Looking into St. Andrew's Episcopal in Potomac for HS

[Anonymous]

My reply just above, didn’t mean to put the quotes around my response too!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nice school, but not worth that price tag.

It's a safety for rich Potomac families whose kids don't have the academic chops to get onto St Albans, etc

We have one child who went to Sidwell and one to St. Andrew's. St. Andrew's was definitely more bang for the buck. BTW, we live in Chevy Chase and found that the bus to SAES was very reliable.

DP here with a kid in SFS LS. Curious what you mean by "bang for the buck"? SAES tuition and fees very similar. Is it facilities, experience, or ...?

Much better instruction and college counseling at SAES.

[Anonymous]

St. Andrew’s is for the most part a lovely community, open and inclusive in spirit in the broadest possible ways. For most it is a wonderful experience. The challenge with St. Andrew’s is there is a small but dominant contingent of families that do not embrace diversity in the broadest sense - of curriculum, thought, and community. Children from those families become more influential than they merit and promote a suburban culture of privilege, elitism, and lack of care for the school community and diverse elements of the world at large.
This leads to pockets of bullying and peer influenced substance abuse. That, combined with an administration that means well but also is blind to or incapable of handling the discord is unsettling.

SAES is the little engine that could - if only it owned up to and addressed the flaws of the few that spoils the benefits for the many.

[Anonymous]

Sounds like those families just don't embrace diversity the way PP defines it. Sayin that leads to substance abuse seems like quite a stretch.

[Anonymous]

We are a long time SAES family, and the school has been a good fit for our children. However, PP’s comments are valid. The school’s administration is known for turning away from difficult disciplinary issues. Perhaps it’s because such issues are rare, but when they do surface there is too much room left for harm. It makes us sad as we know families who have left the community as a result. Sometimes I wonder if the administration even acknowledges their own culpability in those situations. Several senior administrators have been there for MANY years, so transitions must be coming soon and with that, and the general kindness in the community, there is always hope.

[Anonymous]

In other words, they stick to expelling the Chinese kids.

[Anonymous]

Glad to hear disciplinary issues are rare, but sorry to hear some parents have not been satisfied with how they have been handled when they arose. Our youngest graduated four years ago and we really didn’t see any serious discipline problems while they attended or hear complaints about how they were handled.

The discussion above is a bit confusing to me. Like almost all privates, there always was an element of the school that was a bit flashier with money (referred to above re Potomac but actually a mixture of DC and Md) but that always seemed like a minority of the classes to me and our kids had little interaction with them outside of school. Our kids had lots of friends - From DC to Darnstown (including Potomac, Bethesda and Silver Spring) and they were and are great kids. My sense of the school administration and faculty is that it definitely leans left, so when a poster earlier implied the school fell short on diversity of thought I would have assumed the poster was complaining that SAWS wasn’t as welcoming of views from the right or at least that were not progressive, but then when the same poster tied the complaint to a Potomac privileged culture it seemed s/he was coming from the left, not the right. So I’m not sure I understand.

[Anonymous]

Apologies - above poster never mentioned Potomac - just “suburban culture of privilege, elitism,” etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nice school, but not worth that price tag.

It's a safety for rich Potomac families whose kids don't have the academic chops to get onto St Albans, etc

Snobby Nonsense from someone who appears to confuse children with static status symbols rather than people with vibrant needs. Our DC flourished there and graduated in top 1% of country according to AP and SAT/ ACT results. Now in a top PhD program. SAES was our first choice. It has dedicated teaching staff who are trained in reaching different types of learners and has a lot of emphasis on happiness, kindness and respect. The latter EQ actually helps many students to do better academically - even though that is only one part of learning.

I love the sound of St Andrew's! I wish I could find that type of school for our DC who will soon be applying to high school in Boston.
Would you say the emphasis on student happiness is an Episcopalian school value (ie could one expect a similar vibe at other Episcopalian schools?) or natural byproduct of school's understanding of neuroscience and neurodiversity?

Not sure because the two leading Washington Diocese Episcopalian schools in DC (National Cathedral and St Albans) have reputations as snobby pressure cookers. However, many other Episcopal schools seem to have Episcopal welcoming values. St Andrew’s was started by Episcopal parents several decades ago as a bit of an alternative Washington Diocesan School that would Embrace diverse learners.
The heavy emphasis on neuroscience informed teaching (that can become too jargon ladden at times) probably
Evolved out of the original mission but makes good use of more recent extensive research into neuro diversity and learning.

Some folks sound defensive that the school has a background or is known as a place that helps neurodiverse learners as though that’s a bad thing. Now maybe it’s not that way NOW but it was known to be that way 20 or more years ago. I had good friends who attended. They did not have learning issues themselves so it was t 100% for neurodiverse learners but the school was thought to have been created with that in mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Glad to hear disciplinary issues are rare, but sorry to hear some parents have not been satisfied with how they have been handled when they arose. Our youngest graduated four years ago and we really didn’t see any serious discipline problems while they attended or hear complaints about how they were handled.

The discussion above is a bit confusing to me. Like almost all privates, there always was an element of the school that was a bit flashier with money (referred to above re Potomac but actually a mixture of DC and Md) but that always seemed like a minority of the classes to me and our kids had little interaction with them outside of school. Our kids had lots of friends - From DC to Darnstown (including Potomac, Bethesda and Silver Spring) and they were and are great kids. My sense of the school administration and faculty is that it definitely leans left, so when a poster earlier implied the school fell short on diversity of thought I would have assumed the poster was complaining that SAWS wasn’t as welcoming of views from the right or at least that were not progressive, but then when the same poster tied the complaint to a Potomac privileged culture it seemed s/he was coming from the left, not the right. So I’m not sure I understand.

I was also confused by that post, particularly the reference to a "dominant" culture. It can't be that "dominat" when you and I are both scratching our heads wondering to whom they are referring. There are some priviilged, country club kids as there are at all private schools. But, just like you, my kids have a diverse set of friends from a wide swath of the region. I've had kids in the MS/HS for 5+ years and don't know what dominant culture the PP is talking about. That said, I am sure the school is not perfect and the PP likely has valid concerns related to specific disciplinary decisions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nice school, but not worth that price tag.

It's a safety for rich Potomac families whose kids don't have the academic chops to get onto St Albans, etc

Snobby Nonsense from someone who appears to confuse children with static status symbols rather than people with vibrant needs. Our DC flourished there and graduated in top 1% of country according to AP and SAT/ ACT results. Now in a top PhD program. SAES was our first choice. It has dedicated teaching staff who are trained in reaching different types of learners and has a lot of emphasis on happiness, kindness and respect. The latter EQ actually helps many students to do better academically - even though that is only one part of learning.

I love the sound of St Andrew's! I wish I could find that type of school for our DC who will soon be applying to high school in Boston.
Would you say the emphasis on student happiness is an Episcopalian school value (ie could one expect a similar vibe at other Episcopalian schools?) or natural byproduct of school's understanding of neuroscience and neurodiversity?

Not sure because the two leading Washington Diocese Episcopalian schools in DC (National Cathedral and St Albans) have reputations as snobby pressure cookers. However, many other Episcopal schools seem to have Episcopal welcoming values. St Andrew’s was started by Episcopal parents several decades ago as a bit of an alternative Washington Diocesan School that would Embrace diverse learners.
The heavy emphasis on neuroscience informed teaching (that can become too jargon ladden at times) probably
Evolved out of the original mission but makes good use of more recent extensive research into neuro diversity and learning.

Some folks sound defensive that the school has a background or is known as a place that helps neurodiverse learners as though that’s a bad thing. Now maybe it’s not that way NOW but it was known to be that way 20 or more years ago. I had good friends who attended. They did not have learning issues themselves so it was t 100% for neurodiverse learners but the school was thought to have been created with that in mind.

This is misinformation. St Andrew’s was founded to teach in the manner of the episcopal education model and serve as an alternate to the more establishment area episcopal schools. In the process admission included a broader range of learners, but only because there was demand and capacity, not because their mission specifically referenced it. SAES is not a school like McLean, designed and with a specific mission to help such learners. Over time St. Andrew’s developed a reputation for such, but it was not based on strategic intention. Now unfortunately the reputation is broadly enough held that occasionally families end up at SAES with kids with needs greater than the school can accommodate. That becomes a recipe for disaster. There is a whole contingent of kids who started at SAES and ended up at McLean, Sienna, and other schools.

St. Andrew’s is a lovey school - a terrific alternative to the more competitive programs. However not every student is a match for SAES and the school too often leaves families to figure this out on their own - which really is a disservice.

[Anonymous]

There was a point in time about 15 years ago when SAES had 100% of their teachers attend training of a program called “All Kinds of Minds.” Unfortunately, tjst peogram became associated with “kids with different learning styles” which, in turn, was misunderstood by some as targeting kids with special needs. SAES eventually realized this and ultimately made a break with that program (longer story not relevant here), and formed CTTL which focussed on teacher training explicitly for all students - including the strongest. Of course, the very best students there benefit usually less from that than others (those who can really teach themselves), but overall the program is positive. For one thing, it adds an additional layer of academic professionalism for the faculty which, in turn, helps to retain the best teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nice school, but not worth that price tag.

It's a safety for rich Potomac families whose kids don't have the academic chops to get onto St Albans, etc

Snobby Nonsense from someone who appears to confuse children with static status symbols rather than people with vibrant needs. Our DC flourished there and graduated in top 1% of country according to AP and SAT/ ACT results. Now in a top PhD program. SAES was our first choice. It has dedicated teaching staff who are trained in reaching different types of learners and has a lot of emphasis on happiness, kindness and respect. The latter EQ actually helps many students to do better academically - even though that is only one part of learning.

I love the sound of St Andrew's! I wish I could find that type of school for our DC who will soon be applying to high school in Boston.
Would you say the emphasis on student happiness is an Episcopalian school value (ie could one expect a similar vibe at other Episcopalian schools?) or natural byproduct of school's understanding of neuroscience and neurodiversity?

Not sure because the two leading Washington Diocese Episcopalian schools in DC (National Cathedral and St Albans) have reputations as snobby pressure cookers. However, many other Episcopal schools seem to have Episcopal welcoming values. St Andrew’s was started by Episcopal parents several decades ago as a bit of an alternative Washington Diocesan School that would Embrace diverse learners.
The heavy emphasis on neuroscience informed teaching (that can become too jargon ladden at times) probably
Evolved out of the original mission but makes good use of more recent extensive research into neuro diversity and learning.

Some folks sound defensive that the school has a background or is known as a place that helps neurodiverse learners as though that’s a bad thing. Now maybe it’s not that way NOW but it was known to be that way 20 or more years ago. I had good friends who attended. They did not have learning issues themselves so it was t 100% for neurodiverse learners but the school was thought to have been created with that in mind.

This is misinformation. St Andrew’s was founded to teach in the manner of the episcopal education model and serve as an alternate to the more establishment area episcopal schools. In the process admission included a broader range of learners, but only because there was demand and capacity, not because their mission specifically referenced it. SAES is not a school like McLean, designed and with a specific mission to help such learners. Over time St. Andrew’s developed a reputation for such, but it was not based on strategic intention. Now unfortunately the reputation is broadly enough held that occasionally families end up at SAES with kids with needs greater than the school can accommodate. That becomes a recipe for disaster. There is a whole contingent of kids who started at SAES and ended up at McLean, Sienna, and other schools.

St. Andrew’s is a lovey school - a terrific alternative to the more competitive programs. However not every student is a match for SAES and the school too often leaves families to figure this out on their own - which really is a disservice.

OP here, thank you all for your input. Based on this last post, then how do we know our child is a good fit? We are thinking for next Fall '22 for 9th grade with the idea to do all high school years in one school. Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:St. Andrew’s is for the most part a lovely community, open and inclusive in spirit in the broadest possible ways. For most it is a wonderful experience. The challenge with St. Andrew’s is there is a small but dominant contingent of families that do not embrace diversity in the broadest sense - of curriculum, thought, and community. Children from those families become more influential than they merit and promote a suburban culture of privilege, elitism, and lack of care for the school community and diverse elements of the world at large.
This leads to pockets of bullying and peer influenced substance abuse. That, combined with an administration that means well but also is blind to or incapable of handling the discord is unsettling.

SAES is the little engine that could - if only it owned up to and addressed the flaws of the few that spoils the benefits for the many.

You are really using vague language here. And it isn’t helpful. If you are going to make a criticism, just do it. Are the kids spoiled? Does it lean to the right? Do minorities feel uncomfortable? Is there bullying. Please explain yourself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There was a point in time about 15 years ago when SAES had 100% of their teachers attend training of a program called “All Kinds of Minds.” Unfortunately, tjst peogram became associated with “kids with different learning styles” which, in turn, was misunderstood by some as targeting kids with special needs. SAES eventually realized this and ultimately made a break with that program (longer story not relevant here), and formed CTTL which focussed on teacher training explicitly for all students - including the strongest. Of course, the very best students there benefit usually less from that than others (those who can really teach themselves), but overall the program is positive. For one thing, it adds an additional layer of academic professionalism for the faculty which, in turn, helps to retain the best teachers.

Parent of SAES students here. Well said, PP.