<p>@PelicanDad
Thank you so much! I appreciate your input. I’m guessing the Becket retreat is wonderful and creates bonding and a sense of community among both new and old students. They have something similar at the JBS my daughter is at now.
I think I recall reading few of your past posts. Your son is a boarder, correct? Has he found friendships among boarders and day students difficult? Personally, I think that the large day student population only adds to the diversity and choices. I also would think that the day students adds a dimension to the community that BS with almost all boarders do not have. I really want her going to Loomis. I know that if I push only the Pros of Loomis and don’t highlight the pros of the other school/schools she will push back, at least outwardly. I honestly felt that Loomis’ community was the more representative of a general student body than any other campus and has, like you said, an incredible humanities department and is geographically desirable for us as well, its close to an airport. Despite the rigorous academics, does your son have fun and also enjoy just being a teenager? It sounds like that’s part of what Loomis promotes.</p>
<p>Yes, he boards, and no, there’s no strong distinction between boarding friends and day student friends for him. Yes, I am a little nervous about next year when many of them start driving, but then again, we didn’t send him off to BS as a substitute for lockdown.</p>
<p>He seems to have figured out quite a
balance between academics, ECs he loves, and social time with friends both boarding and day. He loves gaming, and has negotiated a way to have some access to that even as part of his life at BS. Taft, for instance, had a strict anti-gaming stance. DC wrote one of his application essays on the misperceptions of gaming culture. Wouldn’t have been my choice, held my tongue, he didn’t get in. But now he’s doing great at a great school and the gaming keeps him connected to friends both at home and far afield, so I’m OK with it as long as it’s kept within reason. But the teachers at LC treat kids both as kids and as young adults; they know that they swing back and forth sometimes like a pendulum. So I really like that and feel like a partner in guiding my kid with his advisors and dorm heads. They have been totally approachable, offer great insight into our son and our family, and seem to support and advocate for him there while still making sure he’s principally learning to do those things for himself.</p>
<p>Good luck with your D, your choices are all fine it will just depend on what’s pulling at her at this particular stage of her maturation. Take your cues from her…that’s my parenting style, anyway…</p>
<p>Thank you agai Pelican Dad. You made a great point and one that I have been pointing out to my D. Some of these schools are as stricts as her JBS. That is going to get stifling fast. I want her going into a town. I don’t want the school I. The middle of nowhere and certainly don’t want her on lockdown or made to feel that all facets of herself are not valued. Small schools far from towns that don’t truly appreciate fun but think if it more as an occasional distraction are not where I want to send my kid. Thank you so much for your thoughts and opinions. You are confirming everything I feel about Loomis. My D WILL make the final decision. I just hope she makes a fully informed one and considers what she may/will need for the next THREE years</p>
<p>You are correct, LC kids can easily walk off campus and there is a Subway, a BBQ joint, a pizzeria, a CVS, and a grocery store right there. Furthermore, Amtrak passes right by as well, so they can easily get anywhere on the Eastern Seaboard in a matter of hours. And the fact that its a quick 10 minute van or can ride to BDL is pretty nice, too.</p>
<p><em>cab ride</em> daggum iPhone</p>
I got accepted into Loomis and was wondering about people’s perspectives…
My DD is a current student. Feel free to PM me.