Steven and Barb Geiger hadn’t planned on boarding school for their two sons, Jacob ’05 and Camden ’08, when bringing them up in Kansas.
“Jacob was a very talented student academically,” said Barb. “But there’s not a boarding school tradition there, locally or in our families.”
The family visited the Woodberry Forest School campus in 1994 when the boys were small. And while they enjoyed the visit, they didn’t really consider the school as an option. But six years later, a Christmas party conversation brought the idea of boarding school — and Woodberry in particular — back to mind when a guest mentioned that his sons were recent alumni of the school. One was currently at Harvard University and the other was at the University of California, Berkeley.
Steven thought to himself that those were good outcomes, but — though he believed his son had a “Harvard mind” — he doubted there was a path to a top university from the local high school.
Soon afterward, Steven and Barb asked Jacob if he remembered Woodberry (yes) and if he might like to attend (maybe). They said to themselves, “Okay, let’s run with that.”
This was in December. The Geigers knew that being admitted for the upcoming school year meant they were up against the clock. So they moved quickly, getting in touch with a Woodberry family in Kansas City. After a great visit, “We took the big plunge and the big race to visit the campus on Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend,” said Barb. “Jacob took the SSAT and did an interview. He ended up being admitted.” Three years later, Camden followed his brother to Woodberry.
The Tools for Success
Steven and Barb say their sons gained confidence and resilience at Woodberry. “They got that from looking out for themselves and by partnering with people when they needed help,” said Steve. “And for Jacob, who had coasted through middle school, to have people smarter than him in the room” was a welcome challenge.
“Woodberry gave Camden a place to thrive, a place where being smart was cool,” said Barb. “Confidence was really something that he grew there.”
What’s more, the connections Jacob and Camden
forged at the school are still strong, decades after graduation. Their classmates remain lifelong friends, Barb said. “They are very close to their Woodberry brothers.”
The couple’s confidence in the school is built on the lasting academic and emotional development of their sons. “The academic rigor made all the difference for Jacob,” Barb said. “If you were to ask him and Camden now, they’d say it was one of the best things that ever happened to them.”
Giving Back
Steven and Barb are members of the Walker Society, a designation for those who have named Woodberry Forest in their estate plans. In 2022, they also created a flip charitable remainder unitrust with Woodberry, and in 2024, they established another planned gift through a bequest.
Their own experience taught the couple that Woodberry can open up avenues that some families may not have considered for their sons. To this end, they established the Geiger Family Scholarship Fund in 2022.
“It took everything we had to pay for those eight years of school,” said Steven. He remembers that one of Jacob’s friends had been eager to attend Woodberry, but his mother had balked at the cost. When Steven told her the school offered scholarships, the boy applied and earned entry as a fifth former. “We want other people to have that opportunity too,” he said. “Scholarships broaden the pool of eligible candidates and lift the quality and diversity of the boys in the student body.”
Barb agreed. “We want public school families to know that this can be a fantastic decision for your child if you’re looking for something different.”
Jacob went on to Washington and Lee University, followed by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He served as Woodberry’s director of strategic communications from 2016 to 2023. Camden attended Washington and Lee, then the University of Kansas and Georgetown University.
Woodberry’s accessibility and academics aside, “It’s truly a special place,” Barb said. “And we’re thrilled to be a very small part of that.”