BERMUDIAN and resident parents and their children contemplating an overseas education will be spoiled for choice at next week's Secondary School Fair, when representatives of 31 US boarding schools will be in Bermuda for an "Informal Reception".

Local co-ordinator John Faiella, whose Hart Educational Consultants advises parents and children about the choices available, and who can organise the entire selection, interview and application process, said his contacts at the various schools stress their inclusivity and diversity, and can explain the options available to help with the cost of schooling.

"These schools come down here on a regular basis, and despite the success of the local schools' International Baccalaureate (IB) programmes, Bermuda is still 'fertile ground'," advised Mr. Faiella. "People still want to consider options, and what all of those schools always want to stress is that they are interested in attracting more people from diverse backgrounds.

"We usually do attract people from different backgrounds at these fairs, but we don't get enough of them," he said. "Some of the reason for that is that many Bermudians often feel they don't come from that kind of background, or that they can't afford that type of private school education.

"We are encouraging people to come out this year, whether they think they can afford it or not, because some representatives will talk about the application process, SSAT tests, and the various options that are available to help: financial aid, academic scholarships, sports scholarships, all that sort of thing, including the ways you can stretch out payment by using tuition management plans."

Mr. Faiella explained that the schools did not want to be seen to be catering only to perceived social ?lites. He said that the schools believed that their student bodies were improved by geographic, racial and social diversity, just as they believed that local children could benefit from attending schools whose students reflected more of such diversity than could be experienced locally.

"None of these schools want to be seen as bastions of elitism, and there are lots of kids here who can do the work at these schools, but who don't think they can afford the education. But some of the schools will effectively pay for diversity by giving scholarships and financial aid.

"The children who leave Bermuda to attend these schools will leave when they are between 13 and 15, but parents of children younger than that should be looking at their options," advised Mr. Faiella.

"Also, most of the kids who are going off to school this September made their decisions last year, or earlier. Nowadays, these kids and their parents may start thinking about this step, and planning it, two or more years before they actually go off to school."

Mr. Faiella also suggested that, for parents who expected to pay full tuition, or those who would want to explore financial aid or scholarship support, it always made sense to start the financial planning aspect as early as possible.

"There will be someone from the admissions departments of every school," he said. "There have never been more than about 20 schools come down for previous fairs, so this will be record participation. There were even more schools wanted to come, but we couldn't fit them in."

Mr. Faiella explained that there were a number of reasons why Bermuda was an attractive market for US schools, and general affluence and geographic proximity were certainly two of them.

"But it's more than just that," he insisted. "It is true that, of all of the kids who attend boarding school in the US, only about 30 per cent pay full tuition, and the proportion of local children paying full tuition is very much higher than that, but many of those schools have Bermudian students every year, and they want to build on 'word of mouth' recommendations."

Mr. Faiella noted that he was not alone in helping at the Bermuda end; his friend Tory Dodge at Benedict Associates, who helps with educational planning for children with and without special needs, would also be on hand at the fair.

Bill Ellis, the admissions officer at the Saint James School in Maryland, not far from Washington, DC, said he was looking forward to meeting parents and children at the fair.

"We are trying to introduce them to the possibilities of American boarding schools, so that they will be able to evaluate the information they get next week over the summer, and make their plans to visit in the fall.

"There will probably still be plenty of places available at some schools for children who can start this fall, but many children will be visiting this year with a view to starting in the fall of 2006.

"We have three children from Bermuda right now, and have had many over the years. The families on the island are interested in preparing their children for American colleges, and I think that they see US prep schools as one of the best ways to achieve that."

The 2005 Secondary School Fair will take place on Thursday, May 12 from 5 p.m. to 7.30 p.m. at the ACE Insurance Building on Woodbourne Avenue in Hamilton. The organisers say that "all are welcome, no reservation necessary".