Maren Holmen

One of the comments I hear most often from prospective families in my 20+ years here at The Beekman School is, “…but I’ve never heard of you!”  I’ve heard this from lifelong New Yorkers who thought they knew all of the local schools, and I’ve heard this from educational consultants who have been placing students in larger Metro-area schools for years.  Are we a new school?  No; we’ve been around for almost 100 years.  Are we (gasp) not very good?  While I typically jump to the defense of my beloved school, I will take this opportunity to let others speak on my behalf.

If you are the parent of an 8^th grader, you are probably in the midst of asking yourself the question, “How do I choose the right high school for my child?”  From asking friends & fellow parents to performing an internet search to going to open houses, you are certain to be presented with a lot of options.  Most (if not all) of them will sound like great places for your child to learn.  So what makes a school the “right” school?

The following excerpts are from a speech delivered at the 2017 Beekman graduation and awards ceremony:

Who hasn’t heard these phrases before:

So, you know that you need to change schools – you’re transitioning from middle school to high school, you’re moving from one town to another, or you know that the current school isn’t a good fit.  Which questions should you ask regarding how to transfer schools?

For many homeschool parents, high school is the most difficult time to meet the educational needs of their children.  There are certain subjects that will seem easy to handle; many people are fairly conversant in topics related to English and history, but I’ve spoken with a number of parents who tell me they can’t help their teen with his math homework.  What do you do when you’re supposed to be the person who teaches that math?