Wilson H.S. or GDS/Sidwell/St. Albans for your basic Ward 3 smart kid

[Anonymous]

In a few years, DS will be choosing a high school. We have the money set aside to do private, and DH and I went to highly competitive private schools ourselves. Highly. Stress factories that send 1/3 of the graduates to an Ivy, if you catch my meaning.

I'm intrigued by the idea of Wilson H.S. even though I know they won't send DS to Beijing on a luxury summer to "study culture" the way one of the above-named schools will. I know for certain that kids like DS from Ward 3 and then wind up at Oberlin, UW-Madison, Columbia U. and McGill.

But what about the intervening 4 years? I assume that if Kid X get admitted to Columbia, SOMEthing really good happened between the walls of Wilson during his time there, right? Do you personally know any teens well from Ward 3 who attend Wilson now, and if so, what do they think? ( I know, long shot since al our kids are 7 or younger ....)

[Anonymous]

That should have said " kids from Ward 3 attend Wilson and then wind up at Oberlin ...."

[Anonymous]

I have a child at Wilson this year. He loves it. He is doing well academically and plays sports too. Both my husband and I attended private schools growing up, and then UVA for college and graduate school so we were prepared to go the private school route too. But when we saw Wilson's college list we were blown away: Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Tufts, Bates, UNC Chapel Hill, the list goes on. Now, I will say that it is a large school by DC standards, and we've had a teacher each year that we have not been impressed with. However, from a cost benefit standpoint, we're getting an excellent education for our son. Now, if you want your child around lots of kids of a higher SES, or if you're uncomfortable with the diversity and somewhat rough feel of a big urban public school, or if your child needs a little hand holding, you might want to look to the privates. All that said, we love his peer group which is made up of a lot of kids from all over the city, and quite a few transferred from 2nd tier DC privates and are really happy overall with their decision.

One other thing to consider is that a lot of ivy and little ivy college admissions officers are looking to schools like Wilson where the student has had to be a little more self-motivated to succeed, to diversify their freshman classes. The college counselor at Wilson, Sandy Bean, is phenomenal and has built up very solid relationships with college admissions officers and her work clearly pays off. We're really pretty happy with how it has all worked out.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't chance four years of your DC's education on the long shot that he may have better odds at getting into good college. The focus should be on the quality of the education he receives in his four years regardless of where he matriculates.

[Anonymous]

THey also wind up at Harvard and Yale, etc.

They get a good academic education, in part from good teachers and in part from their classmates and the ongoing input from their high SES parents.

They also get a good education in the school of hard knocks - what it's like in a large, sometimes chaotic, integrated city school.

Wilson isn't for everyone, just as Sidwell isn't, academic ability aside. A lot of it is your kid's personality and what they thrive on or can deal with. I know Ward 3 kids who have gone there who absolutely love it, despite its many problems, then go on to thrive at their fancy ivy league schools.

They get in based on their high SATs, which are just as impressive as their private school competitors, and the top Wilson kids are not remedial students in college (as has been suggested), but are well versed in academics, as well as in "real life."

[Anonymous]

10:39 PP here
I should have clarified that our son is getting an excellent academic education as well as a terrific social education too. He is challenged and interested in his classes, is in all honors and AP and has some great teachers who are going over and above to really reach kids and teach them too. I should not have said "from a cost benefit" standpoint, it's really much more than that. It's on par with what I experienced at my private high school, better even, with more courses to choose from, and a much more interesting and diverse population.

[Anonymous]

My nephew went to a school that was equivalent to Ballou and was not the Valedictorian nor Salutarian this past graduation. He is at Harvard and doing wonderfully but I can say he had a perfect score on his SAT. His class ranking was actually number 5 but he was well-rounded. He was also fortunate to have college graduate parents but the operative word is that his school was not ranked by US World News and Report.

[Anonymous]

Take a look at Eastern High.

[Anonymous]

Why would I look at Eastern High? (op here). I live a couple of blocks from Wilson, so it's Wilson or a close-by private HS.

I think I have a handle on what is gained by attending a large urban high school instead of a private, but I'm struggling with what is lost.

[Anonymous]

Easy ... let your kid look at all these schools and then decide. I would weigh very little on where they end up for college in the decision. Their happiness, challenge, and match in their interests is far more important.

[Anonymous]

money. lots and lots of money.

[Anonymous]

DS graduated from Wilson and overall we were very happy with his experience. College is going quite well for him, so far.

[Anonymous]

DS graduated from Wilson and overall we were very happy with his experience. College is going quite well for him, so far.

Do you live near Wilson?

[Anonymous]

Yes, I live about a mile from Wilson.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: But when we saw Wilson's college list we were blown away: Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Tufts, Bates, UNC Chapel Hill, the list goes on. .

I heard that most of the kids from Wilson who end up at ivies are AA, while the white kids go to Madison, Oberlin, etc. True?