There are 85 students in the incoming class of 2027. This number is on par with average grade sizes in the Upper School. However, it is less common that 29 (or 34%) of these students are new to Parker.
There were quite a few Parker eighth graders who transferred out last year. “There was slightly higher attrition [decrease in numbers/size] in the rising ninth graders from Parker’s middle school,” Associate Director of Admission Paige Walus said. “Nothing historic or record breaking but slightly higher which did give us the opportunity to admit a few more students this year than we did the previous year.”
Applicants to Parker take the ISEE standardized test, have their transcripts looked at, and do a shadow day. The school also exercises a holistic admission process, finding ways to get to know students as people. Interviews are conducted with the students themselves as well as their parents or guardians. Former teachers write letters of recommendation as well. The students fill out an essay based on the criteria required by admissions, allowing the school to look into each student as an individual.
“I think getting new blood into the system is always fantastic for connections,” Dean of Student Life Joe Bruno said. When you have been in the same school for 14 years, it may be difficult to notice what Parker does or doesn’t do that contrasts what other schools do. Bruno said that new students have a completely raw view on the Upper School and Parker as a whole that could potentially seek out details that seasoned Parker students may not have realized exist or don’t exist.
Some new freshmen have found their transitions to Parker eased by the large number of new students. Krysi Aguilar feels that more new kids in the grade means more opportunities for connections. Although she has formed connections with veteran Parker students, “most of them already have a lot of friends, and they all know each other,” she said. “It makes me feel like I’m not the only one who’s new, and I can talk to them too because they know what I’m going through,” she added.
However varied the experiences of the freshmen are, or what they add to the freshmen class, Paige Walus made one thing clear: “I know that you all will do great things as members of the class of 2027, and I feel really honored to be a small part of your educational journeys.”
