St Stephen & St Agnes? & other Alexandria schools?

[Anonymous]

I know several reasonable, well-educated alums of SSSAS (or the single-sex schools pre-merger) who live in Alexandria and wouldn't even consider sending their kids to the school. And these are parents who send their kids to private schools farther away (several in DC). Their reasons are mostly what's identified in earlier postings, though I don't know anyone who feels as strongly about the school as a few of the more negative posters. One oddity is that the people I know who've send kids to the school second generation have been mostly real estate developers (including a few very successful developers).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Joan Holden is a standout in her field - you're hard pressed to find a head of school who has more integrity and vision than she does. She's got a tough job - I wouldn't want it - but she's done it so successfully for 25+ years and has lead the school through a merger of the boys school and the girls school, campus building projects, fund raising campaigns, faculty and staff professional development that is strides above other schools, always vigilant with the budget and tuition increases, visible each week on each campus for chapel, plays, athletic games, book discussions. She's hands-on, smart, compassionate, and full of honor. She isn't looking to be popular with her decisions, she's looking to be responsible and fair. That's who I want leading a school and she's a true leader, guided by her own mind and heart, not by parental pressure or whim. I'm an SSSAS parent and the school wouldn't be the incredible place it is without her commitment. I'm so grateful to her - she's incredible.

Just so people know, Joan Holden has an outstanding reputation in the wider independent school world, basically for the reasons stated above. (No connection to SSSAS except having watched our kids lose to their kids in some girls' sports over the years.)

[Anonymous]

Who resurrected an old thread from 2008 to ask about current SSSAS?

C'mon PP - at least start a new thread so old (and many irrelevant) comments don't have to be crawled through. Schools change - just like the kids in their student body.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who resurrected an old thread from 2008 to ask about current SSSAS?

C'mon PP - at least start a new thread so old (and many irrelevant) comments don't have to be crawled through. Schools change - just like the kids in their student body.

The person that resurrection this thread from its last post in 2010 had a very specific question about a prior post. That's fair game. If they started a new thread, their question would have no context (i.e. do K parents really form cliques (not their children) and exclude others from birthday parties and playdates?).

I'm not surprised the Holden-haters re-emerged bringing up old grudges, but I am surprised that there weren't a lot of posts to say that the exclusionary country club clique didn't exist in kindergarten. On the contrary, it was more like they exist but they aren't that bad.

I'm not sure if they would make a decision based on this board, but I would definitely want to talk to a bunch more parents to see if I'd really fit at this school.

[Anonymous]

I have a kindergartener and a third grader at SSSAS, both girls. We are really happy with the school and feel a strong sense of community. We invited the entire class to birthday parties in K and then just girls (but all the girls in the class) in higher grades. We have never felt excluded and we live in Cameron Station!

[Anonymous]

SSSAS k parent here as well.
We love the school. Everyone has been friendly and welcoming, and our child has been challenged.
Please visit the school and don't make decisions based on this useless board.
(there is a woman in my neighborhood who hates SSSAS because her sister was fired from the faculty YEARS ago - she has no kids in the school and never has, but loves to badmouth it. I hate to think that she is on this board talking trash about a school that she has no experience with. )

[Anonymous]

This is perplexing to me. I'm a current SSSAS parent of a 4th grade girl and 1st grade boy and I've only ever felt a sense of community. My daughter started in 2nd grade and she was welcomed not only by the school, but everyone in her class. In fact, day one, a brand new classmate walked her out to carpool! Both my kids go to many birthday parties and get together outside of school. One of the main reasons for moving from our neighborhood school is that it wasn't a good fit for my daughter socially....now she's thriving with lots of friends with many different interests!

[Anonymous]

I personally attend SSSAS. I love it there. Many kids do have parents with a very above average level of wealth , but they are not snobby or stuck-up (well most of them). There is very little bullying, and amazing academic and athletic facilities. I have had a great chance to learn, and I, actually, at first was put off by the reputation too. But, now I love it there it's a great community and one of the best learning environments you can have.

[Anonymous]

I was the attendee of SSSAS. Just to clarify I have attended for three years at the Middle School.

[Anonymous]

old thread. let it die.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:old thread. let it die.

I disagree- I love to hear from a student about his perceptions. It is refreshing and interesting to hear his point of view in such an honest way.
Thanks for sharing!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's not known for its academics so much.... therefore, the people who send their kids there are looking for something else that a private school may offer (i.e., social cachet).

I don't get this. If you live in the City of Alexandria, your choices are 1) trouble public schools, 2) Blessed Sacrement/Bishop Ireton, 3) SSSAS, 4) ACDS, 5) Burgundy, 6) Browne, 7) Grace, 8) a horrible commute for your child, or 9) to move.

If you aren't Catholic and feel uncomfortable sending your child to a Catholic school and you eliminate #1, #8, and #9, your choices are SSSAS, ACDS, Burgundy, Browne, or Grace. Of these choices, only SSSAS offers high school. So if you attend ACDS, Burgundy, Browne, or Grace, your child either needs to attend TC Williams (which has the second lowest SAT score in NoVa outside of the schools in Manassas), Bishop Ireton Catholic school, a school requiring a long commute (for the schools in DC, MD, or other private high schools in Nova), to move, or ironically SSSAS!

So if you are not Catholic, like living in Alexandria or have roots there, don't want to send your child to TC Williams, don't want to have your child to have a long commute, and don't want to move, SSSAS is a logical pick. So guess what, SSSAS is very popular choice for Alexandria families. They must all want to be snobs! Imagine them not wanting to have to move to Arlington, Vienna, Fairfax, Falls Church, Springfield, Burke, or McLean either when their child turns 5 or 14. Oh the snobbery of them all.

That's why most families move to Mclean, Great Falls and out of Alexandria if they can afford it. Check your law firm partnership list - almost all in N. Bethesda, Potomac, Mclean, Great Falls, Wesley Heights, Foxhall, etc.

[Anonymous]

Those that are singing SSAS praises, you must definitely be white. It is not a place for black or beige people. I visited SSAS and was treated like garbage by the staff even though I dressed impeccably. The best part is you can't even say that I must have said something to agitate them. All I did was park my car and walk in to take the damn tour. No one even said hello to me, I had to say it first then they were like oh yes, right this way.

I randomly run into SSAS parents around Alexandria. A-holes, every last one of them and their kids are being raised in the same tradition. For example, I see two blonde waspy SSASs couples once a month socially for the past 2 years and they refuse to acknowledge my existence. I get that most white people in DC are socially awkward, but when we keep seeing each other at the social functions month after month, would it kill you to at least say hello to me when you run into me at whole foods or safeway instead of staring at me? At one birthday party, a SSAS 7 year old was chasing my 4 year old around the yard with a toy sword and the dad was just standing there in his loafers chuckling while my son was terrified of getting hit. I went over there and loudly within ear shot of the dad said c'mon sweetie, big kids are playing here and you can get hurt so let's go inside. If it was the other way around, if my south Asian kid was the perp, that guy would have called the cops on me and my kid for attempted assault.

Most SSAS alums over the age of 40 in Alexandria that I meet, love living in Alexandria, hate SSAS.

[Anonymous]

FWIW I know several SSSAS teachers who have privately told me they wouldn't want their own kids there, due to prevailing culture (country club/wealth/social climbing/anti-intellectual/snobbishness).

I am certain that this description does not apply at all to many SSSAS familes, but even if 75% of families are nothing like this, the 25% of rotten apples can make the whole barrel pretty unpleasant.

[Anonymous]

I am a current parent of a first grade student at SSSAS. I am horrified to hear the PP's experience on the tour. I can only speak for the experience of my familiy and my daughter. My daughter is really, really happy there and is thriving emotionally, socially and academically. She has made friends with children from diverse backgrounds and I may be clueless, but I don't even know which kids in her class belong to a country club (we don't). In her K class last year, about one half of the children were non-white and I was pleased there was also a two mom family. My first experience on the school grounds, I felt a bit nervous after reading postings on this board that made me uncomfortable with the culture at the school. For whatever reason, my husband and I were not "wowed" by our first tour of the school. I felt very awed by other schools in the area (we didn't tour schools in Alexandria so I am making no direct comparisons to other schools mentioned in this thread). But I have been really, truly impressed by how caring and attentive the faculty are, and how happy my daughter is every day to go to school. I have met delightful families whose children attend many of the private and public schools in Alexandria. For our family, the fact that we have a smaller house and live a simpler life does not seem to have any negative impact socially on my daughter. It may be that she is still young and relatively oblivious but I feel comfortable down the road explaining to her the choices my husband and I have made. I ask you to please share your comments with the Admissions Director so they can make whatever staffing/volunteer changes they need to so other families do not have the same awful experience you did!