Is private school worth it?
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Anonymous
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I've gone through public school my whole life, but we live in DC on Capitol hill and it seems like many friends in DC have their children attend private school, so I have been saving up for that in anticipation of moving our kid's into private for middle and high school. We make a bit less than $200 HHI. No debt other than our mortgage, and we aren't big spenders (minimal travel, used car, Craigslist furniture, etc.) Instead, we save for retirement and college, etc. and we also give a lot of money to charitable organizations.
In fact, what is spurring this question right now is that our favorite charitable organization is seeking a lot of money from its donors in its capital campaign -- and when I think of all the good our money could do with the charitable organization . . . well, I just wonder. Maybe giving that money to the charity that we've earmarked to use for private school would be OK and the kids would attend Latin or DCBASIS (if they can get in! what if lottery doesn't work for them? and we've given away the private school nest egg!?) or some other good public school and they will be great. Our kids are at our local DCPS neighborhood school for elementary, and doing very well there, but when I meet kids that attend private schools, they have a wonderful confidence that I want my kids to have also. Any recommendations? i am thinking of having the kids tested to see what kind of private schools would be a good fit for them. OR should I seek out an education consultant? Recommendations? Thanks! |
Anonymous
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Given the uncertainly of quality education in DCPS middle and HS, I'd keep the private school nest egg, maintain your regular charitable contributions, and if you find your children don't need private high school you will have a cushion to pay for schooling beyond college - maybe grad school or money to help them with a downpayment on a house. I think it is great that you are thinking about giving more to your favorite charity, but giving hundreds of thousands of dollars when your kids are in elem. seems really premature. This money could also be used for enrichment activities for your children as they get older - like going abroad for a summer, taking afterschool classes, etc.
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Anonymous
| Spend the money on your kids... you only get one chance to educate your children - there is no "do-over". I wouldn't worry about other's opinions on whether it is "worth it" or not. You have obviously planned on sending them to private and really, at the end of the day, your donation will just be the equal of a band-aid on a severed limb whereas you can spend your money on your own children and let them benefit from your effort. |
Anonymous
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Why are you even questioning this? Are you truly that stupidly liberal????
I wouldn't send my dog to DCPS. |
Anonymous
| I certainly believe in charity, but not at the expense of my own children's well-being. I would absolutely not send my kids to DCPS after elementary. Personally, I wouldn't even send my kids to most of the DCPS elementary schools, especially not the ones on Capitol Hill. |
Anonymous
This just shows how ignorant you are. You have no idea what you are talking about. If my kids would go to private school with your kids, I'd take them out! |
Anonymous
OP here. thank you to the earlier posters for your input. I really appreciate it! And to you, o judgmental one above-- you are the number one reason I want to avoid private schools. What school do you send your kids too? I'd like to avoid that school since they seem to attract the wrong sort. |
Anonymous
| This is such a personal question. There are other questions besides academic b/c I'm not always sure there is a difference there. It depends on the environment you want as well. My kids go to a charter school, but we are applying for private school right now for my older son who will be in high school next year. I just want something different for him now. I can't imagine paying $30K a year for 12 years. It definitely does not seem worth it to me. That being said, we've been paying for lots of enrichment that we would not have been able to afford if my kids were in private school. |
Anonymous
| Since you posted your question in the private school forum, I think you will find that virtually everyone thinks it is.. |
Anonymous
| Of course it is worth it, otherwise I would not be paying full freight for 2 kids in private. The folks over in the pubbie forum may give you some different thoughts but you need to understand both will be slanted as they will feel, as we do, that they have made the best choice for their family. |
Anonymous
| OP, you don't have to worry about contaminating your kids with the wrong sort. Coming out of DCPS, that is truly a LOL. You're on this forum, you understand the concept of "Big 3". |
Anonymous
| OP, don't donate your money now...hold on until you know you really won't need it. Then do donate it if you can! Go you! More of us should do the same. |
Anonymous
Exactly. It's an intensely personal decision and there is no one right or wrong answer. For us, it's been worth the sacrifice to send ours private, but for others that may not be the case at all. It is family (and school) dependent. Also, we didn't do as well at our first school (grades were excellent but self esteem was lousy) and we had to ask ourselves what we were doing and if we should have gone public. We switched to another private and have been very happy. Some are not as lucky. The point is there is no one right answer. Make the best choice you can for your family today. You can always change your mind. |
Anonymous
| For my kids it is worth it. We also did public elementary but decided that private would work better in MS and HS. Since you can't know now what your kids will need I would hang onto the money for now, then donate it later if public is successful. Your kids may do great in public but you don't want to cut off the other option. |
Anonymous
OP here-- thanks for your vote of support! I think there are a lot of people in our DCPS that do likewise, but we can't really talk about it amongst ourselves because it sounds totally braggy, plus wannabe "noblesse oblige"! In response to those asking why I posted here, I guess I was hoping I would hear from folks that are in private school now that used to be in DCPS and how they decided to make the switch. Did you do testing first or meet with an educational consultant? But considering the nasty response from a few above, perhaps a more pressing question is how did the other kids treat your kids when they transferred into the private? Were they warmly welcomed? Was there an assumption from the teachers that your child would need remedial help? did other parents welcome you? assume your family was poor/ "stupid" because you placed your child at DCPS for elementary? |