Mercersberg Academy

[Anonymous]

Years ago it was a massive, massive sports school. Would non-athletes or just regular human athletes fit in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First, it's MercersbUrg.

Second, like any school, Mercersburg sends kids to a spectrum of schools for a variety of reasons. No school is going to send 100% of the senior class to all ivies and top 10 LACs. The largest group of students come to Mercersburg from Pennsylvania. Mercersburg, even with generous fin aid, is expensive. I makes sense that some families, especially local day student families, would choose Penn State for financial reasons, esp if they have several children. Maybe they chose a particular school for reasons having to do with a major. Maybe the kid didn't do well on the SAT. Who knows.

Just like at local private and/or independent schools, you send kids to a variety of colleges along a spectrum. I'm sure there are kids at SSSAS and BI and Episcopal who go to JMU, or UMD. Just because a kid goes to Penn State doesn't mean the experience was wasted. A Mercersburg education is about so many things, college placement is just one of them - though outcomes are a big part of the equation, especially since that's what many parents, like you, demand to know. Mercersburg places a premium on helping students develop their passions, their authentic selves, become independent, develop critical thought, build lifelong relationships with students and adults who will help form them.

Hope that helps. And no snark.

I'm not knocking Penn State. I wouldn't question if kids from Mercersberg go to Penn State. I actually think that would be a good choice. I am questioning Penn State - Behrend (list as Penn State Erie on the list) and Penn State Altoona. Those are not the same as Penn State main campus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I truly do mean this sincerely and hope I get serious answers to my question but I fear I will get much snark but will ask anyway.

What is the story behind kids going to Mercersberg Academy but then only going to Penn State - Altoona, Penn State - Erie or even West Chester U. for college?

These kids received a wonderful education from Mercersberg. I assume they also have good college counselors to walk them through the process.

You could say the kids had to pick those colleges for financial reasons, but after receiving a Mercersberg education and having their college counselors guide them through the process, couldn't the counselors have guided them to schools that would have given them good merit aid?

It just feels like their opportunities at Mercersburg (educational opportunities, college counseling, all the benefits of a small private school) were wasted when it comes to college selection.

I’m sure there are varying reasons but one that is certain is athletics. My daughter is an athlete at a NE boarding school
And if it were entirely up to her she would go to any school at all to compete in division 1 in college. While we aren’t on board with that, there are parents at her school that 100% are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Years ago it was a massive, massive sports school. Would non-athletes or just regular human athletes fit in?

It is definitely NOT a sports powerhouse. Mercersburg is a place where any student can try any sport they are interested in. Any senior can earn a varsity letter; students are pushed to try new things, sometimes outside of their comfort zones. The only sport Mercersburg is really strong in is swimming - they usually come in top 5 at Easterns, and they have built the new olympic-size pool to grow the program. Squash facilities are top-notch, but most of the kids on the squash team have never played before. They also have won the PA state championshoip in baseball, but that is very subject year to year. to current talent (or not)..

[Anonymous]

Re: athletics... about half the kids play sports, and the other half dance, do theater, or do outdoor ed (kayaking, climbing, etc). The arts are huge and kids move freely between the social and activity groups

[Anonymous]

What is the "social life" like on campus?

[Anonymous]

Any recent feedback? We are considering sending our DD there starting in 2026.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First, it's MercersbUrg.

Second, like any school, Mercersburg sends kids to a spectrum of schools for a variety of reasons. No school is going to send 100% of the senior class to all ivies and top 10 LACs. The largest group of students come to Mercersburg from Pennsylvania. Mercersburg, even with generous fin aid, is expensive. I makes sense that some families, especially local day student families, would choose Penn State for financial reasons, esp if they have several children. Maybe they chose a particular school for reasons having to do with a major. Maybe the kid didn't do well on the SAT. Who knows.

Just like at local private and/or independent schools, you send kids to a variety of colleges along a spectrum. I'm sure there are kids at SSSAS and BI and Episcopal who go to JMU, or UMD. Just because a kid goes to Penn State doesn't mean the experience was wasted. A Mercersburg education is about so many things, college placement is just one of them - though outcomes are a big part of the equation, especially since that's what many parents, like you, demand to know. Mercersburg places a premium on helping students develop their passions, their authentic selves, become independent, develop critical thought, build lifelong relationships with students and adults who will help form them.

Hope that helps. And no snark.

I'm not knocking Penn State. I wouldn't question if kids from Mercersberg go to Penn State. I actually think that would be a good choice. I am questioning Penn State - Behrend (list as Penn State Erie on the list) and Penn State Altoona. Those are not the same as Penn State main campus.

Main campus has a huge housing shortage for freshmen. My kid's first year there were tons of kids stuck in triples or in converted lounges. So, Penn State makes some offers that are 2+2 or 1+3, because sophomores and above are not guaranteed on campus housing. Also, those options are less expensive and sometimes are accompanied by other financial incentives. Apparently, there are also some programs at those that differ from the programs at Main. On graduation, everyone gets the same diploma that just says "The Pennsylvania State University". My kid started at Main, but has friends who started at other campuses for various reasons and are all happy.

[Anonymous]

We are a family that's also interested in Mercersburg. Our son is a rising 6th grader so we have a bit of time. We are going to try out the summer camp there this summer to get a sense of the location.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I truly do mean this sincerely and hope I get serious answers to my question but I fear I will get much snark but will ask anyway.

What is the story behind kids going to Mercersberg Academy but then only going to Penn State - Altoona, Penn State - Erie or even West Chester U. for college?

These kids received a wonderful education from Mercersberg. I assume they also have good college counselors to walk them through the process.

You could say the kids had to pick those colleges for financial reasons, but after receiving a Mercersberg education and having their college counselors guide them through the process, couldn't the counselors have guided them to schools that would have given them good merit aid?

It just feels like their opportunities at Mercersburg (educational opportunities, college counseling, all the benefits of a small private school) were wasted when it comes to college selection.

I’m sure there are varying reasons but one that is certain is athletics. My daughter is an athlete at a NE boarding school
And if it were entirely up to her she would go to any school at all to compete in division 1 in college. While we aren’t on board with that, there are parents at her school that 100% are.

I am genuinely curious. Why are parents 100% on board with this. Is it really the only thing they want?

Our child is heading to a New England boarding school this year. I would like to understand the thinking. (And I’m with you… I don’t share their perspective.).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I truly do mean this sincerely and hope I get serious answers to my question but I fear I will get much snark but will ask anyway.

What is the story behind kids going to Mercersberg Academy but then only going to Penn State - Altoona, Penn State - Erie or even West Chester U. for college?

These kids received a wonderful education from Mercersberg. I assume they also have good college counselors to walk them through the process.

You could say the kids had to pick those colleges for financial reasons, but after receiving a Mercersberg education and having their college counselors guide them through the process, couldn't the counselors have guided them to schools that would have given them good merit aid?

It just feels like their opportunities at Mercersburg (educational opportunities, college counseling, all the benefits of a small private school) were wasted when it comes to college selection.

I’m sure there are varying reasons but one that is certain is athletics. My daughter is an athlete at a NE boarding school
And if it were entirely up to her she would go to any school at all to compete in division 1 in college. While we aren’t on board with that, there are parents at her school that 100% are.

I am genuinely curious. Why are parents 100% on board with this. Is it really the only thing they want?

Our child is heading to a New England boarding school this year. I would like to understand the thinking. (And I’m with you… I don’t share their perspective.).

My kid was in this place during her recruiting season until an injury ended the D1 dream. We supported the dream, because that's what parents do (and didn't believe they would really have accepted an academically inferior institution just to go D1). Committed to a D3 and, in retrospect, realizes that D3 was the right fit.

[Anonymous]

It’s never been an academic powerhouse. People seem to love it, but its academic reputation has never been strong. It’s not bad, but not great either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I truly do mean this sincerely and hope I get serious answers to my question but I fear I will get much snark but will ask anyway.

What is the story behind kids going to Mercersberg Academy but then only going to Penn State - Altoona, Penn State - Erie or even West Chester U. for college?

These kids received a wonderful education from Mercersberg. I assume they also have good college counselors to walk them through the process.

You could say the kids had to pick those colleges for financial reasons, but after receiving a Mercersberg education and having their college counselors guide them through the process, couldn't the counselors have guided them to schools that would have given them good merit aid?

It just feels like their opportunities at Mercersburg (educational opportunities, college counseling, all the benefits of a small private school) were wasted when it comes to college selection.

I’m sure there are varying reasons but one that is certain is athletics. My daughter is an athlete at a NE boarding school
And if it were entirely up to her she would go to any school at all to compete in division 1 in college. While we aren’t on board with that, there are parents at her school that 100% are.

I am genuinely curious. Why are parents 100% on board with this. Is it really the only thing they want?

Our child is heading to a New England boarding school this year. I would like to understand the thinking. (And I’m with you… I don’t share their perspective.).

I have a friend who attended a prestigious but non-ivy D1 school. They could have attended an ivy but chose the better sport program.

Their professional (and personal) network is unsurpassed thanks to their 4 years of playing this sport. They are at the top of the game in their career field partially due to these connections. They are close friends with their teammates nearly 30 years later. It can make sense given the circumstances.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are a family that's also interested in Mercersburg. Our son is a rising 6th grader so we have a bit of time. We are going to try out the summer camp there this summer to get a sense of the location.

We also looked at mercersburg. These dc boards don’t do a great job of showing the full picture for boarding schools. We ended up picking St Andrews in Delaware a few years back and it was great for our DS. You will know the right fit when you get to know the school. I attended a NE boarding school and had that perspective going into the search. I was very happy with the SAS methodology and the fact that it was 100% boarding. Mercersburg didn’t seem as academically challenging to us. I think you will find that is the general consensus- good school, but not great for the boarding school price.

[Anonymous]

Mercersburg hosts summer camps. May be a good idea to send your DC there to get a feel for the living environment, at least.