Annual Giving, Volunteerism and Sibling Admission

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have a sense of how or if annual giving and volunteerism (or lack thereof) impact admission for siblings? Especially for a school that has more priority (siblings, alumni, faculty, religious, etc.) applications than seats available? Are the admission folks even aware of how/if families contribute to the school?

[Anonymous]

Yes.

[Anonymous]

Absolutely.

[Anonymous]

Very much so. Somebody posted on another thread about how she knew people who intentionally volunteered where they would be seen by the head of school, but not for the anonymous, endless chaperoning of field trips. The poster got flamed for it (and as I recall she wasn't even talking about herself), but as a veteran of a private school I think she's on to something there.

Which brings me back to my long-standing gripe about being a full-time working mom, if only insofar as it affects my kids' prospects for good middle and high school admissions. Please, I don't mean anything negative about SAHMs, only that I realize my own disadvantage in this area. The auction, PTO and other meetings are held during the day, which means us working moms can't participate in these. Generally I was limited to taking annual leave to accompany a field trip or some other one-off event, as opposed to consistent, high-profile participation in the school's life.