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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]It’s a private school. They can charge whatever they want. Only the people who can’t afford it are complaining about the cost. [/quote]

Not complaining at all. The US legal system allows consumers to contest abusive practices by corporations. Nothing outrageous about that. Just curious if there was something similar in DC. In Arizona has being proposed. Nothing crazy. [/quote]

The US legal system does NOT allow consumers to successfully contest private school tuition costs. Private school is not a right. If you can’t afford it or don’t want to pay…then don’t. Your children will receive a taxpayer funded public education like the rest of the masses. [/quote]

Wait a second. But paying for private school is not like buying underwear that you can easily switch brands. It’s like having an operation with a doctor, then because you realize that operation is expensive you have part of the operation and then switch to another doctor. Doesn’t work like that. If you study for 12 years in place it is reasonable that tuition increase won’t be outrageous. Let’s say 20 percent per year. [/quote]

No, paying private school tuition is not like having an operation with a doctor, and then being forced to switch doctors due to cost. The moment you decide you can’t afford the tuition, you can switch to public school. Your public school may be an inferior educational option, but it is not life threatening. [/quote]

Sure. Fortunately I can pay for private school and I can envision some personal situations under which I could be forced to switch to public and that fine.

You are under the assumption that the corporate governance of some schools are perfedtly well, there is no waste and fraud, and just the market will be a self correcting mechanism. Again [b]I believe for instance that in a market like dc if public schools were significantly better, private schools would have more incentives to be more efiucuemt and try to compete with customers providing value for money. [/b]

Now  Demand for private is very high and there is limited completion, so you have to accept the conditions they impose.

Yes if you don’t like it you can go somewhere else. I am sympathetic to the Arizona regulation imposing caps in price increases. Somehow the state ncentives to be cost effective should be coming from somewhere and I don’t see that coming from
Anywhere. [/quote]

DP. Of course waste exists. There is no perfectly oiled machinery when it comes to practice in reality, but market pressures for a private entity do limit waste in general.

I too have always wondered why no one has made use of the gap in fanciness between private and public schools, whether it be a non-profit or for-profit entity. I am envisioning a more public like campus, public-like counseling and amenities, less individualized support, but with intermediate class sizes and highly qualified, graduate degree wielding teachers (perhaps in partnership with teaching assistants who may not be as experienced or credentialed), and class sizes that are more in the range of 20-25 vs. 35+. Competitive secular newcomers to the private school business exist, but they don't seem to be that much less expensive than the established schools in the same market. This makes me wonder if offering a middling option is just not that appealing to parents, who would then just select public for free, where their kids can also find a high-performing cohort with great college outcomes. After all, if you could afford to spend $20K + per year on private school, you probably can afford to live in or move to a district that has a school with a strong academic cohort. So I actually don't believe the bolded above to be true. Instead I think having good or decent public options actually drives private school prices even higher, as the privates have to distinguish themselves from the free option by offering far nicer facilities and one-on-one attention. In general I have noticed that private schools are less expensive in cities that don't have access to decent public schools. I know that parents are always bemoaning the state of public schools in DC, but check out other cities for an honest comparison of the state of public schools. [/quote]

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