More than 200 Attend Rumson Country Day Boarding School Fair

The Rumson Country Day School, Bellevue Avenue and Ridge Road, hosted its biennial Boarding School Fair – with 80 secondary schools exhibited free to the public – Sept. 18.

According to (RCDS) Headmaster, Chad B. Small, the school has been hosting the boarding school fair for approximately 20 years, originally begun an annual event.

“We host the fair certainly as a service to our current families, but we also would like to be an important educational resource for the greater community which is why the event is open to the public,” said Small. “We want what’s best for each student. The secondary school counseling we offer to our students at RCDS is very individualized, to the point that many of our families will choose different schools for their children as they each have different wants, learning styles and personalities.”

Most schools participating were for grades nine-12 with a few providing opportunities for grades eight and up. The boarding schools were primarily from New England, Pennsylvania and as far south as Virginia, with one school from Georgia, one from North Carolina, and two from California. The fair was offered for RCDS families and students from 4-5 p.m. – which drew 60 students and parents – and the general public from 5-7 p.m., which drew approximately 150 students and parents. Most attendees were local, but one family traveled from Williamsport, Pa., as the RCDS fair was the closest weekend fair for them to attend.

Traveling not so far were Liz and Dave Scott from Rumson, who brought their daughter Lily – a  RCDS student – and explained why they were interested in boarding schools.

“We have two daughters in boarding school now. It was a combination of the academics and character development offered,” said the couple. “Many boarding schools are very diverse, not just kids from the U.S., but all over the world. It gives them an idea of global awareness. There’s a diversity in the student body.”

Diversity was also key to Jamie and Dennis Scurletis, Rumson, who also brought their young daughter, and have an older daughter at St. Andrew’s in Delaware.

“For us, it was the richness of diversity we couldn’t find in our local academic options. Economic diversity, cultural diversity – it was the tremendous diversity,” said Jamie.

Eric Hoffman, Jackson – who has two sons at Rumson Country Day – explained diversity was also an important factor for he and his wife when choosing a boarding school.

“The curriculum, athletics, and most of these schools have a good teacher-student ratio, and a good mix of cultures and broad range of students,” said Hoffman.

The Hoffmans weren’t quite set on boarding schools as of yet.

“We’re information-gathering – that’s what this is,” said Hoffman.

The Scurletises were also gleaning information, yet already had specific criteria for the selection of a boarding school – such as the school being no more than three hours away – which they used with their older daughter.

“We wanted a diverse student body – culturally and economically,” said Jamie. “We wanted rigorous academics, inclusive athletics, and a spiritual community. We wanted 100 percent boarding, and a small-to-medium size school. The fit is obviously the most important thing – is it a good fit for your child?”

The Scotts were confident boarding school was indeed a good fit for their older daughters, and will be for Lily.

“It was the best gift we could give them because it gives them a better awareness of the world as a whole,” said the couple. “The kids are given an opportunity to have independent and creative thought. They have the opportunity to develop responsibility at an earlier age.”

Seeking out boarding schools at an “earlier age” themselves were several students from American Boychoir School, Princeton, who came to the fair to glean information on boarding schools.

The 80 schools taking part kept students and parents informed and engrossed with information from representatives, laptop presentations and brochures, as well as “freebies” such as Frisbees, tote bags, magnetic chip clips, markers, key pouches, and flashlights.

Keith Holton, director of admissions at Canterbury School, New Milford, Conn., had a potpourri of information and giveaways at his table.

“We’ve been doing the fair for years. We have five to six families from Rumson who attend Canterbury School,” said Holton. “A fair’s not the best marketing tool we have, but you go to the fairs. I probably have 10 interested families today that will follow through with an inquiry.”

Standing close by was John McVeigh, associate director of admission and financial aid at Brooks School, North Andover, Mass.

“It’s been great; we’ve seen some nice kids and families. We have a good number of New Jersey students that go to school at Brooks, so it’s a great chance to connect with families in the area,” said McVeigh. “This is establishing a contact – hopefully, the people interested in Brooks will start a conversation, and come up and visit Brooks. This is a great space for this, and it’s well run.”

The Rumson Country Day School was founded in 1926 as a nonprofit, independent, non-sectarian, coeducational elementary school, and enrolls students in grades preschool through eight.