HS for smart, sporty boy?
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Anonymous
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Just starting to research HS options for my 7th grader and feeling a little overwhelmed. I am hoping for some suggestions to help me narrow the search.
We live in Oakton but commuting, even into DC, is ok if we can get a carpool or school transportation services. We *think* we like our local public HS well enough, but we want to look at some schools anyway in hopes of finding the "perfect" fit. Our son does well academically & is especially strong in math (perfect score on math SOL last year, 99%tile on Iowa test, taking honors algebra in AAP Center as a 7th grader and maintaining an A average). He is also a talented multi-sport athlete. Athletics are very important to him; he loves to compete and has had a lot of leadership/"team captain" positions on the teams he's played on. He absolutely wants to play high school sports at a competitive level. He isn't much into the arts. Overall he is a really sweet, kind, fair-minded kid who works hard at everything he does. Socially, he has a nice group of friends, mostly other boys who enjoy sports. I think he would do fine transitioning into a new school at 9th grade and making new friends. We want a rigorous academic program along with the opportunity to continue to excel at sports in high school. We have our older child at an all-girls private and are very happy with it, but this is still new for us because we only looked at few girls' schools for our DD and know almost nothing about the co-ed and boys' schools. School search for DD was very different as she is the opposite of DS - wanted to go all-girls, not into sports at all, plays several instruments, just a completely different personality. Our son is open to coed or single-sex (at least so far - that may change!). Also open to Catholic schools but we're not Catholic so would like perspective on that. We are practicing Christians, though, and I grew up Catholic and attended a Catholic school, so I have some familiarity. Community service and volunteering is something we place a priority on as a family and we'd love a school where that was part of the culture. Proximity of school for DS to DD's school isn't such an issue because DD drives herself to school or drives with friends. I think we will look at Potomac School because we know some families who attend, and I have gotten a warm fuzzy feeling the websites for Gonzaga and SJC, but again, I'm just starting and would love some feedback that might help me focus my search. Anyone? |
Anonymous
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Georgetown Prep might be a good choice based on what you described and your DS might be able to get at least part of the way there on metro until he can drive. Maybe Landon, depending on the sports.
St Albans is an obvious choice but potentially a tough commute. |
Anonymous
| Our son is very much like yours and is in love with Georgetown Prep. We are not Catholic and he has both Catholic and non Catholic friends. He loves the feeling of community, Latin, and plays three sports each year. Needless to say, the facilities are spectacular, and unlike what you will hear on this forum, the school is not run by sports-minded dads. The faculty and coaches are great. They educate the whole boy. |
Anonymous
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If you want a Catholic school, Gonzaga is a much easier commute because of Oakton's proximity to the Vienna Metro. The Metro drops kids off a few blocks from Gongaga. Metro to Georgetown Prep is a much longer trek. (Oakton to Metro Center to Grosvenor)
Non-Catholics, even non-practicing Catholics, are a small minority at both these schools, especially if you take out minorities. Both are where the old line Catholic families of DC send their sons. Athletics at Gonzaga are at a higher level than they are at Georgetown Prep because Gonzaga is much larger (1,000 vs. 500) and because it plays in the best DC area athletic conference bay far (The WCAC). Schools like Potomac and Flint Hill would seem to be an easier choice for a family living in Oakton. Beltway traffic, especially going across the Cabin John Bridge is a real bear. At both schools, a good athlete could play three sports. That's unheard of at Gonzaga and even at Prep. |
Anonymous
| Landon. Ignore all the gossip. Check it out for yourself. |
Anonymous
Not gossip. It's well documented that they grow thugs there. SAT cheats. Fantasy sex leagues. Go on to commit felonies, etc. |
Anonymous
I am sure that made you feel better. Now shut up and let the adults talk. |
Anonymous
| I agree that Gonzaga might be an easier commute, but because it does not have the boarding element it may be more Catholic. I think Georgetown Prep is 20 percent non Catholic. Ask admissions. And it is not true that gifted athletes cannot play three sports. The coaches work together to facilitate this for our son and others. BTW the coach of the Ohio State National Championship Football team says that most of his recruited athletes are multi-sport in HS. Better for the body and the mind and more fun if your kid loves sports. |
Anonymous
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Don't waist your time looking at gonzaga, as good as an athlete you might think your son is, gonzaga has numbers. They have 1,000 boys to choose from and are pulling in kids from all around the beltway given it'd metro proximity to union station. Not sure if you're son is basketball or football player but he beter be pretty damn good as the coaching staffs are known to over recruit down on eye street.
If your son is a 3 sport athlete I would encourage you to look at the smaller IAC schools (prep, landon and saint Albans). All three of them have stronger academic reputations than Gomzaga, Saint Albans being the most academically challenging . Lastly, I would encourage you to meet the coaches at the schools you are considering too. |
Anonymous
| I would be wary of a long commute for high school. There will be times when you will ponder whether it is worth it to go to school events when you will spend more time in the car than at the event. Games and after school activities become difficult and evening activities and meetings even worse. Plus all his friends would live far away. We did this for a while and then transferred to a closer school and felt a tremendous improvement in our quality of life and ability to participate. |
Anonymous
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PP: all valid points about distance to school.
it still amazes me how far some families will go to send their son or daughter to a private school they fall in love with. |
Anonymous
I agree. Many boys go to Gonzaga because of the athletics and don't ever see the playing field. If they had gone to one of the IAC schools mentioned they could be a 4 year Varsity athlete and start. On the other hand, I don't know anybody that regretted going to Gonzaga even though they were disappointed to miss out on their favorite sports. (They do over roster for example, they roster about 40 kids for lax (as do other schools), so you can make the team, just not play.) |
Anonymous
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while i agree most kids at IAC and MAC schools play at least 2 - 3 sports, all through out high school,
kids in the WCAC schools, really tend to focus on 1 sport. Its not that often you see a starter on the football team a starter on the basketball team or lacrosse team in the WCAC due to the sheer size of the school. |
Anonymous
| while sports were not much of factor in picking DS school, it turned really well for him because he was able to make varsity as a freshmen and play 3 team sports per year meeting lots of kids. this was at a MAC school. if he gone to a WCAC school (other choice) he would have been on freshmen/JV teams and not sure what would have happened as Jr / Sr. |
Anonymous
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11:16
Well said. Agree with your post. the smaller independent schools offer more opportunities for kids to get PLAYING TIME. the competition in the WCAC is very strong and those schools recruit very hard across all sports |