MattsMomFL

Seriously considering sending my HS Sophomore daughter here next summer. Can anyone who has attended the program, or had a son or daughter attend the program give me any feedback? Thanks in advance.

caressemh

I went to Ringling PreCollege last summer! (I am now a HS senior). It was an amazing experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat! There are a lot of kids there in both [rising] junior and senior grades. The instructors are great as well. My advice would be to apply and send in your class requests as early as possible because they fill up quickly. I was lucky to get my two top choices (Acrylic Painting and Dry Media Drawing) but a lot of kids who waited till the last minute, like my roommate, got stuck in classes they didn't really want, i.e. typography. (No offense, typographists...)

If you have any more specific questions I'd be happy to answer!

MattsMomFL

Hey, thanks for being out there and responding!

In the thread re RISD's summer program there was a Mom who talked about drugs, sex (and I suppose there was rock & roll) being rampant, along with a loose curfew and kids roaming the streets of Providence at night - she even said there were a few pregnancies every summer! Did you see anything like that at Ringling? I don't think I'm over-protective, but yikes ...

caressemh

Sorry for the late reply! But yes, I can answer your question.

Ringling had a 3 strike system, after 3 indescretions you were expelled from the program at the parents' expense. I do know that one girl got kicked out for smoking pot in her room, but I don't know if that was her 3rd or only strike. 2 kids were found out for having sex and recieved 2 strikes. 1 Kid got kicked out for repeated bad behavior... other than that, there were really no issues.

They were EXTREMELY restricting of us on public outings. To the point where I got really frustrated at times, but I can understand liability issues. But there were constant head counts and RA accompanyment at every field trip. Since Sarasota is not really a city like Providence, there was nowhere for us to go at night and we were not allowed to leave campus. We had to be in our dorm hall by 10:00 and in our rooms by 11:00.

Yeah, my friends and I were a little frustrated at our lack of freedom on the field trips (esp. at the beach) but I guess that the parents appreciate it haha. But to me the most important thing was the art experience, which was amazing, so I didn't care about much else. I'd say it was a very good, discipline-wise, for a summer program full of high schoolers.

toxic_waste

i dunno about sex (drugs is a given on any campus, i think...), but the res hall doors lock from the outside at 10 or 11 (don't remember exactly). a close friend of mine went there in '06. never heard anything about pregnancies. the RAs don't accompany the students everywhere, but i don't believe there was a problem of people roaming around the streets late at night. they could, but they'd need someone to stay up and let them in...

other than the crappy dorms, my friend liked it.

RyanMac

i went to risd in 06 and 07, know kids who did it in years past, and that sounds like a complete lie to me. yeah, a couple kids get kicked out for drinking every year, but i can pretty honestly say that 90% of the kids there are extremely serious about art and don't want to risk getting kicked out of the program (which means you cant get into risd for undergrad).

- i have never heard of anyone ever getting pregnant.

- i have heard of one drug use incident (immidiate expulsion), and getting caught is extremely easy. same situation as alcohol.

- the curfew is extremely strict and enforced. its 11 on weeknights and 12 on weekends. if you're one second late (literally, there are electronic scanners), you get written up. 2 writeups and a letter goes home and you get community service. 3 and you get sent home, no exceptions, no refunds. if you get caught drinking even on the first night you get sent home, no refunds. (the majority of the kids who get kicked out are for curfew violations, its extremely serious).

- kids roaming the streets at night: uh yeah, its a pre-COLLEGE program, no body hangs over your shoulder 24/7. the work load is intense and similar to college, they don't treat you like high schoolers. the RA's are your friends but they realize they have a job. they dont screw around when things need to be addressed, but the kids are the ones who need to take responsibility for themselves. you can roam anywhere you want from 5 am to 11 pm, but 11 pm is more like 10:15 because you have to stop what your doing to make sure you get back in time. you cant roam outside after curfew...you have to stay in your dorm

- sex: most of the kids who are able to spend 6 weeks alone and handle college level work are mature enough to handle sex properly. what do you want me to say, there are 500 teenagers living away from home for 6 weeks and nobody has sex? it certainly isn't a rabbit farm and there really arent random hookups to speak of. people have gf/bf's and whatever.

all i can say is that any pre-college program is going to have all of the above. if a kid isnt mature enough to handle a few weeks away from home, how do you think theyr going to react to a year away when real college time comes? parents can worry all they want about their kids, but worrying doesnt help them mature - the only way they can do that is through their own experience. if any parent wants someone breathing down their kid's neck at all waking moments to make sure theyr doing the right thing, you might as well keep them at home where you can do it yourself.

seriously, one of the best aspects of these programs is how fast it forces kids to mature. some kids arent ready, and they make stupid decisions, and get kicked out. those who mature and are able to handle it are that much more prepared for college.

MattsMomFL

Thanks for the great feedback. I think with my daughter the reason I'm concerned is that curently she is a *young* 15 year old. She actually looks 12 because she is 5 feet tall and weighs all of 80 pounds! I think I would feel more comfortable with her onthe Ringling campus fornow. next year, maybe a different story.

osage77

My daughter is at RISD this year and I know for a fact how strict they are with drinking and drugs. I don't know where this rumor got started but I think it is a big big lie. They work you too hard for this to be the case.

A very good friend of my daughters goes to Ringling and loves the school. She says the campus is very small and slow, but has been to visit my daughter and says the RISD campus at Providence, RI is "wonderful" (nasy old dorms aside). So Ringling maybe the right choice for your young DD.

MattsMomFL

Hey, thanks so much for that reassuring reply Osage.

Yes, she's made up her mind - this summer Ringling. It's a better idea for her anyway for the summer as she's already taken a course there - a week long 3 hour seminar in photography and she feels comfortable on the campus. Better idea for checking it out for college too, as her grades dont cut it for RISD and has a MUCH better chance of getting into Ringling. Lastly, it's a 3 hour car ride away - also better for college, as far as her mother is concerned...

Linzoy

I never went to precollege, but I know people who did and I've heard the curfew is strict. They can tell who enters the buildings at what time, so you will get caught if you sneak out at night.

Yes, college students drink and smoke pot. As far as I can tell there aren't many harder drugs. RISD's not a party school. We're not like JSW where an ambulance shows up every week.