Periwinkle

The "Hidden Gems" label is not quite accurate, but the CC parents' brainstorming didn't turn up a better suggestion.

Most of the schools listed on the current list are fine, established schools with long histories. They're only "Hidden Gems" to people who're new to American boarding schools.

As I look at the list, I notice many of the schools are small, and/or single-sex. Some may have unusual enrollment models, which work for them, e.g., UWC. The schools may be more nurturing than the Very Big Names.

At any rate, a family building a list of schools to visit should consider visiting some schools from this list.

SevenDad

@Periwinkle: I think one thing that helps a school "achieve" hidden gem status is the amount the students mention it in the "chance me" threads...

ThisOneKid

OK, so I’ve been working on this for a little bit. It has most of the schools that have been asked for in this thread, and other schools I think could use a little recognition. Though some schools I don’t consider “hidden” (Middlesex, Loomis) are there, people asked for them and I’m willing to add any other requested schools. The blue-coded and a few of the red-coded schools could be considered “elite” for the off-name school lists, and it can be expected to be nearly as hard to get into these schools as any HADES schools. The quality of these do match the selectivity, as many students including myself can attest to. In other words, don’t treat them like safeties.

Most of the information is from http://boarding-schools.findthebest.com/ or from http://www.boardingschoolreview.com/, and when they had differing stats I averaged them, unless BSR had a profile update from less than 6 months ago, and I would go with that. I tried to make the key as fair as I could, but I know many would argue them irrelevant to what makes a good school good. That said, it should be used as a small guide, not a review. Go to either of the aforementioned websites if you wish for a detailed description.

Feel free to PM me or post to this thread giving suggestions at schools or any issues you notice. It can be edited fairly easily.







Acceptance Rate:
Green= 45%+
Orange=30%-44%
Red=20%-29%
Blue= <20%

Performance/SAT: *=1850-1925, * =1926-2000, *** =2000+, +1/2 =Within 10 of next rank

Endowment: $= 20M+, $$= 60M+, $$$= 100M+, $$$$= 150M+, Cha-Ching= 200M+

SSAT: ^ = 55%+, ^^ = 70%+, ^^^ = 80%+, ^^^^ = 90%+

AP Courses: # = 15+ ,## = 20+ ,### = 25+ ,#### = 30+

St. Andrew’s School(DE)
*, $$$$, ^^^, ####
http://www.standrews-de.org/

Asheville School
*, $, ^, #
http://www.ashevilleschool.org/

Avon Old Farms (All-boys)
$, ^
http://www.avonoldfarms.com/

Blair Academy
*, $$, ^^, ##
http://www.blair.edu/

Berkshire School
SAT N/A, $$, ^, #
http://www.berkshireschool.org/

Brooks
*, $$, ^
http://www.brooksschool.org/

Canterbury School
$, ^, #
http://www.cbury.org/

Cate School
** +1/2, $$, ^^^, ##
http://www.cate.org/

Chatham Hall (All-girls)
$,^
http://chathamhall.org/

Colorado Rocky Mountain School
^^
http://www.crms.org/

Concord
***, $, ^^^
http://www.concordacademy.org/

Cranbrook Schools
**, Cha-Ching, ^
http://www.schools.cranbrook.edu/

Dana Hall School (All-girls)
*, $, #
http://www.danahall.org/

Emma Willard
*, $$, ^
http://www.emmawillard.org/

Episcopal High School
*, $$$$, ^^^, ###
http://www.episcopalhighschool.org/

Georgetown Prep (All-boys)
**, $, ^^^^, ##
http://www.gprep.org/

St. George's School
$$$, ^^^
http://www.stgeorges.edu/

Governor's Academy
*, $$, ^^, ##
http://www.thegovernorsacademy.org/

Grier School (All-girls)
*, ^, #
http://www.grier.org/

Hill School
*, $$$, ^^, ##
http://www.thehill.org/

Hockaday School (All-girls)
***, $$$, ^^^, ##
http://www.hockaday.org/
(Keep in mind, boarders are a small minority)

Holderness School
$, ^
http://www.holderness.org/

Indian Springs School
**, ^^^, ##
http://experiencesprings.org/

Kent School
$$, ^, ###
http://www.kent-school.edu/

Loomis Chaffee
**, Cha-Ching, ^^, ##### (Almost 40)
http://www.loomischaffee.org/

Madeira School (All-girls)
$, ^^, #
http://www.madeira.org/

St. Mark's School
**, $$$, ^^^, ##
http://www.stmarksschool.org/

Master’s School
**, $, ^^, #
http://www.mastersny.org/

Mercersburg
$$$$, ^^, #####(over 40)
http://www.mercersburg.edu/

Middlesex
***, $$$, ^^^, ##
http://www.mxschool.edu/

Millbrook
$, ^
http://www.millbrook.org

Miss Hall’s School (All-girls)
*, ^, #
http://www.misshalls.org/

Miss Porter's School (All-girls)
***, $$$, ^^^, #
http://www.missporters.org

Northfield Mount Hermon School
$$$, ^, ##
http://www.nmhschool.org/

Peddie School
*, Cha-Ching, ^^, #
http://www.peddie.org/

Pomfret School
$ (I think findthebest.com added an extra zero), ^, ####
http://www.pomfretschool.org

Salisbury School (All-boys)
$$, #
http://www.salisburyschool.org/

Stevenson School
* +1/2, $, ^, #
http://www.stevensonschool.org/

Suffield Academy
*, $, ^, #
http://www.suffieldacademy.org/

Tabor Academy
+1/2, $, ^, ##
http://www.taboracademy.org/

Taft School
**, $$$$, ^^, ####
http://www.taftschool.org/

Thacher School
**, $$$, ^^^, #
http://www.thacher.org/

Thomas Jefferson School
***, ^^
http://www.tjs.org/
(Keep in mind, it has less than 90 students)

Westminster School
**, $$, ^^, ##
http://www.westminster-school.org

mountainhiker

Interesting and helpful analysis, ThisOneKid.

I'm not sure I'd put so much emphasis on the number of AP courses offered, though. AP courses are one indication of rigor in available courses, but many elite high schools are moving away from labeling their classes as AP, even though they may be just as rigorous as a course with the name "AP" in the title.

The College Board, which "owns" the AP label, requires that a course/syllabus be approved by them before it can be called an AP course on a transcript. Many schools want to create their own rigorous courses, without oversight by the College Board, and their students still take AP exams, and do very well on them.

Exeter is a prime example of an academically rigorous school that does not call their courses "AP." See page 5, post #70, for some specific info on this:
Exeter? Ask a teacher - College Confidential

Charger78

Am familiar with the most recent St. Andrew's admissions stats and they are a bit better than reported here. For fall 2012, SAS reports accepting 26% of applicants; by my reckoning, the school must have received about 500 applications, and that might be at their historical high end. Yield is 68%, an enviable number. The percentages suggest a leading presence in the small-school (250-370) world, whether truly "hidden" or not.

ThisOneKid

Ok, it's giving me editing issues. Charger78 is right, SAS should be red. If I need to, I'll just re-post a better version down the road.

SevenDad

I think this is pretty cool...it allow people to see "at glance" if a school offers the combination of traits/factors that a prospect is looking for. Thanks TOK!

dharmamom

Westtown and George School disappeared from the Master List somewhere along the line. Ethel Walker should be on the list as well. The first two schools are Quaker schools in Pennsylvania. EW is an all-girls school in Connecticut.

creative1

I was unfamiliar with the "Find the Best" website that ThisOneKid referenced so I took a look at it for a few minutes. It became immediately obvious to me that there are glaring errors in the data on this website. I was surprised that Pomfret ranked so high and that Groton was so low. Quickly looking at the data for those 2 schools, I found errors with both. Groton's average SSAT score is 90% not the 65% quoted. Pomfet's endowment is $39 million not the $400 million. I only took a brief look so I wouldn't be surprised if more errors exist. Just want to let others know that they should not rely on that website....

ThisOneKid

Yeah, I noticed that too. I tried to rely on BSR as much as possible, but there were a lot of gaps. Find the Best does have some reliable information though, as I double checked directly on some select schools' websites among other sources. I tried to use common sense when I had to resort to it, like the $400 million vs. $39 million in Pomfret. I made note of it if you look at the list. It's like using Wikipedia for information. Sometimes it's the only place you can find it, but you have to use your head about the given data.

Charger78

You may very well get more corrections than you were expecting, TOK, but that's normal with so much data. I hope you will see the exercise as a reward for its own sake . . . and know too that many will find it a useful service which they can follow up on as necessary. A win-win. Thanks!

calhockeymom

My son just started at a "hidden gem" that is not on your list. It is Stanstead College in Canada. It is just over the Vermont border in Quebec province and is co-ed with students in grades 7-12. He chose it for the strong hockey program but it is also a very strong school academically and in other sports. They get students from Canada, the US, and a variety of other countries (opening presentations were in English, French, Spanish, and Chinese). I think it's worth adding to your list.

ThisOneKid

Alright, school's intense right now but I should have an update soon, I promise!

emalum

A true hidden gem that not many people have heard of is St. Margaret’s School in Tappahannock, VA. It is an all-girls school, and it serves Grades 8-12. As a HADES/IVY alum, I wanted a school that gives an education with excellence and rigor for my child that would meet the standards to gain admission to elite schools, yet one that would also value all aspects of my child and help her grow into the woman she is meant to be. St. Margaret’s is such a school and so much more.

Some wonderful distinctives about SMS:

River Days - Each class had a bonding trip while exploring different areas of the Rappahannock River at the beginning of the school year.

Minimester - An opportunity to learn outside the mold of traditional education that is built into the school year for all students. There are educational trips, service offerings, and tantalizing unique offerings that make you wish minimester was 5 weeks long!

Independent Senior Projects - A time for seniors to explore potential careers or educational interests.

Academics - Each child is placed according to their abilities, and SMS is able to offer more opportunities for advanced education than many small schools through their affiliation with the Online School for Girls and Rappahannock Community College.

Community - If you are going to live away from home, this matters. This a special place where everybody is valued and belongs. The spirit of the school is tangible even when you visit for the first time.

There are so many more things that make this school wonderful from athletics to extracurriculars, but they are too many to list. You will just have to explore for yourself. I hope this helps someone!

The view book for the school is at SMS Viewbook

The website is St. Margaret's School

JaceyLacey

Shawnigan Lake School on Vancouver Island in Canada is amazing it's a 300 acre campus and the dorms are so big and homelike.