We asked a Saint Louis Sudbury School student who enrolled within the last several months a few questions about what it was like to apply to the school, what helped with the transition, and any advice she might have for a student considering our school.

What did you do to enroll at Sudbury? How did you feel about the process?
My mom took me on the tour because my previous school wasn’t working out for me socially. So we did a tour, and we decided to learn more about Sudbury and then ended up enrolling. We were really excited to get me into a better school. It was a pretty easy process and I was really glad to be getting into a better school. Going over the enrollment interview was pretty simple so that was nice.

What were your first few weeks like at Sudbury as a new student? What kinds of things helped you get used to being at a new school?
Of course some of the things that made it easier were the staff members—everything was a little hectic when I started because I was getting used to the rules and I didn’t know where anything was. Doing Judicial Committee (JC) was really helpful when I was learning how to do things. I really thought JC was helpful because there weren’t punishments, but they gave me support like timers to remind me to clean up my things and helped me establish different spaces for myself that I was able to use instead of just what I wasn’t able to do.

If you were to give advice to a friend who is thinking about attending Sudbury, what would you say to them?
I would probably say that it’s an alternative style of schooling and it strays from the traditional route but it’s very beneficial for being able to learn how to study on your own and choosing the subjects that you want to study.