I cannot say enough about this school. From the phenomenal teachers to the topics they discuss, this school is doing it right. It's not well known, but these kids are smart, kind, responsible, and respectful. I have no doubt my child will leave this school fully prepared for college AND be an independent thinker. Bravo, Waring. I would also like to add that anyone writing a negative review for this school has clearly not gone to this school. There is ZERO tolerance for bullying and honestly the kids here just wouldn't do that. Everyone is accepted and applauded for who they are. In terms of cost, we did receive substantial financial aid, and the small cost we pay is worth every penny. read more

When my teen was going through a rough patch, his teachers were uncommunicative. The day is long, so he would come home exhausted. Waring is one of the whiter schoolers in Massachusetts, a state filled with elitist institutions like this one. He would complain that Waring had a self congratulatory attitude, but really was not that amazing of a school. He goes to public school now, and says the teachers are better and we are getting more support. It also saves forty thousand dollars a year (not including travel fees) read more

As an alum, I completely agree with the things Anne G. has written about this school. My post also got removed after being up for a little while. It is absolutely disgusting and horrifying to see this happen to parents! People are trying to do the best for their children and give them a healthy education, but a lot of people come out of here feeling hurt and damaged. I know this school is harmful, but you wouldn't think they would pull something so low. VERY VERY NOT CLASSY. I have some things to say... - If you send your child here, there is a very high chance that they will be bullied and made fun of by other students. I and many other people I know experienced this and it made life very hard. The teachers will definitely see this and do not care. - If you are not a parent on administration or have the time to participate in events or day to day things, you AND YOUR CHILD will not be treated the same as the other parents and students. You need to give all your attention, time, and money to this school. If not, to them you don't exist. - If you are not wealthy, and your child is struggling in any way, you will not receive the support you need. Like I said, everything is about money. They spent loads of money on a building but will not provide anything worth while to the student body and just recently set up a (very inadequate) bus system. - If your child has passions outside of school, they may be shamed for and ridiculed for not participating in after school activities. These passions will not be celebrated, and it will be seen as a personal attack on the school - The kids here are so tired, drained, and unhappy. Crying does happen, a lot. And when you can't do it, you are made to feel guilty by MOST teachers (not all, but most). You can see it in the eyes of the students, there are bags, and nobody seems to care. - There are teachers who discriminate all kinds of people. This has been going on for years and nothing has stopped it. And a lot of the teachers here are creepy and touchy to a very uncomfortable extent. There are very low boundaries and kids might not feel like they are able to say anything about it. - The school is unregulated and unfair! STOP REMOVING POSTS WARING!! It looks bad and I have no problem sharing this, ask yourselves why you have a problem seeing it. BE BETTER. read more

Well, Waring is an amazing school for some. I am sure. They have high standards and if you go here you will have received a humanities eduction that rivals most colleges. But for everything there is a cost. How close the teachers are with the students is a double edged sword -it causes great bonds that help some children want to perform for their favorite teachers- and it has a greta deal of draw backs as well. Just something to think about. For my child this environment was toxic. But for other it may be just fine. It will depend on who you child is. But I wanted to share that experience read more

My daughter has truly found her niche at Waring School, both socially and academically. Her experience in our local public middle school had not been good. She didn't feel challenged and was going through the motions academically - uninspired. She is now thriving; surrounded by interesting, funny, and fully engaged kids. Her teachers bring out her best, most confident self. Without the confines of a grading system she is taking more risks and there have been leaps forward across the board - academically and artistically . She has always been a good student but now she is moving beyond the endless jumping of hoops and busy work of her old school. There is greater understanding of how she defines "good work", and as such taking more personal responsibility for getting there. Basically, she is learning how to implement a plan rather than to follow in another's footsteps. With the support of teachers and her friends she is learning how to innovate and cultivate, how to set goals and set limits, inspired by her own vision of what is possible. I have also been very impressed by our head of school, Tim Backland. He is very approachable and always willing to talk and problem solve when questions or concerns have arisen. He is a compassionate man with a talent for leadership. The school is very fortunate to have him. Under his stewardship I know Waring will maintain its excellent academic standards and it's creative and supportive school culture. This year has been a true turning point for my daughter. I feel very confident that she is getting an excellent eduction, but more than that she has become a happy kid. read more

Amazing school. The faculty are phenomenal, the class sizes are small and intimate with a lot of focused attention on each student. Waring is not a typical "prep" school in any way, even though Waring students still go to the best colleges around. Students don't raise hands, teachers are on a first-name basis, class discussions are college level, etc. Not many schools send the entire school and its faculty (together) on a camping trip to start the year, or an entire grade to Europe (together). My favorite part of Waring, besides the teachers, is 'Endterm'. This is a 3-week term when students do activities in small, mixed aged groups. Waring was doing this long before the new project-based learning wave was en vogue. read more

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I am a graduate of Waring School and when my son was unhappy in his middle school, he transferred to Waring as well. Therefore we are a two-generation Waring family. (In fact I think that one of the main testaments to the school is the high number of graduates that send their own children.) Neither my son nor myself are particularly academic. However the interactive nature of the teaching method, the engagement and kindness of the teachers, and the quality of the material, serve to encourage curiosity and learning. In my own experience, the school provided me with my happiest and most supported learning experiences bar none. My son, who is now graduated, says the same. The curriculum is time consuming and immersive. The fact that material is taught in an interactive engaging way, was key to our growth and pleasure in learning. One of my own experiences I remember particularly well, was our study of the Nuremburg Trials. In my other school, the trial of the Nazi leaders was a couple of paragraphs in a textbook and a question on a test. At Waring, we read some of the original trial documentation, we discussed the legal process and the historic context, we then each took parts and acted out the trial (I was Herman Hesse) using the real historical arguments as well as our own. This required time, both of the students and our humanities teacher, but it was an invaluable way to better understand the thinking process of fascist, racist government leaders (important today) and the system for bringing war criminal's to justice. It also brought history to life. As a parent I am delighted that my own child has had the opportunity to engage in similar exercises. To me critical thinking, engagement and curiosity, are central elements of a robust education. To me this is time well spent. The holistic approach to learning is also reflected in the students' academic results. Again, neither my son nor myself are particularly good at languages. However he was noting that after his first year of taking French at Waring, he was able to hold simple conversations comfortably in the language, something that most students in his old school still struggled with at graduation. This is the difference again between learning from a text book and taking a test, as apposed to hearing French from day one, reading, acting out roles, singing French songs, etc. Therefore, at Waring, we wrote, we red, we acted out plays, we sang, we sketched, we played sports, we conducted experiments and we spoke in French - and we did all of this in a thoughtful, hands-on and engaged way. And yes, we were also very busy- not a bad thing for teenagers. Emersion learning in Warring's supportive, engaging environment is a rich experience, and it makes learning and curiosity part of life. It also brings about impressive academic results. read more

Waring School is a treasure. It's academically rigorous while retaining focus on students' development of the future they want for themselves. The faculty and staff are all attentive and kind and they do their best each day to help students succeed. Sure it's a tough school with a heavy workload, but isn't that the point - to prepare children to focus and be comfortable working hard toward their goals? Every day I am amazed by Waring and I am eternally grateful for the experience, support, and education it provides my son. If you're considering an independent school for your child, I suggest reaching out and asking for a tour. They don't pressure anyone and they're happy to talk. read more

I have two children both of whom were students at Waring from 6/7 grade through 12. Both went on to attend prestigious colleges thereafter. My children are informed and intelligent adults that contribute to the world both intellectually and academically. Although they graduated years ago, they continue to embrace the curiosity and love of learning that they were taught at the Waring School. Waring eshews a formal curriculum, and that is a choice that one makes when deciding to apply and send a child to the school. The school is different from a traditional college preparatory school, but for the right kids it is an amazing experience that I have yet to see duplicated elsewhere in private schools on the Northshore of Massachusetts. In its 44 years of existence the Waring School has graduated hundreds of accomplished and intellectually curious students. These kids go on to become life long learners because of their Waring experience. The French program is a particularly special part of the school dynamic because instead of just teaching French, the students are immersed in it, both in class and through travel, and there is no better way to learn a language. The Waring Community is just that, a community. The students, teachers and parents all work together to assure that the Waring experience is valuable and special for each individual child and that attention and concern are evident in every Waring graduate I have met. read more

My and my child's experience with this school was entirely negative. My last review was taken down as "not being specific enough" although it had more specificity than the majority of Yelp reviews. The school appears to religiously monitor social media and reports any negative reviews; this has happened to several other parents. Perhaps someone in authority at Yelp can take note and be sure it is possible to actually post a negative review. Let me be extremely specific. 1. Homework was excessive to the determent of the students; this including every evening, weekends, vacation and summers. The poor kids were never given a break. It was actually said at parent orientation "there will be tears." As if this is a good thing. It is completely counter to contemporary educational best practices. 2. Despite my child getting good grades he never felt smart or good enough. He was under constant stress. He said that if the students in the class did not understand something the teachers just went on to meet their own schedules rather than take time to clarify. 3. My child disliked immersion French; he felt like silly that someone was "babbling in his face" in a language he did not understand. In switching to another school and traditional language instruction he is soaring in French and happy. 4. Every single one of my friends with children there have to employ private tutors so their kids can keep up, putting additional strain on the children. 5. One of our closest friends in the community did not send their child after hearing reports of bullying. We dismissed this but unfortunately our child experienced the same, as did another family in our carpool. The school was completely unsupportive and in fact tried to dismiss it. Unfortunately we learned that private schools do not have to comply with the same legal restrictions regarding bullying as public schools. 6. Our child spent hours and hours consoling other Waring students who were discouraged and depressed; it appeared to be far in excess of other schools and certainly in excess of our child's current school where my child reports there is no bulling at all. 7. As a parent, I did not find the staff to be focused on the individual child at all but more so on the convenience of the staff. This inflexibility showed in other ways. For example, in setting up a meeting I was given one day and time only as an option. It never seemed to be about my time or convenience. 8. I felt mislead in several ways. As a specific example, when there was a parent meeting for the French trip abroad several parents asked if there had every been any serious incidents in the past on these trips. The immediate answer was an example about home sickness. I was later to find out that a student had to come home one year due to alcohol poisoning. I understand these things happen but I also expect an honest answer to my question. This is the tip of the iceberg. I'll be happy to post more specifics if my post is taken down again due to lack of specifics. read more