Deep Racism Problems at NCS and STA: Questions/Answers we can't get through admissions

[Anonymous]

When it comes to Sidwell and GDS, they don't try to change you to conform to whiteness , they take you as you are, same goes for the Catholic Schools, but they do try to make you conform to Catholic ideology in manner of acting, but that is another story.

Beauvoir , NCS / STA... are totally different... those schools are country clubs of the white DMV elite, and those schools want you to conform to the ideals of being rich and white, please know what you sign up for, maybe some POC want that, maybe others don't... do your own research

[Anonymous]

OP, trust your gut. Good luck to you and I'm sorry you are dealing with this.

[Anonymous]

OP's post is 5 years old. Thread was revived.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP's post is 5 years old. Thread was revived.

But still relevant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi everyone. Our mixed-race DC is looking at schools for next year (through virtual open houses and zoom discussions with administrators).

One of those schools is NCS/STA (I'd rather not do anything to reveal who our family is).

We have read with deep shock the @blackatsta, @blackatncs, @asianatsta and other accounts in the DC schools. They are horrifying--racist comments by students and teachers, race-based bullying, race-based exclusion, extreme bullying (telling kids to kill themselves, relentlessly), etc. Worst of all--kids of color who just seem deeply and unfairly unhappy. The schools have of course acknowledged these accounts and have issued statements and outlined their plans to do to address these issues. So we have the "official" line from the schools.

What we'd really like to ask and have answers to though are not things we feel like we can get from the schools and those "official" statements and plans. We know that this forum is imperfect, too, and we're doing our best to find families that attend there. We only know a couple, as we've only lived here a couple of years. So we hope that some here are willing to engage.

How deep and ingrained are these issues of racism? Is there even a chance that these issues will be meaningfully addressed by new administrators? Or are these deep problems that would take decades to root out? Deep problems that will potentially be perpetuated by sets of moneyed groups with long ties to the school who not only aren't really committed to change, but who are also part of the problem (this last question comes from something one of the few families we know there said about a subset of very wealthy legacies at this school who have no commitment to change, and often are part of the problem)?

Again, we've heard the speeches. We've read the plans. Our DC has expressed a desire for single-sex, and DC is a competitive applicant (please, this is not an invitation to tell us to "get in first." You can't get answers about these sorts of things in the very short time you get to decide post-admission, and as parents of a child of color, we owe DC as much due diligence as we can--which is made even harder by the pandemic).

We would deeply appreciate the perspective of anyone from these schools who is willing to talk about what's REALLY going on there on these issues.

With 50k tuition and above, how can any of these schools not be racist? In this country, race is the strongest determining factor of income.

[Anonymous]

It’s all just political. Not a huge deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hi everyone. Our mixed-race DC is looking at schools for next year (through virtual open houses and zoom discussions with administrators).

One of those schools is NCS/STA (I'd rather not do anything to reveal who our family is).

We have read with deep shock the @blackatsta, @blackatncs, @asianatsta and other accounts in the DC schools. They are horrifying--racist comments by students and teachers, race-based bullying, race-based exclusion, extreme bullying (telling kids to kill themselves, relentlessly), etc. Worst of all--kids of color who just seem deeply and unfairly unhappy. The schools have of course acknowledged these accounts and have issued statements and outlined their plans to do to address these issues. So we have the "official" line from the schools.

What we'd really like to ask and have answers to though are not things we feel like we can get from the schools and those "official" statements and plans. We know that this forum is imperfect, too, and we're doing our best to find families that attend there. We only know a couple, as we've only lived here a couple of years. So we hope that some here are willing to engage.

How deep and ingrained are these issues of racism? Is there even a chance that these issues will be meaningfully addressed by new administrators? Or are these deep problems that would take decades to root out? Deep problems that will potentially be perpetuated by sets of moneyed groups with long ties to the school who not only aren't really committed to change, but who are also part of the problem (this last question comes from something one of the few families we know there said about a subset of very wealthy legacies at this school who have no commitment to change, and often are part of the problem)?

Again, we've heard the speeches. We've read the plans. Our DC has expressed a desire for single-sex, and DC is a competitive applicant (please, this is not an invitation to tell us to "get in first." You can't get answers about these sorts of things in the very short time you get to decide post-admission, and as parents of a child of color, we owe DC as much due diligence as we can--which is made even harder by the pandemic).

We would deeply appreciate the perspective of anyone from these schools who is willing to talk about what's REALLY going on there on these issues.

With 50k tuition and above, how can any of these schools not be racist? In this country, race is the strongest determining factor of income.

There is A LOT of financial aid handed out. It is not 50k+ for everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hi everyone. Our mixed-race DC is looking at schools for next year (through virtual open houses and zoom discussions with administrators).

One of those schools is NCS/STA (I'd rather not do anything to reveal who our family is).

We have read with deep shock the @blackatsta, @blackatncs, @asianatsta and other accounts in the DC schools. They are horrifying--racist comments by students and teachers, race-based bullying, race-based exclusion, extreme bullying (telling kids to kill themselves, relentlessly), etc. Worst of all--kids of color who just seem deeply and unfairly unhappy. The schools have of course acknowledged these accounts and have issued statements and outlined their plans to do to address these issues. So we have the "official" line from the schools.

What we'd really like to ask and have answers to though are not things we feel like we can get from the schools and those "official" statements and plans. We know that this forum is imperfect, too, and we're doing our best to find families that attend there. We only know a couple, as we've only lived here a couple of years. So we hope that some here are willing to engage.

How deep and ingrained are these issues of racism? Is there even a chance that these issues will be meaningfully addressed by new administrators? Or are these deep problems that would take decades to root out? Deep problems that will potentially be perpetuated by sets of moneyed groups with long ties to the school who not only aren't really committed to change, but who are also part of the problem (this last question comes from something one of the few families we know there said about a subset of very wealthy legacies at this school who have no commitment to change, and often are part of the problem)?

Again, we've heard the speeches. We've read the plans. Our DC has expressed a desire for single-sex, and DC is a competitive applicant (please, this is not an invitation to tell us to "get in first." You can't get answers about these sorts of things in the very short time you get to decide post-admission, and as parents of a child of color, we owe DC as much due diligence as we can--which is made even harder by the pandemic).

We would deeply appreciate the perspective of anyone from these schools who is willing to talk about what's REALLY going on there on these issues.

With 50k tuition and above, how can any of these schools not be racist? In this country, race is the strongest determining factor of income.

There is A LOT of financial aid handed out. It is not 50k+ for everyone.

Not quite enough financial aid being dispersed to equalize the racial playing field

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When it comes to Sidwell and GDS, they don't try to change you to conform to whiteness , they take you as you are, same goes for the Catholic Schools, but they do try to make you conform to Catholic ideology in manner of acting, but that is another story.

Beauvoir , NCS / STA... are totally different... those schools are country clubs of the white DMV elite, and those schools want you to conform to the ideals of being rich and white, please know what you sign up for, maybe some POC want that, maybe others don't... do your own research

Wrong Catholic schools indoctrination centers by definition

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When it comes to Sidwell and GDS, they don't try to change you to conform to whiteness , they take you as you are, same goes for the Catholic Schools, but they do try to make you conform to Catholic ideology in manner of acting, but that is another story.

Beauvoir , NCS / STA... are totally different... those schools are country clubs of the white DMV elite, and those schools want you to conform to the ideals of being rich and white, please know what you sign up for, maybe some POC want that, maybe others don't... do your own research

Wrong Catholic schools indoctrination centers by definition

Indoctrination Poster strikes again!

[Anonymous]

We are at Beauvoir and have decided not to pursue NCS and STA for our kids. We are white but have seen racism (and been told stories by non white friends who have experienced it) and socio-economic bullying and exclusion. The school is just so clueless- there was a reference at the school’s closing chapel last week that made my skin crawl. We have friends with kids at NCS and STA and it’s not any better. The Close is like this weird time warp where alums of these schools are trying to recreate the heavily white / rich childhoods they had for their kids- as if that was the best part of their childhoods. It’s a very bizarre place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When it comes to Sidwell and GDS, they don't try to change you to conform to whiteness , they take you as you are, same goes for the Catholic Schools, but they do try to make you conform to Catholic ideology in manner of acting, but that is another story.

Beauvoir , NCS / STA... are totally different... those schools are country clubs of the white DMV elite, and those schools want you to conform to the ideals of being rich and white, please know what you sign up for, maybe some POC want that, maybe others don't... do your own research

Wrong Catholic schools indoctrination centers by definition

Indoctrination Poster strikes again!

And so wrong as usual - 13 years at Catholic schools and not Catholic. It worked out OK for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are at Beauvoir and have decided not to pursue NCS and STA for our kids. We are white but have seen racism (and been told stories by non white friends who have experienced it) and socio-economic bullying and exclusion. The school is just so clueless- there was a reference at the school’s closing chapel last week that made my skin crawl. We have friends with kids at NCS and STA and it’s not any better. The Close is like this weird time warp where alums of these schools are trying to recreate the heavily white / rich childhoods they had for their kids- as if that was the best part of their childhoods. It’s a very bizarre place.

We came in high school to both Cathedral schools (a year apart) and this whole scene is pretty diluted by then because each school is only about 50% white by that point. Also many of the families who join in middle and/or high school are from public and/or have less lucrative careers and/or live in the outer suburbs, etc. I.e. the monied, country club set is really diluted by high school and my not-fancy, biracial kids had (and are having) a wonderful experience. I could really see how the family crowds could be difficult earlier on and can absolutely see how Beauvoir is this way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are at Beauvoir and have decided not to pursue NCS and STA for our kids. We are white but have seen racism (and been told stories by non white friends who have experienced it) and socio-economic bullying and exclusion. The school is just so clueless- there was a reference at the school’s closing chapel last week that made my skin crawl. We have friends with kids at NCS and STA and it’s not any better. The Close is like this weird time warp where alums of these schools are trying to recreate the heavily white / rich childhoods they had for their kids- as if that was the best part of their childhoods. It’s a very bizarre place.

We came in high school to both Cathedral schools (a year apart) and this whole scene is pretty diluted by then because each school is only about 50% white by that point. Also many of the families who join in middle and/or high school are from public and/or have less lucrative careers and/or live in the outer suburbs, etc. I.e. the monied, country club set is really diluted by high school and my not-fancy, biracial kids had (and are having) a wonderful experience. I could really see how the family crowds could be difficult earlier on and can absolutely see how Beauvoir is this way.

The BVR parent population is so cringe. I’m really hoping for some serious dilution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are at Beauvoir and have decided not to pursue NCS and STA for our kids. We are white but have seen racism (and been told stories by non white friends who have experienced it) and socio-economic bullying and exclusion. The school is just so clueless- there was a reference at the school’s closing chapel last week that made my skin crawl. We have friends with kids at NCS and STA and it’s not any better. The Close is like this weird time warp where alums of these schools are trying to recreate the heavily white / rich childhoods they had for their kids- as if that was the best part of their childhoods. It’s a very bizarre place.

We came in high school to both Cathedral schools (a year apart) and this whole scene is pretty diluted by then because each school is only about 50% white by that point. Also many of the families who join in middle and/or high school are from public and/or have less lucrative careers and/or live in the outer suburbs, etc. I.e. the monied, country club set is really diluted by high school and my not-fancy, biracial kids had (and are having) a wonderful experience. I could really see how the family crowds could be difficult earlier on and can absolutely see how Beauvoir is this way.

The BVR parent population is so cringe. I’m really hoping for some serious dilution.

White=cringe?