Look for Balance

Andrew Cole
NMH Student

Andrew Cole ’12 spent a year at a large public high school near Chicago before deciding that boarding school would make sense for him. In eighth grade, he and his family visited about a dozen schools, and Andrew had a sense of which school he would choose if public school didn’t meet his expectations. It turns out it didn’t. Here’s how he came to his decision to board.

I applied to three schools, two in the Midwest and one in New England. I really wanted to make sure that the school I went to would let me play sports at a competitive level and let me follow my passion for music. I sing for the student-run a cappella group on campus, as well as the concert choir. I also play the cello, but gave that up at my public high school. And I play lacrosse and soccer. At my public school, you were either a jock or a musician. I really wanted to find a place where I’d be accepted as both.

When I visited schools, I met with the music director and coaches. I asked them how arts and athletics were balanced at the school. And I watched a few games and arts performances. I also checked out the schedule to make sure I would be able to take interesting classes and still pursue my extracurricular interests. I speak Spanish and wanted to pursue that, and I enjoy writing and humanities classes. Then I watched the students as they walked around, in the dining hall, in the library hanging out. I wanted to see if the school had a mold already sculpted for you. I kind of wanted to create my own mold. I also wanted to be on a campus that was beautiful and open and spread out. I like that kind of environment.

Oh, and I’m a jeans and T-shirt kind of guy. I don’t like to dress up. I was looking for a school that didn’t have a dress code. I still have to put on a tie from time to time, but I hardly ever choose to!

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