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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

By the way, where do you plan to send your super-bright fourth grader?[/quote]

We're planning to keep him in DCPS for 5th, then St. Anselm's (boys Benedictine Abbey school) in Brookland, if he gets in.  We're not Catholic but the school is 10K cheaper than many NW privates, and closer to us, and sends many boys to Georgetown, Ivies etc.  He will continue to do Johns Hopkins CTY camps in the summers, which he loves.  St. Anselm's is no jock school, but at least they have grass, a stage, an orchestra etc.  I also like the fact that they don't weed boys out.  DC is shy so we don't want hard-earned friends leaving.
[/quote]

I know little about St. Anselm's, so I read some of the reviews on [url]http://www.greatschools.org/washington-dc/washington/172-St.-Anselms-Abbey-School/?sortBy=&tab=reviews&page=1[/url]

The vast majority of the reviews were positive.

The following review levels charges against St. Anselm's that are similar to those often leveled against BASIS DC:

[quote]This is a great school that struggles a bit with boys not focused on academic achievement. Like any school, it's better for students who enjoy studying or have structures that support 3-4 hours of homework. Along with others, our son struggles in courses like Latin and Physics with significant homework loads and demanding teachers not inclined to focus on marginal students. Occasionally, that has meant as many as half of a class receive a D or F and face academic probation. The school gives its teachers and students a lot of freedom and the boys not as in tune with the academic rigor can disrupt a class or make inappropriate comments. In other private schools, talented kids who are high C or low B students might not be as marginalized in class, or may excel in athletics or extracurriculars (not a major focus here), and see themselves as valued (if not outstanding) members of academic community. The more-or-less bottom half of the classes here seem to suffer here more than at other schools with similar profiles. Our experience is this is wonderfulfor a talented boy who studies but will stress someone who is gifted but not inclined to study more than 10 hours a week. [/quote]

The following would give me pause:

[quote]I was excited to have my bright son attend St. Anselm's, but it really turned into a nightmare. The bullying was brutal and the school seemed not to care. Multiple times I asked for help and none was given. I was told that my son's class was exceptionally horrid and at one point an administrator said most of the boys with ugly behavior would be asked to leave-that did not happen. I feel this was a good school that lost its way. Overt racial hatred really was soul-crushing to my son. We are a family that embraces all cultures and when kids made whipping noises to the african-american students and made impassioned arguments about slavery being morally correct, I could only shake my head and promise my son to get him out of the school. 
—Submitted by a parent[/quote]

Good luck to you and your son.[/quote]

Interesting, the vast majority of the St. Anselm's reviews on Great Schools are positive. When I checked BASIS DC on Great Schools was was surprised by the large number of negative reviews. Why didn't you post those on DCUM?[/quote]

4 out of 23 is a very large number!  :roll:[/quote]

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