Rowland Hall St. Marks School

Rowland Hall creates lifelong learners who care about their communities. We've had children at the school for over a decade, from 4Pre-k to 12th grade, and the kids have been happy to leave the house every day, which is the best indication of a quality school. Rather than drilling the kids with rote learning, the school educates the whole child and prepares them to think in the complex ways that our complicated world demands. Passionate teachers and supportive staff ensure that kids get individual attention and that they will be prepared for college (I say that as a college educator myself.) In fact, my son took a college stats class his junior year and felt like he fit right in with the older students. Right now he's trying to decide where to attend university, having been offered admission to all 9 schools to which he applied. Finally, when we moved to Utah from the East Coast, the warm community that welcomed us to Rowland Hall made us feel right at home immediately, even though we were far away from family.
--Submitted by a parent

Our very different children, who are now in high school, have attended Rowland Hall since elementary school and have both been extremely successful there. Rowland Hall has an unparralleled ability to bring out the uniqueness of each child and let it shine. At the same time, Rowland Hall has a rigorous academic program that has taught my children to be independent, critical, and analytical thinkers. I am confident my eldest child is very well-prepared for college next year. Due to Rowland Hall, he has been accepted at several outstanding colleges and has some very good decisions to make. Finally, acknowledging the fact that we are in Utah, Rowland Hall offers the most diverse student body of any private school here, which has greatly benefitted both my children.
--Submitted by a parent

We have experienced 5 unbelievable years at Rowland Hall School. Our two children have enjoyed small class size, incredibly gifted teachers and administrators, an unparalleled specialty curriculum, state of the art technology and a supportive parent community. All of that sounds good on paper, but to actually experience the magic that goes on in the halls of this school every day is life-changing both for our children and for us. The core curriculum is integrated into every aspect of the child's day... the lesson of the moment is carried through the home room class to the science lab to spanish to computer lab to library to chapel and then to art and music.. All reinforcing the lesson in real world applications. Our children are also involved in the Rowmark Ski program... just another value-added opportunity for our kids. We consider ourselves so lucky to have found ourselves at this amazing school!
--Submitted by a parent

I have continually been impressed by the commitment the faculty have shown toward educating my boys and helping them reach their potential. There is an emphasis on creative thinking and abstract reasoning, which are skill that are sorely lacking in our current "Teach to the Test" world. One size does not fit all, and Rowland Hall makes sure that they are working to find the best ways to reach my kids and create real meaning and connection within their educational experiences. My wife and I are both products of top-flite East Coast prep schools with long and illustrious traditions. Our expectations for our children's educations were high. We have never had a moment's doubt about our choice to send our boys to Rowland Hall. My sons both wake up every day excited to go to school and have built wonderful relationships with both their teachers and the kids in their classes. This is not to say that there are not other worthy educational alternatives in SLC or Park City, and there can certainly be instances of sour grapes among those in the community who do not send their kids to RH, it's just that Rowland Hall was the right place for us and we wouldn't trade it for the world.
--Submitted by a parent

If you wonder why the USA lags behind other countries in math and science, look at schools like Rowland Hall. The high school science program is unbelievably poor. Year by year: 9th grade biology: 30% of class time spent by the teacher in diatribes about politics and religion Remainder spent teaching "the only right way to take notes." 10th grade chemistry, AP chemistry: Used to have a good teacher, who was not supported by the principal and took early retirement. New teacher means well but struggles. Kids are lost unless they hire a tutor. 11th grade physics, AP physics: The well-meaning teacher's idiosyncratic teaching method works well for 20% of students. The others are lost. 12th grade AP biology: Nothing taught in class. Smart students rely on Barron's prep book. I notice one student review said students go to "IV" leagues from Rowland Hall. If you want to go to the Ivy League instead, most Rowland Hall students don't make it.
--Submitted by a parent

i have been at rowland for forever and in beginning school it was great. However, I feel that the quality of the education has decreased. A lot of my teachers don't really want to teach and make that clear. Every year they get rid of courses and increase class sizes. I don't think they care about being a college prep school.

My son has been at Rowland Hall for 5 years and we absolutely love it. His teachers have been very good - interested in him personally. The jazz band is wonderful, as well as the visual arts program. We appreciate the warmth of the entire community and the emphasis on helping students become ethical, well-rounded people.
--Submitted by a parent

Unfortunately, Rowland Hall does not live up to its hype. Some teachers are very good, some are worse than mediocre. The science program is poor. The leadership is uninvolved, unresponsive and uninterested in academics. The published student teacher ratio does not reflect class size, because of the plethora of non-teaching "teachers" . These nonteachers include a sustainability director, a director of community service (of which little is done), several people trying to get you to donate extra money, 2 college counselors for a class size of 60 students, etc. Classes even in honors courses often contain more than 20 students. There is a huge drug problem. Most students go to mediocre colleges. If I had known what this school was really like, I would have sent my kid to West.
--Submitted by a parent

I would not send your child here. I have sent my children to this school over the course of 15 years. Every year it goes down in quality and the enrollment increases without teachers increasing. By doing this class sizes become larger and larger so there have been instances where children have not had desks to sit at. A European History teacher decided to have his unit on medieval history be summed up by two movies- Monty Python and the Holy Grail and the Name of the Rose both of which are inappropriate and do not teach students anything. However if you wish to spend upwards of 20,000 on your children for an impersonal, sub-par education then I am recommend this place.
--Submitted by a parent

My experiences with Roland Hall were mixed. Some good, some bad -- about like you'd expect from a public school. Certainly not outstanding. I can speak only for the preschool and lower school. If you want a really good school, take a look at The Open Classroom (in the Avenues). This is a (free) public school, where parents, teachers and kids learn together. Upon visiting the school, you'll notice how happy all the kids are -- they walk down the hall with big smiles on their faces.