This seems like a system that delivers good outcomes to students. However at $73,900/year tuition (their website also lists lots of financial aid options) it’s probably not for everyone.
As parents I think our job is to bring as much of the good parts of immersive boarding schools like this into our normal home / school / activities lives with our kids.
This seems like a system that delivers good outcomes to students. However at $73,900/year tuition (their website also lists lots of financial aid options) it’s probably not for everyone.
As parents I think our job is to bring as much of the good parts of immersive boarding schools like this into our normal home / school / activities lives with our kids.
This is Heather from the Admissions team at Midland School. Midland offers need-based financial assistance and has since its founding in 1932. The purpose is to ensure a diverse community of learners. Some of our students receive close to full tuition assistance, while some are full-pay, and others are everywhere in between. We aim to make Midland affordable for those who are ready for this experience and believe in the mission!
My very first thought as I was reading this was how much does this place cost? That he is a privileged kid from California. But it has to start somewhere.
The idea of having a local school that bans tech sounds lovely... but then the kid goes home and jumps right on it. It has to be a total immersion/ban for the desire effect. We have resorted to a military boarding school because our son's problem was out of control. Cheaper than Caleb's school :)
$73,900??? This just re-enforces my belief that it is an upper-class solution that leaves the rest of us to slog along. This story is just an outlier with no option to the rest of us.
This is Heather from the Admissions team at Midland School. Midland offers need-based financial assistance and has since its founding in 1932. The purpose is to ensure a diverse community of learners. Some of our students receive close to full tuition assistance, while some are full-pay, and others are everywhere in between. We aim to make Midland affordable for those who are ready for this experience and believe in the mission!
Heather thanks for responding. I did note that there seemed to be a lot of financial aid options. Still, public school is "free" (as in, we already pay for it whether we use it or not via property and other taxes). I attended all 12 years here in SC at my local public schools, got a great education and both my kids are in public school here now doing the same. For most of us, sending kids to an expensive boarding school just isn't on the radar. For those that do, your school looks excellent.
Thank you! I was public school educated myself, and I had a very positive experience in MA in the 90s although I do wish more schools of today integrated more of the concepts that Midland has, as there are so many opportunities for 21st century learning beyond the screen.
I think you are right on the money. We (parents and voters) always see problems and solutions external to our own decisions and behavior. Technology addiction and social problems of our children are often products of our priorities in how we choose to spend our time. At least partially.
Yes! I've told my two elementary school aged kids they will be the last people they know to get "smart phones." My wife and I also point out families, like say at a restaurant, where everyone has their faces in a device and my kids think it's sad. I am sure there are battles to come, but our own actions in our own family are what's most important.
My kids are not going to go to some high end outward bound type boarding school (we have them on the East Coast too, obviously). They are just going to live here, at home, with their parents, going to our local public school and doing normal things. Just like their mom and dad did. The rest is up to them.
Again, I am glad this kid is having this great experience and don't begrudge him that. There are lessons form his experience that we can apply in our lives.
You might have to homeschool. Jr High and high school usually have BYOD policies in place. Very few have good cell phone bans enforced on school grounds. What you want can be doable, it will require a great deal of diligence on your part. Good job on your part though for acknowledging the elephant in the room - best of luck with navigating this with your kids.
This seems like a system that delivers good outcomes to students. However at $73,900/year tuition (their website also lists lots of financial aid options) it’s probably not for everyone.
As parents I think our job is to bring as much of the good parts of immersive boarding schools like this into our normal home / school / activities lives with our kids.
Couldn’t agree more. A crazy price tag for roughing it. It looks amazing, but definitely a privilege for the few.
This is Heather from the Admissions team at Midland School. Midland offers need-based financial assistance and has since its founding in 1932. The purpose is to ensure a diverse community of learners. Some of our students receive close to full tuition assistance, while some are full-pay, and others are everywhere in between. We aim to make Midland affordable for those who are ready for this experience and believe in the mission!
Heather - don't you think you could tailor your response to the comment rather than simply posting a canned (and probably highly vetted) statement?
My very first thought as I was reading this was how much does this place cost? That he is a privileged kid from California. But it has to start somewhere.
The idea of having a local school that bans tech sounds lovely... but then the kid goes home and jumps right on it. It has to be a total immersion/ban for the desire effect. We have resorted to a military boarding school because our son's problem was out of control. Cheaper than Caleb's school :)
$73,900??? This just re-enforces my belief that it is an upper-class solution that leaves the rest of us to slog along. This story is just an outlier with no option to the rest of us.
This is Heather from the Admissions team at Midland School. Midland offers need-based financial assistance and has since its founding in 1932. The purpose is to ensure a diverse community of learners. Some of our students receive close to full tuition assistance, while some are full-pay, and others are everywhere in between. We aim to make Midland affordable for those who are ready for this experience and believe in the mission!
Heather thanks for responding. I did note that there seemed to be a lot of financial aid options. Still, public school is "free" (as in, we already pay for it whether we use it or not via property and other taxes). I attended all 12 years here in SC at my local public schools, got a great education and both my kids are in public school here now doing the same. For most of us, sending kids to an expensive boarding school just isn't on the radar. For those that do, your school looks excellent.
Thank you! I was public school educated myself, and I had a very positive experience in MA in the 90s although I do wish more schools of today integrated more of the concepts that Midland has, as there are so many opportunities for 21st century learning beyond the screen.
Supporting school choice could be a beginning.
I think you are right on the money. We (parents and voters) always see problems and solutions external to our own decisions and behavior. Technology addiction and social problems of our children are often products of our priorities in how we choose to spend our time. At least partially.
Yes! I've told my two elementary school aged kids they will be the last people they know to get "smart phones." My wife and I also point out families, like say at a restaurant, where everyone has their faces in a device and my kids think it's sad. I am sure there are battles to come, but our own actions in our own family are what's most important.
My kids are not going to go to some high end outward bound type boarding school (we have them on the East Coast too, obviously). They are just going to live here, at home, with their parents, going to our local public school and doing normal things. Just like their mom and dad did. The rest is up to them.
Again, I am glad this kid is having this great experience and don't begrudge him that. There are lessons form his experience that we can apply in our lives.
The public schools will not care how much time your kids sit in class looking at their phones. They are just pushing through the kids anymore.
You might have to homeschool. Jr High and high school usually have BYOD policies in place. Very few have good cell phone bans enforced on school grounds. What you want can be doable, it will require a great deal of diligence on your part. Good job on your part though for acknowledging the elephant in the room - best of luck with navigating this with your kids.