Dana Hall School - Review #5

Traditions dating back to the 1800"s enrich the students live.Girls from all over the world attend, which makes a culturally rich environment for all.

I think I am largely the woman I am today because of my years at Dana. The closeness of my teachers, the connections that I still have in my 80's accent that tie years ago all contribute to that feeling.At reunions, we have the largest turn out of any class to date!

I would have let myself enjoy the time more. At first I was so shy that I held back a lot. Eventually I became more involved with Dana life and that really improved my feelings.I would say, "Live this time to the fullest, it will always reward you".

It truly was a 'finishing school's they were called. Our favorite place was the Sweet Shop for ice cream. Sadly, it is gone now.Otherwise I am sort of 'out of the loop on the present campus.

I don't really know much about todays campus anymore.

Dana has small classes so that the girls get much more time with the teacher in a direct way. If you take a course here, it is the equivalent to a freshman course in college most places.Students can choose from such a wide variety of classes. The science labs for example have state -of -the art equipment available. There are constant unusual learning opportunities, unique to Dana Hall.

I was never into athletics, but the school offers every sort of sport: tennis, field hockey, lacrosse, riding, etc.

Not only is there a very active arts program, but it is also lead by very professional teachers. There is a theater department, a music dept. and a wonderful art gallery to exhibit what the girls create. There are several joint concerts with other schools. In my day these were boy's schools, so we could met young men. (In fact that's how I met my husband!).Trips to Boston for theater, symphony concerts etc are always special. We also sang with the Boston Symphony Faure's Requiem.

As a day student, I was part of several clubs and after school activities. It was a chance to be more involved with the boarders, even with sleepovers.

I was a day student and always wished I could have boarded. My friends wished they were in my place sometimes. However, from what I heard the girls really enjoyed dorm life.

We never had a cafeteria at that time. We had sit down, table cloth served meals. Today the girls do have a cafeteria. I guess I would prefer the old set up.Even though kids always complain about the food, I think it was excellent. Especially the rolls and desserts.

Dana is in Wellesley college and shares the board and campus with the college. There are all sorts of nice shops for everything from ice cream to nice clothes.It is one of the very nicest communities in the Boston suburbs. Clean, safe and friendly.

Of course we girls always 'hang out' a lot, chatting and helping each other with problems. The aforementioned dinner-concerts with boy's schools was a highlight of our social calendar.We worked together on lots of special programs tied to the traditions. I especially enjoyed the rehearsals for singing groups.