The Boarding School Advantage

Experience the Advantages of a Boarding Experience 
Attending a boarding school is an unparalleled experience that offers profound benefits throughout one's life. It creates a unique, student-focused environment available around the clock, unlike any other educational setting. Students from boarding schools often have a distinct advantage when entering college; while nearly 60% of college students do not graduate within four years, and about half still need to complete college, boarding school graduates are better prepared. The independence, maturity, and resilience they cultivate during their teenage years at boarding school are invaluable and enduring traits.

Boarding school attendees are notably ahead in readiness for both college and life's subsequent challenges. According to Forbes, students from boarding schools outperform their peers from private day and public schools in terms of success rates in college and later life. The alumnae of St. Margaret's, or the Sisterhood, comprise a robust network of women spread across generations and continents. These alumnae are confident and self-reliant, having been equipped for continuous learning and leadership. They pursue their passions across various fields, making significant contributions in boardrooms, communities, and homes worldwide.

Dorm Life and Small-Town Conveniences
The dorms are second homes to both our boarding and day students. Like our community, they are diverse in their architecture. One includes suites and more modern accruements; another built-in 1730 affords incredible riverfront vistas and easy access to the beach. A third is located campus-central; its convenience to the dining room, classrooms, and a river patio make it another favorite. 

Driving down the tree-lined route of U.S. 17, you'll arrive at our campus in the small historic river town of Tappahannock, VA. Students can walk to restaurants and coffee shops. They can also walk or ride a 5-minute shuttle to any conceivable amenity and pick up an order at Walmart. Parents can stay at the historic Essex Inn across the street from the school and enjoy a weekend in the historic charm of the middle peninsula of Virginia.

Weekends find students walking seven minutes with friends for Acme's famous Blueberry Cheesecake ice cream. They will find others at the pool overlooking the river or in the river sailing, tubing, boating, kayaking, fishing, or swimming. St. Margaret's setting is like no other boarding school.

Personal Development and Independence
St. Margaret's is a diverse community, and for a small school, we come to know each other. Dorm life is a daily endeavor to get to know one another and learn to live together. In these critical years, St. Margaret's girls appreciate our differences, and our common and shared experiences, as we grow in grace.

And for those students not ready to go into full boarding, our day students spend their evenings and weekends on campus to gain more independence. A St. Margaret's girl will develop her character in a second family, among a dedicated faculty, her friends, and sisters. She will grow as she could have never imagined in adolescence. It's a singular opportunity in personal development and will last a lifetime.