<p>I am the parent of a 9th grade girl. She had a super K-8 Waldorf education and is now enjoying a small democratic/community/progressive school. I'm looking into boarding school (east coast only, please)for her junior and senior years. She is a very capable student, particularly in math and science, but her passion is art and music (guitar). She will need a small,casual, liberal school--someplace very artsy that can help her through the college aplication process with an eye toward Bennington,Skidmore, etc.
Buxton is on my radar although reviews on it are scarce. Can anyone point me toward other schools or give feedback on Buxton? Thanks!</p>
<p>Putney is a progressive school too.</p>
<p>I recently met a Buxton parent at a friend’s party and he had just sent his child off to Oberlin from there. He had great things to say about it. I think it’s really really tiny?</p>
<p>Putney was the first thing to come to my mind. The All-School Sing is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen a school do: [YouTube</a> - The Putney School Sing](<a href=“http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5nPJFSJ87g]YouTube”>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5nPJFSJ87g)</p>
<p>This is a great example of why there are so many schools and “tops” for one is not for another. Both Putney and Buxton would be completely wrong for my son fit-wise, but they are perfect for the kids that go there.</p>
<p>I loved Putney - a great friend of mine has a graduating daughter and an incoming son at the school. It is such a special place - you MUST visit it to truly appreciate just how special this place is. I saw it during the harvest fest ( I don’t know if that was what it was called) this past October - amazing!</p>
<p>Gretch,
I would look at Mercersburg. It sounds exactly like what you are looking to.<br>
Their college counselor is president of the national association.
They look at the top liberal arts schools as well as the IVYs.
They have probably the best arts building and program of all private schools.
They are one of the top schools that the Navy and Arym uses for kids that are not quite ready for the academy</p>
<p>Mercersburg does have a very beautiful arts center, but would you call it “progressive”?</p>
<p>check out Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, NY</p>
<p>Neato
I have never understood the work “progressive”.
Is MBurg the conservative religious right - no
Do they have a good education and a great arts program and push their students to all liberal arts schools and not just the IVYs - yes
Do they have a great college counseling - yes
Do they push a traditional liberal arts education - yes
Do they have a Harkness table education - yes
Do they have stict rules - yes</p>
<p>I agree with all of your descriptions of M’burg. Maybe I don’t understand “progressive” either. I always thought it was code for “hippie” and I mean that in the most endearing way ! 
I was afraid I had completely misread M’burg.</p>
<p>My sister (who goes to Williams) says the kids at Buxton are a bunch (all 93 of them!) of punks and the people of Williamstown don’t really like them… just sayin’ …</p>
<p>But if you’re looking for that combo you might like Williston and NMH. Both are very good schools for the arts as well as other things. Personally, I only checked out the arts but their science is very good.</p>
<p>A close friend of mine withdrew her daughter from Buxton before her first semester was over because there was so much psychiatric instability: overdoses, cutting, bulemia, drinking, etc. I’m sure that stuff happens everywhere, but it was overwhelming.</p>
<p>Princess’Dad, didn’t your daughter leave M’berg voluntarily?</p>
<p>Gretchenamy - </p>
<p>If your daughter attended (and enjoyed) Waldorf school, why not consider one of the Waldorf high schools? I know they’re not the usual topic of conversation on this forum, but they might be the right choice for your family.</p>
<p>The school I’d suggest you take a look at is High Mowing, in Wilton, NH - I believe it’s the oldest Waldorf high school in the country. As you’d expect, it has a great arts/music/theatre program - but is also strong in math and science. I think if I was a high school age student, and had to pick a school on the East Coast, that’s the one I’d look at.</p>
<p>Other small schools in the same geographic region include the Dublin School - also very small, with strong academics and an amazing art department! - and the Meeting School. The Meeting School is a Quaker boarding school with - as you’d expect - a very nontraditional curriculum. (They grow their own food, etc., etc.) I don’t know how strong the academic program is - you’d have to do some investigating to find out more about it - but I believe it has a strong arts program.</p>
<p>This is my first post - I registered just to answer your question . . . I just figured that if you’re looking for alternatives, you might want to take a look at some that don’t necessarily fit the traditional boarding school mold.</p>
<p>Good luck with your search!</p>
<p>My daughter goes to Mercersburg, and while it does have a magnificient arts building, I would probably not put it in the artsy category. Let me clarify. If an artsy child goes there, that child could certainly find enough artistic outlets to feed their need. But it doesn’t have an artsy vibe (and I think Neato and I think alike on the description of artsy). It has an athletic vibe, an academic one, and very much and international one. I would also mention that it is strict, but less so than one year ago. Kids are now allowed to use their cell phones all over campus, just not during the school day hours. Study hall for freshman now splits between dorm and classrooms.<br>
On the other hand, I have a son at Proctor Academy. It is gloriously artistic. Recording studios, independent community service playing guitar in a local coffee house…Teachers are called by their first names to increase approachability, kids chop wood for some of the dorms (and love doing it), maple syrup is made on the premises, eco house is big…My son loves it there and would have hated m’burg. Just different styles.
I would absolutely recommend Proctor for your daughter. I bet it would be a great fit. To get a better feel for Proctor, check out “Chuck’s Corner” on the Proctor website. It is an honest view of the school, with an insider’s perspective.
Good luck.</p>
<p>Benley, Yes
but it was because she missed her friends at home and having a 24/7 slave (me)</p>
<p>had it not been a day’s travel, she would have stayed</p>
<p>
No offense, Pricess’Dad, but what you said here really means little. They are all subjective meansures in relative terms. Theoretically you could say those things about any decent school, which M’berg is one.</p>
<p>If the Philly area is under consideration, check out Westtown and the George School. Both are Quaker (ergo “liberal” and “progressive”) with strong academics and arts programs. </p>
<p>These blurbs are from Philadelphia Magazine’s 2008 Oct. ‘best of schools’ issue. Both schools were cited for their “visual arts” programs:</p>
<hr>
<p>George School. At George, the arts receive the super-intensive International Baccalaureate treatment in every discipline, including two levels of video production and woodworking, and a course in alternative photographic processes ranging from antique methods to the most up-to-date digital technologies. Co-ed day and boarding, grades 9-12; day tuition $29,300, boarding tuition $39,600. 1690 Newtown-Langhorne Road, Newtown, 215-579-6500, georgeschool.org.</p>
<p>Westtown School. The Arts Center at Westtown stays open outside of class time so students can work not only on assignments, but also on independent projects, some of which end up next to professional work in the schools exhibition gallery. Co-ed day and boarding, preK-12; day tuition $25,300, boarding tuition $40,250. 975 Westtown Road, Westtown, 610-399-0123, westtown.edu.</p>
<hr>
<p>Both are also cited for their strong liberal arts:</p>
<hr>
<p>George School
Co-ed day and boarding, grades 9-12; day tuition $29,300, boarding $39,600. 1690 Newtown-Langhorne Road, Newtown, 215-579-6500, georgeschool.org</p>
<p>One of only three boarding schools in the United States to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, George School belongs to a global community of 645,000 students in 129 different countries. Why IB? According to head of school Nancy Starmer, it not only challenges students with an internationally recognized comprehensive curriculum, but also complements the schools Quaker values. Every year since adopting IB in 1985, George School students have scored higher than the international average on the programs assessments. Thats not easy: The full IB diploma requires mastery of six subject areas, a 4,000-word research paper, extracurricular activities and service, and a class in theory of knowledge. Students who dont opt for the full diploma can still earn IB certificates or AP credit in individual courses. B.S.</p>
<p>Westtown School. At Westtown, they teach you to write. The English department holds an advanced writing seminar and spring electives, like last years Reading and Writing The New Yorker, that emphasize the power of the pen (or keyboard). Co-ed day and boarding, preK-12; day tuition $25,300, boarding $40,250. 975 Westtown Road, Westtown, 610-399-0123, westtown.edu.</p>
<p>George School, I’m sure is great, terrific wrestling team but what’s with all the tattoos and at that age?</p>
<p>Sorry, I must have missed the memorandum where tattoos are required for admission to George School. Care to elaborate?</p>