Loomis Chaffee - Review #1

Loomis required all students to participate in a sport each trimester, which was a great way to get all students both involved and engaged with the school and the other students. It was a great experience to be able to try new sports, as soccer was really the only sport I played and the only sport I wanted to play.

Soccer team made me who I am. The team, coaches, atmosphere, etc. were great. As a freshman, I was very nervous, but everyone was so welcoming so it was not a big deal at all! I grew my confidence because of the confident people around me and the welcoming aspect of the people around me.

I think I would have been more open to joining even more groups. That is the best way to make friends, meet new people, have new experiences, etc. It also is very important to have different groups of friends!

The people. Both staff and students. It was pretty rare to interact with people who were mean or cold, and that made the experience 10x better. No matter where you are, I think that's what you will remember and how you will judge your time in school. As long as that hasn't changed, LC is a great place to be!

Sadly, I would have said the SNUG... but apparently it is not a thing anymore!!!! If there is a replacement and they sell chocolate chip muffins, YOU MUST GET IT!

The majority of the classes I took were small classes. That was amazing because I got to know my teacher and get help and ask questions whenever I wanted. That is the best way I learn, definitely a personal opinion, but I think it's important in HS to have that experience. The teachers were very open to having 1 on 1 conversations with students to help them out whenever they needed it!

We were very good at almost all sports when I was at LC. It was part of the environment, so when you were on a sports team you felt like you were a part of a larger community. That is not something you experience at a lot of schools, and it comes from the top all the way down. It was a great way to make everyone feel important and tight-knit. As a day student, it allowed me to bond with the rest of the kids there and have after-school activities that I truly enjoyed! The coaches were also great - they got top-notch coaches.

I enjoyed the orchestra, but it did feel a bit like a large group where you could get lost. It's pretty difficult to have an orchestra where you don't feel that (unless it's a small orchestra which kind of defeats the purpose), but sometimes if you were in the back you felt like a bit of an outsider. Outside of that, the orchestra was very good and always pushed you to be better, which is the whole point of joining a group like that!

I did not join many extracurricular activities other than sports and the orchestra.

I was a day student, so I did not have a dorm life. However, as a day student, it was always fun to go to the dorms and hang out with friends. There are big common rooms for all dorms which was great to study together, hang out, or do whatever! Great to get away from the usual scenes.

LOVED the food at LC. Although cafeteria hours were not 24/7 (would love that), it was open most of the time and the cooks and staff were awesome - always nice and welcoming. There were a ton of different options, and although the SNUG is no longer there, that was my FAVORITE (loved the chocolate chip muffins... to die for).

I only really went two places around school - Dunkin and Buffalo Wild Wings. Both were amazing, Dunkin was a great break for anyone (boarders always hopped into day students' cars), and BWW was great to get to watch sports games or just get some AMAZING wings. There was also a diner across the street that I can't remember the name of but was great for Saturday mornings.

Because sports were such a big part of the school and I love soccer/sports, the social life was great. A lot of friend groups were centered around sports, and it was great to bond. Day/boarder wise, day students definitely felt a little left out sometimes, but once you had your group of friends who were bordering, you were all set. The social life was centered around dorms and boarders.