SSSAS - what is the culture like currently?

[Anonymous]

Our daughter started in sixth grade and is now in upper school. Middle school academics were great and the advisories were very helpful. The "mean girl" student body was the biggest problem, as my daughter had not encountered that in her public elementary school, at least not to that degree. I fully agree with the people who wrote about some of the children reflecting their parents' personality. This is only a minority of the student body, but it only takes a few to make life very miserable. I found that the school was generally supportive when I raised concerns and, unlike the public middle school we're zoned for, we actually had people who would listen and address our problems. Upper school is so much better socially, as the number of students increases, and those who join in upper school tend not to be from the insular wealthy Alexandria crowd.

[Anonymous]

Regarding BI vs SSSAS, if 35K extra a year is going to mean the difference between taking out loans for college or not, and you don’t qualify for aid, I’d say yeah consider BI. But that really doesn’t make BI “better” and in fact
I think it’s not hard to argue that SSSAS is obviously “better” in terms of facilities and opportunities.

I know BI is a natural comparison to SSSAS because they’re both in Alexandria, but many of the families at the lower school didn’t necessarily start in Alexandria (and for obvious reasons didn’t look at BI, which starts in 9th). They looked at least casually at lots of schools in the DC area (in the 50K range that independent schools here cost) because they were willing to move to be near a school community. There are also a number of families who came from (to name a few I know personally) Beauvoir and NCS/STA, Potomac, St Pats, and Langley. So despite those who would argue otherwise, the natural comparison for most families is other independent schools in DC, not Alexandria Catholic or public schools.

It goes without saying that the independent schools I listed above (along with others like Sidwell) are fabulous schools. Some are probably more challenging than St Stephen’s because they primarily have highly intelligent and hard working kids whereas St Stephen’s has a real variety of students with different interests and abilities. Some have better facilities (like Potomac!) because they have more families happy to donate millions. Some (like the Cathedral schools) might be better for those who want to live in the district.

But what St Stephen’s has, I think, is a unique blend of rigor (not the most rigorous for all kids all the time but certainly enough for top notch performers), support (why it’s often identified as not being a pressure cooker), community (the size and scale of Alexandria City contributes to this I think), athletics (all kids participate and the school is small enough that all kids CAN participate, even if that means they aren’t the “best” at every sport), and tradition and history (an extremely active alumni community, lots of enduring traditions that builds bonds etc).

So if rigor were my sole criterion perhaps we would have sent our kids to Sidwell or a Cathedral school; if sports were all I cared about maybe Gonzaga or Visi would be a top pick; if community were the only thing I needed I’d probably be happy with a solid Montessori school for the lower grades and a Falls Church City or Bethesda public high school. If prestige were all I cared about frankly I should have moved to NYC, because no one outside DC cares about DC schools (yes, even Sidwell).

But St Stephen’s is like the Goldilocks of DC schools. Enough rigor if my kid is ready for it; enough support if she needs it. Athletics for when my kid is in a sporty stage but a solid arts scene for when he suddenly wants to do musical theater. Community for me and my partner; tradition for when the kids are grown.

Plus, Alexandria is an awesome place to live. And perhaps the parent community at St Stephen’s is not as down to earth as public school parents (or so I hear) but they are SO much more down to earth than many of the aforementioned independent schools in DC (and I speak from experience).

Anyway we all just want the right fit for our kid and our family, and that means we’ll all want different things. But my family, and those of many of my friends, are extremely happy with the mix of rigor, support, community etc that St Stephen’s provides.

[Anonymous]

I posted about the arts program and Cappies. In response to the person who asked why we wouldn’t have selected BI, the answer is because we aren’t Catholic and that is a large Catholic. And we don’t live in Alexandria. So we were looking at FH, Potomac, some in DC and in Maryland. No Catholic and mostly coed. Regarding the AP question, those are not formally taught at Potomac, Sidwell or the Cathedral schools. Yes, students attending those schools can and do take the tests. But they aren’t offered and based on my experience talking with parents of students at those schools, they take the major academic APs because those are easier to prepare for via a tutor. APs offered in the arts or higher level languages aren’t done as much at the schools that don’t offer the classes. SSSAS has many AP options. Children have to be approved to take the classes based on their grades. Regarding arts, we looked at many schools. Some had a less than robust arts program. For example FH offers theater but very little in terms of theater classes and they don’t have strings or an orchestra at all. Unexpectedly Bullis has a great program but it wasn’t a fit logistically. St Albans and NCS require sports and theater is done AFTER sports (starting at 6pm) and does not count as an activity credit. Potomac allows some theater to be swapped for some sports but not completely. In other words, those schools place a higher priority on sports and theater suffers as a result. For families that don’t do theater, it is a non-issue. I hope that helped answer some questions. In the end we are spread across several schools and I am an alum of a local school. They are mostly all great but fit does matter. And my general point is that there are some amazing people at every school and some really rotten people at every school. There is not a single school filled with amazing perfect people that everyone likes. Doesn’t exist. But there seems to be a lot of hate on here about SSSAS and I think it is a few people with an ax to grind. Stop grinding the ax and move on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think there are a few loud voices. We are very happy and frankly so is everyone we know. We have experience at other DC privates and the existence of bullies, annoying behaviors and snobby parents is at every single school. And completely disagree that it isn’t worth it. If you spend the time to really explore the schools SSSAS “competes” against, it has certain things those schools do not. Whether those matter to you or your child is what will determine if those are valuable to you. They have the most comprehensive music and performing arts program of ANY DC private. Full stop. The graduation certificate adds another element to it. It is one very few privates that is nominated or wins Cappies with any regularity. It also has a very robust study abroad and a foreign language certificate that makes the program have more depth. No other DC private that we considered came close for those two. It also has the most AP options, including in music and art, of any mainstream Private we looked at and for us, that is a positive. Now, is the boys soccer amazing? I doubt it but that doesn’t matter to me.
I think there are some loud cranky parents on here and maybe they should go to another school that fits their needs better.

This is a weird post imho. Re: Cappies, BI is down the street and $35,000 LESS per year and they are nominated for and win Cappies consistently. I’m curious re: the music programs claims and how you can even make that assessment. And lots of schools offer extensive study/serve abroad programs and I’ve never heard anyone care about a language certificate.

-signed parent who looked at SSASS but did not think it was worth it

I just posted as a former SSSAS family. I wouldn’t tout the CAPPIES - look at the list of schools involved. There’s not a single good private on that list. Sure, brag that you win vs Publics that have minimal budgets.

Whatever. 🙄 The Cappies are a big deal whatever school you go to and you are a snob.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Regarding BI vs SSSAS, if 35K extra a year is going to mean the difference between taking out loans for college or not, and you don’t qualify for aid, I’d say yeah consider BI. But that really doesn’t make BI “better” and in fact
I think it’s not hard to argue that SSSAS is obviously “better” in terms of facilities and opportunities.

I know BI is a natural comparison to SSSAS because they’re both in Alexandria, but many of the families at the lower school didn’t necessarily start in Alexandria (and for obvious reasons didn’t look at BI, which starts in 9th). They looked at least casually at lots of schools in the DC area (in the 50K range that independent schools here cost) because they were willing to move to be near a school community. There are also a number of families who came from (to name a few I know personally) Beauvoir and NCS/STA, Potomac, St Pats, and Langley. So despite those who would argue otherwise, the natural comparison for most families is other independent schools in DC, not Alexandria Catholic or public schools.

It goes without saying that the independent schools I listed above (along with others like Sidwell) are fabulous schools. Some are probably more challenging than St Stephen’s because they primarily have highly intelligent and hard working kids whereas St Stephen’s has a real variety of students with different interests and abilities. Some have better facilities (like Potomac!) because they have more families happy to donate millions. Some (like the Cathedral schools) might be better for those who want to live in the district.

But what St Stephen’s has, I think, is a unique blend of rigor (not the most rigorous for all kids all the time but certainly enough for top notch performers), support (why it’s often identified as not being a pressure cooker), community (the size and scale of Alexandria City contributes to this I think), athletics (all kids participate and the school is small enough that all kids CAN participate, even if that means they aren’t the “best” at every sport), and tradition and history (an extremely active alumni community, lots of enduring traditions that builds bonds etc).

So if rigor were my sole criterion perhaps we would have sent our kids to Sidwell or a Cathedral school; if sports were all I cared about maybe Gonzaga or Visi would be a top pick; if community were the only thing I needed I’d probably be happy with a solid Montessori school for the lower grades and a Falls Church City or Bethesda public high school. If prestige were all I cared about frankly I should have moved to NYC, because no one outside DC cares about DC schools (yes, even Sidwell).

But St Stephen’s is like the Goldilocks of DC schools. Enough rigor if my kid is ready for it; enough support if she needs it. Athletics for when my kid is in a sporty stage but a solid arts scene for when he suddenly wants to do musical theater. Community for me and my partner; tradition for when the kids are grown.

Plus, Alexandria is an awesome place to live. And perhaps the parent community at St Stephen’s is not as down to earth as public school parents (or so I hear) but they are SO much more down to earth than many of the aforementioned independent schools in DC (and I speak from experience).

Anyway we all just want the right fit for our kid and our family, and that means we’ll all want different things. But my family, and those of many of my friends, are extremely happy with the mix of rigor, support, community etc that St Stephen’s provides.

I have a senior at SSSAS and the bolded part is spot on and very well said. My son started in middle school and has had an overall really great experience. The senior class is especially close, supportive and appreciative of each other. Their beach week is in the Dominican Republic next week and 85% of the class is going (along with more than 50 parents).

The kids are smart and they care about school without being overly competitive. Teachers are always available for extra help and there is a dedicated STAT (student teacher appointment time) each day which really normalizes going to see your teachers. (They start this in MS.) While my sons extracurricular activities lean more towards athletics and he will be playing a sport in college, but he has friends in his class that have all types of interests.

The parents in our class are also really great. Everyone is friendly, down to earth and inclusive.

Saturday (graduation) will be hard for all of us.

[Anonymous]

An inclusive school where most of the students can afford to take an international beach week vacation. I wonder how the financial aid families feel about that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regarding BI vs SSSAS, if 35K extra a year is going to mean the difference between taking out loans for college or not, and you don’t qualify for aid, I’d say yeah consider BI. But that really doesn’t make BI “better” and in fact
I think it’s not hard to argue that SSSAS is obviously “better” in terms of facilities and opportunities.

I know BI is a natural comparison to SSSAS because they’re both in Alexandria, but many of the families at the lower school didn’t necessarily start in Alexandria (and for obvious reasons didn’t look at BI, which starts in 9th). They looked at least casually at lots of schools in the DC area (in the 50K range that independent schools here cost) because they were willing to move to be near a school community. There are also a number of families who came from (to name a few I know personally) Beauvoir and NCS/STA, Potomac, St Pats, and Langley. So despite those who would argue otherwise, the natural comparison for most families is other independent schools in DC, not Alexandria Catholic or public schools.

It goes without saying that the independent schools I listed above (along with others like Sidwell) are fabulous schools. Some are probably more challenging than St Stephen’s because they primarily have highly intelligent and hard working kids whereas St Stephen’s has a real variety of students with different interests and abilities. Some have better facilities (like Potomac!) because they have more families happy to donate millions. Some (like the Cathedral schools) might be better for those who want to live in the district.

But what St Stephen’s has, I think, is a unique blend of rigor (not the most rigorous for all kids all the time but certainly enough for top notch performers), support (why it’s often identified as not being a pressure cooker), community (the size and scale of Alexandria City contributes to this I think), athletics (all kids participate and the school is small enough that all kids CAN participate, even if that means they aren’t the “best” at every sport), and tradition and history (an extremely active alumni community, lots of enduring traditions that builds bonds etc).

So if rigor were my sole criterion perhaps we would have sent our kids to Sidwell or a Cathedral school; if sports were all I cared about maybe Gonzaga or Visi would be a top pick; if community were the only thing I needed I’d probably be happy with a solid Montessori school for the lower grades and a Falls Church City or Bethesda public high school. If prestige were all I cared about frankly I should have moved to NYC, because no one outside DC cares about DC schools (yes, even Sidwell).

But St Stephen’s is like the Goldilocks of DC schools. Enough rigor if my kid is ready for it; enough support if she needs it. Athletics for when my kid is in a sporty stage but a solid arts scene for when he suddenly wants to do musical theater. Community for me and my partner; tradition for when the kids are grown.

Plus, Alexandria is an awesome place to live. And perhaps the parent community at St Stephen’s is not as down to earth as public school parents (or so I hear) but they are SO much more down to earth than many of the aforementioned independent schools in DC (and I speak from experience).

Anyway we all just want the right fit for our kid and our family, and that means we’ll all want different things. But my family, and those of many of my friends, are extremely happy with the mix of rigor, support, community etc that St Stephen’s provides.

I have a senior at SSSAS and the bolded part is spot on and very well said. My son started in middle school and has had an overall really great experience. The senior class is especially close, supportive and appreciative of each other. Their beach week is in the Dominican Republic next week and 85% of the class is going (along with more than 50 parents).

The kids are smart and they care about school without being overly competitive. Teachers are always available for extra help and there is a dedicated STAT (student teacher appointment time) each day which really normalizes going to see your teachers. (They start this in MS.) While my sons extracurricular activities lean more towards athletics and he will be playing a sport in college, but he has friends in his class that have all types of interests.

The parents in our class are also really great. Everyone is friendly, down to earth and inclusive.

Saturday (graduation) will be hard for all of us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An inclusive school where most of the students can afford to take an international beach week vacation. I wonder how the financial aid families feel about that.

Anonymous wrote:

As a FA family, I don't have an issue with that, and knowing it's a thing I'd work to budget so our child could be included.

[Anonymous]

It's often cheaper to fly to DR than it is to go to FL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's often cheaper to fly to DR than it is to go to FL.

“Cheaper” and “affordable to families that are on financial aid” are two very different concepts.

[Anonymous]

I thought Club Med banned them from coming back after what happened a few years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's often cheaper to fly to DR than it is to go to FL.

They go because the drinking age is 18 there. Ask anyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I posted about the arts program and Cappies. In response to the person who asked why we wouldn’t have selected BI, the answer is because we aren’t Catholic and that is a large Catholic. And we don’t live in Alexandria. So we were looking at FH, Potomac, some in DC and in Maryland. No Catholic and mostly coed. Regarding the AP question, those are not formally taught at Potomac, Sidwell or the Cathedral schools. Yes, students attending those schools can and do take the tests. But they aren’t offered and based on my experience talking with parents of students at those schools, they take the major academic APs because those are easier to prepare for via a tutor. APs offered in the arts or higher level languages aren’t done as much at the schools that don’t offer the classes. SSSAS has many AP options. Children have to be approved to take the classes based on their grades. Regarding arts, we looked at many schools. Some had a less than robust arts program. For example FH offers theater but very little in terms of theater classes and they don’t have strings or an orchestra at all. Unexpectedly Bullis has a great program but it wasn’t a fit logistically. St Albans and NCS require sports and theater is done AFTER sports (starting at 6pm) and does not count as an activity credit. Potomac allows some theater to be swapped for some sports but not completely. In other words, those schools place a higher priority on sports and theater suffers as a result. For families that don’t do theater, it is a non-issue. I hope that helped answer some questions. In the end we are spread across several schools and I am an alum of a local school. They are mostly all great but fit does matter. And my general point is that there are some amazing people at every school and some really rotten people at every school. There is not a single school filled with amazing perfect people that everyone likes. Doesn’t exist. But there seems to be a lot of hate on here about SSSAS and I think it is a few people with an ax to grind. Stop grinding the ax and move on.

We are now a Potomac family, and that is just not true at all about sports and theater. You can do all performing arts instead of any sports if you'd like. You do need at least one per year to be something where you get some movement in, but the musicals count as movement/"sweaty". The Potomac theater and arts program and facilities are light years ahead of SSSAS (we are a former SSSAS family). Potomac also offers a VPAC (visual performing arts) concentration in US. You apply to that but can do it for theater, music, visual arts, singing, etc. Alums who come back often comment that the classes were better and more rigorous than those they are taking in college. The music and arts program is truly phenomenal and has been a highlight for my children. The weak program at SSSAS was one (of many) reasons that we left. I don't mean to be grinding the ax but don't spread mis-information about other schools.

Several of the top privates (Sidwell, potomac, etc) all decided to drop official AP classes at the same time. Honors classes at Potomac are essentially the same, and the school will arrange for you to sit for any AP test at school that you want.

[Anonymous]

The DR trip is less than 1k a person and the have aid for those that need it.

I agree with Goldilocks comment - it’s a great middle ground. Mine are pretty high achieving but I didn’t want them in a pressure cooker. My oldest got into her first choice school, a top 10. It’s not snobby at all compared to places like Potomac. I like the somewhat mediocre sports - good enough to compete but not so good that normal solid athletes can’t play.

I would say if your child is very very high achieving (above 1550 SAT type kid), it’s not the best place. But otherwise, it has a lot of pros.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought Club Med banned them from coming back after what happened a few years ago.

No they did not. They have been going every year for at least 5 years at this point.

[Anonymous]

If SSSAS has an extremely active alumni community why are they still short millions for an already built science center? Alumni should value their school more and give generously. They don’t, it’s just a fact.