<p>My DD is considering Ellis School in Pittsburgh and Mercersburg Academy. Does anyone have any experience or opinions about these schools? Are there any other prep schools to consider in Western or Central Pennsylvania?</p>
<p>There is a frequent poster who is a Mercersburg graduate. Search this thread for Mercersburg and you’ll find him.</p>
<p>You may want to consider the Hill School in Pottstown, PA (Eastern PA). It is probably the most widely known boarding school located in PA. Mercersburg is also a high quality school.</p>
<p>I am that poster you speak of shelley14, and I agree with the above poster. </p>
<p>The Hill School is an excellent boarding school, and so is Mercersburg Academy, my Alma Mater. I would even go as far as saying that per $ endowment, Mercersburg and Hill are doing a lot more than schools like Peddie and Blair in NJ.</p>
<p>Pennsylvania is a great state for boarding schools, and as a former Pittsburgh resident, Mercersburg and Hill are quite drivable, although Hill would take an extra 1 - 1 1/2 hours more. </p>
<p>There are a few other schools in your area that aren’t quite as strong as Hill or Mercersburg but are very much good boarding schools. These include the Linsly School in Wheeling, WV, Shady Side Academy Upper School in Fox Chapel, PA, and the Grier School (all-girls), in Tyrone, PA near Altoona. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, most boarding schools in PA will be at least as far as Mercersburg (3 hours) from PGH. The Linsly School is only an hour away, even though its in WV. </p>
<p>If you have any questions about Mercersburg, please feel free to PM me. I just posted a review of Mercersburg on BoardingSchoolReview: <a href=“Mercersburg Academy (2024 Profile) - Mercersburg, PA”>Mercersburg Academy (2024 Profile) - Mercersburg, PA;
if you are at all interested in reading that. </p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Interesting review…and sorry about your mentor. That was a school that my son and I both had on our short lists but, alas, in the end there were only so many schools we could visit and there was no efficient way to work in a tour there before the application deadline. At some point you have to grapple with the reality that you (or for parents, your child) can only attend one school and even if you apply to 10 or 20 schools there will inevitably some weeding out to do…and that, in turn, means that you’ve got to be willing to take the chance that a good school will get left on the table and you’ve got to be willing to take the leap of faith that you’re going to match up with the best overall fit for you or your child.</p>
<p>Good points there D’yer. I agree completely. </p>
<p>P.S. Sdkddad, I would also check out Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, OH.</p>
<p>If you decide to broaden your search, consider Blair Academy in NJ. It is within 10 miles or less of the eastern PA border, and there are many PA students there. My son goes there, and we love it!</p>
<p>tokyorevelation9 – That was a very touching story about your mentor. Good luck at Princeton.</p>
<p>Valley Forge is a great military school in Wayne, PA</p>
<p>Thanks again BurbParent.</p>
<p>I would also tell the OP to look West, at Western Reserve Academy, a very strong co-ed boarding school in its own right.</p>
<p>I think Valley Forge has really slipped. I would not send a kid there.</p>
<p>Agreed about VFMA – in fact I don’t kmow of many that are still strog schools academically with the obvious exception of Culver and possiblty NYMA. Army and Navy in CA? Howe?</p>
<p>Mercersburg Academy is an outstanding school with a very kind and talented faculty. The admissions staff has been excellent through the years;I would not hesitate to send a student to Mercersburg. Great swimming and baseball teams. Beautiful campus that is somewhere between rural and suburban. Also don’t miss Blair Academy for a more intimate family/country club feel.Both schools treat students as family. Neither school is as intense academically as Exeter,SPS,Hotchkiss or Andover-but I see that as a positive for most students. Academics are appropriately strong at Mercersburg with several students each year entering Ivy League schools.</p>