How Transferring to a Public School Changed Grace Shannon's Life

 By Molly Stone 

 While being shy and quiet at first, Grace Shannon said leaving her small, private, all-girl high school to attend a public school in the heart of Boston was one of the most defining moments of her life. 

There is extensive research on how same sex schools keep the students academically focused and produce stronger community involvement, but this wasn’t the case for Grace.

 After attending the all-girl school, Ursuline Academy, for two years, Grace knew this was not the place for her.

“I remember the school had been working on building a new sports complex for months, and practically all the work had been finished for it. But, one day, a news outlet showed up at the school wanting to photograph the construction of the new sports complex and some of the faculty posed for pictures with shovels and hardhats, like they played a part in the construction of the building. It was all so fake to me, I knew it wasn’t an environment I wanted to be in,” Shannon said.

 She said the school had been “putting on a show.”

Shannon said she worked extra hard to pass the entrance exam for the Boston Latin School, the public school she wanted to attend. She didn’t pass the first time she took the test, so she was determined to pass it the next time

Shannon ended up passing the entrance exam to the Boston Latin School. 

At her new school, she joined the rowing team where she found a love for the sport and new friendships. She said rowing played an important role in knowing she made the right decision to switch schools. 

At Ursuline, Shannon had tried out but failed to make the teams she tried out for, so rowing gave her a newfound confidence. 

She described one of her best high school moments as winning the state championship for rowing. 

“It was really cool and a super special moment because we got to put a banner up in the gym. Rowing was also considered a club sport and wasn’t funded by the school at the time, so it was a big deal to win the championship,” she said.

 Shannon said that if she had stayed at Ursuline Academy, she wouldn’t have had this amazing, fulfilling experience that she will remember for the rest of her life. She believes that being on this rowing team shaped her into the person she is today. 

She said another thing she enjoyed about the school was that since the public school was right in the city of Boston, all students received free bus passes. This was different because she had to be driven to her other school.

 She said having the bus pass allowed her to become more independent, expand her horizons, and learn her way around the city. It also made it easier for her to connect with friends outside of school.

At Ursuline Academy, she said it was hard to see her friends outside of school since students came from all over Massachusetts. 

Looking back on her days at Ursuline Academy, Shannon is extremely glad she left. 

She said she still follows some of the girls from her old school on social media and she called them all, “one type of girl.” 

She didn’t feel like she fit into this category and was thankful that the Boston Latin School helped her meet all different types of people from a variety of backgrounds. Making the switch from the all-girls school to the public school helped her find herself and flourish, she said. Shannon said she would not be as confident, hard-working, or head strong as she is today without making the decision to switch schools.