Reply to in your mind, is STA worth it for high school?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Short answer for us is clearly Yes - worth every penny.  We are academically-focused and the academics are strong.

Longer answer: If - and only if - one lives a long (time) commute from StA, then one should consider how that would intersect with mandatory school sports until 6pm and with the school start time.  Adding a long (time) commute could make for sleep schedule pressures given the length of the school day there.  This is personal preference, but something to think about.

Opinion: We would be MUCH happier if the after-school sports were optional, such that school ended at 4pm at all grades (for those not on competitive sports teams).   My own (more ancient than StA) school did have intra-mural sports through Form III (9th grade), but those always occurred within an overall school day which always ended at 4pm.  Inter-school competitive sports teams (JV or V) practiced from 4pm-6pm,  but those were purely optional.  Our DC has documented fine motor limitations, which don’t impair daily life but do mean he always will be bottom in any sport.  So he has no interest in sports.  The mandatory-for-all 4pm-6pm sports are just a colossal waste of time for those not desiring to participate in competitive sports teams.

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I'd counter that the fact that sports participation is mandatory- adds to the development of the Boys- and the school culture that sets that as an expectation underlines that.

After all, no one gets anywhere in life without many of the qualities sports participation develop: perseverance, dedication to a goal, commitment, team work, guts, hopes/ aspirations...and let's not forget good CV exercise.

I can think of a LOT of things that are " a waste of time" - challenging oneself in athletics is an obvious exception[/quote]

DP: Some mandatory sports is good for the exercise part, but for a kid who also gets "perseverance, dedication to a goal, commitment, team work, guts, hopes/ aspirations" from non-athletic pursuits, the emphasis on all sports all the time cuts into time for pursuing those other wonderful activities, which may be where the boys' true talent lies.[/quote]

There are plenty of other elite private schools where the sports requirement is not as arduous and allows non-athletic pursuits instead.  Apply to those.  Obviously STA won’t be a good fit.  It’s easier to find a school with your child’s preferences about sports than complaining about STA.[/quote]

STA also has a mandatory Arts requirement of 100 hours- in order to graduate. So, all of those Athletes also had to do several school plays, play an instrument or sing in the choir.

Most STA students also - in addition to their sport- belong to clubs like Gov Club, Debate Team, Cyber Patriot, Yearbook committee, school newspaper, Robotics and affinity clubs. These clubs are voluntary, of course, but most students belong to 1 or more in addition to their sport and their mandatory arts requirement and , of course, 60 hours of community service to graduate[/quote]
NP. STA is a great school but factually speaking it does not have an arts requirement of 100 hours! Absolutely does not. One arts class or two max in upperschool. Very few boys are in the plays. You are not being factual here. [/quote]

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