Getting into St. Albans

[Anonymous]

Solution: STA boosters need to put their money where there mouth is.

[Anonymous]

except some of the boosters (myself included) are on financial aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:except some of the boosters (myself included) are on financial aid.

Do they pay you to boost or is it that you don't want to bite the hands that feed you by lending a critical voice? Maybe, you just love what STA stands for and the lavish financial aid is a cherry on top.

If your boy is thriving academically and socially in this environment, then boost on. Cheers!

[Anonymous]

Hos utterly insulting pp

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hos utterly insulting pp

Really?

[Anonymous]

I boost because I like the school (my son is on financial aid). I have been offered financial aid at other schools, but I chose St Albans because it's a great fit for my boy. He loves the other boys and he loves his teachers, he loves the sports and the competition, and he loves his lunch (which at his age is also important). At some point I may analyze high school test scores, but I don't think I would pull my son out because St Albans has fewer National Merit Scholars than Thomas Jefferson (we don't live in Virginia anyway). My son is doing very well, and it's right for him. Of course everyone needs to make up their own minds, but most parents have a good instinct for what works for their kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I boost because I like the school (my son is on financial aid). I have been offered financial aid at other schools, but I chose St Albans because it's a great fit for my boy. He loves the other boys and he loves his teachers, he loves the sports and the competition, and he loves his lunch (which at his age is also important). At some point I may analyze high school test scores, but I don't think I would pull my son out because St Albans has fewer National Merit Scholars than Thomas Jefferson (we don't live in Virginia anyway). My son is doing very well, and it's right for him. Of course everyone needs to make up their own minds, but most parents have a good instinct for what works for their kids.

I doubt if anyone would seriously consider pulling their son out because St. Albans has so few NMSFs in comparison to TJ. However, when juxtaposing the two schools in regards to quality of overall education and exmissions that needs evaluation in my opinion.

Absolutely agree with you, most parents instinctively know or at least think they do as to what's a good fit for the children.

[Anonymous]

Enough with TJ -- there aren't any TJ threads I could find on the VA public school forum -- that's where they belong. I hate to sound like a Yankee -- but really -- most of us reading this thread don't live an VA and don't care to. And furthermore -- we're interested in reading about STA -- thus the title of the thread. Make your own and go away...please! The confederates lost the civil war.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know what's on STA's admissions exam? My son is applying to 4th grade. TIA!

[Anonymous]

Maybe this will get things back on track.

What sport did they make the applicants play this year during the student interview?

[Anonymous]

The exam they administer is a group IQ test, but you may be able to help familiarize your child with some books online.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, meant to say group administered IQ test.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe this will get things back on track.

What sport did they make the applicants play this year during the student interview?

Why this very odd obsession with STA? This is not healthy.

[Anonymous]

The exam they administer is a group IQ test, but you may be able to help familiarize your child with some books online.







.....Aristotle Circle

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

You are quite right in acknowledging the trump card of privilege, power and who you know in making the world go round. Indeed, affirmative action for landed gentry and wealthy based on these connections was the rule for a century and a half at elite private schools -- like your beloved STA. As you rightly point out, who you knew trumped what you knew. You also rightly point out this is still the rule at STA. By contrast, what you know trumps who you know at TJ and other free and public magnet programs.

As what you know takes on increasing importance for many of us the preferential treatment from privilege, connections and who you know will slowly fade. You are infected with encephalitis of entitlement. This is a disease that afflicts the minds of many of your kind intoxicated with worship of who you know and not what you know.

For these reasons we strategically opted to take infectious precautions with our children at the young and formative stages of social and intellectual development to avoid entitlement encephalitis. We have put them in the big pond -- prime time -- where they engage with children from all walks and stations in life. They will learn to compete on life's bigger stage, based on what they know and not who they know.

The behaviour and attitudes of parents (and many of their children) like you simply reaffirms our wise decision to turn down the Big 3 for the primary school education of our boys and put our checkbook back in the purse. It's a no brainer.

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Anonymous wrote:
While we have avoided the entitlement encephalitis syndrome by foregoing private primary education it was refreshing to see representation from STA (even if from progeny of DHHS employees). What is quite telling is absent representation from the slew of "Big 3" elite private schools in D.C. that champion first rate and top dollar 21st century education. On the other hand, if subscription to the "who you know rather than what you know" philosophy is still the prevailing and proud operative ... it's no surprise at all.

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To PP:

For the record, my sole posts are above. We may consider a local or distant private for secondary school when we think the kids have adequate protection and immunity from entitlement encephalitis.

Too funny. Google Churchill and Scotland. Then hop over to Fairfax Underground and read the thread on the South Lakes boundary.