Michael Birnbaum of the Washington Post published a piece last Tuesday on Washington, DC families uncovering the benefits boarding school close to home, “The Locals Live and Learn: Private School Families Say Boarding Makes Sense in Washington Region.” Such arrangements provide the independence and benefits boarding life for students and the opportunity to stay connected & involved for parents.

My primary thought reading the piece was ‘boy, it takes a lot of parental discipline to make sure that the students benefit from boarding school distance.” Parents interviewed for the article seem to be doing well.

“…(Sean) Woo’s sons are part of a small but growing trend of private school students who board locally. Some families say they think the combination of a crawling D.C. commute and a heavy homework load would make it impossible to attend such schools any other way. Other Washington parents say they’re too busy to have the kids at home. And some value the boarding school experience but don’t want children 500 miles away in the anxious post-9/11 era. For many, it’s a combination of all three… …Woo said that he and his wife — a consultant and a physician, respectively — weren’t interested in their sons being far away but that they liked the idea of boarding schools. “They mature a little bit,” he said. “And where can you get 24-hour supervision, seven days a week, for just a nominal increase over the tuition?..”(WP)

Todd Van Hoose whose daughter attends Madeira School told Birnbaum told that his daughter benefits from the independent experience of boarding school:

“With kids’ schedules and our work schedule, frankly, we’re only missing each other at dinner…You get the best of both worlds. We make all of the soccer games,” and his daughter benefits from the independence of boarding school, he said.

“Students Head for Boarding School” is the accompanying slide show. Click the image below to visit the Washington Post’s photo gallery: