Thacher is

T H AC H E R

is...

“The goal of a Thacher education is clear: to deliver to the world young leaders who have moved from a focus on self to a focus on others; from an attitude of ‘what’s in it for me?’ to one of ‘what can I do for those around me?’

Thacher’s academic demands, combined with those of mountains and horses, of sports and the arts—along with service to others both inside and outside of our community— create independent minds, powerful character, and ultimately an expanded sense of self: a unique set of skills for learning and living beyond Thacher.”

MICHAEL K. MULLIGAN, HEAD OF SCHOOL

2014–2015 Admission Season Number of applications: 650 Percentage of applicants admitted: 13 Percentage accepted who enrolled: 86 Median SSAT percentile for students entering in 2014: 87th

CHALLENGING

“Thacher is like jumping into the ocean. You can’t just slowly, partially submerge yourself. You have to close your eyes, jump in, and have faith in your heart that this vast, beautiful ocean will not fail you. You will immerse yourself in every part of this community: horses, arts, academics, athletics, the great outdoors. Jump in, and it will be the best experience you can imagine.”

NAN MACMILLAN CdeP 2013 CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA; UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA

COMMUNITY COMPOSITION Enrollment: 220 boarders and 20 day students Geographic diversity: 22 states in the U.S. represented and 11 countries Students from outside California: 47 percent International students: 13 percent Ethnic diversity: 41 percent students of color Students receiving financial aid: 28 percent

AU T H E N T I C “In Thacher, our children found a school whose faculty and student body unapologetically respect, welcome, and embrace everyone on campus for their strengths, weaknesses, and unique individuality. Thacher had no real competitors in this respect, coast to coast. Of equal value is this: Thacher has given our children the freedom to learn as much as they can — as fast as they can — from teachers who innately care about them as individuals. Our eldest, now at Yale, counts four or five Thacher teachers among his closest relationships — as do we.”

MARY AND BRAD KREY, LAKE FOREST, ILLINOIS; PARENTS OF ALEXANDER CdeP 2007, YALE UNIVERSITY; MORGAN CdeP 2010, MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY; AND KATHERINE CdeP 2012, CLAREMONT McKENNA COLLEGE

AFTERNOON ACTIVITIES, including team sports, the Horse Program, and rock climbing, are required every season. Thacher athletics emphasize participation, teamwork, and sportsmanship. We offer 13 varsity sports and compete annually for both league and CIF championships.

OFF-CAMPUS STUDY PROGRAMS include School Year Abroad in China, France, Italy, and Spain; and Chewonki Semester School.

CLUBS Currently, about 20 clubs meet regularly; they are open to every member of the School.

Any student may form a new club with the approval of the Dean of Students.

B ROA D A N D D E E P ARTS The arts at Thacher range from our three major stage productions each year to a vibrant studio art program, to choral and dance ensembles, and to electronic music and private instruction. Everyone is required to take a yearlong Introduction to the Arts course in which students get acquainted with the variety of knowledge and skills within and across the art disciplines taught here.

“Thacher really stretches you. It pushes you to try things you otherwise wouldn’t, so you find out talents and abilities you never knew you had. Where else in the world could you be recruited to a Division I program while starring as the lead in the play, and being a prefect in the dorm— all while writing a ten-page history paper?”

J.J. NTSHAYKOLO CdeP 2013, SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA; BROWN UNIVERSITY

THE SENIOR EXHIBITION PROGRAM is a culminating academic experience targeted for the final year of study at Thacher. In April of each year, every senior crafts a presentation for the entire community to articulate a yearlong study of a topic of their choosing.

B E AU T I F U L

“It is simply impossible to step into Thacher without being struck with the brilliance of the school and the campus— its magnificent setting, its distinctive Western tradition and pioneering spirit, its glorious blue sky in which lives the spirit of Pegasus.”

JAMES MONTOYA, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE COLLEGE BOARD; FORMER DEAN OF ADMISSION, STANFORD UNIVERSITY

THACHER’S 427 ACRES sit at the foot of the Los Padres National Forest in Southern California’s idyllic Ojai Valley. The campus has blended the traditional architecture of the West with state-of-the-art facilities that take advantage of the beautiful landscape.

Off campus, the School owns and operates outdoor education facilities at Golden Trout Camp in the Sierra Nevada and Patton’s Cabin in the Sespe Wilderness.

Michael Czerwonka

THE HONOR CODE is central to all areas of life at Thacher. Cherished by both students and faculty, honor, fairness, kindness, and truth are not just words but a way of living.

HONORABLE THE COMMUNITY SERVICE PROGRAM offers every student at Thacher the opportunity to experience being of service in a way that is necessary, meaningful, and appreciated. About 75 percent of students participate during their time here.

“The Honor Code is so powerful in our culture because of how simple it is.

Leave a $20 bill on the ground? Someone will track you down and return it.

Leave your computer in a classroom at night? It’ll be there in the morning.

Thacher is a place where unproctored exams and unlocked doors are a reality.

Trust builds our character, and trust in each other builds a community.”

PAUL CRESANTA CdeP 2013, PARKER, COLORADO; POMONA COLLEGE

CLASS OF 2014 SAT I RESULTS

FROM 2009 TO 2014, SIX OR MORE THACHER STUDENTS HAVE ENROLLED AT THE FOLLOWING COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES:

FOR MIDDLE 50 PERCENT

Colby College

Duke University

Stanford University

Critical Reading Score: 610–720

Colorado College

Middlebury College

Tufts University

Math: 620–740

Columbia University

New York University

University of Richmond

Writing: 630–730

Dartmouth College

Occidental College

University of Southern California

Combined: 1900–2160

TA L E N T E D Number of faculty: 57 Percentage with advanced degrees: 78 Median years of teaching experience: 20 Student-to-teacher ratio: 5:1 Average class size: 11

“It’s not enough to say Thacher students are smart —because we are so much more than that. We have ballet dancers and bee farmers, debaters and defensemen, rock-climbers and robotics engineers. We are not only the archetype book-smart students, but we are thoughtful, creative, and curious. Being surrounded by this kind of diversity really inspires you to work hard and to cultivate your own unique talents.”

IRENE LIMB CdeP 2013, SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA; HARVARD UNIVERSITY

H E A LT H Y Thacher has one of the healthiest student cultures of any high school —a reputation supported by industry-wide statistics, opinions of experts on school culture, and survey data from our own students and parents.

The Independent School Gender Project (ISGP) conducts a biennial survey of student perceptions at 23 boarding schools on health and wellness. Each year, we are gratified to see that the positive perceptions of our students rank in the top quartile of all schools, especially ninth grade girls in terms of overall comfort on campus, sense of equity and respect, and low levels of stress and negative pressures.

The data from this survey highlights the fact that Thacher students feel high levels of freedom from negative peer pressure —including pressure to experiment with tobacco, alcohol, drugs, sexual activity, cyber bullying, or hazing of any sort. Students, on average, when asked to estimate (via a confidential survey)

the number of their peers who engage in drug or alcohol use on campus, report less than 1 percent.

Richard Ryan, a noted expert on drug use among teenagers, commented: “Of all the schools I have been privileged to visit, Thacher, hands-down, is doing it right. It has created a student culture, passed from one class to another, that overtly expresses, without reservation, its belief that alcohol and drugs play absolutely no role in the lives of the students at the School.”

The overall level of health and happiness at Thacher is also illuminated by high satisfaction ratings from students (6.39) and parents (6.51 —both on a 7-point scale).

The perceptions documented in these surveys and expert commentary are part of the reason why Thacher has the lowest attrition rate for any boarding school in the country.

“If I had to come up with just one reason why Thacher has had, for the past five years, the highest yield rate of any boarding school, it would be that Thacher uniquely combines high-achieving academic rigor and character-building challenges within what we believe is the most authentic, positive, and healthy peer culture of any school in the country.

Every year, families tell us they have not found this combination of attributes at any other school.”

BILL McMAHON, DIRECTOR OF ADMISSION; PARENT OF QUINN CdeP 2009, COLGATE UNIVERSITY; COLIN CdeP 2011, COLGATE UNIVERSITY; AND GRIFFIN ‘15

DIFFERENT

TH E TH A CH E R SCHOOL 5025 THACH ER ROA D OJA I, CA LIFORN IA 93023 8 05-640 -32 10 FA X 805-640 -9377

www.thacher.org