SSFS Will Stay Open

[Anonymous]

Because no matter how magical, the prospect of paying the same tuition for a much-diminished experience is unappealing. Especially if it leads, as it may, to closure in the next few years.

Maybe one reason it felt so magical was that the school was living far above its means and racking up debt.

[Anonymous]

Denial is a magical place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Dude PP said 232 kids think SSFS is magical. Not true!

What does it matter to you if it's 232 or 2? Every family has their personal reasons for staying at least one more year. What do you get by nitpicking? Every time new info comes from the Board or Coalition, every time a poster here expresses hope, so many rush to poke holes in it. Leave those who are staying alone and let the school's legal, finance, admissions teams sort it out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eyes wide open means not overestimating the number of children for whom it is "magical". That kind of rosy thinking is how schools get in trouble. I believe that it's been magical for your child and some others, but if that were true of "a lot of" students, SSFS wouldn't be in its current dire straits.

It's been magical for 232 of them anyway. Concerning that you seem to think so many kids don't deserve that?

We know the school has been in trouble and there are issues ahead. It doesn't need to be stated ad nauseum. I can tell you are not part of SSFS or else you would see the committees of qualified people doing the work. They're not just flying by the seat of their pants.

Not disputing ssfs is a special place to many. But those 232 aren’t all coming back because it’s magical for them. I know several who are simply using the reopening as a way to have the time to do a proper search in the fall to leave under their own terms.

I'm curious what your point is opining on this since you arent part of the community?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Dude PP said 232 kids think SSFS is magical. Not true!

What does it matter to you if it's 232 or 2? Every family has their personal reasons for staying at least one more year. What do you get by nitpicking? Every time new info comes from the Board or Coalition, every time a poster here expresses hope, so many rush to poke holes in it. Leave those who are staying alone and let the school's legal, finance, admissions teams sort it out.

It matters to me because I think it's important to see the current situation clearly. It's important to at least try to accurately forecast fall enrollment and future year enrollment!

Look, some people thought it was magical. Some people still think it's going to be magical. But it's wrong to assume that everyone who is staying is going to be happy with it. Some people are willing to give it a chance. Some people don't have a better option at this time. The best thing for SSFS is to, yes, let the professionals do their work-- but meanwhile, refrain from making bizarrely over-optimistic assertions. It isn't helpful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you for posting for those who couldn’t attend. At first scan, some questions.

Why didn't the Board do an emergency call for fundraising earlier?
• One specific Board member admits blame for this. In the fall, when they saw the numbers, they suggested a targeted campaign to the school's biggest donors

This doesn’t make sense. How is this on one person who made the correct suggestion?Someone needs to take responsibility, not weirdly scapegoat one board member.

I apologize I can't give more details because I don't want to identify the person on a public forum. They said something like "There has been a lot of finger-pointing, but the only finger I'm pointing is at me." I guess it was their idea to contact a small number of prior reliable donors rather than the community at large, and it didn't raise enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Dude PP said 232 kids think SSFS is magical. Not true!

What does it matter to you if it's 232 or 2? Every family has their personal reasons for staying at least one more year. What do you get by nitpicking? Every time new info comes from the Board or Coalition, every time a poster here expresses hope, so many rush to poke holes in it. Leave those who are staying alone and let the school's legal, finance, admissions teams sort it out.

Then don't come here. Stay on slack where everything is magical. As someone who has just 48 hours left to make my decision I feel I've been pushed to this dreadful forum rather than slack because I want to hear reality. I want to hear the holes that people are pushing into what I find to be overly hopeful. I can't make this decision from slack alone where everyone comes to celebrate and announce #why-we-are-staying. HOw about a channel for #why-we-are-leaving or a channel for #why-we-are-unsure.

Seriously, go back to slack and stop complaining that we are deflating you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Dude PP said 232 kids think SSFS is magical. Not true!

What does it matter to you if it's 232 or 2? Every family has their personal reasons for staying at least one more year. What do you get by nitpicking? Every time new info comes from the Board or Coalition, every time a poster here expresses hope, so many rush to poke holes in it. Leave those who are staying alone and let the school's legal, finance, admissions teams sort it out.

Then don't come here. Stay on slack where everything is magical. As someone who has just 48 hours left to make my decision I feel I've been pushed to this dreadful forum rather than slack because I want to hear reality. I want to hear the holes that people are pushing into what I find to be overly hopeful. I can't make this decision from slack alone where everyone comes to celebrate and announce #why-we-are-staying. HOw about a channel for #why-we-are-leaving or a channel for #why-we-are-unsure.

Seriously, go back to slack and stop complaining that we are deflating you.

If you want to hear reality, DCUM is not your friend, on this topic or anything else. Be a big kid and make your decision. I am not at the school but seriously people, enough with dominating this forum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t know much about that school. So they lost business and then had to build back up too? Or you mean they were a smaller school and expanded from there over time?

They started with a lower school only, then added middle. But those grades were very small at the time. Just making the point it is possible to have 10 kids in a grade and it not "implode" socially. The challenge for SSFS will be doing that with such a large campus.

First of all people have different expectations when they go to a smaller school. They know amenities might be different. But they enter knowing that. Also FcS is 30k for 7/8th grade with ssfs 40K+. Again expectations. I am ok with one thing at 30K that I won’t if I’m paying 40K.

Like another poster said - after all this the school will charge the same next year! I am not okay with that. They tell you “tuition will stay the same” like they’re doing YOU a favor. I’m not paying the same for a substandard experience. I just can’t stay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Dude PP said 232 kids think SSFS is magical. Not true!

What does it matter to you if it's 232 or 2? Every family has their personal reasons for staying at least one more year. What do you get by nitpicking? Every time new info comes from the Board or Coalition, every time a poster here expresses hope, so many rush to poke holes in it. Leave those who are staying alone and let the school's legal, finance, admissions teams sort it out.

Then don't come here. Stay on slack where everything is magical. As someone who has just 48 hours left to make my decision I feel I've been pushed to this dreadful forum rather than slack because I want to hear reality. I want to hear the holes that people are pushing into what I find to be overly hopeful. I can't make this decision from slack alone where everyone comes to celebrate and announce #why-we-are-staying. HOw about a channel for #why-we-are-leaving or a channel for #why-we-are-unsure.

Seriously, go back to slack and stop complaining that we are deflating you.

If you want to hear reality, DCUM is not your friend, on this topic or anything else. Be a big kid and make your decision. I am not at the school but seriously people, enough with dominating this forum.

Right, so you're not at the school but following along and felt the need to police/parent those here. That's all we need to know about you.

[Anonymous]

That trustee was responsible for the determination that $5million was what could be raised over two years. Clearly wrong. He then led the solicitation of key donors, which produced verbal commitments of only $2 million over two years. Clearly there was something suboptimal in his approach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t know much about that school. So they lost business and then had to build back up too? Or you mean they were a smaller school and expanded from there over time?

They started with a lower school only, then added middle. But those grades were very small at the time. Just making the point it is possible to have 10 kids in a grade and it not "implode" socially. The challenge for SSFS will be doing that with such a large campus.

First of all people have different expectations when they go to a smaller school. They know amenities might be different. But they enter knowing that. Also FcS is 30k for 7/8th grade with ssfs 40K+. Again expectations. I am ok with one thing at 30K that I won’t if I’m paying 40K.

Like another poster said - after all this the school will charge the same next year! I am not okay with that. They tell you “tuition will stay the same” like they’re doing YOU a favor. I’m not paying the same for a substandard experience. I just can’t stay.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That trustee was responsible for the determination that $5million was what could be raised over two years. Clearly wrong. He then led the solicitation of key donors, which produced verbal commitments of only $2 million over two years. Clearly there was something suboptimal in his approach.

Verbal commitments. Not money in the bank.

We fell for that once, with the US. That's why we are in this mess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That trustee was responsible for the determination that $5million was what could be raised over two years. Clearly wrong. He then led the solicitation of key donors, which produced verbal commitments of only $2 million over two years. Clearly there was something suboptimal in his approach.

I agree, but it doesn't strike me as unreasonable either. At least he tried something, and is taking responsibility!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eyes wide open means not overestimating the number of children for whom it is "magical". That kind of rosy thinking is how schools get in trouble. I believe that it's been magical for your child and some others, but if that were true of "a lot of" students, SSFS wouldn't be in its current dire straits.

It's been magical for 232 of them anyway. Concerning that you seem to think so many kids don't deserve that?

We know the school has been in trouble and there are issues ahead. It doesn't need to be stated ad nauseum. I can tell you are not part of SSFS or else you would see the committees of qualified people doing the work. They're not just flying by the seat of their pants.

Not disputing ssfs is a special place to many. But those 232 aren’t all coming back because it’s magical for them. I know several who are simply using the reopening as a way to have the time to do a proper search in the fall to leave under their own terms.

I'm curious what your point is opining on this since you arent part of the community?

What makes you say I’m not? I’m one who decided to leave. I just am pointing out some staying are just doing that to have more control over leaving next year.