So, before we make that school decision, let’s show you why the best boarding schools in Pennsylvania can be the right choice. According to Our Kids, boarding schools offer a variety of benefits to students. The decision to attend boarding school is the first step in what many consider a big picture decision: by attending boarding school, the advantages that come with it will pay off in the long term. The number of leaders and successful members of society began their journey at a private school: former presidents, actors, athletes, successful business people, and other politicians. While we expand the conversation on boarding school, we will basically focus on boarding schools in Pennsylvania. Our table of content precisely shows you what you’ll learn from this article.
Why Attend A Boarding School in Pennsylvania?
Boarding schools offer students an experience that can be very helpful to them in their future endeavours. In fact, research shows that students that attend boarding schools do better in college. Pennsylvania is the 5th most populous state in the U.S with a strong and the 33rd largest by land area. Furthermore, they have an impressive economy as their unemployment rate sits at 6%. Once you enrol your child into a boarding, you’re guaranteed of excellent learning. Learning that improves his knowledge base and character as well.
Are there Private Boarding Schools in Pennsylvania?
A lot of times, you’ll only find a few exceptional public boarding schools. Hence, the remaining are private. Indeed, Pennsylvania has a good number of private boarding schools. Some of these schools include;
What are the Therapeutic Boarding Schools in Pennsylvania?
Therapeutic boarding schools help sick students overcome their illnesses through special care and concern. So, if you have a child with a chronic illness, you should consider enrolling the child into a therapeutic school. So, the best therapeutic schools in Pennsylvania include;
What are the Best Military Boarding Schools in Pennsylvania?
If your child wants to be part of the military personnel, they must get the required training over a long period of time. A military boarding school will help your child. So, one amazing military boarding school in Pennsylvania is the Valley Forge Military Academy.
What are the Best Coed Boarding Schools in Pennsylvania?
A co-educational school is a school wherein male and female students learn within the same classroom. While this is very popular today, it wasn’t the same case some years ago. Hence, the best-coed boarding schools in Pennsylvania are Mercersburg Academy, George School and Perkiomen School.
Are there Free Boarding Schools in Pennsylvania?
Finding a free boarding school is a very tasking duty. Due to the high costs of living, feeding and learning, a lot of schools cannot accommodate such costs in any dimension. However, there is a free boarding school in Pennsylvania which is the Milton Hershey School. They are a cost-free boarding school wherein you pay nothing for your kids.
10 Best Boarding Schools in Pennsylvania | Ranking
To effectively rank the best boarding schools in Pennslyvania, we used the following ranking factors. Hence, they include; We checked their rankings to ensure they occupy good positions. We used Boarding Schools Review as the ranking factor. Considering the difficulty involved in getting into these schools, we ranked them by their specialization. As we know the specialization is equestrian schools. After a lot of students complete their programs at this school, they have to go to college. We also judged this school by checking the average number of their students that get into college immediately after graduation.
10. Linden Hall
Founded in 1746, Lindel Hall is an independent boarding school for girls. Since it started its operations, it has remained the oldest among all independent boarding schools in the U.S. As a school focused on girl-child education, they continue to impact and empower young women. They basically do this by giving them a platform to gain knowledge and relevant life skills. Over the years, their graduates have gone ahead to have stellar careers across all industries. Students in their programs come from over 45 countries and 15 states in the U.S. They have special riding programs and aviation centres where the girl students gain practical insight. Of course, their residency area makes them one of the top boarding schools in Pennsylvania. Recently, they introduced “Makerspace” – a building fully committed to hands-on work, in engineering and robotics classes in different subject areas.
9. Milton Hershey School
Milton and Catherine Hershey founded Milton Hershey School in 1909. The vision behind this school was to cater to children from low-income families. Today, over 10,000 student lives have been transformed. Milton Hershey School remains within the confines of its everyday principles. These principles also known as their sacred values are integrity, positive spirit, mutual respect and commitment to mission. Despite being a cost-free boarding school in Pennsylvania, they wholely attend to the financial and social needs of its students. The idea remains to help them build more productive lives. Although they don’t accept international students yet, this school accepts over 2,100 students through 12th grade. In fact, they have an equal number of boys and girls in their school. All the students learn borderless in a loving and family-like environment. There are over 180 student homes with eight to twelve students residing in each home.
8. Valley Forge Military Academy
Valley Forge Academy is an institute purely focused on developing personal strength as well as academic power. They’ve achieved this goal in the lives of many of their students. This academy has five philosophies that guide their activities. These cornerstones are academic excellence, character development, personal motivation, physical development and leadership. They achieve these objectives through their integrated military and academic community. A community that encourages friendships and intelligence at all levels. In every faculty, their teachers communicate knowledge to these students regarding life and diverse subject areas. Each student has an opportunity to connect personally with their teacher with the aim to solve a problem. Once you pass through this cadet as a young man, your life, character and personality will get polished. Hence, they make one of the best boarding schools in Pennsylvania.
7. Westtown School
Established in 1799, Westtown School is the oldest continuously operating co-educational boarding school. Their rich history backed up with data supports their cause in every dimension. The Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools accredited Westtown School. Hence, they have about 107 teaching faculties with 85% of its students on campus. The campus of this school sits on over 600 acres of land. Although the majority of the land is comprised of the school, the remaining sections contain an instructional organic farm in addition to other things. They have a very diverse student body. Students in Westtown come from over 19 states and 17 countries of the world. These students have benefitted a total of $9.5 million in scholarships and grants. Students at Westtown perform very well in academics and also in sports as well. Their diverse sports facilities help them excel in athletics, badminton, soccer and basketball.
6. Solebury School
Solebury, unlike other institutions, has a different philosophy. They believe that young people want to learn and their only duty is to create a curriculum that best fits their desire. Indeed, this is clearly expressed in their investigative research and their desire to connect different disciplines. This investigation has made them discover and innovate a lot. The culture of mutual respect in Solebury makes it easy for teachers and students to connect. Hence, they leave behind traditional patterns that restricted association. When you attend Solebury, you’re in one of the best boarding schools in Pennslyvania. A place wherein you can create a pathway for your dreams and desires.
5. Shady Side Academy
Shady Side Academy keeps challenging its students to think expansively. They have grown from a one-room schoolhouse to a huge educational community. As a nationally respected private school, they actively educate and mentor forward-thinking students to achieve set goals and objectives. These results become the foundation upon which they build. For every step in a student’s life at Shady side, there is always a pathway which they will follow in order to achieve their goals.
4. Perkiomen School
Founded in 1875, Perkiomen School continues to inspire courage, boldness and strength among other top boarding schools in Pennslyvania. For this cause, they remain revered and highly respected. The Perkiomen School promotes inquisitiveness and problem-solving skills in the hearts of its students. This is why they afford the best of a liberal arts education. As a boarding and day school, they are committed to building a multiethnic and gifted student body. A place where students can connect and collaborate in order to solve real-life problems. Students have the option of pursuing their interests in the world around them. In fact, it is that same desire that increases bonding among the students and their educators.
3. Mercersburg Academy
Mercersburg Academy is an exceptional boarding school in Pennsylvania. They have a track record of excellence and innovation which makes them unique in every fashion. There are about 442 students in Mercersburg Academy with a student to faculty ratio of 4:1. A total of 104 faculty members in addition to the number of students makes up the numbers. In this school, students can pursue any of their 107 courses as the average class size sits at 11. Additionally, students can pursue an exchange program in either Chile or Germany. Generally, this university has spent over $297 million since its inception. In essence, over 50% of their students have received financial aid in one way or another.
2. Hill School
Founded in 1852, Hill School has a rich history of tradition and excellence. It has dutifully threaded this path and this is the core foundation behind many of the results they have today. Hill School has a very strong value for character. They believe character is the necessary ingredient for growth in our world today. Their motto which says “Whatsoever things are true” totally summarizes their belief. As much as they believe in mutual respect and cordiality, Hill School believes that community helps you achieve more. So, they encourage students to connect with their teachers beyond the classroom. This connection has made them an excellent academic institution. Just imagine what it means to learn in a school that always updates its curriculum to meet present standards. Students in this school enjoy a high sense of support and shared success. Hence, whether they do well academically or in sports, the reward system never changes.
1. George School
George School is tops among the best boarding schools in Pennsylvania. And the reason is not far-fetched as it is very visible in their approach to everything they do. Unlike other boarding schools, this school gives you the freedom to encounter and explore activities beyond your course. In their words, students can compete in sports, use 3D printers and explore calculus. George School believes they have one of the most challenging courses in an International Baccalaureate program. Additionally, they have other courses such as Spanish Seminar and AP calculus. The teachers at George school teach and support students to step into different career paths. Basically, the challenging learning environment continues to draw students to them. Yes, boarding schools are not cheap at all except it is a cost-free boarding school. Boarding schools are better because they offer your child specialized care and learning. A boarding school is a school – below college- wherein majority of its students live within the school. The best miltary boarding school in Pennsylvania is the Valley Forge Military Academy.
Conclusion
When you closely consider two kids that went to different schools – one a boarding school and the other a day school – you will see certain notable differences. Of course, unlike day schools, boarding schools focus on all aspects of the student’s life. From his academic performance to his sense of clarity, purposefulness and general behaviour. So, if you want to enrol your child into a boarding school for boys or girls, you can pick from any of the options.
