Oregon Episcopal School

We couldn't be more thrilled with the nurturing environment our child experiences each day. We're blown away at how many opportunities he has. He LOVES going to school and has so many wonderful stories to share at the end of each day.One of the most remarkable aspects of OES is its commitment to nurturing curiosity. But on top of that is the amazing growth we've seen in his social and emotional learning. A lot of smaller schools talk about good teachers and a strong community, but at OES, you see just how intentional they are about those things - they work carefully to craft an inclusive and warm environment where children feel valued and accepted for who they are. It's really beautiful to watch how empowering that has been for our son, and to be in a community where we see older students getting ready for life in college and beyond be in a place where they just flourish.

My kids attend OES Lower School, so my only experience beyond 5th grade is judging at the science fair, where the upper school students create quality projects that demonstrate the excellent science education throughout the school. The Lower School has small class sizes, which allows for individual attention to each student's particular learning needs. There is excellent food (according to the toughest of judges - my kids), great spaces to play and do sports (including a brand new Athletic Center), and experiential education that scales from visits to the campus wetlands and forest (in the beginning grades) to overnight camps in the Pacific Northwest (in 4th and 5th grades).

My child attended OES from Pre-K to 12th grade. Overall, I am super impressed with how OES creates a sense of community and belonging for everyone on campus. Teachers are experts in their subject areas, but more importantly, they are experts in knowing their students. It was easy for my child to form strong connections with her teachers and she always felt comfortable asking for help when she needed it. The small class sizes at OES and the school`s dedication to gathering together really allowed my child to feel safe and known at the school. I credit OES for giving her a desire to try new things, ask questions, and step out of her comfort zone. Thank you, OES!

OES is a fantastic school. A large and amazing campus with a wonderful new Lower School and Athletic Center with plans to invest further in the coming years into additional facilities. The school invests heavily into creating community across faculty, parents, and students and is supported by a well-organized and substantial parent volunteer system. No cut sports which is great. OES invests heavily in its teachers ensuring a low teacher-to-student ratio. We're in the Lower School and we've been impressed with the quality of the curriculum, the experiences, and the specialty classes our girls take. It's a nationally recognized school with an amazing reputation.

OES is a very good school--both academically and in terms of its culture. The students are bright, and they are given significant agency in their learning. Rather than stressing APs or other standardized tests, OES focuses on true inquiry-based learning. In doing so, the school cultivates curiosity, helps students pose questions and design solutions, and allows them to create new understandings. The students are independent and have a voice--exactly what we are looking for as parents. They are also very well prepared for college. (For example, the "average" SAT score is around 1370; OES students also write a TON and do a lot of independent research, especially in science, which gives them experience in what they will do in college.) The sports are good, and they just opened a BEAUTIFUL new Athletic Center. All in all, we are really happy at OES. No school is perfect, and I would love to see them improve their art facilities (though word on the street is that a new Arts, Design, and Innovation Center is in the works), but our child is happy, balanced, and pushed to reach her potential. That's a pretty good combination!