Sidwell to increase tuition a WHOPPING 6.7%

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The development office has quickly become huge under the new advancement head. And check out the job listings where they are looking for 5 more hires to start immediately.

They make more money for the school than they spend on the salaries. And they are replacing attrition, not expanding the staff.

Making more money for the school than their salaries is not the question. That’s a basic principle of independent school advancement, and it would be a serious problem if that was not the case.

The question is whether the development office is needlessly bloated, which it is. Also, they are absolutely expanding the staff, as confirmed to me by someone in the office.

So what? What is the problem with a private school trying to raise money to make the best possible institution for its students?

Parents complain when a campus looks shabby or when teachers are subpar, or when programs get cut.

So now people are complaining because the fundraising staff is bloated.

WTF.

Of course every school needs to fundraise. And I hope they do a great job at it. But the question is whether the office cohort is unnecessarily large. Go to the directory and check out how many people are in the office, and then don’t forget the jobs that they have listed to start immediately. Then, go check out the web site directory for the GDS office. Or look in NYC at HM, Trinity or Dalton. Sidwell is much larger than any of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't know how many Sidwell parents on this forum have or know senior students. Class of 2022 is one of the strongest but ED/EA results seem very poor this year. Most of us send our kids to SFS for quality education. Sooner or later your kids will be a senior. Parents should express our real concern and interests while paying increasing tuitions.

I don't see where the current senior class is having a poor year with colleges. Something like 25-30% got into their ED's. A bunch of kids have had positive results on EA's and ED2's are coming out over the next few weeks. It is pretty much on par with peer schools and previous years results.

-parent of a senior

But not for ordinary students especially EA/ED top 20/LAC

What is the admit rate so far for SFS seniors? What is the admit rate nationally for these schools? Compare the two numbers and you wlil see how well the current senior class is doing. Do you really expect most of the grade to have been admitted ED? It doesn't work like that.

+1 People are acting like not getting in ED is some mark of failure, but that was never intended to be used for most students -- so people are surprised with tens of thousands of students get deferred to RD where they should have applied in the first place.

Many SFS seniors got rejected (not deferred) from their ED school.

and?

Life happens. Do you expect that all seniors from one particular school will have 100% acceptances or deferrals in an environment that under 5% admissions is the norm?

No. I expect that all seniors from one particular school will get good advice and support from the college counseling office. Which is not the case at Sidwell, as demonstrated by the comments here from parents of seniors.

There are 130+ kids in the class.

There are like 2 people here complaining.

Look, I get it. Your kid got rejected or deferred ED. Guess what, so do about 99% of the rest of the applicants. That isn't Sidwell fault or your kids fault. Blaming the CCO because 53,000 kids applied to Brown ED and Sidwell got shut out for acceptances is ridiculous.

I’m guessing that you don’t have a current senior. My kid was neither rejected nor deferred ED. But many seniors believe that the CCO has done a poor job and disserved the class. Even kids who got in ED have that view.

[Anonymous]

Back to costs — it is hilarious folks are citing the broader economy’s current inflation spike as if Sidwell was forced to raise tuition sharply because of the current inflation environment. As if their supply chain was impacted, or teachers or deans if this or that rose up and demanded massive raises next year and sidwell had no way to manages costs elsewhere. As if its tuition increases haven’t outpaced inflation for decades.

In an inflationary environment, people expect higher prices, so you raise rates more than you would have otherwise. So they did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So what you’re saying is that SFS next year will be what STA and Holton charged last year?

NP. Yes, when one school starts all others follow. All privates are on the same page.

[Anonymous]

I want to discourage people naming specific positions that should be cut and giving negative opinions about performance. These are all people working hard in a sector that is weathering multiple challenges, whether you agree with their philosophy or not. Complaining about them on here will not do anything. If you want a complaint buddy, find a fellow parent. Otherwise, leave these people some privacy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't know how many Sidwell parents on this forum have or know senior students. Class of 2022 is one of the strongest but ED/EA results seem very poor this year. Most of us send our kids to SFS for quality education. Sooner or later your kids will be a senior. Parents should express our real concern and interests while paying increasing tuitions.

I don't see where the current senior class is having a poor year with colleges. Something like 25-30% got into their ED's. A bunch of kids have had positive results on EA's and ED2's are coming out over the next few weeks. It is pretty much on par with peer schools and previous years results.

-parent of a senior

But not for ordinary students especially EA/ED top 20/LAC

What is the admit rate so far for SFS seniors? What is the admit rate nationally for these schools? Compare the two numbers and you wlil see how well the current senior class is doing. Do you really expect most of the grade to have been admitted ED? It doesn't work like that.

+1 People are acting like not getting in ED is some mark of failure, but that was never intended to be used for most students -- so people are surprised with tens of thousands of students get deferred to RD where they should have applied in the first place.

Many SFS seniors got rejected (not deferred) from their ED school.

and?

Life happens. Do you expect that all seniors from one particular school will have 100% acceptances or deferrals in an environment that under 5% admissions is the norm?

No. I expect that all seniors from one particular school will get good advice and support from the college counseling office. Which is not the case at Sidwell, as demonstrated by the comments here from parents of seniors.

There are 130+ kids in the class.

There are like 2 people here complaining.

Look, I get it. Your kid got rejected or deferred ED. Guess what, so do about 99% of the rest of the applicants. That isn't Sidwell fault or your kids fault. Blaming the CCO because 53,000 kids applied to Brown ED and Sidwell got shut out for acceptances is ridiculous.

Count me in. 1 more parent complaining. Do you have a senior this year? If not, you certainly don't know why people are complaining. I wish you don't need to when your kid becomes a senior.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I’m guessing that you don’t have a current senior. My kid was neither rejected nor deferred ED. But many seniors believe that the CCO has done a poor job and disserved the class. Even kids who got in ED have that view.

I do have a current senior. I just have realistic expectations from the CCO.

I want them to be sure to get transcripts and recommendations in on time and have them be grammatically correct.
I want them to help my kid identify a range of schools based on potential areas of study as well as size/geography etc.

They did those two things.

The rest is up to luck given the numbers of applications we are seeing the colleges and universities this year.

Other than those two items, what did you expect from the CCO that you didn't get?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Back to costs — it is hilarious folks are citing the broader economy’s current inflation spike as if Sidwell was forced to raise tuition sharply because of the current inflation environment. As if their supply chain was impacted, or teachers or deans if this or that rose up and demanded massive raises next year and sidwell had no way to manages costs elsewhere. As if its tuition increases haven’t outpaced inflation for decades.

In an inflationary environment, people expect higher prices, so you raise rates more than you would have otherwise. So they did.

It would be interesting to know how much of a surplus this budget anticipates, and how much the referenced contingency funds have grown. I would also want to know the aggregate % increase of teacher salaries on an FTE basis.

Of course you are right that some schools will raise tuition just because they can. Some will, at least. But if they are just budgeting for a comparably larger(r) surplus with the increase, rather than funding a larger increase in salaries, that is something that parents should know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Back to costs — it is hilarious folks are citing the broader economy’s current inflation spike as if Sidwell was forced to raise tuition sharply because of the current inflation environment. As if their supply chain was impacted, or teachers or deans if this or that rose up and demanded massive raises next year and sidwell had no way to manages costs elsewhere. As if its tuition increases haven’t outpaced inflation for decades.

In an inflationary environment, people expect higher prices, so you raise rates more than you would have otherwise. So they did.

It would be interesting to know how much of a surplus this budget anticipates, and how much the referenced contingency funds have grown. I would also want to know the aggregate % increase of teacher salaries on an FTE basis.

Of course you are right that some schools will raise tuition just because they can. Some will, at least. But if they are just budgeting for a comparably larger(r) surplus with the increase, rather than funding a larger increase in salaries, that is something that parents should know.

The school is going to administer itself as it sees fit. They don’t need to tell the parents anything. If you like what they are selling then you shouldn’t worry about it.

[Anonymous]

I know this thread is not about college counseling but the 15 kids applied ED to Brown could have been somewhat avoided. The CCO office needs to be more transparent. Seniors are applying in almost a vacuum and have very little idea who else from within Sidwell is applying ED to the same school. If a college is oversubscribed from the senior class, we believe the CCO could have gently guided students - including ours - by saying "the competition is intense for college X from just within our school community so would you consider applying ED to college Y instead?" Some kids may have their heart set on college X and may disregard this suggestion but most senior kids know that competition is brutal and if they have better chances at a comparable but less popular college, they would change their ED/EA decisions. We found that the CCO went along with any suggestions we had without any critical responses or analysis in return. Their standard response was "we are hear to support your decisions" but what they don't realize is that kids need actual guidance and counseling versus support (which at its best means we will send your recommendations and transcript) for what the kid does not know is an unrealistic application.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I’m guessing that you don’t have a current senior. My kid was neither rejected nor deferred ED. But many seniors believe that the CCO has done a poor job and disserved the class. Even kids who got in ED have that view.

I do have a current senior. I just have realistic expectations from the CCO.

I want them to be sure to get transcripts and recommendations in on time and have them be grammatically correct.
I want them to help my kid identify a range of schools based on potential areas of study as well as size/geography etc.

They did those two things.

The rest is up to luck given the numbers of applications we are seeing the colleges and universities this year.

Other than those two items, what did you expect from the CCO that you didn't get?

I have to say you are lucky. but not all other students got the help your kid has received. Trust me, ask around especially those students with a different counselor

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I’m guessing that you don’t have a current senior. My kid was neither rejected nor deferred ED. But many seniors believe that the CCO has done a poor job and disserved the class. Even kids who got in ED have that view.

I do have a current senior. I just have realistic expectations from the CCO.

I want them to be sure to get transcripts and recommendations in on time and have them be grammatically correct.
I want them to help my kid identify a range of schools based on potential areas of study as well as size/geography etc.

They did those two things.

The rest is up to luck given the numbers of applications we are seeing the colleges and universities this year.

Other than those two items, what did you expect from the CCO that you didn't get?

NP, I will add as someone with no dog in the fight that I think parents from many schools get bad advice from CCOs or the advice they give is good but not what the parents want to hear. For instance they tell Bobby and Jane to apply ED to Princeton and the parents think that's a great idea, well so does every valedictorian in the country, so Jane and Bobby will likely not get admitted ED. If they tell Jane to do ED at Scripps and Johnny to go ED at Kenyon, they have a very high chance of being admitted but then the parents say they are shooting "too low". How can the CCO win with such high and out of date expectations. Sidwell is a very good school and the students work hard and are impressive I'm sure, but so are many other kids from all over the world. It's up to the parents to have realistic expectations these days as things have really changed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know this thread is not about college counseling but the 15 kids applied ED to Brown could have been somewhat avoided. The CCO office needs to be more transparent. Seniors are applying in almost a vacuum and have very little idea who else from within Sidwell is applying ED to the same school. If a college is oversubscribed from the senior class, we believe the CCO could have gently guided students - including ours - by saying "the competition is intense for college X from just within our school community so would you consider applying ED to college Y instead?" Some kids may have their heart set on college X and may disregard this suggestion but most senior kids know that competition is brutal and if they have better chances at a comparable but less popular college, they would change their ED/EA decisions. We found that the CCO went along with any suggestions we had without any critical responses or analysis in return. Their standard response was "we are hear to support your decisions" but what they don't realize is that kids need actual guidance and counseling versus support (which at its best means we will send your recommendations and transcript) for what the kid does not know is an unrealistic application.

While I agree it would be nice if they did this, they don't because they probably assume that once someone gets their heart stuck on an ED, they won't be able to talk the applicant out of it.

Some of the NE boarding schools vet applicants to certain schools, so for example, only 5 even get to apply to Yale. Would you prefer that? Would you like it better if a school said 'you cannot apply to harvard or yale, we have already given those shots to other classmates, so consider Z instead"

I wouldn't and doubt you would either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I’m guessing that you don’t have a current senior. My kid was neither rejected nor deferred ED. But many seniors believe that the CCO has done a poor job and disserved the class. Even kids who got in ED have that view.

I do have a current senior. I just have realistic expectations from the CCO.

I want them to be sure to get transcripts and recommendations in on time and have them be grammatically correct.
I want them to help my kid identify a range of schools based on potential areas of study as well as size/geography etc.

They did those two things.

The rest is up to luck given the numbers of applications we are seeing the colleges and universities this year.

Other than those two items, what did you expect from the CCO that you didn't get?

Have you had an option to read the recommendations? If not, how do you know if they are grammatically correct. LOL

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I’m guessing that you don’t have a current senior. My kid was neither rejected nor deferred ED. But many seniors believe that the CCO has done a poor job and disserved the class. Even kids who got in ED have that view.

I do have a current senior. I just have realistic expectations from the CCO.

I want them to be sure to get transcripts and recommendations in on time and have them be grammatically correct.
I want them to help my kid identify a range of schools based on potential areas of study as well as size/geography etc.

They did those two things.

The rest is up to luck given the numbers of applications we are seeing the colleges and universities this year.

Other than those two items, what did you expect from the CCO that you didn't get?

I have to say you are lucky. but not all other students got the help your kid has received. Trust me, ask around especially those students with a different counselor

I highly doubt that. Everyone got the same feedback we did. A list of schools cut across categories from Reach+ to foundation. When our kid received their list, they had a chance to go through it and refine it, adding school and subtracting some of their recommendations. Are you saying you never saw such a list or worked with your kid to refine it? I am asking in earnest.