Imagine having a thirty-second commute to school: hop out of bed, walk downstairs, and you’re already at school. For boarders, this is their reality. While most students wake up at six in the morning to catch the bus or drive to school, boarders wake up much later. 

“I wake up anywhere from 7:30 to 7:50,” says Nkechi Ude, a junior and a boarder. When many students arrive at school, boarders just wake up. 

Even though Nkechi gets up this late, she still has time to get breakfast since the lunch room is only one floor down. After eating, she walks to class without worrying about being late. 

This is just one element of border life that you might not have known if you’re not one of the borders. With only 10% of total upper school students boarding, the lifestyle of Hackley’s boarders often remains a mystery to the rest of the community. 

“The school boarding program is kind of a secret because not many people know about it,” said Nkechi. 

 Many assume that since not many students board, boarding isn’t fun, but being a boarder comes with many benefits. Living at the school, boarders can always return to their rooms if they forget something, while day students can’t. 

Living on campus allows boarders to engage in the Hackley experience fully. With no commute, students have more time to focus on academics, participate in extracurricular activities, and foster deep relationships with their peers and teachers. 

“I formed a better relationship with the teachers on duty,” says Nkechi. She said that she can talk to the teachers who help monitor boarding and ask them questions, especially during study hall. This is one of the reasons that she can develop deeper relationships with the teachers. 

Freshman and sophomore boarders have study hall from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. However, juniors and seniors can be in their rooms since they have reached a higher level of trust that they will complete their work and study the amount they need to.

“Being a boarder has helped me be more independent and to remember to do things like cleaning up,” Nkechi said.

Boarders often have more structured schedules, balancing study hours, meals, and dorm check-ins. This environment encourages a disciplined approach to academics and often provides a supportive structure for students navigating Hackley’s challenging curriculum. 

“We have room checks that force us to keep our rooms clean,” said Nkechi. Sometimes they let students know when room checks will occur, and other times it is random. This ensures that their rooms are always tidy and never get extremely messy. 

After school and sports, boarding students head to dinner around 6:00 p.m. Boarders are not permitted to order out or use Uber Eats. Many students are opposed to this and want the ability to order food. 

After dinner, boarders are expected to check in with the teacher on duty. Nkechi said that Director of Boarding Amanda Esteves-Kraus tries to plan fun activity nights, which typically occur on Wednesday nights. They do things like pasta making, pumpkin carving, and apple picking in the orchard 

“I really like the activities, they’re something that I look forward to and enjoy,” said Nkechi.

Once school ends on Friday, students return home and return to Hackley on Sundays from 7-9 p.m.

While being a boarder comes with benefits, it also has its challenges. 

“During the week, it’s hard sometimes because I miss my parents,” said Nkechi. 

She combats this by FaceTiming and texting them as much as possible, and on weekends she tries to spend as much time as possible with her family and outside-of-school friends. 

Connecting with the other boarding students is very important. However, balancing social life between boarders and day students can take a lot of work. She says she likes to socialize with the day students during the day, and the boarders after school.