Parents:
"At the last school, homework was a terrible struggle (for both of us). Since enrolling at Sudbury, my son can hardly stand to be away from school! He complains about weekends and holidays! We love the freedom and flexibility here."
"Because of Sudbury school, our stress level has been reduced by 90%. My son's health has improved immensely; friends and family often comment on how happy and mature he's become."
"After only a short time at MLSS, my son is much happier and calmer. The fights with his siblings have been drastically reduced and we are a happier family."
"After graduation from Sudbury school, my oldest daughter got a job with a large, national corporation. After a year with the company, and at the age of 19, she was promoted over 80 other applicants because — according to her manager — she demonstrated responsibility, was excited by challenge, showed exceptional maturity and communicated with ease. These are the traits that Sudbury students exemplify."
"What I did in school until the age of twenty-something was information storage and retrieval, guided by the expectations of others. Sudbury students don’t have to worry about what people think. They think for themselves."
"I am awestruck by the Sudbury graduates. They are very confident, self-assured, kind, funny, articulate, and they all seem to be doing what they want—the same as when they were students. Most striking is the deep sense of gratitude expressed by many that they had the opportunity to attend such a school."
"It never ceases to amaze me how wholeheartedly and thoughtfully you all engage with these complex issues - the combination of your confidence in the model and the fact that you are so clearly in a constant state of observing it, questioning it, and learning from it inspires great confidence in me. This combination of trust and exploration that you model is one of the delights of being a part of this community, as is the satisfaction and growth I observe in my son."
Alumni:
"When given the freedom to choose what I wanted to learn, I realized that I didn’t hate learning, it was being forced that really bothered me.”
"Even when you are a five-year-old at Sudbury you are empowered to affect your environment. You can make decisions that effect change. So you go out into the larger world with that mindset: that you can make a difference in your own life and influence what goes on around you."
"At Sudbury you can discover so much earlier in life what your strengths are as well as the areas you need to work on; and you have the time to work on them."
"Sudbury school helped me realize how I learn. You can figure that out first and then get things done. You learn something and then later you learn something else that relates. You don't learn it all in one day but over time, and it all fits together."
"The full meaning of the school's philosophy didn't really come to me until I was out of it and entered adult life, when I found an area of focus that I was interested in and I really was disciplined about it. My own drive, my own motivation was applied to the area that I wanted to get into. Basically the school says you're responsible for your own education. You're always going to meet obstacles along the way; but if you put your mind to it and apply yourself to it, it's going to work out and it'll have more meaning because it's come from within you."
Students:
“What I love about being here is that I can challenge myself. When I find something interesting, I can pursue it at whatever pace I want, for however long I want. I also love J.C. (the Judicial Committee). I love the process of hearing both sides of a case, the process of debate, and the arguing back and forth, taking everything into account… and coming up with a fair sentence.”
“I've changed from a person who feels their life is not in their control to a person who knows that they are in charge of their life, and anything I want to happen I can make it happen.”
"[Sudbury school] is really challenging, but also extremely enjoyable. You are challenged to think for yourself and you are challenged with the charge of responsibility for your own choices, as well as for the governance of the school, which you are unlikely to gain in any other school system. You learn a lot more about yourself, what you think, and what you are interested in."
“At MLSS I can learn as much as I want about the things that interest me. No one says something is too advanced for my age, and no one forces me to study things I already know, and no one says to stop and move on to something else. I’m free from the restrictions that made me hate school before.”
"You don’t just learn; you also learn how to learn. Really, you can take or create anything you want here."
"At the last school, homework was a terrible struggle (for both of us). Since enrolling at Sudbury, my son can hardly stand to be away from school! He complains about weekends and holidays! We love the freedom and flexibility here."
"Because of Sudbury school, our stress level has been reduced by 90%. My son's health has improved immensely; friends and family often comment on how happy and mature he's become."
"After only a short time at MLSS, my son is much happier and calmer. The fights with his siblings have been drastically reduced and we are a happier family."
"After graduation from Sudbury school, my oldest daughter got a job with a large, national corporation. After a year with the company, and at the age of 19, she was promoted over 80 other applicants because — according to her manager — she demonstrated responsibility, was excited by challenge, showed exceptional maturity and communicated with ease. These are the traits that Sudbury students exemplify."
"What I did in school until the age of twenty-something was information storage and retrieval, guided by the expectations of others. Sudbury students don’t have to worry about what people think. They think for themselves."
"I am awestruck by the Sudbury graduates. They are very confident, self-assured, kind, funny, articulate, and they all seem to be doing what they want—the same as when they were students. Most striking is the deep sense of gratitude expressed by many that they had the opportunity to attend such a school."
"It never ceases to amaze me how wholeheartedly and thoughtfully you all engage with these complex issues - the combination of your confidence in the model and the fact that you are so clearly in a constant state of observing it, questioning it, and learning from it inspires great confidence in me. This combination of trust and exploration that you model is one of the delights of being a part of this community, as is the satisfaction and growth I observe in my son."
Alumni:
"When given the freedom to choose what I wanted to learn, I realized that I didn’t hate learning, it was being forced that really bothered me.”
"Even when you are a five-year-old at Sudbury you are empowered to affect your environment. You can make decisions that effect change. So you go out into the larger world with that mindset: that you can make a difference in your own life and influence what goes on around you."
"At Sudbury you can discover so much earlier in life what your strengths are as well as the areas you need to work on; and you have the time to work on them."
"Sudbury school helped me realize how I learn. You can figure that out first and then get things done. You learn something and then later you learn something else that relates. You don't learn it all in one day but over time, and it all fits together."
"The full meaning of the school's philosophy didn't really come to me until I was out of it and entered adult life, when I found an area of focus that I was interested in and I really was disciplined about it. My own drive, my own motivation was applied to the area that I wanted to get into. Basically the school says you're responsible for your own education. You're always going to meet obstacles along the way; but if you put your mind to it and apply yourself to it, it's going to work out and it'll have more meaning because it's come from within you."
Students:
“What I love about being here is that I can challenge myself. When I find something interesting, I can pursue it at whatever pace I want, for however long I want. I also love J.C. (the Judicial Committee). I love the process of hearing both sides of a case, the process of debate, and the arguing back and forth, taking everything into account… and coming up with a fair sentence.”
“I've changed from a person who feels their life is not in their control to a person who knows that they are in charge of their life, and anything I want to happen I can make it happen.”
"[Sudbury school] is really challenging, but also extremely enjoyable. You are challenged to think for yourself and you are challenged with the charge of responsibility for your own choices, as well as for the governance of the school, which you are unlikely to gain in any other school system. You learn a lot more about yourself, what you think, and what you are interested in."
“At MLSS I can learn as much as I want about the things that interest me. No one says something is too advanced for my age, and no one forces me to study things I already know, and no one says to stop and move on to something else. I’m free from the restrictions that made me hate school before.”
"You don’t just learn; you also learn how to learn. Really, you can take or create anything you want here."
“To find out what one is fitted to do, and to secure an opportunity to do it, is the key to happiness.”
― John Dewey
