Potomac parents are SO ANNOYING

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why did the comment about board / former board members / prez getting notified a few days prior to decision day get deleted …?

Did it name names?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why did the comment about board / former board members / prez getting notified a few days prior to decision day get deleted …?

See page 12... the deletion was discussed there

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

...it was said by a donating alumni who still holds the school in a positive light as an explanation for why this culture shows up...

A "donating alumni?"
How the heck would they know? There's literally hundreds of them in the area trying and failing to get their own kids into Potomac.
There is nobody who can simply write a recommendation and guarantee someone admission. This is true at pretty much every selective school.

-spouse of "donating" ex-board member

I'm saying they were dropping it as someone with a positive overall perception of Potomac... I'm certain they aren't going to doxx themselves by giving that much information as to how they know beyond they have been part of this system for generations... but also knowing how this town and private school works, their takes read far more informed than yours.

Yep, you're just making stuff up.

They gave a very real lived experience. You gave yourself a title to flex 🤷‍♀️ I wasn't born yesterday and I'm not new to DC or the private school systems here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

We're doing full credential checks on anonymous commenters but admissions is apparently run by a Roomba? incredible 😂

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why did the comment about board / former board members / prez getting notified a few days prior to decision day get deleted …?

Did it name names?

Nope not even gender

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

Because you are jumping into a conversation without identifying yourself as a new participant. That's what all the NP DP PP OP crap is

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

Oh and those "behind closed doors" conversations don't generally happen with ex board members driving the conversation at any private school. These are very selective schools, when someone that doesn't meet the standards gets in, it might be because their last name is on a building but it is never because some guy knew a guy that was on the board at one point. It is almost never because some rich family bought their way in. This is just not how any private school does business, they can't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

Because you are jumping into a conversation without identifying yourself as a new participant. That's what all the NP DP PP OP crap is

not the anonymous roll call requirements 💀this is a multiperson anonymous forum… not TSA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

Oh and those "behind closed doors" conversations don't generally happen with ex board members driving the conversation at any private school. These are very selective schools, when someone that doesn't meet the standards gets in, it might be because their last name is on a building but it is never because some guy knew a guy that was on the board at one point. It is almost never because some rich family bought their way in. This is just not how any private school does business, they can't.

There are kids who get in simply by donation after not meeting the criteria.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

Oh and those "behind closed doors" conversations don't generally happen with ex board members driving the conversation at any private school. These are very selective schools, when someone that doesn't meet the standards gets in, it might be because their last name is on a building but it is never because some guy knew a guy that was on the board at one point. It is almost never because some rich family bought their way in. This is just not how any private school does business, they can't.

There are kids who get in simply by donation after not meeting the criteria.

Generally not if their family has no prior relationship with the school. There are many ultra rich families that get rejected from all the selective privates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

Oh and those "behind closed doors" conversations don't generally happen with ex board members driving the conversation at any private school. These are very selective schools, when someone that doesn't meet the standards gets in, it might be because their last name is on a building but it is never because some guy knew a guy that was on the board at one point. It is almost never because some rich family bought their way in. This is just not how any private school does business, they can't.

I get why it seems that way, but once you’ve seen how it actually works, it’s hard to unsee. this isn’t theoretical for everyone here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Potomac is Virginia’s desperate attempt to fit in with the upper crust of DC private schools. Will never compare.

The Potomac parents in this thread will act defensively in response to this statement, proving my point.

Upper crust? ROFLMAO. Sidwell is famous for being socio-economically inclusive. Potomac is way snobbier (and i mean that in a bad way) than Sidwell, NCS/STA/GDA

I feel like you would really fit in with some of the parents at Potomac talking about upper crust. Pfft.

You realize the PP you responded to was trashing Potomac, right? Also upper crust just means the highest ranking. Not necessarily the snobbiest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Potomac is Virginia’s desperate attempt to fit in with the upper crust of DC private schools. Will never compare.

The Potomac parents in this thread will act defensively in response to this statement, proving my point.

Upper crust? ROFLMAO. Sidwell is famous for being socio-economically inclusive. Potomac is way snobbier (and i mean that in a bad way) than Sidwell, NCS/STA/GDA

I feel like you would really fit in with some of the parents at Potomac talking about upper crust. Pfft.

Insecure Sidwell parent chimes in, as usual.

I’m a Sidwell parent, but jeez, some of these parents really can’t handle anything remotely negative being said about Sidwell.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It mentioned how there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school. This doesn’t help the toxic culture at the school nor does the fact that some families are also accepted simply based on the size of their perceived wallet. It’s sad that some schools like Potomac do this to appease parents and forget to consider fit for the child.

I think you are lying when you claim that whenever a former board president writes a recommendation, it is a guarantee of acceptance. I know a former board president with his family name on one of the buildings that can't guarantee acceptance with a recommendation. Which former board president are you talking about?

I think you are lying when you claim that families are accepted based on the perceived size of their wallet. Potomac regularly turns away wealthy families, either because the child is not an academic or social fit for the school.

It's one thing to make subjective judgments about how annoying the parents at Potomac are, but you are making false factual claims.

That’s fine for you to think that 👌

So which former board president are you talking about?

Names get removed so you aren't going to get an answer.

It's because the name doesn't exist. Nobody is guaranteed admission because a former board chairman wrote them a recommendation. I don't even think it would help very much. A great recommendation from their previous teacher is probably more impactful.

If you're going to lie, make it something believable. This just seems like someone bitter about being rejected by Potomac that wants to believe the admissions process is so corrupt that their Larlo never stood a chance. Their Larlo never stood a chance because their Larlo is just not competitive in the pool of applicants.

This is not a lie - just chiming in for the first time. I do know a few of the people who have benefited from these recommendations as well as many who were excepted simply by donation. Every school has a back door. There is nothing wrong with pointing that out. However, when schools have a major bullying problem and wonder why - it’s worth noting this backdoor.

I am skeptical that board member recommendations make a difference unless there is information in the recommendation that is not obvious elsewhere. Board members get approached for letters of recommendations all the time and its hard to say no without being insulting. These recommendations probably do not help.

Large donations probably do help but my experience is that these donations come from families with generational ties to the school not just naked displays of wealth.

I think an in person conversation behind closed doors is very different than a letter of recommendation. Yes, board members get asked for letters of recommendation all the time, but it is the conversations that aren't recorded that make a difference.

You're changing the claim that was made. The original claim was:

"there is a former board president that writes recs - whenever they write a rec the family is guaranteed acceptance to the school."

And who do you think this ex-board member would have this "behind closed doors" conversation with?

Why am I getting the feeling that you don't even have kids in private school?

Because I'm not the PP who wrote the "writes a rec" and I wouldn't have said it that way. Why do you assume this thread consists of one person? There are multiple people here.

Oh and those "behind closed doors" conversations don't generally happen with ex board members driving the conversation at any private school. These are very selective schools, when someone that doesn't meet the standards gets in, it might be because their last name is on a building but it is never because some guy knew a guy that was on the board at one point. It is almost never because some rich family bought their way in. This is just not how any private school does business, they can't.

There are kids who get in simply by donation after not meeting the criteria.

Generally not if their family has no prior relationship with the school. There are many ultra rich families that get rejected from all the selective privates.

Generally is the key word here 🙄 Compared to other privates - Potomac is one you are more likely able to buy your way in to.