Issue link: http://southshoremagazine.uberflip.com/i/826197
16 Nestled into a quiet neighborhood on Washington Street in Braintree, United Kingdom-based Cambridge Education Group opened its first permanent U.S. day and boarding school, CATS Academy (an acronym for Cambridge Arts, and Technical and Sciences), in the fall of 2016. Having first opened its doors in the city of Canterbury in the U.K. back in 1952, CATS Academy flourished and opened new locations in Cambridge and London, all with the goal of preparing the 14-year-or-older student for college and beyond. Now that it has settled into a permanent campus in Braintree, the international school (with 422 students from over 31 nations and a 100 percent placement of graduates into college and universities) CATS wants to bolster its local student population. "We are looking to add more day students," said Director of Admissions, Amber Gunther. After setting up a temporary campus in Newton in 2012, Cambridge Education leased the property in Braintree - which includes several buildings and a large 22-acre campus - in 2015. For more than a year, the school completely renovated the century-old buildings that once housed a hospital. Having officially opened in 2016, the academy offers brand new classrooms, offices, student lounge spaces, five wet laboratories and four dry laboratories - each built with a separate lecture space. "We completely modernized the buildings inside," said Gunther, "all while keeping the integrity of this incredible architecture," noting the long, arched windows and brick exterior. CATS also constructed three dormitories behind the school, with the plan to build one more. Along with seeking local day students to join the academy, CATS is looking for host families for international students who would like to live in a local home and not in the dormitories. The school is currently accepting applications for "homestay" families, who will receive a stipend for opening their home to a student. "Some of our international students prefer a homestay for an 'all American' experience," said Gunther. "We are reaching out to the community to find families who would like to host a student." For South Shore parents contemplating a private school for their teenager, what is it about CATS Academy that makes it an attractive school? The number one reason is that the school has a 100 percent acceptance rate into college for its graduating students, with a 93 percent placement into the top five percent by Mary McKenzie CATS Academy: Preparing Seeking More Local Students at Its Braintree Campus