<p>Came back a short while ago from my favorite coffee shop in Ojai. Sitting at a small table was a young man in his blue blazer, along with Mom and Dad. Dad was speaking to his son earnestly and intensely; the boy was quiet, nodding his head, listening, looking very much on edge. Well-dressed Mom was joining in now and again to offer additional bits of advice. They were on their way to interview at Thacher. It was a nervous scene. I wanted more than anything to walk over and tell the young man to put away his cares and focus on enjoying himself during the visit, to be himself, to have a good time, and to look forward to meeting new people. There is no better orientation for a boarding school visit than being happy and being yourself.</p>
<p>Hmm…I enjoyed the visitation process so much, because I encouraged DC to look at it as “dating”; yes, sure, the school gets to make the first cut, but then at Revisits you’re the one with the final decision. Also, aside from getting in and choosing, the whole “roadtrip” experience was a real bonding one for us, and through talking about the different schools and what each of us saw–especially COMPARING between schools–we learned a lot. Not sure parental coaching does much at this stage of the game, but the process itself can be a precious opportunity…especially if DC IS fortunate enough to get in somewhere “fitting” and suddenly will be a flying the nest, only occasionally to return. :(</p>
<p>I think this is something that one may only inherit gene wise but why didn’t you walk over? I would have a hard time resisting.</p>
<p>I second PelicanDad, I really looked forward to the visits. I liked it when SG played away games which gave me an opportunity to see the other schools. I’d arrive early and could always manage to speak with faculty, students, current parents, AO and even the Headmaster on occasion.</p>
<p>Typically, I would have, Ops. But I felt that there was a cultural divide and that the parents wouldn’t understand or appreciate my saying something out of the blue.</p>