Vibe/Personality of Boys at St. Anselm’s Abbey vs. Gonzaga

[Anonymous]

I have a DD at Visi and a younger son who will apply to high school in a few years. I originally thought Gonzaga would be a great place for him but after observing the boys who go to Gonzaga (I work down the street from the school), am not sure it would be a good fit. The boys seem a little too confidence/bordering on arrogance, which is just not an attractive trait to me (although it clearly appears to be to my DD and her friends). Is St. Anselm’s Abbey different?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a DD at Visi and a younger son who will apply to high school in a few years. I originally thought Gonzaga would be a great place for him but after observing the boys who go to Gonzaga (I work down the street from the school), am not sure it would be a good fit. The boys seem a little too confidence/bordering on arrogance, which is just not an attractive trait to me (although it clearly appears to be to my DD and her friends). Is St. Anselm’s Abbey different?

Yes it is, boo. Very different. Try the dcum search function - it's been discussed in 1.3 trillion previous threads here.

It comes down to what would be the best fit for your son and what HE wants.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a DD at Visi and a younger son who will apply to high school in a few years. I originally thought Gonzaga would be a great place for him but after observing the boys who go to Gonzaga (I work down the street from the school), am not sure it would be a good fit. The boys seem a little too confidence/bordering on arrogance, which is just not an attractive trait to me (although it clearly appears to be to my DD and her friends). Is St. Anselm’s Abbey different?

Yes it is, boo. Very different. Try the dcum search function - it's been discussed in 1.3 trillion previous threads here.

It comes down to what would be the best fit for your son and what HE wants.

Well, parents ARE paying so not quite open and shut. They said, SAA seems like the boys have more of a quiet confidence, perhaps more substance when it comes to personality. Gonzaga is in your face vs. SAA quiet confidence makes a different statement.

[Anonymous]

OP - what was it about Gonzaga that made you think initially that it would be a great place for your son?

Both are excellent schools with great reputations, but besides GZ and SAAS being all-boys Catholic schools, they're quite different in student population, culture, location, and educational philosophy.

Reading your post, I would imagine that boys at St. Anselm's may come off as being less arrogant than those from Gonzaga (though I'm not sure it's fair to assume this of every boy at Gonzaga) due to the profile of student, socio-economic diversity, academic ability, etc.

It could help if you had DS visit both schools (and maybe other all-boys schools like Prep, DeMatha, etc.) to see what he likes best about each.

[Anonymous]

I have had kids at both schools. SAAS is a small and kind school. Gonzaga is a big and energetic school. Each kid picked the one that appealed to them and it was a great fit. My kids are similar in personality and both found a great group of friends. Giving the choice to the kid worked out for us.

[Anonymous]

Agree with PP - both are great schools and both have a mix of boys. DS is at Gonzaga and I love how the school has helped him develop into a young man.

[Anonymous]

I only have experience at Gonzaga so this is my take - Gonzaga is great for boys who are energetic, athletic and outgoing. Not the most diverse school but I believe they try to be. Many opportunities to expand one's world. My son has become passionate about social justice and carries goodie bags for the homeless he encounters near the school (so many!!). He was able to be placed in the fast math track and as a senior, taking Linear Algebra/Multivariate Calc. His experience at the school has been nothing short of amazing.

I only know of one boy at St. Anslem's and he's thriving as well. He's a much quieter boy than mine but also intellectually curious and well rounded. I think it depends on the boy and their interests / personality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I only have experience at Gonzaga so this is my take - Gonzaga is great for boys who are energetic, athletic and outgoing. Not the most diverse school but I believe they try to be. Many opportunities to expand one's world. My son has become passionate about social justice and carries goodie bags for the homeless he encounters near the school (so many!!). He was able to be placed in the fast math track and as a senior, taking Linear Algebra/Multivariate Calc. His experience at the school has been nothing short of amazing.

I only know of one boy at St. Anslem's and he's thriving as well. He's a much quieter boy than mine but also intellectually curious and well rounded. I think it depends on the boy and their interests / personality.

This resonates with me knowing boys at both schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a DD at Visi and a younger son who will apply to high school in a few years. I originally thought Gonzaga would be a great place for him but after observing the boys who go to Gonzaga (I work down the street from the school), am not sure it would be a good fit. The boys seem a little too confidence/bordering on arrogance, which is just not an attractive trait to me (although it clearly appears to be to my DD and her friends). Is St. Anselm’s Abbey different?

Yes it is, boo. Very different. Try the dcum search function - it's been discussed in 1.3 trillion previous threads here.

It comes down to what would be the best fit for your son and what HE wants.

Well, parents ARE paying so not quite open and shut. They said, SAA seems like the boys have more of a quiet confidence, perhaps more substance when it comes to personality. Gonzaga is in your face vs. SAA quiet confidence makes a different statement.

Substance when it comes to personality? Did you really type that? Gonzaga has close to 1,000 kids. Perhaps, the ones you are seeing have that swagger/confidence. They will, of course, be the ones that stand out to you. Give me a break if you think every boy, all 1,000 of them, are the same. Both of my GZ kids were shy, extremely modest and very humble. They did hours upon hours of community service. Most of their GZ friends and classmates were similar to them.

I have to think this is the same troll that has been on a roll lately. Quite a few 'observations' of GZ students lately.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I only have experience at Gonzaga so this is my take - Gonzaga is great for boys who are energetic, athletic and outgoing. Not the most diverse school but I believe they try to be. Many opportunities to expand one's world. My son has become passionate about social justice and carries goodie bags for the homeless he encounters near the school (so many!!). He was able to be placed in the fast math track and as a senior, taking Linear Algebra/Multivariate Calc. His experience at the school has been nothing short of amazing.

I only know of one boy at St. Anslem's and he's thriving as well. He's a much quieter boy than mine but also intellectually curious and well rounded. I think it depends on the boy and their interests / personality.

I’ll add that my DS was not particularly energetic or outgoing and swims (not sure if that fits the “athletic” description). But I love how he matured, evolved, emerged, whatever, during his time at Gonzaga. The confidence-building just warms my heart. He was 100% prepared to move on, was accepted to a far better college than we ever imagined for him, and he’s doing great so far in his freshman year. Gonzaga’s tent is bigger than people give it credit for.

[Anonymous]

My son just graduated from Gonzaga. He was hardly an athlete (on the swim team, but one of the slowest), is a quiet kid, not arrogant in the least. Not every kid at Gonzaga is the loudest in the room. There’s a space for everyone. My son’s self-confidence flourished at Gonzaga and he is having an amazing college experience. He still prefers to blend in rather than stand out. I think it’s unfair to paint an entire student body with such a broad brush.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son just graduated from Gonzaga. He was hardly an athlete (on the swim team, but one of the slowest), is a quiet kid, not arrogant in the least. Not every kid at Gonzaga is the loudest in the room. There’s a space for everyone. My son’s self-confidence flourished at Gonzaga and he is having an amazing college experience. He still prefers to blend in rather than stand out. I think it’s unfair to paint an entire student body with such a broad brush.

I could have written this -

[Anonymous]

I think painting the kids at any one school with a broad brush is completley unfair as the PP says. I feel like OPs who make these comments really need to take a step back and think about whether their own child can be so easy described based on one characteristic or one group that he/she is involved with.

[Anonymous]

Just stop with the hypersensitivity about describing groups. Broad characterization doesn’t describe every single person. Wow. People just want impressions.