I’m a parent of a Third Form (freshman) student at St. Mark’s School in Southborough, Massachusetts and would be happy to answer questions about the school. I hope other SMA parents, students, and alums will chime in as well.
Hi I am new to the forum so please forgive me for not being in the know with all the acronyms. Anyway, daughter is currently a sophomore in an international school, typical expat kid, born in the US and grew up overseas. Circumstances have us looking to have her board for the last 2years of HS. I realize this is NOT the ideal situation at this point in her HS. Any input about St. Marks (academic, music program, social diversity) would be greatly appreciated.
Bluebutterfly99: I think the first thing I’d say about SMS that might be important for your daughter is that it is a small, close-knit, warm, embracing community. This might be important for her in terms of adjusting and integrating into a group of kids. Academically the school is superb. Brand new stunning STEM building and other top-notch facilities. They say the average class size is 12 but for my son and his friends it is more like 8 (e.g. 5 kids in Chinese, 6 in Robotics). Really good teachers and strong, steady, visionary leadership.
There is a new arts center building with a wonderful performing arts auditorium. At recent events for family and alums we saw lots of kids performing music and dance. Very strong program.
The school is very socially diverse. Lots of kids on financial aid. Lots of kids with diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. My son’s group of friends includes a couple of blond white kids, a few African Americans, a few American Hispanic kids, and several international kids (mostly from Chia and South Korea). They all hang out, go to Boston together, and are finding how much they have in common. The school creates many opportunities for all the kids to get to know one another. Of course there are cliques, but they do not seem to be a problem.
Our son is very happy at SMS and all of his friends are too. It was described to us as “a happy school” by a faculty member we met during the admissions process, and this seems to be the case.
Why SMS is not more prominently featured in these posts is a mystery to me because it’s a terrific place that stands up to any school in New England. I would strongly urge you – and everyone – to take a close look.
What classes are your child taking and how many hours does he spends on homework?
Thank you johnnya! After a while all the school websites and viewbooks tend to look-a-like and basically say the same things. Most of my daughter’s friends are at HADES schools and I know that the mid-atlantic schools have a different “feel” to those. Daughter is looking for an academic strong school without the high level of intensity. I trust your insight and am glad to hear that your child is enjoying the whole BS experience.
Chinese I, Algebra I, Physics with Algebra, Robotics, Literary Genres, Global Seminar. Roughly 3.5 to 4 hours about 6 days a week.
The homework load gets heavier for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year students.
Thanks for answering questions about SMS. We are planning a visit. Can you tell me if the campus is more rural or urban? Is there a lot of green space on campus? I worry about students going home every weekend since it is so close to Boston. Does that happen and are there enough weekend activities on campus? Thanks again!!!
We visited a few years ago. It is pretty rural feeling. Plenty of green space, most classes are in one building if I recall correctly. 9th grade dorms are across the street and fields. I think there were weekend activities.
Thanks for your input, much appreciated. Anymore information or viewpoints on the campus are welcome. I am very impressed with academic support, diversity and teachers from what I have read.
If the workload gets heavier and 3rd you’re doing close to 4 hrs of homework, how much more are upper classmen doing? 6 hrs of homework? Are the teachers supportive? What made you pick SMS over other schools?
The campus is neither urban nor rural, but “suburban.” NMH, Hotchkiss, and Deerfield are rural. SMS is only 30 miles or so from Boston, but in a very pleasant place with lawns and trees, several playing fields, and a lovely pond. The architecture is stunning.
As far as I can tell from my son, most of the boarders stay on campus on weekends even if their homes are quite close to the campus. The kids are quite busy all week right uno until late Saturday afternoon, so there really isn’t much time to go away on a normal weekend anyway.
There are many weekend activities. See this link for examples: http://www.stmarksschool.org/on-campus/upcoming-weekend-activities/index.aspx. Examples: Last night there was a Halloween dance and today their was a paintball battle and trips to Boston and the local mall. Lots to do.
Mizchantal: I really don’t have specific info about homework load beyond the first year. You could ask about that on a visit. My impression is that it is not overwhelming. Seven nights a week the kids have mandatory study time in their rooms from 7:30 to 9:30. There are other free times during the day when homework can be done.
Academic support is great. Very warm, supportive faculty. Academics are quite challenging without being a “pressure cooker.”
Our son could not be happier with St. Mark’s, and neither could we. Great place!
Mizchantal: You asked why we picked St. Mark’s over other schools. It was solely our son’s choice and it came down to his personal sense of “best fit”. Another student with the same choices might make a different choice. All I can say is that he and we (parents) are delighted with the choice he made. I suggest visiting as many schools as you can and then when acceptances come in on March 10, go to as many re-visit days as possible. And try not to influence your child’s choice since he or she will ultimately have to live with whatever choice is finally made.
I forgot to mention the most important thing about St. Mark’s. During the re-visit a faculty member told us “This is a happy school. Not all schools are happy places, but this place is.”
We have found this to be true about St. Mark’s. Everyone - students, faculty, and staff - really seems to be happy there.
@mizchantal @johnnya We loved St. Marks on our visit. I agree with the faculty member who said that St. Marks is a largely happy school while many other boarding schools are not. Culture is not quantifiable and yet your child lives it, breathes it, and becomes it during his or her’s most formative years. In my opinion, many people spend too much time on the statistical outcome of their child’s boarding school experience and not enough on what sort of person they will become. Most often that turns on how “happy” or “loving” or “kind” the culture is.
Great questions. Campus is very pretty. More rural than urban. My D is a 6th former (senior)and we don’t live close enough to go home on weekends. Yes, there is an exodus on weekends. That being said, Saturday classes and sporting events keep people around usually on Saturdays. My D has usually been invited to someone’s home on those weekends. That being said, it does have the feel of a day school and not a boarding school.
One more thing which is very important. Teachers are fantastic. Almost all live on campus. Students see them all the time and they are very accessible when not in the classroom for extra help or whatever. This was very important for my D and she has loved it.
Bump… Would love to answer questions any accepted or already decided new students have! Get excited about SM!