Enough is enough

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have to think twice about the cost of sending a couple of kids to private school for 14 years, you shouldn't send them to private school to begin with. There are good public school districts in the DMV. Better to have a home in one of those districts rather than be troubled by the annual tuition increases at private schools, which fundamentally operate as for-profit businesses. What private schools in DC sell is exclusivity. $48,000 a year for tuition keeps the middle class out. That's what you pay for.

You are right. And I guess its also fine to donate $1.

The school is not going to kick out my kid for paying as much as I do (and a tuition closer to 60k by the way, I would love your 48k number).

Anyone paying that much has nothing to whine about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since my child joined a private school, I’ve noticed a consistent pattern: every year, tuition increases by several percentage points more than my salary. Over time, this gap has widened to the point where the financial pressure no longer feels justified.

Starting this year, I’ve made a simple decision. I’ll continue volunteering my time to support the school community, but I will only donate $1 to fundraising efforts. I’ll reconsider that position once tuition increases start to fall below the rate of my own wage growth.

I get the frustration at the general economic climate, but for most schools, they're not raising tuition for the heck of it. They're well aware parents don't like that. But they need to do salary increases for their employees (that hopefully don't get entirely cancelled out by inflation) and deal with a whole web of insurance needs, none of which is really negotiable. For most schools, those are the big ticket items. I imagine some schools out there spend money in silly ways, but most of them are just trying to navigate the same pressures as you and I are – even more so for secular schools that don't get subsidies from a religious organization.

I would guess that’s also if donations drop they will adjust a bit and school will survive with a smaller budget. Harvard is doing the same thing.

You understand how big Harvard's endowment is, right? It might be dwindling these days, given the assault on academic freedom by Trump and his followers of the American fascist party, but it's still HUGE. Also, a smaller budget means fewer teachers, fewer field trips, fewer everything.

That's ok. If families have to live within their means why not schools?

Your comment reflects that you have NO idea how independent schools work.

Yes. I am sure you got a Ph.D. on how private schools work. And donations are mandatory, right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have to think twice about the cost of sending a couple of kids to private school for 14 years, you shouldn't send them to private school to begin with. There are good public school districts in the DMV. Better to have a home in one of those districts rather than be troubled by the annual tuition increases at private schools, which fundamentally operate as for-profit businesses. What private schools in DC sell is exclusivity. $48,000 a year for tuition keeps the middle class out. That's what you pay for.

Yep. These schools are elitist. Anyone who thinks otherwise hasn’t had a kid at one.

Yes. That's why donating $1 would also be ok for an elitist school. Other rich parents can cover the shortfall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good. Glad someone is calling these schools out. St Mary’s tuition seems ti go up every year by 5 pct or more, PLUS large increases in fees this year.

Yes! Not sure why parents are so sheepish.

Also agree. No idea why a parent would keep multiple children at a school they are so unhappy with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good. Glad someone is calling these schools out. St Mary’s tuition seems ti go up every year by 5 pct or more, PLUS large increases in fees this year.

Yes! Not sure why parents are so sheepish.

Also agree. No idea why a parent would keep multiple children at a school they are so unhappy with.

Also, no idea why parents feel offended if someone wants to donate $1. I guess rich parents want to free ride from the middle class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good. Glad someone is calling these schools out. St Mary’s tuition seems ti go up every year by 5 pct or more, PLUS large increases in fees this year.

Yes! Not sure why parents are so sheepish.

Also agree. No idea why a parent would keep multiple children at a school they are so unhappy with.

Also, no idea why parents feel offended if someone wants to donate $1. I guess rich parents want to free ride from the middle class.

Financial aid parents are the ones getting a free ride. Shame on them.

[Anonymous]

I prefer to donate all my money to schools in poor areas. Elite schools will do fine with or without donations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids attended public school but are now at private universities. I would never give a cent more than outrageously exorbitant tuition. I am well aware that my dollars go to the top administration's second home's pool budget, and not the living expenses of the hard-working teachers.

The USA, contrary to other countries, has decided that wants an arms race of who can poach which high-earning administrator to its school. This is where the waste is. For many private schools, money is also spent on completely unnecessary luxuries that have nothing to do with academics and their core mission to educate (instead of wildly entertaining and cushioning).

All good reasons why I didn't actually pay for private K-12. I am willing to pay for private unis if they're in the top 10 for my kids' majors, since those come with certain professional advantages. But no donations.

This surprises me. Our HOS receives a high but fair salary. They're basically on-call 24 hours/day and have to be available for everything all the time. They're consoling a kid in the hallway one minute, managing a staffing issue the next, and meeting with a high level donor the next hour all while fielding calls about some very complex legal issue that the school is facing. Ours definitely doesn't have a 2nd home, but rather a kind of meh rental (because they relocated from a less expensive area).

Do you feel this type of context switching and multi tasking is unique to HOS? Folks in non-profits do this all day everyday. Your HOS might not be making a lot but there are plenty of them who are. Further, a great amount of the fundraising and tuition increases are not going to teacher raises or even building upkeep as much as it’s going to new buildings/ facilities / campus that really aren’t needed. Why are some HS trying to rival small college campus or boarding schools?

I’m not sure what school you’re talking about, but I’m a private school trustee and our tuition increase (and I mean 100%) goes straight to teacher and staff salary and benefit increases. When our HOS earns an increase and it can’t be covered with the tuition increase that ups the operating budget, cuts are made in areas with more fungibility, like specific savings buckets or nice-but-not-mandatory facilities upgrades. And by facilities upgrades, I mean changing fixtures in the arts wing to LEDs, not building a new auditorium.

There are probably 10 schools in the entire country that are spending money hand-over-fist in the hysterical way described by Op. The rest are running way more lean than anyone wants to imagine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids attended public school but are now at private universities. I would never give a cent more than outrageously exorbitant tuition. I am well aware that my dollars go to the top administration's second home's pool budget, and not the living expenses of the hard-working teachers.

The USA, contrary to other countries, has decided that wants an arms race of who can poach which high-earning administrator to its school. This is where the waste is. For many private schools, money is also spent on completely unnecessary luxuries that have nothing to do with academics and their core mission to educate (instead of wildly entertaining and cushioning).

All good reasons why I didn't actually pay for private K-12. I am willing to pay for private unis if they're in the top 10 for my kids' majors, since those come with certain professional advantages. But no donations.

This surprises me. Our HOS receives a high but fair salary. They're basically on-call 24 hours/day and have to be available for everything all the time. They're consoling a kid in the hallway one minute, managing a staffing issue the next, and meeting with a high level donor the next hour all while fielding calls about some very complex legal issue that the school is facing. Ours definitely doesn't have a 2nd home, but rather a kind of meh rental (because they relocated from a less expensive area).

Do you feel this type of context switching and multi tasking is unique to HOS? Folks in non-profits do this all day everyday. Your HOS might not be making a lot but there are plenty of them who are. Further, a great amount of the fundraising and tuition increases are not going to teacher raises or even building upkeep as much as it’s going to new buildings/ facilities / campus that really aren’t needed. Why are some HS trying to rival small college campus or boarding schools?

I’m not sure what school you’re talking about, but I’m a private school trustee and our tuition increase (and I mean 100%) goes straight to teacher and staff salary and benefit increases. When our HOS earns an increase and it can’t be covered with the tuition increase that ups the operating budget, cuts are made in areas with more fungibility, like specific savings buckets or nice-but-not-mandatory facilities upgrades. And by facilities upgrades, I mean changing fixtures in the arts wing to LEDs, not building a new auditorium.

There are probably 10 schools in the entire country that are spending money hand-over-fist in the hysterical way described by Op. The rest are running way more lean than anyone wants to imagine.

Could be leaner with fewer donations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The financial aid parents are already free loading off the the tuition that full pay families are paying. If you are full pay, you are already contributing more than average due to the free loaders.

Is this a joke? Or are you really this big of an ahole.

That person is really that big of an ahole. They are on every thread where this topic even remotely comes up making this same point. They are miserable and have no life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The financial aid parents are already free loading off the the tuition that full pay families are paying. If you are full pay, you are already contributing more than average due to the free loaders.

Is this a joke? Or are you really this big of an ahole.

That person is really that big of an ahole. They are on every thread where this topic even remotely comes up making this same point. They are miserable and have no life.

Exactly.

[Anonymous]

Nobody should feel obligated to donate to a wealthy private school.

Your money could be saving lives in developing countries, curing diseases, or feeding the hungry.

If you are full pay, there is no need to go beyond that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The financial aid parents are already free loading off the the tuition that full pay families are paying. If you are full pay, you are already contributing more than average due to the free loaders.

Is this a joke? Or are you really this big of an ahole.

That person is really that big of an ahole. They are on every thread where this topic even remotely comes up making this same point. They are miserable and have no life.

But there is a grain of truth in their statement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nobody should feel obligated to donate to a wealthy private school.

Your money could be saving lives in developing countries, curing diseases, or feeding the hungry.

If you are full pay, there is no need to go beyond that.

Thank you. That’s sounds reasonable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The financial aid parents are already free loading off the the tuition that full pay families are paying. If you are full pay, you are already contributing more than average due to the free loaders.

Is this a joke? Or are you really this big of an ahole.

That person is really that big of an ahole. They are on every thread where this topic even remotely comes up making this same point. They are miserable and have no life.

But there is a grain of truth in their statement.

Your statement?