Georgetown Prep vs. Sidwell

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a parent of a current student at Gonzaga. I feel so blessed that my son will have a network of friends for life in this wonderful brotherhood. Gonzaga is not just a high school...it is a very special place that grooms men for others. I think the problem is that many do not understand the significance of the bonds this school creates. I only wish I could have had such an experience in high school.

Oh my God. Put down the Purple Kool-Aid. Bleech.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a parent of a current student at Gonzaga. I feel so blessed that my son will have a network of friends for life in this wonderful brotherhood. Gonzaga is not just a high school...it is a very special place that grooms men for others. I think the problem is that many do not understand the significance of the bonds this school creates. I only wish I could have had such an experience in high school.

Oh my God. Put down the Purple Kool-Aid. Bleech.

See what I mean?? Green with envy. I'll take purple over green any day.

[Anonymous]

I am not from this area, but have always privately thought what the deal is with all the stickers. In some ways it is kind of cool to see such spirit that isn't the case in other areas. My other thought is, unless you live in DC some of the top public school counties in the country include Fairfax and Many towns in Montgomery Co. It does strike me as odd that some families go so hard after private schools considering that. If I lived in DC I'd get it completely, but Potmac or McLean? Seems odd to me.

[Anonymous]

The term Catholic Mafia is not pejorative. It simply describes this close-knit, fairly homogeneous sub-culture here in the DMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sidwell is 2.6 times better than Georgetown Prep. I have crunched the numbers. It is like comparing an E Class Mercedes to a Toyota Camry.

In order to get 2.6 you had to multiply something by something else. (I get that this is a joke,)

These schools are so different and their student bodies are so different, one wonders how you came up with factors you could use.

This is more like comparing an E Class Mercedes with a Cessna 174. They are similar in that they are both conveyances, both have engines and wheels and both have steering mechanisms. But they are so fundamentally different that comparisons are silly.

Sidwell doesn't want to be Prep and vice versa. They don't consider themselves comparable or competitor schools. It's extremely rare that a prospective student would consider both.

I would think that if a student were a very good fit for one, they would be an awful fit at the other and have a very unhappy high school experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's true, though. If you see a car driven by the Catholic Mafia, it's all about the Gonzaga or Prep bumper sticker. You never see a college bumper sticker.

Ridiculous, but it IS true that you are a bigot.

I'm not this poster, but I can't see how this observation is "bigoted" in any way.

The poster may be poking a little fun at these people, because he/she and their ilk think these people with these bumper stickers and their fierce allegiances to these high schools are ridiculous. He/she want these people to be aligned with their value system. He/she appears to think these people are silly and not necessarily bad people.

Of course, the Prep and GZA alums with the close life-long ties to these schools don't care at all about what this person thinks. They have their way, they believe in it, and its worked petty well for them for a very long time.

It's beyond poking fun -- this string of posts is mocking, prejudiced, and dismissive. It seeks to paint a large swath of Catholics with the same biased brush. You are similarly feeding into this all too prevalent bigotry, when you only mention Prep and Gonzaga and dismissively describe how "THEY" think . . .

I am one of those DC Catholics. I'm a Gonzaga graduate.

I think the observation is pretty much correct.

I agree that very frequently we do consider our high school association a more important than our college one. My closest friends are the guys I went to Gonzaga with and a few Prep and St John's guys I have developed relationships with. I am not threatened or insulted by this in any way.

First of all, let me state upfront that I am Catholic and have children in the local Catholic schools.

The problem is that there are several posters on DCUM who seek to perpetuate stereotypes or generalizations about the families who send their kids to the local Catholic high schools. Some of these inaccurate generalizations are: 1) that Catholic families at the school are not welcoming to non-Catholics and feel like non-Catholics are "using" the schools (I think this one usually comes from a Catholic poster who wants to keep non-Catholics from applying), 2) that the students only come from select parts of Montgomery County and not the larger DC metropolitan area (I think maybe this one comes from Catholics who prefer thinking about these schools as their personal social clubs and can't accept that the schools have moved beyond the population they served 20-30 years ago), and 3) that the students who attend catholic HS have little aspiration beyond HS (I think this one either comes from non-Catholics who are trying to characterize the students at Catholic high schools as anti-intellectuals, or possibly from a small number of Catholics who actually are anti-intellectuals but who don't get that this is not something to be proud of).

Responding to the poster from Gonzaga: Just because there is one person who identifies with a stereotype (in this case: "the students at the local Catholic high schools only really care about where they went to HS and not college") doesn't mean that the stereotype is correct. The stereotype/generalization is offensive because it rejects all the people who do not fit that model. Reasonable people do not say "women don't like to play sports" just because they know a few women who don't like to play sports or because they remember that 40 years ago their mother didn't play sports. And even if a woman says, "I think that person is right, I'm a woman and have never really been into playing sports, so I'm not offended by that statement," it doesn't make it any less insulting to the rest of the women who don't want to be characterized by that narrow description of an entire group of people and who worry why someone might continually repeat such an inaccurate stereotype.

I agree with the poster who says that having lasting connections with high school friends is a wonderful thing and I believe there's something special about the Catholic high school communities which foster those life-long relationships. However, the anti-Catholic HS posters often try to make it sound like this is all the Catholic high school kids have going for them and they have no interest in ever moving out of the area, attending top colleges, focusing on academic interests/careers, or meeting and working with people of different faiths. This just isn't true of most kids attending the local Catholic high schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am not from this area, but have always privately thought what the deal is with all the stickers. In some ways it is kind of cool to see such spirit that isn't the case in other areas. My other thought is, unless you live in DC some of the top public school counties in the country include Fairfax and Many towns in Montgomery Co. It does strike me as odd that some families go so hard after private schools considering that. If I lived in DC I'd get it completely, but Potmac or McLean? Seems odd to me.

Interesting.

You say you are not from this area. And all this attention and commitment to these private schools seems odd to you. After all, you reason, there are perfectly good public schools available.

It seems odd to you because you don't understand who lives in DC (various groups, sub-cultures, etc), the history or how these schools are different from the public schools and from one another. Absent all that knowledge and understanding, its no surprise that spending a bunch of money on these private schools seems odd to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not from this area, but have always privately thought what the deal is with all the stickers. In some ways it is kind of cool to see such spirit that isn't the case in other areas. My other thought is, unless you live in DC some of the top public school counties in the country include Fairfax and Many towns in Montgomery Co. It does strike me as odd that some families go so hard after private schools considering that. If I lived in DC I'd get it completely, but Potmac or McLean? Seems odd to me.

Interesting.

You say you are not from this area. And all this attention and commitment to these private schools seems odd to you. After all, you reason, there are perfectly good public schools available.

It seems odd to you because you don't understand who lives in DC (various groups, sub-cultures, etc), the history or how these schools are different from the public schools and from one another. Absent all that knowledge and understanding, its no surprise that spending a bunch of money on these private schools seems odd to you.

Not the person you are responding to, but please enlighten us as to how long you've lived in this area and how you've gained your knowledge of this area and all the various groups and sub-clutures. You purport to be an expert of everything in this area. How is that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a parent of a current student at Gonzaga. I feel so blessed that my son will have a network of friends for life in this wonderful brotherhood. Gonzaga is not just a high school...it is a very special place that grooms men for others. I think the problem is that many do not understand the significance of the bonds this school creates. I only wish I could have had such an experience in high school.

Oh my God. Put down the Purple Kool-Aid. Bleech.

See what I mean?? Green with envy. I'll take purple over green any day.

There's an enthusiasm gap between the students and alumni and parents of these schools. And there is no group more enthusiastic about their school than the Gonzaga faithful.

For some reason, this rubs some people the wrong way. I have never understood why. It's not like it impacts them at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's true, though. If you see a car driven by the Catholic Mafia, it's all about the Gonzaga or Prep bumper sticker. You never see a college bumper sticker.

Ridiculous, but it IS true that you are a bigot.

I'm not this poster, but I can't see how this observation is "bigoted" in any way.

The poster may be poking a little fun at these people, because he/she and their ilk think these people with these bumper stickers and their fierce allegiances to these high schools are ridiculous. He/she want these people to be aligned with their value system. He/she appears to think these people are silly and not necessarily bad people.

Of course, the Prep and GZA alums with the close life-long ties to these schools don't care at all about what this person thinks. They have their way, they believe in it, and its worked petty well for them for a very long time.

It's beyond poking fun -- this string of posts is mocking, prejudiced, and dismissive. It seeks to paint a large swath of Catholics with the same biased brush. You are similarly feeding into this all too prevalent bigotry, when you only mention Prep and Gonzaga and dismissively describe how "THEY" think . . .

I am one of those DC Catholics. I'm a Gonzaga graduate.

I think the observation is pretty much correct.

I agree that very frequently we do consider our high school association a more important than our college one. My closest friends are the guys I went to Gonzaga with and a few Prep and St John's guys I have developed relationships with. I am not threatened or insulted by this in any way.

First of all, let me state upfront that I am Catholic and have children in the local Catholic schools.

The problem is that there are several posters on DCUM who seek to perpetuate stereotypes or generalizations about the families who send their kids to the local Catholic high schools. Some of these inaccurate generalizations are: 1) that Catholic families at the school are not welcoming to non-Catholics and feel like non-Catholics are "using" the schools (I think this one usually comes from a Catholic poster who wants to keep non-Catholics from applying), 2) that the students only come from select parts of Montgomery County and not the larger DC metropolitan area (I think maybe this one comes from Catholics who prefer thinking about these schools as their personal social clubs and can't accept that the schools have moved beyond the population they served 20-30 years ago), and 3) that the students who attend catholic HS have little aspiration beyond HS (I think this one either comes from non-Catholics who are trying to characterize the students at Catholic high schools as anti-intellectuals, or possibly from a small number of Catholics who actually are anti-intellectuals but who don't get that this is not something to be proud of).

Responding to the poster from Gonzaga: Just because there is one person who identifies with a stereotype (in this case: "the students at the local Catholic high schools only really care about where they went to HS and not college") doesn't mean that the stereotype is correct. The stereotype/generalization is offensive because it rejects all the people who do not fit that model. Reasonable people do not say "women don't like to play sports" just because they know a few women who don't like to play sports or because they remember that 40 years ago their mother didn't play sports. And even if a woman says, "I think that person is right, I'm a woman and have never really been into playing sports, so I'm not offended by that statement," it doesn't make it any less insulting to the rest of the women who don't want to be characterized by that narrow description of an entire group of people and who worry why someone might continually repeat such an inaccurate stereotype.

I agree with the poster who says that having lasting connections with high school friends is a wonderful thing and I believe there's something special about the Catholic high school communities which foster those life-long relationships. However, the anti-Catholic HS posters often try to make it sound like this is all the Catholic high school kids have going for them and they have no interest in ever moving out of the area, attending top colleges, focusing on academic interests/careers, or meeting and working with people of different faiths. This just isn't true of most kids attending the local Catholic high schools.

Great post . . . well said.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The term Catholic Mafia is not pejorative. It simply describes this close-knit, fairly homogeneous sub-culture here in the DMV.

Perhaps in your head because you are accustomed to using or hearing the words. Look up the definition. There us nothing neutral about it. But hey, it's about Catholics, so who cares?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The term Catholic Mafia is not pejorative. It simply describes this close-knit, fairly homogeneous sub-culture here in the DMV.

You and Dan Snyder would get along fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not from this area, but have always privately thought what the deal is with all the stickers. In some ways it is kind of cool to see such spirit that isn't the case in other areas. My other thought is, unless you live in DC some of the top public school counties in the country include Fairfax and Many towns in Montgomery Co. It does strike me as odd that some families go so hard after private schools considering that. If I lived in DC I'd get it completely, but Potmac or McLean? Seems odd to me.

Interesting.

You say you are not from this area. And all this attention and commitment to these private schools seems odd to you. After all, you reason, there are perfectly good public schools available.

It seems odd to you because you don't understand who lives in DC (various groups, sub-cultures, etc), the history or how these schools are different from the public schools and from one another. Absent all that knowledge and understanding, its no surprise that spending a bunch of money on these private schools seems odd to you.

Not the person you are responding to, but please enlighten us as to how long you've lived in this area and how you've gained your knowledge of this area and all the various groups and sub-clutures. You purport to be an expert of everything in this area. How is that?

I'm a third generation Washingtonian. But I have lived for a few years in some other eastern cities like Philadelphia and NYC, where I came to understand just how different and unique DC is. I've always been interested in the structure of the schools and who sends their kids where.

Public school populations are determined by the character of the sending districts than surround the school. It's pretty easy to contrast Whitman with Springbrook, for example.

And if you've been around as long as I have, it's no secret which groups send their kids to which private schools. All you have to know is the cast of characters. Now if everyone is the same to you --- you can't see any differences --- then I could see how you might be confused. Like the Original poster in this thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The term Catholic Mafia is not pejorative. It simply describes this close-knit, fairly homogeneous sub-culture here in the DMV.

You and Dan Snyder would get along fine.

A huge majority of the US population and of native Americans themselves agree with Dan Snyder. It's the hyper-sensitive and hopelessy politically correct that are trying to expunge any term that they think might offend anyone from the lexicon.

[Anonymous]

I brought it up as odd above. I am from NY and there are only two ways to go, get out of the city or go private if you can afford to. I didn't mean it as an insult, but I do get the religious angles locally here to an extent. But how far it seems to go is pretty incredible. It seems like DC people are a lot less transient than people from other metropolitan areas. I didn't see myself as living in NY as a given most of my adult life after growing up there. We lived in Chicago and more of the same. A lot of people multi generation, but many kids grow up and just leave.