Landon vs. Georgetown Prep Upper School

[Anonymous]

The troll doesn't sound like a Prep alum or parent to me. She may be a parent of a former Landon student who had a bad time at the school and has created this Nazi comparison in her mind to deal with it. One of the many absurd things about her diatribes is that Landon is often referred to as a "Jew school" by members of other private school communities. She is clearly unhinged. We are best off ignoring the thread as soon as she infects it.

[Anonymous]

She is an idiot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The troll doesn't sound like a Prep alum or parent to me. She may be a parent of a former Landon student who had a bad time at the school and has created this Nazi comparison in her mind to deal with it. One of the many absurd things about her diatribes is that Landon is often referred to as a "Jew school" by members of other private school communities. She is clearly unhinged. We are best off ignoring the thread as soon as she infects it.

This is a complete lie. Yes, Landon is modeled after after the Hitler Youth Movement in Germany in the 1930s. It's sad but it is true that Landon is modeled after such an unsavory organization that placed physical fitness above academics. They also created imagined enemies in order to establish unity in their organization. As long as the Landon Community refuses to admit their legacy dating back to the Banfields, they can never change.

So, am I a critic of Landon's underlying approach and philosophy -- certainly yes. Have I ever identified any particular ethnic group as being associated with Landon -- absolutely not.

[Anonymous]

Women you need some sex in your life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The troll doesn't sound like a Prep alum or parent to me. She may be a parent of a former Landon student who had a bad time at the school and has created this Nazi comparison in her mind to deal with it. One of the many absurd things about her diatribes is that Landon is often referred to as a "Jew school" by members of other private school communities. She is clearly unhinged. We are best off ignoring the thread as soon as she infects it.

This is a complete lie. Yes, Landon is modeled after after the Hitler Youth Movement in Germany in the 1930s. It's sad but it is true that Landon is modeled after such an unsavory organization that placed physical fitness above academics. They also created imagined enemies in order to establish unity in their organization. As long as the Landon Community refuses to admit their legacy dating back to the Banfields, they can never change.

So, am I a critic of Landon's underlying approach and philosophy -- certainly yes. Have I ever identified any particular ethnic group as being associated with Landon -- absolutely not.

My point was confusingly worded. I meant that the irony of associating Landon with Nazi Germany is that other people refer to Landon as being too Jewish.
Anyway, crazy lady, why don't you explain where all your personal experience with this school comes from. If you have no current association with the place, couldn't you find something better to do than read a high school magazine?

[Anonymous]

I have done my share of bashing of Landon. (i can't believe they fed hot sauce sandwiches to homeless people.) But comparing the school to the Hitler youth program just because it was founded about the same time is too much. Enough is enough. Move on. You can't solve your problems with the school on this board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have done my share of bashing of Landon. (i can't believe they fed hot sauce sandwiches to homeless people.) But comparing the school to the Hitler youth program just because it was founded about the same time is too much. Enough is enough. Move on. You can't solve your problems with the school on this board.

Please tell the hot sauce sandwich to homeless story. At least they didn't charge 2000/student and fly them to an exotic locale for 2 hours/day of actual effort and call it community service.

[Anonymous]

Hitler Youth comparison is silly. However, this posters' points about the coach/mentor program and resulting academics are on target. Also, the point about Landon's athletics being the school's focus is well made.

[Anonymous]

I don't understand the focus on sports in this globally competitive society. What does graduating from high school as an ace lacrosse player from a mediocre academic institution do for you in the long run when you are competing with tens of millions of hard working students from India and China? We are going to end staffing call centers for folks in Shanghai and Mumbai if we don't start focusing on the really important parts of the school day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ask around and you'll find Landon students have a very bad reputation locally and Landon graduates have a very bad reputation nationwide. Why would decent human beings want their children to permanently have the stigma attached to them of having graduated from Landon? The only rational reason anyone would want their child to graduate from Landon is because they enjoy the show no kindness and take no prisoners Hitler Youth Mentality that is part of the fabric of the Landon experience.

Agreed! I roll my eyes at parents who allow their daughter to date a Landon boy. Landon boys have a horrible reputation for defiling girls in the backseat of thier Daddy's Lexus.

[Anonymous]

1) Out of a class of about 100 students, only 3-5 are considered "ace" lacrosse players, so you are grossly overgeneralizing. The high quality of Landon's college admissions year to year contradicts your claim that it is mediocre academic experience.
2) The teacher-coach model is based on the belief that the same people who coach you on the field should be teachers in the classroom. Not some "coach for hire" who only knows the kids in one capacity and doesn't contribute to other aspects of the educational experience. Kids need to see athletic coaches s as multidimensional people with interests outside of sports. This is why a recent asst football coach at Landon left to be the head coach at Gonzaga. He could have taken over the head coach position but refused to teach an academic subject, insisting that the football field is his classroom. Landon refused to budge, which should be applauded.

[Anonymous]

Maybe he wanted to go to Gonzaga. He should be applauded.

[Anonymous]

The teacher-coach model is based on the belief that the same people who coach you on the field should be teachers in the classroom. Not some "coach for hire" who only knows the kids in one capacity and doesn't contribute to other aspects of the educational experience.

I can't imagine any greater proof that Landon cares more about athletics than academics. Apparently, teacher's ability to coach is more important than his or her ability teach. And the school's community remains surprised that it's more famous for its athletes and perps than it's academic success.

[Anonymous]

You completely misinterpret the spirit of the policy. But it is clear that some people have such closed minds and biases that they will not allow themselves to use this site to learn, but rather to fire off petty posts re issues and schools of which they know little. You do nobody a service, especially the OP who is trying to learn factual information from people directly associated with the school.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous]19:07 and 19:20 (Landon parents) - Thank you for your thougthtful comments. I think your insights will be helpful to many families entering and/or considering Landon for their sons -- in a positive way. Although, I am the PP interested in hearing from GP families, I have to say your even-handed discussion of the pros and cons of Landon makes me question whether we should give Landon another look. To be honest, we were interested in Landon because of the positive things you mentioned, but was turned/scared away by the series of negative actions by a few of the students and alumni. Again, thank you for taking the time to share your experiences and opinions. Since GP is the school we would like to learn more about, it would be great if GP parents could provide the pros and cons about Prep like the posters here.[/quote]

Not a parent, but I can channel my own parents and experiences. I have brothers who went to both schools in the mid-to-late 1990s. I went to Holton and dated guys from both schools as well as St. Alban's many with whom I remain close. The prevailing sentiment from most people I know in the small world of the IAC/ISL/MAC private school network is that Prep is a cross between St. Alban's and Landon.

--On the whole, academics at Prep are a little stronger than Landon, but a little weaker than St. Alban's. The workload at Prep is intense and the curriculum is traditional with very few electives -- e.g., mandatory 2 years of Latin as well as 3 years of another foreign language, Euclidean geometry, Macro economics, political science, and a college 400-level US History Class in junior year. It is a sink or swim academic environment; no leveling; no grade inflation or curves. 10% of my brother's freshman class was counseled out at various points before graduation.
--Prep's athletics are generally stronger than St. Alban's, but and not as strong as Landon. Baseball at St. Alban's is the consistently the exception here.
--Prep has a stronger and better-positioned alumni network than Landon, but St. Alban's has more a-listers who also tend to be more nationally dispersed.
--Prep's campus, facilities, and physical plant are second to none, but it is located just outside the Beltway, and the student body is mainly from Chevy Chase, Potomac, and Bethesda. If you don't live in those enclaves, you're social life will suffer a little at Prep compared to Landon which has more DC and Virginia-based students.

Both Prep and Landon are excellent schools, and they (and St. Alban's for that matter) are far more similar than different. It really depends on what you're looking for -- (e.g., where you live, the extent to which you're comfortable with religion being an active part of the environment, high school only vs. elementary and beyond, etc.)

The negative press about Landon is troubling on the surface, but all schools have their bad seeds. It shouldn't be an indictment on the entire institution. It was just a bad year.

Bottom line is that a boy with a 3.35+ GPA and good SAT scores from either school will have no trouble getting into the undergrad of his choice and will be well positioned to succeed when he's there.

For what it's worth, we want to send our DS to a co-ed school, so neither of these schools are in the cards -- at least not at this point.

Hope this helps.