It’s just a tough time in the admission cycle. Still, quiet, busy, loaded with thinking.

Admission officers and schools want to do what’s best for every child. Parents want the best for that same child. Sometimes, the best answer is ‘yes.’ Sometimes, the best answer is ‘no.’

Andrew Weller at Ridley College (a coed boarding school in St. Catharines, Canada) has a nice story up on his Independent School Admission Musing Blog chronicling his personal delivery of a difference making decision:

“Over my career I have had the opportunity on occasion to tell a student of their admission in person or over the phone before they got our packet, but this may well be the first time I have hand-delivered it…

When he hit the key line in the letter that confirmed where he thought this letter was going, his eyes got huge and his smile even bigger and his head shot up like a jack-in-the-box as he looked at me. And then he looked right back down to finish reading the letter. When he was done, he looked up and he said nothing, the bright glare reflecting off his braces sending the message of his delight. I simply smiled back, shook his hand, said congratulations, and went on my way.”(AW)

I know that not every admission and financial conversation, and decision, will go the way everyone hopes over the coming months. But Weller presents readers with an opportunity to reflect and think about the lasting power of decision well taken.

As school people, a lot of us live with the desire to be able to be successful and reach, every student, every day. We can’t. It doesn’t work like that. Not every school fits every student and not every faculty member fits every student.

In the private school world, sometimes our inability to reach a student is purely monetary. That’s a blunt reality.

Implicit in Weller’s piece, though, is a reminder to keep an eye on the bigger picture. Our greatest responsibility lies in work with those students we have, those before us.

Additional resources:

Ridley College - www.ridleycollege.com

Boarding school in Canada

View from Brentwood College School

My school, Brentwood College School, is one of the largest boarding schools in Canada.  10% of our student population is from the United States of America.  They come here because they have heard that we are special; different then the choices available in the USA and elsewhere.

This ‘brain drain’ to the northwest is something I am proud of and, to be honest, something every American family associated with our school is immensely proud of.

The Americans at Brentwood tend to be willing to see beyond borders.  They are keen to see their own country from a new perspective and they enjoy interacting with other cultures.  Our American students tend to dream big, explore widely and live boldly.

Ironically, these very core elements of American culture are what drive many of our American students to Brentwood.  They are willing to step out of a comfort zone and proudly pronounce their independence in their own thinking; they are willing to show their courage as individuals.  Because of this, many of our American students go on to do great things in life.

Stereotypes are hard to live down. There are many about Canadians and Canada in general; some of these aren’t too far from the truth.

I myself love hockey, maple syrup and have been known to say ‘eh’ on occasion. However, not many people outside of Canada know about our amazing school and the fundamentally sound and globally recognized education our students receive

If you’re a high school snowboarder with collegiate or U.S. national aspirations, you might like our latest video interview with Chris Davies, Gould Academy, head snowboarding coach.

Davies talks about how Gould works with and approaches competitive snowboarding from cross training in the off-season to spending 100 days on snow during the winter.

You can see the video in two places:

1. At Gould’s “Glog” with the title “Does This Make Me famous…??” (I think it does, Chris!)
2. Or as part or our article: “Scouting Report: Competitive Snowboarding Boarding Schools“

Additional resources:

Gould Academy – www.gouldacademy.org

Boarding schools in Maine

Janet Dunn, Director of the Akin Learning Center at Kents Hill School chats with us about the center’s new building and the story behind it.

Kents Hill (a coed boarding school in Kents Hill, ME) has been on the fore of learning differences programs having had a program (that started in Dunn’s living room) for 32 years.  The new building is the latest step in the center’s journey from living room, to library, to dedicated, purpose built facility.

A seven year process brought the Akin Learning Center from idea to realization.  Like all good architecture the process began with the students and faculty who use the building and worked outward toward design.  The center’s new home provides students a comfortable setting into which kids want to come, collaborate, and be proud of what they accomplish.

Kents Hill alumni carry a structure and routine into college and adulthood that they’ve absorbed from the KHS experience.  They know how to keep a schedule and when to study and they are comfortable and secure in their interactions with teachers and adults.

Additional resources:

Akin Learning Center

Kents Hill School – www.kentshill.org

Boarding schools in ME

Learning differences boarding schools

In partnering with School and Student Services By NAIS (SSS), we’ve taken the regional cost of living adjustments and data used by SSS to calculate estimated family contributions toward tuition and put them into an easy to understand infographic. We present hypothetical financial situations, and possible tuition contribution, of families in Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, and the National Standard.

The infographic is part of our new free e-book, “Understanding Private School Financial Aid: What it is and How to Apply.”

If you’re contemplating, entering, or already deep into the private school financial aid process, “Understanding Private School Financial Aid: What it is and How to Apply” can help you navigate the waters.

We can give you general picture, but, in the end, every financial aid decision is made individually by each school.

Here’s the important disclaimer:

Keep in mind that all financial numbers we present are only estimates. Every family’s financial situation is unique as is each school’s financial aid program. Each school administers and determines its own financial aid process and awards. Schools do not necessarily use, or apply, metropolitan area Cost of Living Adjustments. Application of any Cost of Living Adjustment comes at the discretion of each school. Your family’s financial aid eligibility could be different at each school to which you apply.

Visualized by AdmissionsQuest, a site for families researching boarding schools. Financial aid data provided by School & Student Services By NAIS (SSS).

Ridley College headmaster Jonathan Leigh talks about the foundation of values that Ridley instills in its students.

With a passport of academic success, Ridley looks to send its graduates into the larger world as globalized, civilized, human beings.

Coming together from all over the world, then praying, playing, and eating together at Ridley builds and instills an ethic and series of experiences that Ridley alumni carry into all of their future endeavors.

Ridley College is a coed boarding school in St. Catharines, Canada.

Additional resources:

Ridley College – www.ridleycollege.com

Boarding schools in Canada

The Williston Northampton School head, Robert Hill, talks about Williston’s new mission statement- how it came about and how the new statement informs and reflects school life.

Built on three concepts that are innate parts of the Williston community- purpose, passion, and integrity- the entire Williston community now harnesss these core values to sharpen daily life and practices. Purpose, passion, and integrity inform everything that Williston does, how the community, and how each individual goes about life at the school.

Building the new mission statement was an inclusive nine month process beginning with faculty examining and giving expression to the fundamental tenets of the Williston experience.

“The Williston Northampton School inspires students to live with purpose, passion, and integrity.”

Additional resources:

The Williston Northampton School – www.williston.com

Boarding schools in MA

Some of the background – we’ve partnered on this project with School & Student Services By NAIS with two goals in mind:

1. to help families understand the financial aid process
2. to give admission officers another way to educate families and make the application process smoother

E-Book Badges!

If you work at a school and would like to share the e-book with your families, we prepared a set of badges that you can embed on your website. They link families directly to the e-book page on our site.

It’s an easy, quick way for families to get their free copy – imagine how much easier the process would be if families already understood the big picture before you started talking to them about it!

Finally, I want to thank SSS By NAIS for all of their support & guidance as we worked through the book & our recent infographic. They’ve been a terrific partner.

As always, let us know if you have any questions or comments (you can leave one below). We’re excited to hear your feedback!

This brings me to Idylwild Arts Academy president Brian D. Cohen’s response to two recent articles, “Chinese Students Lose as U.S. Schools Exploit Need” and “The China Conundrum,” each of which skeptically calls attention and raises issues about the number of chinese students in American boarding schools.

As Cohen’s title implies, “The Chinese Are Coming: Another Perspective,” he offers a broader, more positive, view with special emphasis on the contributions that Chinese students bring to their schools and the perspectives and adaptations that schools need to make in order to practice international education well.

Liang Wang, an Idyllwild Arts alum and principal oboe of the New York Philharmonic, suggests that American flexibility and creativity might lay behind Chinese pursuit of American secondary education:

“America has the best system overall for music education. Europe is a bit more rigid, but America is the land of imagination and individualism.”(HP)

Specifically of Idylwild, Liang added:

“The environment I felt was extremely friendly and highly individual. The teachers…lead you on how to think, not what to think.”(HP)

Cohen argues that in the end, the addition of variables and perspectives make a diverse education fundamentally stronger.

“We all have much to gain — the influx of Chinese students enhances the diversity of all viewpoints at schools, producing interculturally aware young people, and enhancing the compatibility and appreciation of difference among all students. Cultural fluency – comfort living and working in a diverse community; an understanding of international perspectives and political and economic interdependence; and acquisition of a second language – is an essential element of a strong secondary education.”(HP)

Additional resources:

Idyllwild Arts Academy – www.idyllwildarts.org

Dave Calder and Scott Frandsen (Silver Medalists)

London 2012 is only a few months away.  Astonishingly, Brentwood College School (a co-educational boarding school in in British Columbia, Canada) already has 4 athletes that have been selected to try out for the 2012 Canadian Olympic rowing team.  Over the last 30 years, Brentwood has consistently developed national and internationally recognized athletes, many of whom have gone on and represented their nation at the Olympics.  In fact, there have been 23 Brentwood graduates who have participated in the Olympics.

There are many reasons why Brentwood College School, a Gr.9-12 school of only 445 students, can compete so effectively on the world stage, particularly in crew.  One main reason is its spectacular oceanfront campus.  Since the temperate climate of British Columbia allows rowing year round, Brentwood’s crews can train throughout the year without having to only do land-based training during the winter months each year.  Brentwood’s facilities, including an indoor rowing tank, two ergometer centers,  a Centre for High Performance, and exceptional coaching and training staff, all combine to offer those interested in crew to get the best possible access to the latest training and hands-on experience.

Success breeds success.  Just being in a culture of success creates an enthusiastic and motivating environment for our athletes, scholars and artists.  While Brentwood is equally recognized for its spectacular academic tradition and its unrivaled fine arts opportunities, there is a certain pride and tradition of success athletically (last year the school sent 7 different sports teams to Provincial championships – the equivalent of a State championships);  this confidence and pride resonates throughout the campus each year.  Brentwood students tend to believe anything can be achieved through effort and commitment.

The following Olympians attended Brentwood College.