The Heights, Potomac
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Anonymous
| The St Mary's thread had piqued my interest in the Heights. Anyone who has a child attend there with info? How hard is it go get in? Is it very counter cultural? How is your son doing? Does your child mind the bus ride from Nova to Potomac every say? |
Anonymous
| When I hear "counterculture", the Heights is not what I think of. |
Anonymous
| A great school for boys from very actively Catholic families. Brother school of Oakcrest. There's been a very contentious thread about Oakcrest recently so I suspect that some of the anti-Catholic trolls will try to derail your thread soon. |
Anonymous
| We are active Catholics, relatively conservative. I'm interested in the application process and the general mix - kids from all over? Working families? Etc... |
Anonymous
| Yes, kids from all over VA, MD, and DC. Mix of wealthy and middle class families. Mix of families where both parents work outside the home and mom stays home. I don't know how hard it is to get in these days. Active Catholics will feel at home, but it is very conservative. If you son is young, I recommend enrolling him in one of their summer camps to get a feel for it. You can get to know some teachers and families that way, and there may still be time this summer. Otherwise go to the open house in the fall where there will be lots of parents and faculty to talk to. |
Anonymous
|
We LOVE the Heights. It has been a game changer for our boy. All the faculty are male, and they really "get" boys. They are mentors and role models in every sense of the words; they inspire the boys in ways that our middle aged white female Parish school teachers never could. Lower school boys have 2-3 recesses AND PE daily...movement is incorporated into all aspects of the day. Middle and Upper School boys are really challenged academically. All boys are given a lot of freedom....very few rules at the Heights. At our parish school, crazy expectations for behavior and silly rules dominate the culture, like no talking in the halls, no talking in the bathroom, no talking at lunch, etc...The Heights is about giving boys freedom to become responsible men. THey run and climb trees and bring sleds to school in the winter and have serious discussions in and out of class, they reenact roman battles and are challenged to stretch themselves physically, academically and spiritually. We adore every aspect of the school.
We are catholic but are not conservative (nor are we Opus Dei, and we have never been "proselytized" or even spoken to about it). There are all levels of wealth...some VERY wealthy families, but also a lot of working class families with a passel of kids for whom tuition would be a real stretch if not for the generous fin aid the school gives every year. My son takes the bus from VA and it is fine...we couldn't go to the school without it. He sleeps in the morning; chats or reads or does HW in the afternoon. I agree with PP to go to an open house or enroll in a camp. THey have a whole camp around the book "Dangerous Book for Boys", where boys do nothing but boy things all day. |
Anonymous
|
We also love it. I'd call myself politically moderate, and we are not Catholic. The majority of the families are conservative and Catholic, but they are very welcoming to others. I believe about 25% of the students are not Catholic. It is getting harder to get admitted to the school, but it is nowhere near as hard as the top privates in DC.
You can get a pretty good feel for the school through the camps and/or open houses. The school is very open about their teaching methods, culture, and student body. I can honestly say that I fell in love with the school at my first tour. It's been a great fit for my son. He loves attending school, is excited about learning, and maturing nicely. I couldn't be more pleased. |
Anonymous
| Rick Santorum. |
Anonymous
Point? He doesn't go to the school, his middle schooler does. Nice kid. We've never seen Rick or his wife at any school events. We are all free thinkers, you know. |
Anonymous
Hi, Anti-Catholic troll. I see that things have gotten boring for you elsewhere on DCUM and you've decided to deliver your special brand of insight into a school that neither you nor your child have ever attended. |
Anonymous
| Opus Dei. Enough said. |
Anonymous
| It was founded by Opus Dei, and they still abide by this philosophy ( they are open about it on their website). They are also almost 90% white. If that is what you are looking for, go for it. |
Anonymous
| They have a very large Hispanic population. Do you consider that white PP? |
Anonymous
Hispanics can be white or black. It is not a race. |