Lawrence Woodmere Academy

My child attends LWA and will graduate next year. This year, students from the school received offers from Harvard and UPenn. This school has very obvious pros and cons. It's a small school, but that's the model for American private schools because in their class, there are fewer than 5 students in each small group lesson. I feel that after my child started attending, both their learning ability and overall life improved significantly. I'm especially grateful to the teachers. I don't know where the comments about a large number of Black students come from. I've visited the school, and my child also talks to me daily. First, if it's a private school, the tuition fees are quite high. Black people generally have lower incomes in the US, and their first choice is free public schools, so how could there be so many? Second, you can't just generalize and dismiss all Black people, can you? Having a few Black classmates also contributes to cultural diversity, doesn't it? I value New York's diversity; we are also Asian, and the school is very inclusive. During this virus incident, my child told me that school teachers specifically organized a fundraising event for China. Seeing the posters they drew, I felt a warmth in my heart.

If you want to pursue a career in basketball, coming to LWA is a good choice. Additionally, there are some very good teachers here who are caring and professional. There are also plenty of opportunities for you to develop your hobbies and interests. However, the shortcomings mentioned in the comments are also true. Too many Chinese students, venue issues, agents scamming money, inability to take AP classes... Your social interactions here might also be a big problem due to the poor quality and small total number of international students. If you are self-disciplined, positive, not easily influenced by others, and don't care too much about money, you can consider coming.

1. The school is K-12, with kindergarten, middle school, and high school sharing a three-story building with a basement. The high school only occupies the basement, first floor, and parts of the library, often leading to overcrowding and insufficient space. Moreover, young children frequently running around poses a danger.
2. Each high school grade has about 40 students, with over 20 being Chinese. Some international students are admitted without any TOEFL or standardized test scores, only requiring a very lenient interview, which results in inconsistent student quality; many students cannot speak a full sentence in English.
3. The school discourages students from taking AP courses before 11th grade, so the number of AP courses that can be completed at the school before college application is limited.
4. There is a significant tuition fee difference between local and international students. The school partners with overseas study agencies, requiring international students to pay an additional international student management fee of over 10,000 USD annually to the agency, on top of tuition. This is mandatory, regardless of whether students want the agency's services (in reality, the agency provides very little service).

Sincere advice: This tuition fee can get you into a better school. Friends with real potential should not come here.