We are in CT at a day school and D wants to pursue boarding for high school. We will apply via the ABC program but for those of you have experience with the CT schools, please share your thoughts on the following schools. D is interested in science but also theatre. Diversity would also be important, although I know it could be rare at some of these schools I would hope for an accepting student body. Any red flags at the schools that we should watch out for? Any tips are appreciated! Schools are Choate, Loomis, Ethel Walker, Westover, Miss Porter’s, Westminster and Cheshire Academy.
Hi @magnetnh - we applied to Choate, Westminster and Loomis – but ended up elsewhere. Happy to expound on what I know and liked about those three schools, for what it is worth. I don’t have any kids who ended up any any of them, though, so my knowledge is limited to what I learned in the admissions process. Is there something specific you are looking for or wanting to avoid? They are all very different.
On the diversity scale, Choate is the most, Westminster the least. Same thing about size, and honestly, a lot of other metrics, too. I really liked Loomis because it was a happy medium for pretty much everything. PM me and I can try to answer your questions if someone with a kid at the schools doesn’t pop up.
Can’t say much about any of the others, but I live in Wallingford, home of Choate. I would agree that they are pretty diverse (not just ethnic diversity, but other social factors as well). We have attended many student performances on campus, and all have been top quality - and appear to be well supported by the student body.
I’m a incoming Choate 4th former. I was there for the summer, am obviously going there, and have friends who have already been attending. Choate is amazing! The education you get is just fantastic—teachers truly care and want the best for their students. It’s very racially diverse. The student population is large for a boarding school (around 800-850?) but it definitely doesn’t feel overcrowded.
Choate’s theater program is amazing—being able to perform in the PMAC and the new Colony Hall is an added bonus. I’m personally not an art person, but I know Choate is fantastic for the arts. Choate science is something I’m a little more familiar with. There are lots of science opportunities here, just depends on what you’re interested in. The Science Research Program is pretty neat—you pair up with a professor and conduct your own research. These projects are often displayed in Icahn Science Center, so if you ever come tour, I’d be glad to show you them! Some students partner with Yale professors, some Wesleyan, and other universities. The science sequence at Choate is different than most schools, I think? We start with physics then proceed to chemistry, finishing with biology. All of these courses have an Honors option. Once you’ve finished these core classes, you can take electives or proceed to the Advanced courses. If your daughter is interested in computer science, Choate is awesome for that! The Lanphier Center is a beauty; it’s my favorite building on campus! There are a multitude of CS classes to take: Intro to CS, Honors CS, Honors Machine Learning, Intro Robotics, Honors Robotics Fabrication, Honors Competitive Robotics, and Honors Autonomous Robotics. All seem super cool! I’m planning on doing the Advanced Robotics Concentration and know a couple people doing it/who have done it so if there’s any questions feel free to ask!
I also applied to Loomis, and really liked it! The campus is gorgeous. The student center and innovation lab is really cool (and brand new!). Honestly, it didn’t seem to really stick out to me as a school that is particularly great in my field of interest, but Loomis is a fantastic school. While I don’t believe it is as diverse as Choate, it still has some diversity and Windsor seems to be a pretty diverse area. I can’t talk too much about Loomis, but it seems really neat!
@CateCAParent @CTScoutmom @CavsFan2003
Thank you so much for sharing your perspectives. It is quite interesting that I received responses from a former prospective parent, a local resident an an incoming student. There are a few events in August and I am going to try to attend so we could start to get a feel for these schools.
They are all very good schools. I have known kids who thrived at all 3 and loved them. I also know a couple who are proud alums of one but weren’t very happy there. It’s really important to assess fit as you tour (which is why you are asking the question.)
Would you consider going outside CT?
Out of the schools you listed, we looked at Loomis, Westminster, Miss Porter’s, & Ethel Walker for my dd and only applied to Miss Porter’s & Ethel Walker. My daughter’s club team practices out of Loomis, so I have some additional perspective. Loomis seems to be very diverse to me-- both ethnically and socioeconomically-- from the kids I know who go there and also from being at the school often. It’s also one of the larger schools on your list and also a great school, just wasn’t a fit for my daughter. I would also agree with the poster above about Westminster being the least diverse. The mom of one of my daughter’s teammates graduated from Westminster. He thrived there and didn’t want to graduate but she thought Loomis was the better fit for him. We went to an admissions open house at Westminster and didn’t pursue anything further as we all felt it wasn’t a fit for various reasons.
Both Ethel Walker & Miss Porter’s are both fairly diverse. She was wait listed at Miss Porter’s and will be attending Ethel Walker ('23). She was initially against going to an all girls school but I took her anyway to an open house at Ethel Walker and she immediately changed her mind. The school had such a warm and welcoming vibe that wasn’t apparent at other schools we looked at that point and she felt at home immediately. Ethel Walker is probably the smallest school on your list (only 236 girls from grade 6-12). From what we’ve seen so far we are impressed and the head of school is awesome. While I can’t add a whole lot right now as school hasn’t started yet. As far as science goes, they do have a robotics team and this week they’re offering a coding camp for students that my daughter is attending. We liked Miss Porter’s too, though it had a slightly different vibe and the school is a bit larger. In the end, while she was sad to be wait listed at Porter’s, Ethel Walker was the better fit so it all worked out in the end. Feel free to ask questions or PM me for more detail.
@laxswim29 Thank you for sharing your experience with these schools. Congratulations on Ethel Walker and I look forward to updates once you start. Please share how you were able to change your daughter’s mind about an all-girls school? Was it just by attending the open house? I think they should be in consideration but D is not sold.
Hello…D just graduated from Loomis and S was in 9th grade last year at Loomis. We looked at a number of the schools on your list and please feel free to PM for info or if you have any specific questions!