<p>Can any one, especially parents of Thacher students and past Thacher students, provides some information about this school?</p>
<p>Is it really a school for kids of CEO's and Hollywood's, wealthy family?</p>
<p>Our D is a freshman at Thacher. She has found it to be a very friendly, down-to-earth kind of place. The student body comes from across the country, with a fairly large number from the bay area of Northern Cal. I suspect most of the Hollywood kids go to day schools, and very few of the parents we have met fall into the CEO category. As all of the freshmen are required to participate in the horse program and are out shoveling manure before seven in the morning, it is not a place for kids who are elitist or desire to be pampered.<br>
We have found it to be a place that provides a very supportive community that expects their students to grow and challenge themselves in all areas: academic, athletic, and extracurricular (community service, outdoor programs, cultural events, etc.). So far this year, in addition to excellent classes, she has been backpacking, horsepacking, attended open house on Saturdays at the headmaster's house (great chocolate chip cookies), become an avid reader of the N Y Times (picks up a copy each day from her latin teacher), participated in a variety of weekend campus events and activities with peers and teachers. In two weeks, as part of a cultural weekend where students could sign up off of a list of many opportunities, she will be attending dinner and the opera La Boheme with their choral/music instructor.
What she appreciates most is the lack of cliques; there are not in or out groups; she interacts with all of the students in different settings and events, and each is valued for bring something to the community.
I give credit to the admissions staff for bringing the building blocks each year to develop this community.
I would recommend a visit if you are considering Thacher. Our D knew very quickly that this was the school for her after visiting Thacher and several other schools.</p>
<p>Thanks sierradoc. I called Thacher today for application material and will schedule a visit later in the Month.</p>
<p>My son plays Clarinet in the county's Honor Youth Orchestra, and he takes weekly private lessons in Clarinet and Tennis. He would like to continue his interests in these two specific hobbies. Does Thather provide coach/training on campus (free?)? </p>
<p>How would you compare Stevenson with Thather (since you are in California, I would assume you considered both for your D). Stevenson is only about 20 minutes from us, so my S can be a day student there then it would be cheaper. However, we really like my S to have some BS experience, my wife did BS, my best friend is a BS. Also it seems Thather is academically stronger than Stevenson if I just compare the college enrollmen data.</p>
<p>I got a letter from Thacher asking me to go to their school, they wanted me to play as a running back on their football team. I love that school, except its thousands of miles away from home.</p>
<p>Thacher has tennis as one of its sports at both varsity and jv level with coaching; they also offer formal music instruction and various ensembles as part of their performing arts curriculum; private lessons are also available, although I believe their is an additional cost for this.
Our D also applied to Stevenson; I would agree it is less selective, although definitely on the rise. It is a 50-50 mix in terms of day students and boarders, which has advantages and disadvantages. Being a larger school does offer more variety, which is especially evident in the range of sports and extracurriculars (ie. golf team). Our daughter's perception was that it was a less close-knit community, and the flavor of the student body was influenced by the large number of Monterey/Carmel kids (again, may be a positive or negative depending on what you are looking for).<br>
A major negative for our D was her interaction with the math dept. chair at Stevenson, whom she perceived was not open to having a freshman who was very advanced in math (she did algebra 2 and trig as an 8th grader). Accurate or not, these are the perceptions that kids pick up on visits that influence their choices.</p>