Bentley Upper School

My son is a sophomore at Bentley Upper School.  

As math/science people, we have been impressed by the Bentley math and science program.  The math department is flexible about placing students in appropriate classes, rather than just forcing everyone into"math 1."  They allow kids to accelerate, even between years if they work in the summer.  This one of the the reasons we chose the school.  We have been pleased with the math teachers.  We are also very enthusiastic about the science classes.  Honors physics last year and honors chemistry this year have both been rigorous classes, taught by terrific teachers. The school also allows sophomores to take AP classes if they are adequately prepared.   Socially, transitioning to Bentley has been smooth.  My son was only one of two from his middle school to go to Bentley, but he found a group of like-minded kids right away.  There are quite a few kids from the Berkeley/Oakland area, so some live relatively nearby.  However, it isn't quite like Berkeley High or Oakland Tech, where all the kids are local.   My son is involved in the ROV (underwater robot) program, which he loves.  He would spend all day there if he could.  It has encouraged development of his engineering and programming skills. 

My daughter is a freshman at Bentley and is really enjoying it. As for the academic rigor, it's there if your child wants it. My daughter is in Honors Physics, Honors Geometry, and honors foreign language and finds them all challenging but not overwhelming. There are many honors and AP classes offered across the various disciplines.  In terms of sports, Bentley does a good job of encouraging all kids, regardless of ability, to play on the various sports teams. My daughter and many of her friends have played sports their freshman year, some of them trying a sport for the first time. The drama/theater program is also a strength of Bentley's and it's a popular offering among students. As for community building, it's early on but I get the sense that most of the community building is through the sports teams, theater and music offerings, and other clubs such as debate. To my knowledge, there's only been one dance so far this year (homecoming). So if your son isn't interested in the sports or club offerings, it may be harder to experience the community to its fullest. We live on the other side of the tunnel and my daughter's new friends are a mix of kids from Lafayette/Walnut Creek/Orinda as well as Oakland/Berkeley. Overall the kids seem really nice and welcoming. I haven't heard of any issues at all with drugs, drinking, bullying, etc. Hope this helps...