Reply to Please Choose Private For the Right Reasons

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[quote=Anonymous]I’ve seen a recent influx of posts from parents looking for a "nice private alternative" to MCPS or DCPS because they want "rigorous academics" and "small classes." As someone who has been through the cycle with multiple kids at Sidwell and GDS, I feel compelled to say: You are fundamentally doing this wrong.

If your primary goal is just a heavy workload and high AP/IB participation, stay in the public system. The top-tier tracks in MoCo and DC are just as rigorous as anything you’ll find in an independent school. In fact, if you go the private route just to "avoid" public, you often end up paying $45k+ for facilities that are—let’s be honest—frequently dated or even inferior to what a well-funded public school offers. I’ve seen some of these smaller parochial campuses in the Olney/Sandy Spring area, and I’m baffled why anyone would pay tuition for a "campus" that looks like a 1970s office park when the local public has better labs and fields.

You don't send your LOs to the crown jewels of DC private to escape public school. You send them for a values-based, progressive experiential education. You go because you want your DS to be an out-of-the-box thinker who understands social justice and pluralism at a cellular level.

What makes Sidwell special isn't the math curriculum—it’s the intentionality. It’s the school-wide Iftar dinners, the student-led seders focused on sustainability, the niche global theater productions (the recent African folk tale was breathtaking), and the Quaker values.

There’s also a deeper "values" component we rarely talk about. If a parent is fleeing public school to find a "stifling" or narrow environment—like some of the "diploma mills" up-county (GC comes to mind)—it makes me wonder if they’re actually just trying to avoid the diversity and pluralism that makes the DC area great. If you aren't seeking the beauty of a truly progressive education, you’re just paying for a smaller, more homogeneous pond.

Choose a school for its mission, not because you’re afraid of the public school "boogeyman." Otherwise, you’re just paying a premium for a mediocre outlook.[/quote]

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