Does anyone have recommendations about traditional schools (ie Latin/Classics, traditional literature (ie not Toni Morrison but Wadsworth) for secular non-Christians who believe in Western Civilization? I am ok with milquetoast chapel but no proselytizing or required Religious Education. My interest lies in rigorous history, multi syllabic literature, proper mathematics, study of foundational texts such as Plato, Aristotle, etc. Seems like only the Catholics have it and we are not interested in religious Christian education. Thanks for recommendations.
Eton or Harrow.
Seriously, in the era of #BLM and “Black@SchoolName”, which our family strongly supports, the Western Civ. ship has not only sailed among US boarding schools, it has been sunk. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives very much focus on BS core curricula, and look no further than suggested and mandatory summer reading lists to recognize it’s now a different era. Yet most US BSs have electives that would be very relevant to some of your curriculum objectives.
Check out ERP at Andover:
English Romantic Poetry
ENG511RO
(T1)
In the preface to the second edition of Lyrical Ballads, William Wordsworth claims, “…all good Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of
powerful feelings” produced by authors who “had also thought long and deeply.” For Wordsworth and other poets retrospectively labeled
“Romantic,” the tension between spontaneity and deliberation led to an exploration and interrogation of what constitutes “good Poetry”
in late 18th- and early 19th-century England. In this course, we will examine how the Romantics—especially Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor
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Coleridge, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and John Keats—defined and contextualized their art. In doing so, we will consider how and why these
writers are grouped together as Romantic poets. Other authors may include William Blake, Robert Burns, Lord Byron, Thomas Chatterton,
John Clare, Mary Robinson, Walter Scott, Robert Southey, and Dorothy Wordsworth. (Mr. Rielly)
You can get a copy of the syllabi for various courses ( and this is a great thing to do). You can also see if the school teaches Latin, Classics, Ancient Greek and has upper level English classes that are classic in nature ( Shakespearean lit for example). Many schools will cover all bases. So while they might have Irish literature, they might also have African poetry or other courses.
There are many schools which are out there. Most list courses on their web sites.
There is another thread on this out there, but my sense is that at any school, there will still be plenty of the "traditional " texts. There will also be material from outside that canon. There are, of course, common themes, and thinking about those (as well as the differences) can really help students understand concepts (as well as each other).
Agree with gardenstatelegal that there will likely be many traditional texts. But some schools seem to emphasis the western canon and others have little to none of the old school books. Trying purposely not to inject politics/leanings. T
hose who are looking for one thing or another will have to look/read closely. Many schools put the books they read on a table in the English/history classes. That might be another easy way to figure it out. We found a wide variance. Some schools had little to no “classics”
Did it sink, or did it just pick up and include more of the people who should have been there in the first place?
Yes 
St Mark’s offers a classics diploma, it’s religious requirement is more of a history class of all religions (eastern and western). There is a chapel requirement but many different religious backgrounds are represented.
Thanks everyone. Still searching, hence I have remained very quiet. Eton and Harrow, btw, Sporty Prep, are pretty much all about modern cultural social issues too (husband is English so I see the British press a lot). The American disease has definitely crossed the Atlantic. I think Radley College (UK boarding) is one of the only traditional ones left but too Christian for us. I am simply aiming to provide my children grounding in beautiful, intelligent and language / philosophy rich content to elevate their minds. I am not interested in developing a prism of ethnic/racial constraint in the course of learning and that is, unfortunately, very much in vogue nowadays. Thanks for the Andover ERP heads up; I have only seen a lot of diversity platitudes from their general site but will jump into their course catalog as well.
St Marks Massachusetts or Texas? I am presuming MA but just wanted to verify. Thanks again, Tamar
Hello, Tamar. I think what you are looking for may not exist in a boarding school, at least here in the U.S. There may be a Christian one that emphasizes the beauty of “Western Civilization,” but you say you don’t want that. Culver Academies in Indiana emphasizes leadership and is known as relatively conservative. so perhaps you should look into that one. I’ve heard nothing but good things about it.
St Mark’s in Southborough, MA