Georgetown Prep?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

Why don't you ask to talk to some of the African American families there? The diversity stats aren't great but that doesn't mean your son couldn't have a great experience. Our tour guide when we went this fall was an AA boy and based on his interactions with the other boys he seemed to have lots of friends of multiple colors. Totally anecdotal I know. It may also be that sports makes a difference. Does your son play a sport (especially a mainstream sport for GP, which seem to be football, basketball and lacrosse). My impression (could be wrong) is that makes a difference there.

Yes, he plays a couple of sports. He thinks he is a good basketball player but my husband told him to stick with the classical piano he has been studying since he was five years old. I think he is getting good at basketball. We are from down south so we just go around town looking at high schools all the time. I don't know any AA families that go there. I may know a couple who want to if the sports package is good. We lived in an upper middle class predominantley white neighborhood for about 7 years. He did well. He mixed with all races. We later put him in a middle school that was 50 percent Asian. Did pretty good socially there as well. I've noticed that he chats with freinds from both schools on facebook. He now attends an extremely diverse school. He actually has black freinds which has been pretty rare for him because of his environment. He loves it. He loves people. I really don't think a predominently white school will have an adverse affect on him but the money up here is very old and they is a different kind of white person in my opinion. I went to college with extremely whealthy white people and they were a bit arrogant. Not to mean though. No bad experiences. Everyone was civil. My concern about him is that there will be a destinct difference between he and his peers at GP. Its called MONEY! GP folks got real money and I don't know if he can handle that. I suggested looking at some other schools and he said, "no way its GP all the way baby". I said the kids are really rich. He said we're rich. You have a mercedes. My husband and I just shook our heads. He doesn't get it. I dunno maybe my issue is money more than race. He is magnetic where ever he goes. Maybe when he applies there and hopefully gets in he will be magnetic too. If you find a black family for me to talk to let me know.

[Anonymous]

19:50: Your son sounds really confident and that is such a good thing. Don't discount where he wants to go!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:19:50: Your son sounds really confident and that is such a good thing. Don't discount where he wants to go!

I think you are right. I'm not gonna really worry about it. I will do my best to help him get in. I think sports will help. This area has made a great athlete out of him in the short time he has been here. Lots of folks say, "let your kids choose the school". Well if I do that he will GP is his choice. We are looking to live in PG county. I've read that PG county is the place for the most affluent blacks in the country. There are some rough parts but I do see what they are talking about. There are some really healthy black families in PG county and that can help to balance him. He will see the best of both worlds. We can find the decent blacks in PG and live there with them and he can go to GP. The neighborhood we choose might even make him feel rich. Like he says "Its GP all the way baby".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

Why don't you ask to talk to some of the African American families there? The diversity stats aren't great but that doesn't mean your son couldn't have a great experience. Our tour guide when we went this fall was an AA boy and based on his interactions with the other boys he seemed to have lots of friends of multiple colors. Totally anecdotal I know. It may also be that sports makes a difference. Does your son play a sport (especially a mainstream sport for GP, which seem to be football, basketball and lacrosse). My impression (could be wrong) is that makes a difference there.

Yes, he plays a couple of sports. He thinks he is a good basketball player but my husband told him to stick with the classical piano he has been studying since he was five years old. I think he is getting good at basketball. We are from down south so we just go around town looking at high schools all the time. I don't know any AA families that go there. I may know a couple who want to if the sports package is good. We lived in an upper middle class predominantley white neighborhood for about 7 years. He did well. He mixed with all races. We later put him in a middle school that was 50 percent Asian. Did pretty good socially there as well. I've noticed that he chats with freinds from both schools on facebook. He now attends an extremely diverse school. He actually has black freinds which has been pretty rare for him because of his environment. He loves it. He loves people. I really don't think a predominently white school will have an adverse affect on him but the money up here is very old and they is a different kind of white person in my opinion. I went to college with extremely whealthy white people and they were a bit arrogant. Not to mean though. No bad experiences. Everyone was civil. My concern about him is that there will be a destinct difference between he and his peers at GP. Its called MONEY! GP folks got real money and I don't know if he can handle that. I suggested looking at some other schools and he said, "no way its GP all the way baby". I said the kids are really rich. He said we're rich. You have a mercedes. My husband and I just shook our heads. He doesn't get it. I dunno maybe my issue is money more than race. He is magnetic where ever he goes. Maybe when he applies there and hopefully gets in he will be magnetic too. If you find a black family for me to talk to let me know.

Sounds like he'd do just fine. If you want to talk to a family call the admissions office and ask if they can give you some families to talk to. Most schools are happy to do this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

Why don't you ask to talk to some of the African American families there? The diversity stats aren't great but that doesn't mean your son couldn't have a great experience. Our tour guide when we went this fall was an AA boy and based on his interactions with the other boys he seemed to have lots of friends of multiple colors. Totally anecdotal I know. It may also be that sports makes a difference. Does your son play a sport (especially a mainstream sport for GP, which seem to be football, basketball and lacrosse). My impression (could be wrong) is that makes a difference there.

Yes, he plays a couple of sports. He thinks he is a good basketball player but my husband told him to stick with the classical piano he has been studying since he was five years old. I think he is getting good at basketball. We are from down south so we just go around town looking at high schools all the time. I don't know any AA families that go there. I may know a couple who want to if the sports package is good. We lived in an upper middle class predominantley white neighborhood for about 7 years. He did well. He mixed with all races. We later put him in a middle school that was 50 percent Asian. Did pretty good socially there as well. I've noticed that he chats with freinds from both schools on facebook. He now attends an extremely diverse school. He actually has black freinds which has been pretty rare for him because of his environment. He loves it. He loves people. I really don't think a predominently white school will have an adverse affect on him but the money up here is very old and they is a different kind of white person in my opinion. I went to college with extremely whealthy white people and they were a bit arrogant. Not to mean though. No bad experiences. Everyone was civil. My concern about him is that there will be a destinct difference between he and his peers at GP. Its called MONEY! GP folks got real money and I don't know if he can handle that. I suggested looking at some other schools and he said, "no way its GP all the way baby". I said the kids are really rich. He said we're rich. You have a mercedes. My husband and I just shook our heads. He doesn't get it. I dunno maybe my issue is money more than race. He is magnetic where ever he goes. Maybe when he applies there and hopefully gets in he will be magnetic too. If you find a black family for me to talk to let me know.

Sounds like he'd do just fine. If you want to talk to a family call the admissions office and ask if they can give you some families to talk to. Most schools are happy to do this.

I will do just that ASAP. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you are coming from public schools for example, can you apply to just 2 of these schools as well?

No, there is no such restriction. If you're not in a parish school (and hence not taking the Archdiocese's High School Placement Test in school), I imagine you'd simply take the test at each school you apply to, as if it were the school's own unique test. Your child may end up taking the same test more than once if you apply to multiple schools that use the HSPT. I do not believe the schools share information among each other about who has applied (at least not officially), so there's no way for them to even know how many Catholic schools you apply to.

If you are in parish school and want to apply to a high school that you didn't designate as one of your two, it may be worth contacting that school's admissions office to see if they'll let your child take the test separately, as if he were an applicant from a non-parish school. Not sure if this might constitute a breach of ADW's "rules" or not, but could be worth asking. It's possible ADW could refuse to send transcripts or some such, but again, worth a shot.

The schools that fall under the ADW rules won't permit this. If you don't get into either of your 2 you first selected and there are spaces at the others, you could be considered for one of those spaces. This is NOT the case with the list a PP made, schools that are independent of the ADW rules and test, that can be applied to in addition to the 2. St. Anselm's is an example of such a school -- administers its own test and can be applied to in addition to the 2.

Just send the school a copy of your test scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

No - blacks do not stand out like a sore thumb. DS has good friends at Prep who came from schools other than Mater Dei. He will have a demanding day at Prep especially if he does varsity sports. As for his music the good boys schools might be more flexible in his needs for arts, etc than publics which are often quite rigid. By that I mean it becomes an either or situation. That being said it might be easier for him if you live closer than PG county. Prep has a lot of hw and once they are in high school many community or neighborhood friends become more secondary than the guys from school. Also don't be surprised if his new friends [of all races] fix him up with or if he meets girls of all races.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

No - blacks do not stand out like a sore thumb. DS has good friends at Prep who came from schools other than Mater Dei. He will have a demanding day at Prep especially if he does varsity sports. As for his music the good boys schools might be more flexible in his needs for arts, etc than publics which are often quite rigid. By that I mean it becomes an either or situation. That being said it might be easier for him if you live closer than PG county. Prep has a lot of hw and once they are in high school many community or neighborhood friends become more secondary than the guys from school. Also don't be surprised if his new friends [of all races] fix him up with or if he meets girls of all races.

Yeah, we can live wherever we want so if not living in PG county is better for us then that is what we will have to do. I'm glad that you mentioned that PG is sort of far considering the hw and the lifestyle. I will share that with my husband immediately. My husband loves the school. Since my son is at the end of the severenth grade we are going to wait until we have a better idea of where he can go to school before we actually buy a house up here. I appreciate your post, it is thoughtful and likewise helpful. He mixes well with all kinds of people that is truly his gift. If he ends up with some other race girlfreind then that will have to be fine. The most important thing is that he enjoy his high school years and establish lasting relationships as well as get a "good" education. I personally use to hate the idea of mixed marriages because both of my sisters in law are white. Since they have been very happy I really can't say anything against them at this point. My son will need to be happy above everything else. So if someone cares about him I definitely won't make them stop. Anyways, the question for me now is where do they meet girls? I mean most people know that Gonzaga boys date girls from Visi, Damatha dates girls from Seton but where do GP boys meet girls? Oh, and I do agree that the boys school would be better for the arts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you are coming from public schools for example, can you apply to just 2 of these schools as well?

No, there is no such restriction. If you're not in a parish school (and hence not taking the Archdiocese's High School Placement Test in school), I imagine you'd simply take the test at each school you apply to, as if it were the school's own unique test. Your child may end up taking the same test more than once if you apply to multiple schools that use the HSPT. I do not believe the schools share information among each other about who has applied (at least not officially), so there's no way for them to even know how many Catholic schools you apply to.

If you are in parish school and want to apply to a high school that you didn't designate as one of your two, it may be worth contacting that school's admissions office to see if they'll let your child take the test separately, as if he were an applicant from a non-parish school. Not sure if this might constitute a breach of ADW's "rules" or not, but could be worth asking. It's possible ADW could refuse to send transcripts or some such, but again, worth a shot.

The schools that fall under the ADW rules won't permit this. If you don't get into either of your 2 you first selected and there are spaces at the others, you could be considered for one of those spaces. This is NOT the case with the list a PP made, schools that are independent of the ADW rules and test, that can be applied to in addition to the 2. St. Anselm's is an example of such a school -- administers its own test and can be applied to in addition to the 2.

I just looked into this pretty deeply. If you are in a parish school within the Washington DC Archdioces then you can only apply to two catholic high schools that take the HSPT. In other words your child's parish school is obligated to recommend and communicate with at least two school in order to get them accepted somewhere. You can plead for an oppotunity to apply to more outside of the HSPT test related schools. Maybe about two. The whole issue is not overwork the teachers and office staff who have to write ongoing recommendations.
Just send the school a copy of your test scores.

[Anonymous]

A word of friendly advice: Do NOT move to PG County. It has high crime, low-performing schools, minimal services and substandard shopping and restaurants. I moved there, because I had heard the same thing as you did--that it was a good place for affluent Blacks (and because the houses are cheaper). We bought a brand new McMansion for $750,000 and two years later, the homes in our neighborhood are going for just $350,000--they have declined by more than half! And there have been all sorts of crimes in our Mitchellville/Bowie neighborhood (e.g. carjackings, break-ins, gang activity). It sounds like you really want a nice life for your son. If you can afford it, I would suggest moving to Howard, Montgomery, Fairfax or Loudon County. They are diverse and at least you and your family will be safe. If I could afford to move, I would do it in a heartbeat! Good luck to you and your family.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

No - blacks do not stand out like a sore thumb. DS has good friends at Prep who came from schools other than Mater Dei. He will have a demanding day at Prep especially if he does varsity sports. As for his music the good boys schools might be more flexible in his needs for arts, etc than publics which are often quite rigid. By that I mean it becomes an either or situation. That being said it might be easier for him if you live closer than PG county. Prep has a lot of hw and once they are in high school many community or neighborhood friends become more secondary than the guys from school. Also don't be surprised if his new friends [of all races] fix him up with or if he meets girls of all races.

Yeah, we can live wherever we want so if not living in PG county is better for us then that is what we will have to do. I'm glad that you mentioned that PG is sort of far considering the hw and the lifestyle. I will share that with my husband immediately. My husband loves the school. Since my son is at the end of the severenth grade we are going to wait until we have a better idea of where he can go to school before we actually buy a house up here. I appreciate your post, it is thoughtful and likewise helpful. He mixes well with all kinds of people that is truly his gift. If he ends up with some other race girlfreind then that will have to be fine. The most important thing is that he enjoy his high school years and establish lasting relationships as well as get a "good" education. I personally use to hate the idea of mixed marriages because both of my sisters in law are white. Since they have been very happy I really can't say anything against them at this point. My son will need to be happy above everything else. So if someone cares about him I definitely won't make them stop. Anyways, the question for me now is where do they meet girls? I mean most people know that Gonzaga boys date girls from Visi, Damatha dates girls from Seton but where do GP boys meet girls? Oh, and I do agree that the boys school would be better for the arts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

No - blacks do not stand out like a sore thumb. DS has good friends at Prep who came from schools other than Mater Dei. He will have a demanding day at Prep especially if he does varsity sports. As for his music the good boys schools might be more flexible in his needs for arts, etc than publics which are often quite rigid. By that I mean it becomes an either or situation. That being said it might be easier for him if you live closer than PG county. Prep has a lot of hw and once they are in high school many community or neighborhood friends become more secondary than the guys from school. Also don't be surprised if his new friends [of all races] fix him up with or if he meets girls of all races.

Yeah, we can live wherever we want so if not living in PG county is better for us then that is what we will have to do. I'm glad that you mentioned that PG is sort of far considering the hw and the lifestyle. I will share that with my husband immediately. My husband loves the school. Since my son is at the end of the severenth grade we are going to wait until we have a better idea of where he can go to school before we actually buy a house up here. I appreciate your post, it is thoughtful and likewise helpful. He mixes well with all kinds of people that is truly his gift. If he ends up with some other race girlfreind then that will have to be fine. The most important thing is that he enjoy his high school years and establish lasting relationships as well as get a "good" education. I personally use to hate the idea of mixed marriages because both of my sisters in law are white. Since they have been very happy I really can't say anything against them at this point. My son will need to be happy above everything else. So if someone cares about him I definitely won't make them stop. Anyways, the question for me now is where do they meet girls? I mean most people know that Gonzaga boys date girls from Visi, Damatha dates girls from Seton but where do GP boys meet girls? Oh, and I do agree that the boys school would be better for the arts.

Quoted PP here. Dematha and Seton are in a different socializing area geographically. Prep, Landon, STA, Gonzaga meet girls through friends, mixers [dances], parties. Huge numbers of girls from Holton, Visi, Stone Ridge, Madeira go to football games and ANY possible event held by these schools. Gonzaga has big dances called mixers. freshman and sophomore year there are huge numbers of elaborate parties for girl's Sweet Sixteens.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A word of friendly advice: Do NOT move to PG County. It has high crime, low-performing schools, minimal services and substandard shopping and restaurants. I moved there, because I had heard the same thing as you did--that it was a good place for affluent Blacks (and because the houses are cheaper). We bought a brand new McMansion for $750,000 and two years later, the homes in our neighborhood are going for just $350,000--they have declined by more than half! And there have been all sorts of crimes in our Mitchellville/Bowie neighborhood (e.g. carjackings, break-ins, gang activity). It sounds like you really want a nice life for your son. If you can afford it, I would suggest moving to Howard, Montgomery, Fairfax or Loudon County. They are diverse and at least you and your family will be safe. If I could afford to move, I would do it in a heartbeat! Good luck to you and your family.

Thank you soo much for YOUR advice. It seems like you know what I am dealing with. I thought Mitchelville/Bowie were pretty safe but now that I am getting it "straight from the horses mouth", (southern language) I will adhere to it. I've been told that before but never from someone who lives there. Howard County is really nice but far from a lot of things. I visited a neighborhood called Maple Lawn and it looked like the planned community we lived in back home. Haven't checked the others. I will do it today because I'm snowed in. Although my son is just in 7th grade I am really big on where he will go to high school. That is totally the driving force for our decision. What do you think about living inside the district? My co workers do and they insist on it? According to them the district is changing and IT is the safe place to be. Can't beat it for convenience. So what do you think? Oh and where do your kids go to school? Yep, I am trying to get everything out of you now. Appreciate your input.


I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

No - blacks do not stand out like a sore thumb. DS has good friends at Prep who came from schools other than Mater Dei. He will have a demanding day at Prep especially if he does varsity sports. As for his music the good boys schools might be more flexible in his needs for arts, etc than publics which are often quite rigid. By that I mean it becomes an either or situation. That being said it might be easier for him if you live closer than PG county. Prep has a lot of hw and once they are in high school many community or neighborhood friends become more secondary than the guys from school. Also don't be surprised if his new friends [of all races] fix him up with or if he meets girls of all races.

Yeah, we can live wherever we want so if not living in PG county is better for us then that is what we will have to do. I'm glad that you mentioned that PG is sort of far considering the hw and the lifestyle. I will share that with my husband immediately. My husband loves the school. Since my son is at the end of the severenth grade we are going to wait until we have a better idea of where he can go to school before we actually buy a house up here. I appreciate your post, it is thoughtful and likewise helpful. He mixes well with all kinds of people that is truly his gift. If he ends up with some other race girlfreind then that will have to be fine. The most important thing is that he enjoy his high school years and establish lasting relationships as well as get a "good" education. I personally use to hate the idea of mixed marriages because both of my sisters in law are white. Since they have been very happy I really can't say anything against them at this point. My son will need to be happy above everything else. So if someone cares about him I definitely won't make them stop. Anyways, the question for me now is where do they meet girls? I mean most people know that Gonzaga boys date girls from Visi, Damatha dates girls from Seton but where do GP boys meet girls? Oh, and I do agree that the boys school would be better for the arts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

No - blacks do not stand out like a sore thumb. DS has good friends at Prep who came from schools other than Mater Dei. He will have a demanding day at Prep especially if he does varsity sports. As for his music the good boys schools might be more flexible in his needs for arts, etc than publics which are often quite rigid. By that I mean it becomes an either or situation. That being said it might be easier for him if you live closer than PG county. Prep has a lot of hw and once they are in high school many community or neighborhood friends become more secondary than the guys from school. Also don't be surprised if his new friends [of all races] fix him up with or if he meets girls of all races.

Yeah, we can live wherever we want so if not living in PG county is better for us then that is what we will have to do. I'm glad that you mentioned that PG is sort of far considering the hw and the lifestyle. I will share that with my husband immediately. My husband loves the school. Since my son is at the end of the severenth grade we are going to wait until we have a better idea of where he can go to school before we actually buy a house up here. I appreciate your post, it is thoughtful and likewise helpful. He mixes well with all kinds of people that is truly his gift. If he ends up with some other race girlfreind then that will have to be fine. The most important thing is that he enjoy his high school years and establish lasting relationships as well as get a "good" education. I personally use to hate the idea of mixed marriages because both of my sisters in law are white. Since they have been very happy I really can't say anything against them at this point. My son will need to be happy above everything else. So if someone cares about him I definitely won't make them stop. Anyways, the question for me now is where do they meet girls? I mean most people know that Gonzaga boys date girls from Visi, Damatha dates girls from Seton but where do GP boys meet girls? Oh, and I do agree that the boys school would be better for the arts.

Quoted PP here. Dematha and Seton are in a different socializing area geographically. Prep, Landon, STA, Gonzaga meet girls through friends, mixers [dances], parties. Huge numbers of girls from Holton, Visi, Stone Ridge, Madeira go to football games and ANY possible event held by these schools. Gonzaga has big dances called mixers. freshman and sophomore year there are huge numbers of elaborate parties for girl's Sweet Sixteens.

I really don't want to deal with Damatha. I don't want to have to defend it however, since I have verified the fact that he can only apply to two high schools I might have to put them on the list because it is a safety school. Some days he says, "why worry, I can just go to Damatha". He just got all A's this report card and if he finishes the year with all A's then I will not worry much about where he is going to go. I hate to keep bringing this race thing up but are the sweet sixteen events diverse by chance? Oh and another thing I have just noticed that there are social groups for moms at GP. Is that diverse?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A word of friendly advice: Do NOT move to PG County. It has high crime, low-performing schools, minimal services and substandard shopping and restaurants. I moved there, because I had heard the same thing as you did--that it was a good place for affluent Blacks (and because the houses are cheaper). We bought a brand new McMansion for $750,000 and two years later, the homes in our neighborhood are going for just $350,000--they have declined by more than half! And there have been all sorts of crimes in our Mitchellville/Bowie neighborhood (e.g. carjackings, break-ins, gang activity). It sounds like you really want a nice life for your son. If you can afford it, I would suggest moving to Howard, Montgomery, Fairfax or Loudon County. They are diverse and at least you and your family will be safe. If I could afford to move, I would do it in a heartbeat! Good luck to you and your family.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a question. I am African American and GP is indeed our first pick. We visited the school and absolutely loved it. I noticed that most applicants will need to make 99 on the SSAT but we are willing to give it a shot. Now we are after a great education that will propel us towards a Holy Cross or a Georgetown. I'm just being honest with you. Now this is what I need to know. Do blacks stand out like a sore thumb? Will he not have a single friend there? Hey I might as well ask directly before we waste time, energy and money.

No - blacks do not stand out like a sore thumb. DS has good friends at Prep who came from schools other than Mater Dei. He will have a demanding day at Prep especially if he does varsity sports. As for his music the good boys schools might be more flexible in his needs for arts, etc than publics which are often quite rigid. By that I mean it becomes an either or situation. That being said it might be easier for him if you live closer than PG county. Prep has a lot of hw and once they are in high school many community or neighborhood friends become more secondary than the guys from school. Also don't be surprised if his new friends [of all races] fix him up with or if he meets girls of all races.

Yeah, we can live wherever we want so if not living in PG county is better for us then that is what we will have to do. I'm glad that you mentioned that PG is sort of far considering the hw and the lifestyle. I will share that with my husband immediately. My husband loves the school. Since my son is at the end of the severenth grade we are going to wait until we have a better idea of where he can go to school before we actually buy a house up here. I appreciate your post, it is thoughtful and likewise helpful. He mixes well with all kinds of people that is truly his gift. If he ends up with some other race girlfreind then that will have to be fine. The most important thing is that he enjoy his high school years and establish lasting relationships as well as get a "good" education. I personally use to hate the idea of mixed marriages because both of my sisters in law are white. Since they have been very happy I really can't say anything against them at this point. My son will need to be happy above everything else. So if someone cares about him I definitely won't make them stop. Anyways, the question for me now is where do they meet girls? I mean most people know that Gonzaga boys date girls from Visi, Damatha dates girls from Seton but where do GP boys meet girls? Oh, and I do agree that the boys school would be better for the arts.

I'm responding to the PG county person. I attempted to post a response a few minutes earlier and it didn't connect for some reason. Anyways, I wanted to say that I have heard that PG county was not so good but never from someone who lives there. This advice is "straight from the horses mouth" and that makes it valid. Howard County is nice. It reminds me of the planned community we lived in back home. It seems to be impossibly far for those who commute to DC daily. I will check the others out today because I am snowed in and have all day to play on the internet. I am very surprised that Mitchelville/Bowie did not hold its value. I now have several other questions for YOU. Where do your kids go to school? Are you pleased with the school? Also what do you know about a public school called Roosevelt? Thanks for your response it is enlightening.

[Anonymous]

I'm the person who posted about PG. My oldest will be in K next year, so we're looking at private schools. We are part of the Charles Flowers school cluster--which is good by PG's (lower) standard but doesn't hold a candle to Montgomery, Fairfax, Howard or Loudon. PG generally ranks 23rd or 24th out of the 24 counties in Maryland for public schools--so they are not an option for us.

Please don't be surprised that Mitchellville/Bowie did not hold its value. In the D.C. area, a neighborhood's value is closely related to the quality of the schools. For example, I have a friend who bought her house in Montgomery County at the same time that I bought mine and for about the same price--$750,000. Her home has maintained its value, because it's in a great public school district, so there will always be demand. In PG, many affluent Blacks are forced to send their children to private school, so the homes don't hold their value very well.

Another piece of friendly advice: Be careful when people tell you that a certain neighborhood is "good for affluent Blacks" as opposed to "for all affluent people". There are some (whether consciously or subconsciously) who believe that Blacks subscribe to a lower standard. If the neighborhood is so great "for Blacks", ask yourself how come other races don't want to live there? Ask yourself why people would pay more for a similarly constructed house if it's located in Montgomery or Fairfax? And why is that most of the people who suggest that you live there don't live in PG don't live there themselves? It's usually, because the neighborhood that's "good for affluent Blacks" is not that great at all.