Need more info about St. Patricks

[Anonymous]

For the early grades. The usual: class size, diversity/inclusion, teacher quality, facilities, any scandals, etc.

[Anonymous]

Please check the archives. St Patrick's is a much discussed school.

[Anonymous]

We absolutely LOVE St. Patricks. We feel its an absolute gem. This is our second year there.

The ratio in K is about 18 or 19 students per 2 full-time teachers. Regarding diversity, my DC has one Asian student and two African American students in DC's class. Probably more diverse than what we would have found at our local elementary school in Bethesda...

As for the teachers they are top notch. The administration in particular has been outstanding. The headmaster is Peter Barrett, who was formerly at St. Albans, and I feel so confident with him at the helm. Each of the division heads are also wonderful, very warm, accessible, and always talking about the latest trends and research in education. Just last week the head of the lower school was talking about gender differences in the classroom, and what research is saying about making sure both the needs of girls and boys (whose learning styles and curves can be very different) are met in the classroom.

Also, no scandals that I have ever been aware of.

Hope this answers some of your questions.

[Anonymous]

Ditto above. I have children in the nursery program and lower school, very, very happy children. Great resources. Great teachers. In three+ years we have had no complaints and lots and lots of praise to give. I have paid particular attention to the Math curriculum BTW, and the lower school integrates several different programs, picking and choosing portions, in order to overcome the deficiencies in each (such as Every Day Math). I am estatic over the resulting St Patrick's math curriculum. Them seem to have achieved a curriculum that both engages and locks in the key concepts. One other particularly amazing facet of the school is the faculty's appreciation and encouragement of good character, kindness, community responsibility, and good manners. They are really developing the whole child, both academically, creatively and the character/soul within. St Patricks was our first choice school, over what some posters refer to as the "top 3," and we have never regretted our decision.

[Anonymous]

We looked at it for our son, who was waitlisted, and liked it a lot. I think it is a bit of a well-kept secret. Just a lovely school.

[Anonymous]

We have had a child at the school for several years, and have been enormously happy. Peter Barrett is an amazing head of school. The teachers we have had have been uniformly outstanding. The parent body is friendly and welcoming (we are Washington nobodies). I must also second what the above poster said: the school really and truly does practice the values that many others only pay lip service to: responsibility, character, generosity towards others. Bottom line: it is a kind, warm place with a high academic standards, wonderful teachers and a welcoming community of parents.

[Anonymous]

What's the diversity like in both the the student body and the faculty?

[Anonymous]

I'm a parent at the school. I don't know the statistics of racial/socioeconomic/religious diveristy. African Americans are very well represented among the teaching staff and in the administration. In my child's class, 2 of the 18-19 kids are non-white. Last year it was 3 of 18. I don't know how to compare that to other schools. I don't get the sense that there is significant religious diversity; most families are Christian (which makes sense, since it is an Episcopalian school.) On socio-economic diversity - the parent body ranges all the way up and down the spectrum. It is not a place where money seems to matter much.
I also think a school's attitude is important. In that respect I think it is a genuinely open community: welcoming and accepting of all. But I would be curious to know if non-white or non-Christian families felt the same way. My sense is yes, but it is so hard to know.

[Anonymous]

I am also a parent. I am white. I do know that some of the African-America parents with whom I am good friends work with the admissions people and adminstration to identify and recruit minority students. I have the impression that they do feel the school should have more minority students but that there is an active and genuine effort to increase minority representation at the school.

[Anonymous]

I know a current St. Pats family that is not happy with the diversity. Apparently, there is only one AA student in the entire 6th grade. Can anyone confirm that?

[Anonymous]

I am not certain about the numbers in 6th grade, as my children are younger but, I do know that some of the upper grades do have fewer AA children. The school has been more successful in recent years in attracting AA (and other minorities) students. Additionally, I dont think St Patrick's is out there looking to fill some quota or pre-set number. They honestly want to increase diversity while maintaining the integrity of the admissions process. What I mean by that is that each child who is accepted is a good fit (both for them and the school) reagrdless of race, creed, nationality, etc.... and absolutely no "percentages/numbers/quotas" are considered. I think (and I could be totally wrong here) a lot of AA families are more attracted to some of the bigger "names" like Sidwell and GDS and the Cathedral schools. Its too bad because I think St Patrick's works very hard to be an inclusive school on all levels. Certainly, many faculty members, and in fact some of the most highly regarded, are AA and other minorities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a parent at the school. I don't know the statistics of racial/socioeconomic/religious diveristy. African Americans are very well represented among the teaching staff and in the administration. In my child's class, 2 of the 18-19 kids are non-white. Last year it was 3 of 18. I don't know how to compare that to other schools. I don't get the sense that there is significant religious diversity; most families are Christian (which makes sense, since it is an Episcopalian school.) On socio-economic diversity - the parent body ranges all the way up and down the spectrum. It is not a place where money seems to matter much.
I also think a school's attitude is important. In that respect I think it is a genuinely open community: welcoming and accepting of all. But I would be curious to know if non-white or non-Christian families felt the same way. My sense is yes, but it is so hard to know.

That stinks. That is no diversity.

[Anonymous]

One interesting note on the issue of diversity is that the Assistant head of Admissions is African American. As for having 2 or 3 non-white students in a class of 18 or so, that is likely more than you would get at your local public elementary school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think (and I could be totally wrong here) a lot of AA families are more attracted to some of the bigger "names" like Sidwell and GDS and the Cathedral schools.

We're African American. It's not that we were more attracted to the bigger names for the sake of the "names". Other schools seemed to offer more in terms of cultural and ethnic richness, robustness of curriculum, and academic challenge. We found that St. Patrick's was a bit too homogenous and that there wasn't anything terribly exciting or innovative about the curriculum. Nothing wrong with it, just seemed like a lot of blonde hair, palisades/georgetown living, suburban/big suv driving, episcopalian stomping people. Seemed to have somewhat of a southerness about it, though definitely not as much as NPS. I recognize that addressing diversity seems to be a priority of the school. But the numbers just aren't there.

[Anonymous]

To the parent that is inquiring about diversity: give Shavonne Pegues, the assistant head of admissions, a call. She is a wonderful, approachable person and I am sure would be more than happy to share her thoughts, or perhaps hook you up with some parents at the school that could offer an "inside view".