I don't understand why parents waste so much money on private schools in this area.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote: It will never NOT be amusing to me watching people who sent their precious cargo to schools like connelly schoolboy the holy child, tuition: $32,000+ ,or Georgetown day, tuition: $38,000+ , only to have said kids ending up at colleges where 80%+ of the student body is amdd of kids who hail from public schools .

As if that wasn't enough, a good number of them —especially the women—end up with 'Mrs jobs': digital content creator, social media director etc . Jobs that scream " I'm waiting for some trust fund kid or some financially promising bro to come save me so I can be his glorified cheerleader " . Fellow private school flame outs need not apply.

Ultimately, people have the right to spend their money as they see fit . But men!! Few things have as lousy a return on investment as private schools.

most people sending their kids to private school aren't looking at it as an ROI. it's more analogous to a high-end car. first, there are plenty that make lots of $$$ so the money isn't that much to them or the grandparents are paying. second, you are assuming it's about doing better in college admissions - for most, it's not that - but about the school experience.

Exactly this. It is not necessarily about the college admission, test scores but the well rounded experience.

Yes, I am not a proponent of private schools. (They should not be taxpayer supported in any way.) But for those who can afford the true cost of it, even I can see that it is not about a tangible ROI but about the experience. I wouldn't call it truly "well-rounded" because it takes kids and puts them in exclusive enclaves, but it certainly is a well-rounded academic experience (most private schools have excellent language arts curricula and some privates have incredibly challenging math and science curricula). So, while some parents' motives are to network with the right type of people as their ROI, there is definitely a more well-rounded academic experience in a majority of top-tier private schools.

That said, parents can certainly provide well-rounded experiences for kids in public schools. It just takes more in-home supplementation and more extra-curricular legwork. But in the end, I believe the public school kids have a more realistic picture of the world than some private school kids. That is an invaluable ROI for future leaders who want to be problem solvers rather than just opportunity hoarders.

Is this satire? Do you understand how current public schools even work? You genuinely believe that in this world of "good school districts" and housing-based education outcomes, you can write the that nonsense with a straight face?

Totally understand that our public schools are silos based on housing, but not as much as private schools. Surely, you can't argue that privates are more diverse than publics! That would be the height of disingenuous creativity!

As a rule, no, private schools are not as diverse as public schools. But when you are comparing a top private school with a top public school, it isn't always so clear-cut. I think it is truly hard to argue that public school kids from the "good school districts" aren't similar opportunity hoarders (and possibly maybe more, because of the housing-based aspect -- look at the horror show that is any boundary debate).

+1. Also, many top private schools are at least more ethnically or racially diverse than top public schools.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Private schools should be abolished. Or at least the tax payer subsidy should be abolished. Not only do public school parents pay for our schools, but we also pay for your privates? No thanks!

It’s the other way around. I pay for public schools that we don’t use. We don’t get a tax payer subsidy for private.

Private school is a choice. You don't have to, but you choose to; that is totally fine. But, private schools benefit from the non-profit tax exemptions. If that is taken away, the true cost of private will apply. The tax payer is subsidizing private schools when they play no role for the public good, unlike other non-profits. And now, after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, individuals get a taxpayer subsidy via 529s. So, yeah, that's a publicly funded subsidy.

After tax dollars saved in 529 plan don’t amount to a taxpayer subsidy - whether that money is used for college or k-12 makes not difference - the money is not coming the government. Perhaps you are not clear on the meaning of subsidy?

Either you are willfully lying or you do not understand your finances. Dollars going into a 529 are indeed after-tax; but dollars going out -- including gains -- are NOT TAXED AT ALL if they're used for the plan's purposes. So, yes that is a subsidy you receive under the IR code.

This is where I will go snarky and say, I hope your private school kids are not so financially illiterate as this post make you out to be. God help those little "masters of the universe" to be!
I have no problem with private schools (I went to boarding school), but I do have a problem with obfuscation. Just admit your privilege and move on.[/

Thanks - I know exactly how a 529 works. Are you this bitter about ROTH gains that are withdrawals after 5 years for education? Bitter about perhaps your failure? You are the perfect example of private schools not guaranteeing life success. Noted.

My goodness. We put our kids in private so, among other things, they learn better manners than certain troubled public school types like you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: It will never NOT be amusing to me watching people who sent their precious cargo to schools like connelly schoolboy the holy child, tuition: $32,000+ ,or Georgetown day, tuition: $38,000+ , only to have said kids ending up at colleges where 80%+ of the student body is amdd of kids who hail from public schools .

As if that wasn't enough, a good number of them —especially the women—end up with 'Mrs jobs': digital content creator, social media director etc . Jobs that scream " I'm waiting for some trust fund kid or some financially promising bro to come save me so I can be his glorified cheerleader " . Fellow private school flame outs need not apply.

Ultimately, people have the right to spend their money as they see fit . But men!! Few things have as lousy a return on investment as private schools.

most people sending their kids to private school aren't looking at it as an ROI. it's more analogous to a high-end car. first, there are plenty that make lots of $$$ so the money isn't that much to them or the grandparents are paying. second, you are assuming it's about doing better in college admissions - for most, it's not that - but about the school experience.

Exactly this. It is not necessarily about the college admission, test scores but the well rounded experience.

Yes, I am not a proponent of private schools. (They should not be taxpayer supported in any way.) But for those who can afford the true cost of it, even I can see that it is not about a tangible ROI but about the experience. I wouldn't call it truly "well-rounded" because it takes kids and puts them in exclusive enclaves, but it certainly is a well-rounded academic experience (most private schools have excellent language arts curricula and some privates have incredibly challenging math and science curricula). So, while some parents' motives are to network with the right type of people as their ROI, there is definitely a more well-rounded academic experience in a majority of top-tier private schools.

That said, parents can certainly provide well-rounded experiences for kids in public schools. It just takes more in-home supplementation and more extra-curricular legwork. But in the end, I believe the public school kids have a more realistic picture of the world than some private school kids. That is an invaluable ROI for future leaders who want to be problem solvers rather than just opportunity hoarders.

Is this satire? Do you understand how current public schools even work? You genuinely believe that in this world of "good school districts" and housing-based education outcomes, you can write the that nonsense with a straight face?

That depends on the school district. I grew up in a medium sized town. The population wasn’t large enough for the schools to have significant socio - economic or racial segregation. The kids of millionaire business owners went to the same school as the kids of doctors, plumbers and long term unemployed. Looking back, that was a valuable experience.

Unfortunately, that doesn't exist anymore. There are dire implications of the socioeconomic segregation that is happening today. People are so stuck on racial segregation but I'm more concerned about economic segregation. Class trumps race.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Private schools should be abolished. Or at least the tax payer subsidy should be abolished. Not only do public school parents pay for our schools, but we also pay for your privates? No thanks!

It’s the other way around. I pay for public schools that we don’t use. We don’t get a tax payer subsidy for private.

Private school is a choice. You don't have to, but you choose to; that is totally fine. But, private schools benefit from the non-profit tax exemptions. If that is taken away, the true cost of private will apply. The tax payer is subsidizing private schools when they play no role for the public good, unlike other non-profits. And now, after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, individuals get a taxpayer subsidy via 529s. So, yeah, that's a publicly funded subsidy.

After tax dollars saved in 529 plan don’t amount to a taxpayer subsidy - whether that money is used for college or k-12 makes not difference - the money is not coming the government. Perhaps you are not clear on the meaning of subsidy?

Either you are willfully lying or you do not understand your finances. Dollars going into a 529 are indeed after-tax; but dollars going out -- including gains -- are NOT TAXED AT ALL if they're used for the plan's purposes. So, yes that is a subsidy you receive under the IR code.

This is where I will go snarky and say, I hope your private school kids are not so financially illiterate as this post make you out to be. God help those little "masters of the universe" to be!
I have no problem with private schools (I went to boarding school), but I do have a problem with obfuscation. Just admit your privilege and move on.[/

Thanks - I know exactly how a 529 works. Are you this bitter about ROTH gains that are withdrawals after 5 years for education? Bitter about perhaps your failure? You are the perfect example of private schools not guaranteeing life success. Noted.

My goodness. We put our kids in private so, among other things, they learn better manners than certain troubled public school types like you.

Np if you have to pay $35k+ so you kid can presumably learn 'better manners' , consider yourself a failed parent .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

Translation: Why do people wealthier, more successful, and presumably smarter than me send their kids to private school?

I won't get into the nitty-gritty but self-made rich don't get rich being spendthrifts and pissing money away. And rich more often than not are confident, they're not just pissing money away on private school for perceived "status."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really don't think public school parents understand just how much better private is for kids. It's so much more than college matriculation. You think the public and private school kids really have the same level of education going into college? Having a public and private student score the same on the SAT does not mean they had remotely the same educational experience. LOL that OP thinks that.

The resources, the opportunities, the attention to detail, the level of teaching, the other students, the buildings, the land, the field trips, the plays, the public speaking...

Nailed it. SAT score doesn't pick up the private school je ne sais quoi. And that je ne sais quoi can't be taught by the parents or picked up later in life, it requires 4 to 13 years of private school ethos and stays with you for life.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:The people complaining about VA or MD public schools or saying that private schools are better are either ignoring or don't know the most important part of the private school education: teaching students that they're very important, more important than public schools kids, more important than most adults including their teachers. Kids learn it. Parents should know about it and decide if that's what they want. Or not.

Covid proved how very little the public school community in the DMV actually cares about kids. They do not. Me, me, me - teacher demands, parents complaints, lack of leadership, lack of outreach to kids, lack of planning. The publics were embarrassing shit shows. Disgraceful.

So your jealousy aside (and bitterness). Covid laid bare how pathetic those who run the public school systems are. Privates took care of their teachers and students.

Completely honestly – there are a lot of us on here who went to private, can afford private, and still choose public. Are you just going to tell us that we are naïve? We don’t know what we’re talking about? You’re all so much smarter? I really wonder. Because there are definitely people on the other side of this argument. Many people who went to private in this area choose public. It is the new money people that go for private. Especially if they went to public themselves.

You're not naive, you are lying trolls. You weren't a private school lifer and/or you can't afford it for your own kids. It's incredibly obvious. I don't know who you think you're fooling with your broken record boilerplate lies. Slim chance any of you ever attended a private school, it was probably some backwater parochial Catholic and now you're an adult atheist with an axe to grind against all private schools. Let it go.

[Anonymous]

Wow PP - I think you are extrapolating a bit too much there with that last comment….

[Anonymous]

I don’t understand why so many people in this area waste money on fancy new cars, expensive houses and beach homes (sorry, just being facetious) … We drive second hand cars and own a modest home in a good school district as we choose to spend our finite money on education and travel. This is obviously because we value education and travel.

We have done both public and private and the quality privates in this area, and in our experience, are preparing their students for college better. Teachers know the students better, and the advisory small group daily check in system allows all students to have close access to adult mentors. They have much more vibrant visual and performing arts programs and all students can participate in competitive athletics if they wish. School admin and teachers communicate quickly and without anywhere near as much bureaucracy.

That said, we like living in an area with relatively high quality public schools because public and private schools compete with each other and that provides better outcomes for all.

[Anonymous]

When private schools already had small student teacher ratios, of course they where able to open safely during the pandemic.

It’s not that public schools didn’t care about kids it’s that when you have to have 30+ kids in a small unventilated room
, the risk to staff and kids grandparents was untenable.

If government cared, they would have increased their resources to equalise what that the private schools had.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When private schools already had small student teacher ratios, of course they where able to open safely during the pandemic.

It’s not that public schools didn’t care about kids it’s that when you have to have 30+ kids in a small unventilated room
, the risk to staff and kids grandparents was untenable.

If government cared, they would have increased their resources to equalise what that the private schools had.

The gov pumped cash into public schools like crazy, and the schools promptly squandered it.

[Anonymous]

I what way exactly do you feel that the schools squandered the money? What did they spend it on that you disapprove of ?

[Anonymous]

“In what way.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really don't think public school parents understand just how much better private is for kids. It's so much more than college matriculation. You think the public and private school kids really have the same level of education going into college? Having a public and private student score the same on the SAT does not mean they had remotely the same educational experience. LOL that OP thinks that.

The resources, the opportunities, the attention to detail, the level of teaching, the other students, the buildings, the land, the field trips, the plays, the public speaking....

I will add that not all privates are created equal, however +1000 to all the above. You really can't make a public parent understand the subtle and meaningful differences between learning environments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When private schools already had small student teacher ratios, of course they where able to open safely during the pandemic.

It’s not that public schools didn’t care about kids it’s that when you have to have 30+ kids in a small unventilated room
, the risk to staff and kids grandparents was untenable.

If government cared, they would have increased their resources to equalise what that the private schools had.

The gov pumped cash into public schools like crazy, and the schools promptly squandered it.

Many districts used the windfall to give all employees huge bonuses. For being so brave... while working from home.