California has a large population of both people and of boarding schools. Students and their teenage children have a wide choice of boarding schools both in number and variety. Here is a broad breakdown of the different types of boarding schools in California.
- Religious
- Military
- Performing Arts
- Academic
- Co-educational and Single-sex
Now some schools will have more than one of the divisions or types mentioned above. A military boarding school can have a high priority on academic grounds as can a Catholic boarding school which obviously has a religious background.
The goal for you, the parent, is to find the ideal venue for your child. So what are the needs of your teen and what are his or her strengths, weaknesses and interests? When you can answer those questions, you are in a strong position to locate the right Californian boarding school for your son or daughter.
There are parts of California which have an abundance of boarding schools. For example in the Ojai area there are boarding schools aplenty and even elementary school students from as young as Third Grade can attend in some cases.
If your son or daughter needs a firm hand with discipline and/or is interested in a career in the military, there are boarding schools where both the Army and the Navy provide a thorough secondary school education pushing for entry to university with a long-term goal of a career in the armed forces.
For those teens with a love of the performing arts, there are boarding schools with a major in music, drama and dance. Of course there is a strong overall curriculum but those with an artistic nature or desire can study to their heart's content.
t may be that your religious beliefs are important to your family and if so there are many boarding schools run by a religious order. In the San Francisco area in particular you will find a number of faith based boarding schools. Some of these are co-educational schools and others are for boys only or girls only. There is certainly a wide choice.
Californian boarding schools can specialize even more by operating just a middle school or only as a senior high school with only students in Grades 9 - 12. It may be that your son or daughter has done okay at your local high school but you want them to seriously concentrate on the pre-college years and so a senior high school boarding school is the choice you could make.