Inexpensive Private Schools

[Anonymous]

Even though my kids aren't school age and won't be for a few more years, I'm looking around at the various private schools out there. What are the inexpensive (<$10,000) that exist in MoCo and aren't religious?

I saw Seneca Academy - does anyone know if that's a good school?

And should I be worried about the price tag? In this case, does a "cheap" school mean it's not as good as the more expensive ones? Why are they so cheap?

[Anonymous]

You might want to post specifically about Seneca Academy to get more response.

I can say that my child is in a for-profit private school that is cheaper than the elite schools in DC. We went into the experience with an open mind but have come out seeing the likely effects of schools trying to earn a profit, too, and haven't been impressed. So if the schools you're considering are for-profit, ask tough questions.

The visits we've had the most expensive schools show some of what people pay for: extensive facilities and grounds, catered lunches, elite connections, lower student-teacher ratios. I'd like some of the flexibility of private schools but don't really need to pay for some of the true luxuries that the most expensive schools offer. Good public schools have much, much lower funding (at least $10,000 less per child per year than those elite private schools). In my opinion, the best public schools can do well enough with the lower amount of money, but I'm sure it's tough, and clearly there are sacrifices compared to the most expensive schools (e.g. no foreign-language education for elementary schoolers, etc.) I'd wonder how any school getting even less (under $10,000 in this area? wow!) can make it work.

If you're serious about a school, I'd ask them the same question you asked here: "Why are you so cheap?" (or make that, "Why are you so inexpensive?" I'd guess their answer would reveal a lot.

[Anonymous]

My daughter went to Circle School then Seneca Academy only for Kindergarten... K has been around for a long time there, but the elementary grades are fairly new, if that tells you anything. It's great up to Kindergarten!

[Anonymous]

Maryland International Day School in Fort Washington is $9,000/year. Follows the primary level IB curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You might want to post specifically about Seneca Academy to get more response.

I can say that my child is in a for-profit private school that is cheaper than the elite schools in DC. We went into the experience with an open mind but have come out seeing the likely effects of schools trying to earn a profit, too, and haven't been impressed. So if the schools you're considering are for-profit, ask tough questions.

The visits we've had the most expensive schools show some of what people pay for: extensive facilities and grounds, catered lunches, elite connections, lower student-teacher ratios. I'd like some of the flexibility of private schools but don't really need to pay for some of the true luxuries that the most expensive schools offer. Good public schools have much, much lower funding (at least $10,000 less per child per year than those elite private schools). In my opinion, the best public schools can do well enough with the lower amount of money, but I'm sure it's tough, and clearly there are sacrifices compared to the most expensive schools (e.g. no foreign-language education for elementary schoolers, etc.) I'd wonder how any school getting even less (under $10,000 in this area? wow!) can make it work.

If you're serious about a school, I'd ask them the same question you asked here: "Why are you so cheap?" (or make that, "Why are you so inexpensive?" I'd guess their answer would reveal a lot.

PP, could you elaborate more on what you mean by the likely effect of schools trying to earn a profit? Examples? Thanks.

[Anonymous]

I'm looking at Seneca Academy too. They are trying to implement a Primary Years IB program. My DC's a few years away right now (looking for preschool slots).

There's also Butler Montessori in Darnestown.

I love Christ Episcopal School in Rockville. While it is a church school, they don't teach religion like some other sectarian schools might. There is a mandatory daily attendance at chapel in the mornings, though (20 minutes I think). My son's not Christian, so that's really my only concern here. I love the program though. It runs about $15,000 a year.

And much further out is Barnesville, which I also was impressed with. I wish I didn't live so close in or that would be my first choice. It's about $15,000 or so, and does have a bus route down to the Kentlands I think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Even though my kids aren't school age and won't be for a few more years, I'm looking around at the various private schools out there. What are the inexpensive (<$10,000) that exist in MoCo and aren't religious?

I saw Seneca Academy - does anyone know if that's a good school?

And should I be worried about the price tag? In this case, does a "cheap" school mean it's not as good as the more expensive ones? Why are they so cheap?

Go drive down and take a look at Maret or Sidwell, then go take a look at Seneca Academy. You'll know right there, in physical grounds alone, why the tution is so different. Land/mortgage/rent/whatever is much cheaper in Darnestown than it is in DC as well.

Educationally? I don't know enough to comment. I'm a big fan of the K-8 model myself and love smaller classes. I also like the fact the privates aren't crippled by NCLB. This is why I'm seriously looking at smaller privates, personally.

[Anonymous]

In the under $10,000 (or very close to it), is Winchester in Silver Spring. They go from nursery through second grade, and are full day (i.e. no extra costs for before or after care).

[Anonymous]

Oneness Family School in Chevy Chase is a great little school and I think it's around $15k

In Reston, there's another small school called Oasis School that is also in the low teens

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In the under $10,000 (or very close to it), is Winchester in Silver Spring. They go from nursery through second grade, and are full day (i.e. no extra costs for before or after care).

My son went to Winchester, and had a very good experience.

[Anonymous]

According to Washingtonian (for last year), Calvary Lutheran in Silver Spring is less than $10k as are Montrose Christian, Silgo Adventist, and virtually all the Catholic parochial schools. Washington Christian in Olney is just over. I don't know anything about any of them.

Usually a huge percentage of what you pay goes for personnel, i.e., mostly teachers. If you're looking at schools that charge a lot less than the norm, you should be alert to know how the school makes it work for this price. Ask them. If it's a school sponsored by a church, maybe the parish kicks in a subsidy (as the Catholic parishes do). Maybe their facility is rent free, either because it's old and paid off or because it's subsidized by someone. Maybe the teachers are paid substantially less than teachers in public school or even in other private schools. Maybe the class size is large. Maybe there are not very many special subject teachers. Maybe there are not reading and math resource teachers. Maybe there are only a few administrators. But unless they're magicians, there's a tradeoff somewhere for the price. It may be a tradeoff that is just fine with you--but it's important to know going in what it is, how they make it work, and what their financial stability looks like. (That's not intended as a knock on any of the schools listed above, which as I said I know absolutely nothing about beyond the price.)

[jhuber]

Anonymous wrote:
And should I be worried about the price tag? In this case, does a "cheap" school mean it's not as good as the more expensive ones? Why are they so cheap?

As the head of school of one of the "inexpensive" private schools listed in this thread, I thought I'd offer my two cents - I think it's within our budget!

Certainly the size of a school's budget will allow for more and varied personnel, as well as larger / newer real estate and facilities. But as has been talked about on this board at great length, quality of instruction (teacher quality, program quality) can be devilishly difficult to evaluate from the outside. Is the math program at $30k school twice as good as one in a $15k school? I think more interesting (and less discussed) is how schools, inexpensive or expensive, support their educators through professional development and supervision. How much time is spent in direct supervision? How much of the budget or endowment goes toward teachers' professional development? How frequently do faculty members lead or attend workshops?

Parents can certainly take the time to do the research for themselves on how schools use their income, by looking through audits, annual fund reports, and guidestar.org (for non-religious institutions). But I believe the hallmark of a self-reflective school is one which makes such data available to parents in a clear and regular manner. For example, my school (and others) will host a parent meeting annually which reviews the overall mechanics of governance and the budget - something like an "Everything You Wanted to Know About School Finances But Were Afraid to Ask" talk.

Take care,
John

[Anonymous]

21:30, my DD has been at Winchester for a year and it was also a great experience. I wasn't originally planning to keep her there for kindergarten or beyond, but now, I think I will. After one year in the 3 year old class, I think she's about at the right level for kindergarten already (she can read, and started learning to add and subtract). Plus, it's a super-friendly environment, and the parents I've met are all very nice, normal, and down to earth.

[Anonymous]

We send our children to an inexpensive private elementary school (tuition is similar to a Catholic elementary school). Here's how our school makes it work:
- the building and grounds are old and in need of repair
- the teachers are underpaid
- there are no specialty teachers
- parents work co-op hours for the school

Academically, it works well unless your child has special needs (highly gifted or learning disabled). Then you need a school with more resources.

[Anonymous]

When our school had tuition under $10k they made it work through below average teacher salaries (even for a private school). Tthere were some great teachers but there were some who were not so great. Then the board really focused on getting teacher salaries into the average range (meaning that they raised tuition faster than usual). Now tuition is well above 10 but still less than $20k. As a parent I have noticed that the quality of the whole faculty has increased and is more consistent. To John Huber's point, part of the increase went to continuing professional development for teachers (outside seminars as well as speakers for faculty meetings) and I think this has also contributed a lot to the new ideas and enthusiasm I see.