Burke for HS- Pros/Cons?

[Anonymous]

Looking for input from people who have had kids attend Burke for HS- what did you love? Dislike? What was just ok? It is the school we looked at with the most limited access during the initial admissions process. Although there are a few accepted student events in the next 2 weeks, would love some insight from others here.

[Anonymous]

There are so many threads on this...just search and you will get some good answers. I would post a list of pros/cons but I have done it on past threads so its all there and recent! Search Burke vs. maret for a recent thread.

[Anonymous]

Wonderful community. Diverse and inclusive. Good academics. Strong Arts program.
Cons. Very small so not a lot of clubs/ EC opportunities. Terrible sports but at least your kid will play. Girls soccer had 11 players this year

[Anonymous]

Agree with above feedback. Burke receives a lot of love on DCUM. The archives have lists of recent feedback on this topic. Great school…

[Anonymous]

OP, I really loved this school for my DC. HOS at our k-8 recommended it for DC. This was for 9th and so we allowed our DC to chose their high school. DC picked a Big3 over Burke, but if it was up to me I would have 100% picked Burke.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful community. Diverse and inclusive. Good academics. Strong Arts program.
Cons. Very small so not a lot of clubs/ EC opportunities. Terrible sports but at least your kid will play. Girls soccer had 11 players this year

+1 on sports. They are a bummer for my sporty kid but I tell him that at least it means he starts and gets tons of playing time. Would he rather be on a really good team and only play for 2 minutes?

[Anonymous]

For a small school, Burke offers a surprising number of advanced math and science classes in HS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful community. Diverse and inclusive. Good academics. Strong Arts program.
Cons. Very small so not a lot of clubs/ EC opportunities. Terrible sports but at least your kid will play. Girls soccer had 11 players this year

+1 on sports. They are a bummer for my sporty kid but I tell him that at least it means he starts and gets tons of playing time. Would he rather be on a really good team and only play for 2 minutes?

Yes, or not make the team at all…

[Anonymous]

I know you are looking for current parents so discount this since we are not ..

We looked at Burke and declined a spot in favor of another school in it's same tier-here's an impression from interviewing a bunch of parents  ( many happy) and our kid talking to other kids-and looking hard at the curriculum which is not any more advanced in math or science than any other privates...and definitely not in English.

pro's: super warm environment, high touch environment, accepting of many different learning styles and personalities, diverse, strong sense of community, very progressive politically...if you are a leftie it feels right on. If you are centrist..maybe. Clear sense of values, ethics, and community service

cons: disorganized, cramped urban campus, drug issues in high school, leans on progressive lineage to a fault, and to the detriment of a deeply intellectually rich curriculum-and this seems to trickle down to the teachers, many of whom were just ok, but not intellectually sophisticated or compelling if the kid you are sending can sniff out a true intellect from a teacher who kind of follows someone else's socially responsible curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know you are looking for current parents so discount this since we are not ..

We looked at Burke and declined a spot in favor of another school in it's same tier-here's an impression from interviewing a bunch of parents  ( many happy) and our kid talking to other kids-and looking hard at the curriculum which is not any more advanced in math or science than any other privates...and definitely not in English.

pro's: super warm environment, high touch environment, accepting of many different learning styles and personalities, diverse, strong sense of community, very progressive politically...if you are a leftie it feels right on. If you are centrist..maybe. Clear sense of values, ethics, and community service

cons: disorganized, cramped urban campus, drug issues in high school, leans on progressive lineage to a fault, and to the detriment of a deeply intellectually rich curriculum-and this seems to trickle down to the teachers, many of whom were just ok, but not intellectually sophisticated or compelling if the kid you are sending can sniff out a true intellect from a teacher who kind of follows someone else's socially responsible curriculum.

How long ago was this? Was this while Damien was Head of School? They also just got a new Dean of Curriculum last year who is very experienced. I don’t know of any drug issues. They also just finished a bunch of renovations to create art studios and update the locker rooms and gym. Yes, it’s an urban campus but they is all of DC as teaching space.

think you are referring to 10ish or more years ago under different administration.

[Anonymous]

Wake up! All high schools have drugs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know you are looking for current parents so discount this since we are not ..

We looked at Burke and declined a spot in favor of another school in it's same tier-here's an impression from interviewing a bunch of parents  ( many happy) and our kid talking to other kids-and looking hard at the curriculum which is not any more advanced in math or science than any other privates...and definitely not in English.

pro's: super warm environment, high touch environment, accepting of many different learning styles and personalities, diverse, strong sense of community, very progressive politically...if you are a leftie it feels right on. If you are centrist..maybe. Clear sense of values, ethics, and community service

cons: disorganized, cramped urban campus, drug issues in high school, leans on progressive lineage to a fault, and to the detriment of a deeply intellectually rich curriculum-and this seems to trickle down to the teachers, many of whom were just ok, but not intellectually sophisticated or compelling if the kid you are sending can sniff out a true intellect from a teacher who kind of follows someone else's socially responsible curriculum.

Your child didn’t attend Burke yet you know the teachers are “just ok”?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know you are looking for current parents so discount this since we are not ..

We looked at Burke and declined a spot in favor of another school in it's same tier-here's an impression from interviewing a bunch of parents  ( many happy) and our kid talking to other kids-and looking hard at the curriculum which is not any more advanced in math or science than any other privates...and definitely not in English.

pro's: super warm environment, high touch environment, accepting of many different learning styles and personalities, diverse, strong sense of community, very progressive politically...if you are a leftie it feels right on. If you are centrist..maybe. Clear sense of values, ethics, and community service

cons: disorganized, cramped urban campus, drug issues in high school, leans on progressive lineage to a fault, and to the detriment of a deeply intellectually rich curriculum-and this seems to trickle down to the teachers, many of whom were just ok, but not intellectually sophisticated or compelling if the kid you are sending can sniff out a true intellect from a teacher who kind of follows someone else's socially responsible curriculum.

Yeah…I wouldn’t be taking advice from someone who hasn’t had a kid attend the school. What might be more helpful is if you posted why you like your current school more, maybe the OP is also looking there

[Anonymous]

Burke is small. If your kid likes the other kids or at least some of them - can be a great experience! All schools and kids are different. It depends on your child. It is challenging to list pros and cons without additional context. Finances are another factor to seriously consider.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know you are looking for current parents so discount this since we are not ..

We looked at Burke and declined a spot in favor of another school in it's same tier-here's an impression from interviewing a bunch of parents  ( many happy) and our kid talking to other kids-and looking hard at the curriculum which is not any more advanced in math or science than any other privates...and definitely not in English.

pro's: super warm environment, high touch environment, accepting of many different learning styles and personalities, diverse, strong sense of community, very progressive politically...if you are a leftie it feels right on. If you are centrist..maybe. Clear sense of values, ethics, and community service

cons: disorganized, cramped urban campus, drug issues in high school, leans on progressive lineage to a fault, and to the detriment of a deeply intellectually rich curriculum-and this seems to trickle down to the teachers, many of whom were just ok, but not intellectually sophisticated or compelling if the kid you are sending can sniff out a true intellect from a teacher who kind of follows someone else's socially responsible curriculum.

Thank you, this is very helpful.
Burke is not offering shadow days and the in person tours in the fall were all full when we tried to register. They have some events this week, but more are virtual than in person so I am looking for candid information and appreciate the PP and others who responded.
-OP