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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]It's all bull shit just move to Virginia or Maryland the schools are better than dc privates[/quote]

I went to Langley, pre TJ, when it was the top public in Virginia. It was okay. But with 550 kids in the class, there really isn't a community. Lots of cliques. Very little real adult supervision, certainly no mentors. Lots of kids fell into the wrong groups, and it did hurt them later. There was a group there, model UN, etc., who were mostly merit scholars, went to great colleges, and built solid lives after Langley, (my path) but most of the middle kids have not matched their parents. My family could afford private, but thought it elitist and not 'real world'. Spouses family had different views, and went to a top single sex school. So I acquiesced and did the Cathedral thing for our kids. If I had been given the choice again as a 9th grader, and I was but rejected it, I would have gone private.

My takeaway was really strong and self motivated kids will do equally well anywhere. The middle kids are advantaged by the private school attention, and there are a lot of adults watching their back, and classmates who will be friends for life, and the contacts often do matter. Life is 99% ties, and tiebreakers mean more today than ever before. I think for the kid whose parents who are working 80 hour weeks, and the kid who is bright, but not driven, they will wallow in public, and maybe get in with a not great crowd. Yes, elements of private are snooty, but for the most part, it is a sacrifice for most of the parents financially. I think for all but the absolutely shine rock stars (and there are VERY few of these) it is a good investment in building a young adult ready for the world.

The expense of private is indeed large, but my spouse and I concluded that the more important investment was in their teen years than a very expensive college. We are Episcopalians, but I love a quote from the Jesuits "Give me a child until he is 7, and he is mine for life". With inflation and all, maybe its 17 now, but these years, not the college years, are where their foundation is set.

I would do a top private and U Maryland over a public and Duke. I just think if money makes it an either/or, build the foundation while its still malleable.

Our oldest developed a deep and strong sense of service at his private school, and in what is heresy on DCUM, decided that service by the fortunate and strong to the unfortunate or weak is the highest calling. He is at a Service Academy now, and his college is 'free'.

[b]If your kid is motivated, super bright, and knows 'who' he wants to be, public is fine. Very few kids fit this profile. All of the privates do a very good job helping kids on a personal basis find out who they are, and a basically good kid with strong adult figures in small classes is far less likely to fall into a bad crowd.[/quote][/b]
 i agree with this based off of personal experience[/quote]

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