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[quote=Anonymous]I'm very familiar with the Baltimore schools.

If we're talking about Gilman, Friends and Park, this is how they're positioned on the scale of personality, from preppy to artsy/liberal: Gilman (all boys, historically prestigious, the #1 school for Baltimore's establishment), Friends (middle of the road, popular among JHU academics, progressive but grounded) and then Park (strong curriculum, faculty called by their first name, very liberal and progressive, perhaps too much, historically the #1 school for elite Jews in Baltimore although that's weakened somewhat with many now sending kids to Gilman/Bryn Mawr).

I've heard more than a few people say that Friends is the best public school education money can buy, and there's truth to it. The atmosphere at Friends is comparable to the atmosphere at good public schools in affluent in-town suburbs with a high percentage of educated parents in the academics / medicine / non profits. As such Friends is popular with parents who find the traditional prep school atmosphere off-putting because they went to public schools themselves, but who find Park too unstructured/hippy.

On the flip side, other parents might question why paying 30k for something that may not feel inherently special or unique. Friends is a happy school with good academics, but may feel like it's missing that special touch one might expect from a private school, and which Park and Gilman have albeit for quite different reasons.

Academically, in terms of college placements, Gilman and Park have the edge. Friends used to be comparable but has weakened in the last decade, not because of any decline in faculty or teaching but slight changes to the student body demographics. But a bright kid won't be hurt.

It's well worth visiting all three schools and paying close attention to the campus vibes and students. Faculty are great at all three. Based on what you've said about your son I would suspect he'd lean towards Park and Friends over Gilman, but definitely don't rule Gilman out. [/quote]

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