Long Shot--expensive boarding schools

[Garga]

Every year we host students from China for about 2 weeks.  They come to America for an immersion program in English.  

 

Some of them are very, very rich.  Very rich.  They are surely bumming it in my tiny little 1300 sq ft house with my mismatched furniture!  

 

Anyway...one of the richest kids (Roger) will be coming to America for high school and staying at a boarding school. He was very quiet about his wealth.  His friend outed him by telling us about the boy's dad's Maserati and all the mansions they own.

 

I tell you about his wealth because it's part of the question I have.  See, Roger sent me a list of the possible choices of boarding schools and asked if I knew which one would be best.  None of them seem to cost under $55,000 per year, so to my small-town self, they are all dazzling.  But very wealthy people can probably discern which ones are better than others.  

 

Asking here is a long shot, because those of us who could afford a high school at $55,000 a year probably aren't on homeschool websites, but maybe there's someone out there who can help?  Or can point me in a direction to help this kid? 

 

Here's the list of schools.  Are any of them better than others?  Or where would I even start to try to figure that out? He wants to be an economics major in college.

 

NH 

Kimball Union Academy, Meriden

New Hampton School, New Hampton

 

MA 

Cushing Academy, Ashburnham

Wilbraham & Monson Academy, Wilbraham

 

VT

St. Johnsbury Academy, St. Johnsbury

 

RI 

St. Andrew’s School, Barrington

 

VA

Virginia Episcopal School, Lynchburg

 

CA

Villanova Preparatory School, Ojai

 

MN

Shattuck-St. Mary’s School, Faribault

 

TN

St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School, Sewanee

The Webb School, Bell Buckle

 

NY

The Stony Brook School, Stony Brook

 

ME

Gould Academy, Bethel

Edited November 26, 2016 by Garga_

[Jan in SC]

My bil is the chaplain at St. Andrew's Sewanee School. It's in a very tiny town. PM with any specific questions.

Edited November 26, 2016 by Jan in SC

[Closeacademy]

I think I once heard Cushings mentioned in a movie or something.

 

But wow. That's quite an experience.

[wapiti]

Thinking out loud, I would have two general areas to find out about.  First, academics, the same aspects to be considered for any high school choice for a (potentially high-performing?) student - does it have the coursework that would enable the student to fully develop his abilities.  What APs, what's the math track, what about extracurriculars in his areas of interest, what if extra tutoring is needed.  Within this part, if the kid might be looking toward top tier colleges, I'd have lots of questions about where boarding school's students are admitted.  Important:  quality of college counseling, how many students use a private counselor (not sure how to find out).

 

Second, considerations about the living environment and general culture of the student body, not terribly dissimilar from the same questions for colleges but with the younger age angle.  I'd want to know about cliques and niches, how prevalent are drugs and drinking (I'd assume some the latter and hope for less of the former).  The kid will want to fit in somewhere - are there kids like him (how studious is he, etc.).  What happens on weekends.  How closely can parents keep tabs on grades.

 

I think there might be a forum on College Confidential that discusses admission to boarding schools, so perhaps that would be a better place to ask.  http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-admissions/

 

ETA, http://www.boardingschoolreview.com

Edited November 26, 2016 by wapiti

[Amy in NH]

St Johnsbury Academy is a private/public that is geared toward arts and culinary. If they want a strong math/tech program it wouldn't be a good fit.

 

It is one of our public school choices, but we decided to homeschool instead.

Edited November 26, 2016 by Amy in NH

[amyx4]

There is a prepschool subforum on the collegeconfidential.com forums

[Jyhwkmama]

http://www.exeter.edu/

[Selkie]

Shattuck-St. Mary's is famous for its hockey program and quite a few NHL players have gone there.  That's the only thing I know about any of these schools.

[ScoutTN]

I went to an elite NE boarding school. The only school in that league from the list is Stonybrook.

 

Adding to Margaret's list: Groton and Exeter

[billswife]

We are near Shattuck's St. Mary's in Faribault. I know someone who goes there as a day student. She is going there because of their music conservatory. It has a great reputation for academics and is in a nice little town of 23,ooo. It is a little less than an hour from the twin cities, so it should be easy to fly in and out and to get to the cities for entertainment.

Edited November 26, 2016 by billswife

[AmandaVT]

St. Andrews isn't a great boarding school. Portsmouth Abbey in RI is a better one, if things haven't changed that much since I was in high school. Most of my graduating 8th grade class went there and they had a great education. 

 

[gingersmom]

I would recommend an educational consultant.

[justasque]

We know successful students from St. Andrews (different from above; it's in Delaware) and Westtown (a Quaker school outside of Philadelphia).

[kubiac]

OK, I'll be the dirty rotten spoiler, forgive the mild snobbery and cynicism that follows, but please take it in the pragmatic light in which it is intended. I also apologize if I offend anyone reading this, it's not my intention. 

 

This looks like a list of second- or third-tier American boarding schools, if only as far as public perception, academics and social cachet go.

 

I suspect that these are schools that are generally open to any moderately credentialed international student who wants to join the American academic system before the college level. I expect that they would not be extremely stringent about English fluency requirements so long as the tuition was paid in full. These schools need as much cash as they can get, and international students are known for being able to pay in full.

 

I further suspect that Roger's family is using a China-based educational consultant who has promised admission into an American boarding school. The Chinese consultant likely charges huge sum for "guaranteed access" to American schools, in addition to the future tuition of any of the schools. The consultant is feeding them into these accessible schools, but Roger might be able to do better. I would recommend that he try to find a U.S.-based education consultant, or at least casting a wider net in his applications. You could share this list (one of many available online) if you think it would help:

 

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/savingandinvesting/the-50-most-elite-boarding-schools-in-the-us/ss-AA8lJW6

 

Arriving in the States before college allows international students to become more fluent in colloquial American English and more appealing to competitive college admissions directors than an identical kid applying from Chongqing or Nairobi. The whole family doesn't have to immigrate, they can just send their kid to the States during the school year, where he or she gets a nice foothold.

 

My only other comment is that many of these schools appear to be in a smaller or more remote communities. Ojai, here in SoCal, is a beautiful hippie town, but it's a serious drive just get to downtown Ventura or Santa Barbara, much less Los Angeles. It would be hard to "get away" if you needed a mental health break or if you wanted to expand your social circle. For example, if Roger wanted to visit the Chinese-American population in the area, just to speak his native language and eat familiar foods, it would be a 90-minute drive, not including traffic. There are boarding schools much closer to busy metropolitan areas that might be less of a culture shock, depending on Roger's background and personality.

 

Wishing the best for Roger. Please tell him a strange lady on the Internet is rooting for him!

Edited November 26, 2016 by kubiac

[EndOfOrdinary]

What kubaic said! I was thinking something very similar of that list. These are not super elite schools. Boarding school is extrmrly expensive no matter how you slice it, so don't let that price tag fool you.

[Jan in SC]

My bil went to Williams and Yale from St. Andrews, but that was years ago, so I don't know how the academics are now. I'd also look at St. Paul's and Woodberry Forest. (-to add to my previous list) Most people we know are interested in arts/ English, not math/science.

[madteaparty]

Right.

Price has no correlation to "prestige" or "rigor"'or whatever the family is looking. Much like it is with private colleges in the US.

[bensonduck]

Taft should be added to the list of more prestigious schools above.

[hepatica]

Agree with all that kubiac said. We live at a top New England boarding school (DH has worked at these schools for 25 years), and that list is definitely a more third tier list. It really all depends on what he is looking for. All these schools are going to cost between 50,000-60,000+. And, boarding school choice is really more a question of fit. In terms of admission to elite colleges and top academics and reputation there are recognized top schools: Philips Exeter, Andover, St Pauls, Groton, Deerfield, Hotchkiss, Lawrenceville, Choate, Loomis, Taft, etc. These schools all tend to be part of the same athletic leagues, so that is one way to group them. There are quite a few high quality, top tier schools in New England, and then a few spread out across the rest of the country. Then there are a oodles of very, very good schools that are not considered the tippy top, that may have a slightly smaller endowment, but are really fantastic schools as well if the fit is good.

 

Many schools that have struggles financially have turned to international students as a way to balance the books. That can be a great thing, and kids can have a great experience at these schools as well. I would also suggest he cast a wider net, and look at a few more schools.

[TravelingChris]

All I know about St. Stephen's in Virginia is that it is in Alexandria and that is a close in Washington DC suburb and I knew a parent who sent his kids there as day students,  It has a reputation as a good school but I know nothing about its science department.  A nearby public school that is highly competitive and offers no boarding is the science school of note.

[MEmama]

I agree about price, they all cost that much (roughly the same as a private liberal arts college) but cost says nothing of quality or, of course, quality of life for the student.

 

We know someone who goes to Gould; I can't say for certain it's the most prestigious. He might check out Maine Math and Science in Limestone for his interests, but culturally I wouldn't recommend it. A lot of schools accept international students and actively recruit from China because they can get get top tuition that way. Living in a rural area as an international student would come with its own challenges, though, that only the student (or more likely, their parents) can weigh for themselves.

[marbel]

Not sure if anyone has said this yet... I think you should not advise this young man on this topic in any way. I would stay completely out of this and leave it to his parents, himself, and (as someone else mentioned), an educational consultant hired by the family. I know you like this kid and want to help him out, but my response to him would be "I don't know anything about these schools and can't advise you."

[Garga]

You guys are awesome! I really, really like the idea of telling him about consultants. It's also good to know that some of the schools focus more on the arts than academics. I'll let him know that he needs a consultant who can figure out which is which. And I'll also tell him about how he'll need to figure out a fit for him based on the culture of the school. I will not say, "Go to X school," but I'll tell him what to consider as he looks.

 

It's very likely that he'll tell his parents he wrote to me and they'll say, "That's nice, Roger, but we already have a consultant." He's young and for all I know just thought on his own, "I know an American! I'll ask her what she thinks!" His family seems pretty capable.

 

As far as the tier of the school, he was given a list based on his knowledge of English. He took the TOEFL test which tells how well a person can speak English and based on that score, he got the list of schools. I didn't know these were further down the list of schools. They all look marvelous to me, as they're all equally out of my league. Which is why I mentioned his wealth. To me, they're all great. To someone who hopes their son runs a company one day, maybe not so much. (Many of the parents of the kids who come here are high up in their companies.)

 

 

But if anyone has any more info I could toss his way, that'd be great. Thanks, hive. I can see why so many people stay on the boards post-homeschooling. The hive knows everything. :)

Edited November 26, 2016 by Garga

[hmvaughan4]

My bil is the chaplain at St. Andrew's Sewanee School. It's in a very tiny town. PM with any specific questions.

My nieces go to SAS and they love it. My brother works in admissions at the university.

[creekland]

 I can see why so many people stay on the boards post-homeschooling. The hive knows everything. :)

 

That and we get a wee bit attached to "our" kids.  Seeing the variety of what our kids do on here (via those who don't mind sharing brags and/or acceptances, etc) gives me hope for the world overall.  Seeing others share their various day to day issues (from health to appliance breakdowns) lets me know we're not alone or all that weird.  ;)

[wapiti]

It's very likely that he'll tell his parents he wrote to me and they'll say, "That's nice, Roger, but we already have a consultant." He's young and for all I know just thought on his own, "I know an American! I'll ask her what she thinks!" His family seems pretty capable.

 

Awww.  This is just an 8th grader, right?  I have two of those in the process of applying to a private high school (not boarding) and I wish they showed this kind of initiative.  They didn't complain about asking their teachers for recommendations but I'm sure I'll get some pushback this weekend when they get to work on the twelve(!) short "essay" questions and when I hound them into a little additional practice for the coming test.

Edited November 26, 2016 by wapiti

[FriedClams]

I was a boarding student for all of high school at one on the list. I'll pm you later (I'm headed out shortly). Short version - I LOVED my school and the experience saved my relationship with my family.

[Daria]

All I know about St. Stephen's in Virginia is that it is in Alexandria and that is a close in Washington DC suburb and I knew a parent who sent his kids there as day students, It has a reputation as a good school but I know nothing about its science department. A nearby public school that is highly competitive and offers no boarding is the science school of note.

That's St Stephens/ St. Agnes. Great school but no boarding.

 

If you want boarding for a boy in the DC area you would be looking at

 

Episcopal (all boarding, strong reputation, not tippy top but good)

 

St. Albans (Episcopal, all boys top school but the boarding program is very small)

 

Georgetown Prep (Catholic, larger boarding program than St A's. Strong academic reputation, but not great school culture in my experience)

 

Sandy Spring Friends (Quaker, coed very small boarding program. Committed to progressive learning and social justice. Only one on the list that I know of with dedicated ELL support.)

 

I imagine that they are going with a program like the one my school uses that doesn't just match kids with schools but gets visas, provides things like English tutors etc . . .

[umsami]

$55k seems very normal to me for boarding school.  Basically, you're paying the same as a private college.

 

Honestly, I wish his parents could come and tour a few with him looking for a good fit.  I bet there's some sort of Chinese student forum where they talk about these schools.

 

Cranbrook is in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan (suburban Detroit) and is quite nice.  They were our competition and I attended their elementary school.  Great arts program, beautiful campus, science center, etc.  Mitt Romney boarded there, even though his family lived in the area.  What I liked about it (and preferred over my school which was solely heavy academics it seemed) was that there were more areas for kids to find their niche in, even if they weren't academic superstars.

 

Where I live now, Bolles accepts quite a few international students.  It's known for good academics and having quite a few Olympian swimmers. 

 

 

Edited November 27, 2016 by umsami

[maize]

A lot too will depend on his actual academic qualifications. Coming from a wealthy family doesn't mean a kid is necessarily going to be a top student; just as with a college search it is important to find a school that will be a good fit for the kid, one where he can make friends and succeed academically. Rigor and prestige may not be the top considerations.

[tm919]

Agree with the people above... of the two that are in my state, academically I'd rather my child go to public high school than those. But living in a town that has two boarding schools ("better" than most of those but far from the best) I know that academics are only part of the reason for choosing these expensive schools, the families that choose to send their kids there often have a different frame of reference than I do (also, about a million more dollars :p )

[KungFuPanda]

 

Sandy Spring Friends (Quaker, coed very small boarding program. Committed to progressive learning and social justice. Only one on the list that I know of with dedicated ELL support.)

.

I have a friend who works there and another whose child goes there and I had no idea they had boarding students. The hive knows everything.

[bethben]

Shattuck-St. Mary's is in a slightly run down small town in Minnesota (we used to live in the town closest to it). If I was a really wealthy person who could afford anything, that would definitely be on the bottom. There's nothing really special about it (unless you skate) and the town around it does feel a little run down.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Jyhwkmama]

There are a bunch of them in Hawaii too. I know nothing about specific schools, but I know they exist.

[SeaConquest]

My ex DH went to Stonybrook, then Claremont McKenna, then to Rice for his Master's, and taught history at West Point. He's currently a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army. I mention it because I know that Stony Brook was having real financial difficulties a few years ago. I agree that this is a second tier list of U.S. boarding schools.

Edited November 27, 2016 by SeaConquest

[Alessandra]

Agreeing that none of the schools on the list are top schools. But the tricky part is figuring out what might be a good match for your student. Is a consultant truly trying to find a match, or just providing a list of schools looking for foreign money? I tend to think Kubiac has a good point.

[Matryoshka]

I live in MA near NH and am surrounded by pricey boarding schools.  I have never even heard of the names listed.

 

The big names here are Groton, Phillips Andover (MA), and Phillips Exeter (NH).

 

Other ones I know of in the area are Lawrence Academy (also in Groton the town), St. Mark's School (Southborough), Middlesex School  and Concord Academy (both in Concord).  I have no idea where they fall tier-wise, but they're all about the same price ($45K or so).

 

Wow, just found this ranking - looks like Middlesex and Concord are also in the top 15 nationwide, along with the three I mentioned first.  I'm surrounded!  Milton and Deerfield Academies are also in MA.  St. Paul's School is apparently in Concord, NH (not to be confused with Concord, MA where the other two are... so annoying that the colonists named all the towns in each New England state the same...)

[poppy]

They aren't top school, but he may not be qualified for a top school.  As long as he and the parents are aware that they are buying a boarding school experience, can completely afford it, and know they aren't purchasing top shelf prestige........ I think it's fine.  Not every rich international kid should go to Andover.  He should look for location, culture, support.

[Kalmia]

I live very close to Gould Academy. It is a good, small boarding school, but not in the league with Andover or Holderness. It is set in a charming rural town in the mountains very far away from any metropolitan area. They have a strong focus on skiing. In the depths of winter (January and February) , the area can have temperatures down to negative fifteen or so, especially in the mornings and there is plenty of snow. On the up side for some of the Chinese students who go to my son's school (not Gould) this area has pristine air quality.

Edited November 27, 2016 by Kalmia

[whitestavern]

My brother went to KUA (Kimball Union) and loved it. He felt like he was challenged. There were quite a few "names" that went at the same time. DD knows three sibs who are there now and they are all very happy with it as well. They had the pick of CT schools to attend, but chose that. I'm not close with the parents so I don't really know why they made that choice.

Edited November 27, 2016 by whitestavern

[Twolittleboys]

Though the list doesn't seem to include any top tier schools, that doesn't mean they would necessarily be bad. I do agree with others that it is all about fit. A "top" school is not necessarily the best for everyone (or even most). I think it would be best to look closely at the various options and note things like number of international students, college admissions, offered subjects, size etc. and compare it with what Roger is looking for/which would best fit him.

 

I spent my junior year at a boarding school in the south - not top tier but what is generally considered a "hidden gem" (i.e. an excellent school that is less known, in this case partly due to location) and it was a great experience. The teachers were top notch and the students varied from bright to brilliant. Given that experience, I would definitely say it doesn't need to be one of the most famous schools to provide a great experience and education.