Prep - Good Counsel- Bullis - St Andrews?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Academically, there is a wide gap between Bullis/SAES and GC. Not even close.

Athletically, there's a wide gap between Bullis/GC and SAES. Not even close.

I'm not sure why you think your son won't get in at Prep but will at Bullis. Prep takes about 125 boys into ninth grade Bullis will take about 30. Bullis is way more competitive than Prep these days (and the other schools). Prep actually might be your best option. Offers what you want. Way cheaper than Bullis.

price point and complete disregard for giving aid makes Bullis inaccessible to so many. It creates the illusion of selectiveness when actually they price themselves into an exclusive echelon not based on the merit of the student. It's not that they take 30. The take the 30 who can pay (and a small subset of those get material aid, very small).

I have heard from a current, wealthy Bullis parent that some of the parents are billionaires, so it does give the impression that they give preference to families with money.

Saying they give preference to wealthy families is quite a reach.

[Anonymous]

Bullis is expensive and from what I’ve heard isn’t great with aid. That’s going to create a self-selected wealthy pool of students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Prep MAGA
Good Counsel MAGA

Bullis or none.

Bullis is very much MAGA and has absurd teacher turnover—friend’s kid had teachers leave mid year (3 of their teachers in one year once) every year of HS!

Prep would be your best choice, follow by St. Andrews (good culture).

LOL -- Bullis is not MAGA! Do you have a kid there? I do (3 kids) and I can assure you that Bullis isn't MAGA.

[Anonymous]

I believe kids playing in MLS NEXT can’t even play for their school. Is that true? If so, the athletics won’t matter as much, go where he’ll be happy and enjoy his HS experience.

[Anonymous]

There are waivers! His club can get him one for private, but not for public, it’s messed up but what can you do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you are considering Catholic schools and soccer is his sport, The Heights could have been worth a look. They have a great team and rigorous, classical education. Very conservative though, which may not be for everyone.

He did not want an all boys education. The Heights was a top choice otherwise!

You are aware that Prep is all boys right?

[Anonymous]

We have 2 kids at Bullis, one is in the Upper School. He is a very strong athlete and plays on a high level club team. He has enjoyed trying out some different sports at Bullis, along with playing his main sport. While the school team is not as strong as his club team, he loves playing-it is such a different experience playing a high school game with so many of your peers cheering you on than the basically parent only crowd at his club games. The college counseling team provides support for families navigating the NCAA.
The resources at Bullis are great. For a child that loves science, the labs and other technology offerings are fantastic. We have also been very impressed with the Arts department.
There has been staff turnover, but there have been a lot of changes over the past 6 years with higher up positions, so I think it’s natural that people come and go as things settle-new HOS, new lower school head (previous one retired), new upper school head (previous one took another head position to be closer to family a distance away) , new middle school head (previous one retired).
My children are extremely happy. The academics are strong and you, as a student, can really lean in and push yourself, if you choose to. I have one child that is all in academically and one that is not. The faculty support for both is strong. The school works very hard at building relationships with students, in our experience. We are not close to the wealth of many families at Bullis, but no one really cares, and if they do, we haven’t felt it. It is an inclusive community with many opportunities to get involved, should you choose to.
Good luck with admissions and your decision. All of your options are good ones!

[Anonymous]

Prep is the sexiest

[Anonymous]

My kids are at Bullis. We know a handful of maga families but FAR more liberal families. We also get FA. We know other families who do, families who budget a lot to afford Bullis, families who get family help to attend, and families who are uber wealthy. We’ve been at Bullis a long time and never had a situation where we were uncomfortable about our financial situation, even though we are at the lower end for Bullis.

[Anonymous]

At St Andrew's, it depends on the sport. Some once-strong sports are languishing mostly because of coaches who don't seem to have the time of day to foster team bonding, mentor students into sports leadership roles, or communicate to parents in a timely way. The best coach at the school left for Good Counsel a few years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Prep MAGA
Good Counsel MAGA

Bullis or none.

Bullis is very much MAGA and has absurd teacher turnover—friend’s kid had teachers leave mid year (3 of their teachers in one year once) every year of HS!

Prep would be your best choice, follow by St. Andrews (good culture).

Prep would definitely be my choice over St. Andrew's.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Prep MAGA
Good Counsel MAGA

Bullis or none.

Bullis is very much MAGA and has absurd teacher turnover—friend’s kid had teachers leave mid year (3 of their teachers in one year once) every year of HS!

Prep would be your best choice, follow by St. Andrews (good culture).

This hasn't been our Bullis experience at all. We have not had any issues with turnover. There may be a few MAGA but most everyone I have met is not.

Please refrain from "my friend's kid...." posts

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Prep MAGA
Good Counsel MAGA

Bullis or none.

Bullis is very much MAGA and has absurd teacher turnover—friend’s kid had teachers leave mid year (3 of their teachers in one year once) every year of HS!

Prep would be your best choice, follow by St. Andrews (good culture).

This hasn't been our Bullis experience at all. We have not had any issues with turnover. There may be a few MAGA but most everyone I have met is not.

Please refrain from "my friend's kid...." posts

Almost half the teachers in the upper school alone quit last year… An email went out to families about it. Also, the school got rid of their DEI director a while ago and never replaced that role despite numerous issues… These problems seem like red flags.

Prep is the smart choice. Good culture. Good institutional history. Very little faculty turnover.

[Anonymous]

Bullis for sports.
Prep for prestige.
Good Counsel for warm environment and experience.

If your child was unable to participate in sports tomorrow, which would be the best option for them? If they went to GC, would he be top of his class/top in athletics? What will quality of life be at any of these schools? I feel like you already answered your own question in your post <3

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you want him to be with rich kids or middle class kids?

Which one has the middle class kids? GC? Bullis had an air about it.

Bullis family of 9 years here and I do have to agree with this. It is a great school, challenging, and they are really starting to promote sports again. However, it most definitely has an air about it and there is a lot of entitlement which feels like it’s become more prevalent with the growth of the school. That said, it’s a solid choice if that doesn’t bother you.