Buxton School

291 South Street

Williamstown, MA 01267

11 Reviews

School District
Grade

9-12
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on September 16, 2023

My child is now in their third year at Buxton. It is and has been just about an ideal place. They are intellectual, somewhat socially awkward (from a bit of autism), challenged by ADHD, and nonbinary (which explains why I am using the singular they/them pronouns). Their favorite friendships are with people who will talk deeply about meaning and truth and/or laugh while quoting from Monty Python movies. They love, LOVE Buxton, which we discovered after the local high school turned out to be a disastrous wrong chemistry sort of place for them and we started looking around for alternatives. If you are familiar with the Farm & Wilderness summer camps in Vermont (our kid's favorite place on earth), then think of Buxton as a bit of an F&W sort of place. Our kid is learning fast and growing up very well at Buxton. We recommend it highly for teens who are rubbed the wrong way by conventional life and fit better with a little bit of nerdiness (doesn't have to be much), lefty politics among their peers (or a willingness to be an outlier), and gorgeous scenery. The education is good quality so graduates will be able to handle college, including the highly selective schools, if that's what they pursue afterwards. If you think your kid is the sort who has a good chance of wanting to do Peace Corps after college, they will probably like Buxton a lot.
Submitted by parent on September 16, 2022

Public high school wasn't working out for our highly intellectual, somewhat disorganized, not-a-partier, lover-of-books, gender-nonconforming kiddo. Thinking we would NEVER send a kid to boarding school, we visited a local one anyway just to understand the options. The director of admissions at that school pulled us aside and recommended a different school we'd never heard of--a school that hadn't come up in our many websearches for an inclusive, tight-knit, non-snobby, super-creative place with very strong academics and built-in supports around executive functioning for kids like ours. The place that director recommended was Buxton School in beautiful Williamstown, Massachusetts. When I tell you we did a total 360 in about an hour, I mean I still have whiplash. I (and our whole family) went from we-are-not-a-boarding-school-family to a this-place-is-a-dream-come-true-family. First we checked the website. Wait, who are all these students and faculty who don't look like an LL Bean commercial, but look like real, unique, self-expressing human beings? What's that about super strong college admissions combined with an understanding of anxiety and social wellness? And is it true these kids can take classes at Williams *and* do a lot of their own cooking, serving and housecleaning?Our astonishment was not disappointed. Within two days we had visited. Within three, frantically applied. Within five, been accepted. Within another week, our kid, who had cried every night since starting public high school, moved in and said this place was like summer camp, only with really good classes. Our kid has absolutely flourished at Buxton. This place (and the brave admissions director at that other school, who pointed us here), have literally transformed our kid's life from anxious and miserable to happy, excelling, participating, flourishing, learning, and making friends. The kid now takes high-level classes, attends evening study halls with no stigma attached, eats healthy food, travels to explore a city a year with their entire school, does theater, is in several clubs, manages their schedule, and is not alone in being a super unique and bright and responsible person. This place is run well, and it is based on some seriously righteous values about individual development, community togetherness, appropriate and honest rules, and civic responsibility. I can't recommend Buxton School highly enough--it is different from any other place, and I am so grateful it exists.
Submitted by parent on July 08, 2022

Our Experience with BuxtonOur son caught Mononucleosis in ninth grade. He lost several months of public school and was struggling socially when he returned because he was too smart to fit in with that peer group. He prospered at an Academic Summer Camp the following summer, and we realized he needed a new school. We had friends who had a kid at Buxton, so we gave it a look.On the Tour, Bill Bennet was leading us toward the dorm, which was almost an eyesore, when he said,” You’re about to see what the dorms look like at a school that spends most of its money on its faculty.” Buxton was exactly what our son needed. The personal attention, the chance to ‘shift’ firewood (a favorite activity with his dad at home), a challenging academic program and the chance to run the lights for theatre productions were all elements that saved his academic life. He loved the academic challenges, particularly in math and science. He went on to Pomona College in California. As he was getting acquainted with the place one evening, he was wandering around in a basement when he found a big room filled with power tools, lathes, drills, mills. He wandered in and the supervisor found him – “Can students use these tools?” “These are for Physics students – you’re a Physics student, aren’t you?” “Yes”. That made his decision what to study and he went on to the University of Wisconsin at Madison to get a Ph. D. in Physics. He’s now a Senior Scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory, building quantum cryptographic systems.
Submitted by parent on July 08, 2022

The three years our daughter spent at Buxton were transformational. She gained very important social skills and was able to take on advanced academic studies in a way that made sense for her. She explored topics she never would have been exposed to in a more traditional school and also developed her leadership skills and independent thinking. Another highlight was the friendships she developed with others so different than her in terms of diversity. It is unusual to find a school that frees young people from the constraints of high pressure standardized testing and frontal learning, and also provides a nurturing environment for adolescents to explore themselves and the world. I would recommend Buxton School without hesitation.
Submitted by parent on July 06, 2022

Being a Buxton parent was a unique experience. My son graduated over ten years ago and the memories I have of his four years there are many. Too many to recall and each one very different from the next somehow. Soccer, theater, improv, varieties of music, dance, garden, grounds, four square, cooking, self portraits in oil, literature, his love for biology, the list goes on. And on. But the thread that ties these many and varied memories all together? The sense that he was thriving. He had a family at Buxton. He felt that and it was obvious.
Submitted by parent on July 06, 2022

My son entered Buxton as a junior in the 2021-22 school year and I only wish that Buxton could have been his entire high school experience. The "live your education" motto is so apt - the rich academics are part of a whole community approach which fosters social awareness and responsibility in an intellectual and artistic environment. My son has formed deep bonds, is building resilience and positively thriving. The setting is extraordinarily beautiful. The staff really looks at the whole child – their social, emotional, and physical well-being in addition to looking at the child just as a learner. This is a good place.
Submitted by parent on November 15, 2018

Excellent. It's hard for me to sing Buxton's praises highly enough. When my son entered as a sophomore, he was withdrawn and painfully shy-- I was worried about him. When he graduated from Buxton, he was confident, intellectually curious, socially adept, and ready to take on the world. He's now thriving at an excellent college-- props to Buxton for making the college application process downright pleasant (how many parents can say that?). I am so glad, and grateful, that my son went to Buxton!
Submitted by parent on January 05, 2016

I can't say enough good things about this school. Both my daughters attend here-- one as an incoming senior and one as a freshman. They both have different learning styles, needs and interests and Buxton is able to provide them challenging, interesting and engaging classroom experiences, as well as individualized attention for their social and emotion needs. My freshman needs more structure and support, and her advisor works hard to get her what she needs. My senior needs less academic scaffolding, and more critique and guidance, especially in her artwork, and the faculty is able to do that as well.The immersion-style learning surrounds the students with a community that is dedicated to exploring the limits of progressive learning, while receiving a world-class education. The small size allows each student to be a full contributor to their education, and to learn how to make decisions in a safe and caring community.Thank you!
Submitted by parent on September 25, 2014

My daughter is a senior at Buxton, transferring here in the 10th grade. The classes are small and intellectually stimulating. The teachers and support she has received have been exceptional. She is involved in many extracurricular activities and has had opportunities to try many new things. She is interested in the arts and her work has been received recognition from Mass MOCA for the past two years. The college advising is fantastic. My daughter has has blossomed here in every way. I could not be happier.
Submitted by parent on October 20, 2011

My daughter is currently a senior at Buxton and I can't tell you what a wonderful experience it has been for her! This is her 3rd year and she has gained both confidence and purpose. What I love most about the school is that the teachers really get to know their students - not just academically, but also intellectually and emotionally. They 'get' my kid!
Submitted by parent on May 09, 2009

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