suggest schools that are for her? By the way, she's really really smart and loves to learn.</p>
<p>She should look at St. Paul’s. Great arts program, offers Japanese, in the midst of building a state-of-the-art math and science building. The campus is large (more like a small village) but the student body is not. She will easily learn to find her way around campus and with a close knit community she won’t get “lost” literally or figuratively.</p>
<p>^ I don’t think St. Paul’s would work for her - she specifically asked for a school with a small campus. I think I’d recommend Choate. The campus is a lot smaller than St. Paul’s, although it is still pretty large (not too large). Choate is known for having a close knit community. It’s also known for being really artsy, and it’s got great math & science facilities. Now, about them teaching history and not social studies…mmhm, I’m not sure.</p>
<p>Anyways, hope that helped :)</p>
<p>@Dapple,
It’s hard for someone who doesn’t know your friend to tell her “what schools are for her”. I’d recommend she look at all top tier schools and a few schools with lower acceptance rates. All top tier boarding schools are supposed to have a relatively tight-knit communities, despite large student bodies and massive campuses. Also, all of these schools have excellent math/science departments and none of these schools have what I would consider terrible arts programs. Here are some schools which I recommend that anyone who is interested in BS should look at:</p>
<p>Phillips Academy Andover
Phillips Exeter Academy
Deerfield Academy
St. Paul’s School
Groton School
St. George’s School
Middlesex School
Milton Academy
Thatcher School
Concord Academy
Kent School
Taft School
Portsmouth Abbey School
Lawrenceville School
Episcopal High School
Hotchkiss School
Mercesburg Academy</p>
<p>Now all these schools might not be right for your friend. For example, from what you describe I’m not sure Deerfield would be right for her. At Deerfield there is a big emphasis on sports and the arts are not as emphasized. So that might not be right for her. But what she needs to do is look at all these school’s websites and decide which ones she likes the best. But what she also needs to remember is that she can’t only apply to top tier schools like Andover and Exeter. She should also apply to some less selective schools on this list or that she finds. </p>
<p>Sorry about all this but now to answer you question. Choate does have probably the best arts programs for any boarding school. But I got a very bad vibe from their so I’m not sure if she would like it. Exeter has probably the best math/science out there, and it has Japanese. It’s arts department is excellent as well. Hope this long post helped you! =)</p>
<p>After like the first few weeks on campus, your friend should be able to find her way around campus, even at big schools like SPS so I really don’t think that campus size should be a main factor.</p>
<p>Having visited Groton and St. Paul’s with my daughter in the same week, I would place Groton ahead for a “smaller campus” feeling. I love St. Paul’s and am going to encourage my daughter to include it (as well as Groton) on her final application list, but from your description, would say that Groton offers a more intimate setting.</p>
<p>Oh, finding Japanese at a BS is tough these days. Japanese is not now the language de jour. Chinese holds that distinction. Still, some BS’s continue to offer Japanese. Posters above mentioned SPS and PEA as schools that teach this language. As I recall, PA has Japanese. If it doesn’t, I would be surprised. It seemed to offer about 12 to 14 different foreign languages. Pretty impressive.</p>
<p>St. Paul’s School
Branksome Hall
St. Johnsbury Academy
The Lawrenceville School
Phillips Exeter Academy
The Taft School
Phillips Academy<br>
St. Albans School </p>
<p>These are schools that offer Japanese that are within a 1000 mile radius of my zip code.</p>
<p>[The</a> Association of Boarding Schools - TABS](<a href=“http://boardingschools.com/find-a-school/search-tools/guided-search.aspx]The”>http://boardingschools.com/find-a-school/search-tools/guided-search.aspx)</p>
<p>Click on the add options tab, then languages and humanities courses, and you should see a unmarked box for japanese. Click on this and any other information you would like and there you go.</p>
<p>I encourage everyone to put campus size at the VERY bottom of your considerations when choosing a school. Believe me, those campuses will start to feel very small around your junior or senior year no matter how big they are.</p>
<p>Lawrenceville’s dropping Japanese in 2011, which is when she’ll be applying, but she said her requirements aren’t mandatory. I think the most important ones are the art and math&science. And thanks everyone! Keep them coming.</p>
<p>I’ve heard a lot that Choate is a really artsy school… how so? Also would you say it’s more math&science ish or humanities ish?</p>
<p>Oh and when I said “she’s very artistic” I meant solely visual arts. She’s an amazing drawer.</p>
<p>Choate has an excellent art concentration program
[Choate</a> Rosemary Hall: Academics » Special Academic Opportunities » Arts Concentration](<a href=“http://www.choate.edu/academics/special_artsconcentration.aspx]Choate”>http://www.choate.edu/academics/special_artsconcentration.aspx)</p>
<p>AND </p>
<p>an excellent science research program.
[Choate</a> Rosemary Hall: Academics » Special Academic Opportunities » The Science Research Program](<a href=“http://www.choate.edu/academics/special_thescienceresearch.aspx]Choate”>http://www.choate.edu/academics/special_thescienceresearch.aspx)</p>
<p>Also, a new environmental center is being planned and is set to open in the spring of 2012.
[Construction</a> of Environmental Center in Progress](<a href=“http://thenews.choate.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=198%3Aconstruction-of-environmental-center-in-progress&Itemid=21]Construction”>http://thenews.choate.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=198%3Aconstruction-of-environmental-center-in-progress&Itemid=21)</p>
<p>It’s hard to put choate in a box, since it offers so many different opportunities for students.</p>
<p>I suppose we should distinguish the “size of the campus” from the size of the school. A smaller campus with a large student body can cause you to “get lost” too. But if she is referring to the number of acres, then yes SPS is very large. However, the usable campus is less than the total acreage owned.</p>
<p>Given your criteria, I think that Cate might offer the perfect fit for your friend. [Cate</a> School](<a href=“http://www.Cate.org%5DCate”>http://www.Cate.org) I’d encourage her to visit.</p>
<p>Could look at Governor’s Academy (short drive from Andover and Exeter). Dorms are “houses” and hold about 12 students each. All singles unless the student wants a roommate. Classes are tiny and the Headmaster’s house is open each weekend as a hang-out for students. </p>
<p>I was blown away by the art studio. They just built an entire building for ceramic’s class kiln. Across from it is a state-of-the-art theater and music center. Has separate math and science building that is well equipped. And the library is amazing.</p>
<p>Lots of parent involvement encouraged there (parents were on hand to talk to me about that when my daughter interviewed)</p>
<p>That’s as small as I found that still fit our specs for a school. It may not be a HADES school, but it maintains close relationships with them (with some faculty sending their kids there). Ultimately my D chose a different school, but said she could have been happy there.</p>