new students will have their dorm prefects reach out to them soon by phone or email. You can ask @ dorms and social media then- I would definitely advise students to join facebook, even if they don’t really use it. The school uses it to post notices, the form will have a class page, and yes, people will start to reach out-
As for mini breaks…some kids fly off on vacations or go on college tours, some go home with friends, and some stay on campus to catch up on sleep or work! My kid went to a relatives house for Easter and brought a group of girls with her! I was jealous to be left out! Don’t worry that your kids will be left behind- if they want “alone time” they can stay on a quiet"er" campus or catch a ride with a friend and visit a new city!!!
Different opinion here re: social media. Feel free to join if you wish but don’t feel obligated. Any info posted by the school, you will get via other channels. Whether it was BS or college, both my kids felt strongly about meeting fellow students organically rather than through social media initially. Facebook groups tend to be dominated by a few and don’t always provide an accurate picture of people or the class as a whole based on their observations.
I find myself really questioning whether I should entrust SPS with my son’s moral development over the next four years. The competitive incident in June is particularly disturbing in that it occurred after the school made changes as a result of the Labrie case.
“How do the students at SPS handle the situation?”
I can only speak for my child but she is upset… Upset with SPS for not speaking out more to defend their school publicly. Upset with the boys for being idiots, yes idiots! And upset that when you google SPS the first things that pops up are Owen Labrie or the Boston Globe’s weekly negative commentary on SPS. There are so many AMAZING students at SPS that could be highlighted, but unfortunately salacious news sells.
The case is obviously still open and being investigated- so I will not speak a lot about it- but my DD’s roommate is dating one of the boys in that dorm. Been some interesting conversations over the summer. These kids put girls names on a chicken wings crown. Stupid- yep. Insensitive- sure. But it wasn’t “the senior salute”- As far as I know RIGHT NOW ( and that could change, of course) there were no emails or inappropriate dates… It was a juvenile thing to do- which the boys thought was funny enough to wear in their dorm photo. And the school is taking it seriously because they did break school policies- I told my daughter to expect some of these boys not to return next fall.
My DD’s take on this is that the school has more than educated the students on proper behavioir- head of house weekly meetings, linc classes, chapels, guest experts, Prefect meetings… Then there are the rules in the school’s handbook, which are gone over at length and has been updated after the Owen Labrie case. ( I expect there will be even more updates to come) They recently have been very transparent with all investigations, both past and present- which frankly has created even more press hysteria. More information out there… BTW the school provided counselors for the students after the case report was released this past Spring- even though most cases were decades old.
friends of ours are also sending their son to SPS. I told them that we still believe in the school. My DD just finished her first year and she already refers to it as “home”- But just like every home- it’s not gonna be perfect. We believe however, that the school has gone above and beyond to take care of our DD this past year. Do kids fall through the cracks- Unfortunately, yes. Teenagers are good at hiding things. Especially from adults. SPS is a big school, and they do give more freedom than most BS. But its NOT the “free for all” the press makes it out to be. They watched my poor DD like a hawk this year- and she’s a great kid! But it’s BECAUSE of Owen Labrie and their new policies.
When/IF your son makes a mistake at home no one besides you really cares- especially not NPR or the Boston Globe. But SPS is different. For example, the boys in my DD’s 8th grade class wrote down every girls name with their corresponding best and worst traits. Gross, right? But typical young boy behavior, not unlike the ones at SPS with their chicken wing hat. Those boys only lost their 8th grade graduation dance. In the case of SPS, when young teenagers make mistakes - and they will make mistakes- they make the front page of the Concord Monitor. And now after Labrie, all boys will be put to some sort of “senior salute” test and I think that is unfair. People take notice of SPS, and Exeter, and Andover, especially up in NE. It’s how I know that Exeter had an election scandal and Andover had to shut down classes the last day of school… news travels. SPS is under a magnifying glass. For better or worse.
If a student wants/needs a place to bend the rules- maybe SPS is not the place to go… i’m ok with weeding out the kids who have a hard time following the rules or are too entitled to follow them. But I also believe that teenagers will make mistakes and that grownups should have realistic expectations.
And as a quick side note… I am not judging anyone for questioning on whether or not to send their kid to SPS or any BS- we sent our DD to SPS just after the Labrie trial. I get it- its hard to weed out the reality from what the media portrays.
Also, the investigator found that the boys were not competing nor soliciting sexual relationships in order to be listed on the crown. The investigator found no student behaviors in violation of New Hampshire law. Five boys were disciplined by the school nevertheless, for violating the school code of conduct.
Edited to delete my personal comments. Still struggling to keep my mouth shut though.
@Goatmama hope your son is feeling better! Not easy with the heat. Do schools go back as early as they do here? We start in 2 weeks. July 28th! No Joke! I was just getting used to having both of my kids around all day and now school starts. Such an unhappy mom…
I think he is feeling better, although we won’t have hard numbers to go by until his clinic visit in early August. And we haven’t even started dealing with the diabetes situation because getting an appointment in endocrinology is like waiting for Godot. This week the requisite sulking and moping is about crew camp, to which we drag him daily because it’s a great exercise for his lungs.
Ouch. July 28 is early! School starts August 14 for our son. One of his friends moved to Raleigh, NC this summer, and got enrolled in a year-round school there. (Apparently there is such a thing.) A most useful tool in my repository for shutting down all school-related complaints.
Does anyone have a suggested dorm/clothing/supplies packing list for girls going to sps? The website’s new students page has a short general list of things that are and aren’t allowed, but I was wondering if anyone had any specific recommendations
I tried to listen to CC advice not to buy too much, and still bought too much! DD didn’t wear half of the clothing that we purchased. They will wear summer clothes all the way until Parents Weekend in October. Don’t worry about fall or winter clothing and shoes until then.
I would invest in a good-quality bedding, including mattress topper and mattress cover. Between dorm and home, I’ve experimented with three different thicknesses for a mattress topper and would recommend 2-inch or less. Get plenty of extra pillows and a blanket. A fan is a must (we got a tower fan, and she loves it). Bath towels, a bathrobe, a caddy, a makeup mirror. I got drawer dividers that came in very handy, and plastic storage boxes for under the bed. Get some Commander’s hooks of different sizes, and poster tape. Girls go crazy over room decorations - expect to spend more than you expect…
Since she won’t know the exact size and shape of her room until she gets there, you wouldn’t know how much space she would have. It may be very, very small. Plan for the basics only. You can always get more later. Make sure you have Amazon Prime - throughout the year you’ll be using it for everything from gum to a couch.
Make sure to buy laundry supplies (if she does her own laundry), toiletries, and plenty of snacks. And let us know if you have any questions! I’m sure @copperboom will have some good advice too.
If doing own laundry, get a laundry hamper that’s easy to carry several flIghts of stairs (something with handles that she could put over her shoulder)
Fuzzy socks/slippers and comfortable clothes (shorts, leggings, etc) for after school. DD needed more of them than she realized.
Insect repellent and sunscreen
Umbrella
She might want to get her own mug - some of the stuff in dorm kitchens can be pretty gross…
Stuffed animals. Not kidding.
I second amazon prime! Its such a pain to mail anything, we just ordered everything online and it allowed DD to manage her own finances ( while her parents saw every purchase
You can check the location on the school map, and use the directory to find out who the other kids in the dorm are. Maybe reach out to some who’re returning to the same dorm? Not sure. DD says it doesn’t matter, all dorms are the same, just different locations.
