Kent School - Review #22

The relaxed attitude of the student body leads to a comfortable work atmosphere. Unlike the stories I hear of other schools, as a student at Kent I never felt that I was in competition with my fellow students. Rather we were all on the same journey helping each other reach our destination. At Kent everybody knows everybody else. The school is small enough to do this however big enough to be able to hang out with those who you chose.

Kent taught me that everyone is worth getting to know. All people have there own qualities that make them cool. This has made it much easier to talk to people outside Kent. I recently went hiking with my brother, and during the second week of the trip he said "Man, people just love talking to you." Kent is responsible for this. I used to be petrified to talk to strangers, now I jump at the chance to meet everyone I can.

When I first went to boarding school I was very protective. Sometimes if people were just joking around I would think they were serious and get defensive. It's important not to alienate anybody the first few weeks. This is easy to accomplish at Kent. Also don't try to find a best friend the first night. Time will get to know who your friends are going to be, just have fun the first few weeks. Most of all, stay true to who you are. Your more likely to meet people you actually like if your not trying to impress the ones you don't.

I loved the atmosphere. It was the perfect combination of work hard and stress free. The students are all involved with the school and each other. And the faculty are absolutely amazing.

When you visit make sure you ask about the sandbox. Its a great place to hang out and is one of the most memorable things about the school... If your a guy, Field dorm may seem really sweet, but if you get lucky enough to be there you'll be with all upperclassmen and not a lot of freshman. Girls, don't be scared of dinning hall dorm, sure its small, but the freshman girls always bond really well in there. They all always love it, even if they can't wait to move out.

If you live on campus then you are right away in a focused environment. Focused, but not hostile. Many of your friends will be in the same classes as you. This means that when you have a paper or test, many of those around you will at the same time. Being around people who are studying definitely helps you study. The faculty live right on campus, and over the course of a year the bond between teacher and student can become quite close. Many times, as early as November, the first few minutes of class will be spent with the teacher and students of a class just telling funny stories of things that happened to them over the weekend. The faculty truly know you as much more then just a name and a face, very quickly, they know who you are.

Kent is extremely competitive in almost all interscholastic sports. From boys hockey to girls soccer to the Kent School Boating Club (crew) Kent dominates the sporting world in many sports. Perhaps the one thing better then being on a sports team, is going to another teams games. Football, hockey, and basketball games are huge social events that the entire school will attend weekly. Baseball pulls in the next biggest crowd with a very devout following. The other sports too always have the support of interested students faculty and friends. The atmosphere is always energetic as the passion for our teams is tremendous. Other then just hanging out with friends, attending a popular sporting event was the most enjoyable thing about Kent.

With excellent faculty and new facilities coming these programs are definitely on the rise. The quality of the music program is already phenomenal. Currently the only thing standing between Kent and a stunning Theater program is the new theater that we were told was to be coming in the next few years.

Anything you want to be involved in, you can be. If you are interested in something chances are there are others interested in it too. If there is not already a club for this, it is incredibly easy to start one through the school. A friend of mine set up spirit club in 2 weeks. 3 weeks later it was the most popular club on campus with over 60 members. Many clubs meet once a week. Join clubs, its a great way to meet new people and to do something you enjoy.

Dorm life is what makes Kent what it is. In a dorm of 140 boys my senior year, there is not one that I was not on a first name basis with by the end of the year. Much of free time is spent relaxing with friends in the common room or in each others rooms. There is always something to do in the dorm. Whether it be a late night poker game Saturday night, or a halo 3 match on a rainy afternoon. Also, whenever going to an event it is generally your dorm mates who you will go to. All 4 of my years at Kent, my best friends were right on my hall. Living together we became less like friends and more like brothers, getting to know absolutely everything about each other.

Dinning hall food is good. Snack bar in the student center is a popular hang out after study hall.

The town of Kent is the ideal small New England town. A five minute walk from campus, the town is a perfect place for students to go to have lunch, get some ice cream, play in the toy store (sounds kinda lame but everyone ends up doing it and loving it) or picking up groceries. This conversation is repeated thousands of times over the year: "Hey, what are you doing after class." "Well I was thinking of going to town to get some lunch.. You in?" "Obviously" After four years I have literally fallen in love with the small town, and even though I now go to college in a big city, I miss the small town feel.

The number one thing about Kent School is that everyone knows everyone. There are definitely tight core groups of friends however these groups are not exclusive. People are friends across all lines at Kent. The social life is a very relaxed 'hang out' atmosphere. Many times the most popular thing to do was to just sit out on senior grass and catch up with all your friends. There are certainly times when people will go to New York or go home to have parties, but on campus it is much more of a relaxed feeling, where everyone is just enjoying each others company. Also it is not rare at all to have friends in other grades. I still talk to people who were seniors when I was a freshman and to those who were freshman when I was a senior. It just doesn'tmatter that much.