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One thing that makes Thacher unique are the opportunities to form close, meaningful relationships with teachers and its commitment to helping students grow personally as well as academically. Whether it's out in the Domelands wilderness having the landscape explained by its geologic history, sharing some citrus in the common room during study hall, or a lively formal dinner discussion about why video games aren't philosophically bad, Thacher teachers bring a thoughtful devotion to their work.

This is repeated so often at the school as to seem like a cliche, but honor, fairness, kindness, and truth are the core values of the school and have become core values of mine. Thacher gave me the opportunity and the mentor-ship to grow as a leader, a student, but more importantly as a person.

During my boarding school experience, I would have spent more time earlier designing and going through with independent projects. The ones that I did do later at my time at Thacher were really valuable learning experiences and the shift from having teachers as knowledge-offerers to co-collaborators was really valuable.

While this might sound bland, I liked the community, its values, and its commitment to learning and being outside.

For students visiting the school, I'd recommend that students ask the tour guides lots of questions about their own personal experiences at the school and their favorite moments with their friends.

What I appreciated most about the academics was the willingness of teachers to help you get to the next level of your own learning. My senior year, I created an English class (to be taught by a rotating schedule of teachers), and the teachers were nothing but supportive of the whole endeavor. They are knowledgeable and continue to study their own disciplines, but are willing spend tons of individual time in order to help each student succeed.

I liked the carefree attitude of the JV sports, as well as the focus on sportsmanship or 'the second scoreboard,' which prizes fun and integrity over winning.

For such a small school, Thacher's arts program offers lots of breadth. At every Coffeehouse, which is an open mic type event, I was always blown away by the talent and musical commitment that students had.

The commitment to the outdoors in the extracurricular activities is a unique part of Thacher that is available few other places. Thacher's bi-annual week-long camping trips, the Horse Program, and the climbing program, as well as its commitment to sustainability, all make it unique in this regard.

Regarding dorm life, I loved the hours that I spent with my friends just hanging out chatting, whether late at night or on a Sunday afternoon.

The kitchen staff is always trying to improve and the food is pretty good. Also, soft-serve is available 24/7.

Ojai is a sleepy old hippie town, but the people in it are all super kind. I loved going into town to get ice cream and walk around the park or get brunch with friends on a Sunday morning.

I loved my down-to-earth, kind, adventurous, intelligent, capable friends.