Does anyone have experience with foxcroft? I might apply there. Interested in hearing about academics and riding.
I went to school there for 2 years!
The riding there is super fun with GREAT school horses and with great XC stuff. Iām not really up to date on whatās going on there now. Trainers were great while I was there but I know there have been some changes. But most kids who competed seriously rode off campus with Kitty and Johnny Barker. I donāt know them at all but their students spoke VERY well of them.
TBH, it used to have old slave houses there and headmaster while I was there had only black servants working for her. It felt like being in Get Out. I didnāt like that. She also told my parents that they acknowledge that there are gay people there and that theyāre, ātaking care of itā. Lol so I guess that means to you what it does. That headmaster is gone now though.
Itās a pretty conservative place with a racist history that they are working to overcome now. They were the last school in the state of Virginia to desegregate. And kids who broke rules got passes as long as they were white and wealthy donors while poorer students got expelled for very minor infractions. And the wealthy kids mostly acknowledged this as a reality too. The student body was excellent imo. Kind and cool and talented. I really love my friends from there still. I LOVED my riding experiences there. But yeah tbh Iām not sure how much theyāve done to overcome their sordid past.
I donāt regret going there at all, but with all the history around it I canāt recommend it either. But I mostly reflect positively on my time there.
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That is insane. How long ago was this?
Thatās true of almost any private school in my experience.
Iām very jealous of the lasting friendships and connections that I see Foxcroft ladies of several generations enjoy in the horse world.
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Foxcroft is one of the premier riding programs in the country among boarding schools. Their trainers are top-notch and they participate at the upper levels of competition. There are also individualized programs for athletes to compete on the national stage while maintaining their classroom education with the teachers at the school.
As for the rules of the school, they are enforced but there are always one offs as there are at any boarding school. Most of the athletes focus on their sport and donāt risk breaking rules that may result in lost privileges.
When were you a student at Foxcroft? It would be helpful to know how recently you were there, especially since the OP is considering going there.
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It was about 20 years ago I graduated. But yeah I definitely think they seem to have improved a lot of that stuff. But I donāt know for sure havenāt been back.
Hopefully they have made great improvement in those 20 years.
Foxcroft is a great school but I would look into Madeira (Full disclosure my motherās alma mater) and Oldfields (my alma mater) as well.
In the 3 schools weāre mentioning (Foxcroft, Madeira and Oldfields) you will see a WORLD of differences.
Choose the best for you and ONLY you.
Em
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I have heard that Oldfields has gone very, very downhill in the last couple years. They have very low enrollment (I think it was in the 15-20 range last year). I honestly donāt want to go o a school that is falling apart.
Itās actually going upwards in the right way. We (the alumni) have saved the school and itās on the right track now. Also you are fine to have your thoughts on this but as an alum who actively donates and gets updatesā¦ I know what itās taking and how committed we are to seeing it back to health.
Em
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I donāt have any practical information to add, but I have to throw in the first thing I always think of whenever I hear a mention of Foxcroft.
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Thatās hilarious!
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When was your mother at Madeira? Iām class of ā82. Grew up at Foxcroft where my dad taught.
Class of '66
She has been big on the Alumni side of things and been Chairman of the Board too.
Sarah Pettit Daignault
Em
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I donāt know her personally, but sure know her reputation as a wonderful spokesperson for the school. I have to say I hated it while I was there and now look back and wish Iād taken more of the advantages offered to me.
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Realistically I think thatās a part of life. I feel the same way about a multitude of things. Horses, places where I was fortunate enough to live, My parents (Both alive and individually both battling cancer now), their life lessons they tried to impart to us that took a while to āstickā. Trainers who were working to make me better and me not 100% understanding that life is fleeting and for sure the physical abilities to do all the things is not a constant, etc.
Thanks for that comment. Mom sure does love Madeira. And she is still close to a lot of her friends from that time.
Em
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Thatās sad, I visited Oldfields when I toured boarding schools and I liked it a lot.
Itās still a great place to go.
Letās talk about the enrollment right now. The issue was that the former keepers of the school basically ignored financial issues until they couldnāt. Then they announced the school was closing. Which was a shock to all the alumni and basically we were able to get things totally re-organized to keep the school running, but that didnāt happen until after the closing date for applications for admission to pretty much all the other private schools. So we had a literal handful of students the first year back and have been steadily increasing. This has been good as we have steadily regrown at a time when keeping expenses down was a wise move.
Our enrollment is growing and we have an open house this Saturday if anyone wants to come see campus in person and really see what weāre doing.
I was already proud of my alma mater, but moreso after being a small part in a very large and emotional effort to fight back from letting our school be left as only a memory. At my point of attending our enrollment was 180 students a year. That was 8th grade through 12th. We were never a large school. And itās nice that we remain a small school doing big things with our graduates.
Emily
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I wasnāt criticizing, just sharing what I have heard. Props to you (and the other alums) for getting the school back together
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