Founded in 1889, the Thacher School in Ojai, California, is the oldest coed boarding school in the state. Nearly 90% of students live on campus, which naturally contributes to a strong campus community along with Formal Dinners four nights a week and seven-day-long camping trips each semester.

Freshmen not only have a single room during their first year at Thacher, they also learn to appreciate the value of good old-fashioned hard work through the mandatory Horse Program, where they learn all the basics of horsemanship (both caretaking and riding). Through this program, students develop a higher sense of self-esteem, along with problem-solving skills and responsibility. Students also take at least one overnight horse-packing trip during the year.

Life within the classroom walls encourages the same development of responsibility and critical thinking, with seniors developing, researching, and presenting their senior thesis in Senior Exhibitions. College acceptances and matriculations for Thacher students are highest at Stanford, NYU, Dartmouth, George Washington, MIT, Colorado College, Tufts, Harvard, Duke, Wesleyan, Bowdoin, Middlebury, USC, Berkeley, and many more.

•Percentage of students who board: 93%

•Boarding tuition: $58,920

•Day tuition: $40,970

•Acceptance Rate: 11%

•Average class size: 11

•Student:Teacher Ratio: 6:1

•Total Students: 246

•Percent international: 12%

•Notable alumni: Howard Hughes (aviator, filmmaker, and industrialist), Thornton Wilder (writer), Noah Wyle (actor)

•Average SAT Score: 1920 – 2150

◦Critical Thinking: 640 – 740

◦Math: 620 – 740

◦Writing: 650 – 720

•Average ACT Score: 30

•Endowment size: $137.3 million

•Percent Faculty with Advanced Degrees: 83%

•Percent on Financial Aid: 29%

•Average Financial Aid Grant: $44,620 (from $41,400)