Article on Thacher School
In response to “In the Valley of the Private Schools” (March 17), the Thacher School and college preparatory boarding schools in general are inaccurately represented.
In today’s society the unfortunate truth is that any person that seeks a higher education is engaging in a brand of elitism. The students that choose to come to Thacher do so because they wish to attain an exceptional education. By making such a decision the students must focus themselves on the school and the work that they have chosen and not on establishing a new community of friends throughout the Ojai Valley.
It is necessary to understand the school within its frame of reference. I accept that the Thacher School, by providing preparation for higher education, is, in a sense, an elitist institution. It must be selective in the students it accepts to preserve a strong academic community.
But we at Thacher do not perceive ourselves as elitists. In fact, 25% of Thacher’s student body receives financial aid from the school and each year $500,000 is given in grants for student aid. There is a clear commitment on the part of the school to attract a diverse student body, both ethnically and demographically . On the Thacher campus what one’s parents do or earn is not a topic of discussion. The students that do come from wealthy backgrounds take great steps to downplay their family affairs. Many Thacher families struggle and make sacrifices to provide for their children what they believe is a tremendous opportunity.
Your reporter, Bob Pool, seemed to arrive with preconceived notions of what life at Thacher and Thacher students are like. He chose to see only what he was looking for and consequently represented Thacher as a school for arrogant, rich children. I am disappointed that his impression was seemingly supported by a quotation attributed to me. The context in which Mr.Pool presented my statement was questionable. I stated that I did not believe Thacher students were at all deficient for living in a semi-closed community. Unfortunately this was presented as if I thought we did not want to know the students at other Ojai schools, which is simply not the case.
In fact, the students at Thacher love the Ojai community and interact as much as possible outside of the demands made by the school curriculum. Contrary to the perception of some students at other schools in the valley, I have never observed animosity towards Ojai students. Ojai is viewed as a unique community and a wonderful place to be. Yet the students recognize that they have made a decision to come to Thacher for what it offers in the way of education and not just to socialize in the Ojai Valley.
Many Thacher students go to weekly community service jobs. Students assist in elementary schools, convalescent homes, the Humane Society, Head Start day care, the Santa Barbara Braille Institute, and a therapeutic riding program.
Last year an anti-apartheid festival was presented specifically for the public of Ojai and the other schools in the area. Thacher welcomes the public to the campus frequently for art exhibitions, speakers, and special events or performances. It is clear that the Ojai community is not excluded from the campus, nor the students from the community.
I do not know what interaction Mr. Pool believes is normal between schools, but in examining the personality of each school he has not realized that the schools are different and cannot be expected to have clambakes together every weekend. I am always open to meeting and working with others in the Ojai Valley, but Mr. Pool asks the unreasonable and the unjustified of a school with established priorities. In so doing he fails to present Thacher as a nationally renowned specialized institution, and instead reduces it to a local school serving non-specialized needs. The comparison is analogous to that of an apple and an orange.
ANDREW SHAKMAN
Ojai
Shakman is the student body chairman of the Thacher School.
