Reflections on Residential Life: The Elite American Boarding School Experience

This research investigated the experiences of the elite American boarding school alumni. I found student experiences included illegal activities, hookup culture, faculty mentorship, and protective factors. This meant that students were had an understanding of illegal activities happening on campus such as theft, bullying, and drug and alcohol use and at-risk sexual behaviors. On the flip side, mentorship and protective factors increased the positive experiences of the participants. This research was done through the qualitative method of a small-scale phenomenological study of one-on-one interviews. Data collection aligned with my theoretical framework of social constructivism around boarding school residential life suggesting that cultures were constructed and further propagated as a result of socialization.