Agreed about the hype. I think they've gotten crazier bc of the Obama girls and the competitiveness of education in general. When I was in high school 15 years ago (outing myself as an old timer), Sidwell tried to recruit me but I stayed in the local public (MoCo)

Yeah, better to try to enter earlier if you can afford it. My kids are also at GDS, which definitely has a marginal building for the LS/MS. It doesn't seem to bother the kids at all though, so I could care less. I do look forward to a new building, however.

Anonymous wrote:It got popular when Chelsea went there, and then when the Obama girls went there. This city is full of a$$ kissers, and people wanted to be there just to be able to say they send their kids to school with the president's kids.

The city is full of:

1. Highly educated parents who want the best education money can buy
2. Families with progressive attitudes
3. Families not interested in an overly religious educational experience
4. Students / parents not interested in single sex education
5. Families living in areas with lower quality public options
6. Upper middle class AA families who don't care for the limited diversity offered in their publics school (e.g. Whitman is 4% AA)
7. Students who thrive in a more intimate setting than larger schools provide
8. Parents desirous of a school that seeks to develop the whole child

I am not saying that social climbers are absent from the community. Nor am I saying that Sidwell is unique in being able to offer these attributes. But, reducing the many and varied reasons to a stupid axiom speaks only to your ignorance.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We went to sidwell friend's open house past weekend, I was not very impressed of either the curriculum or the facilities(including outdoor play areas) of the lower school. So I guess I must have missed something. Are teachers better? I guess it is a highly sought-after school, so they don't have to impress any one? Or the strength is at middle/higher school and people just want to get into the school earlier?

I didn't care for it either. Found it dark and humorless. We'll look again at US.

But, yes, many people love it, which is great for them.

Good luck with that. Admit rate at 9th grade is about 8%.

+1.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We went to sidwell friend's open house past weekend, I was not very impressed of either the curriculum or the facilities(including outdoor play areas) of the lower school. So I guess I must have missed something. Are teachers better? I guess it is a highly sought-after school, so they don't have to impress any one? Or the strength is at middle/higher school and people just want to get into the school earlier?

I didn't care for it either. Found it dark and humorless. We'll look again at US.

But, yes, many people love it, which is great for them.

Good luck with that. Admit rate at 9th grade is about 8%.

Anonymous wrote:It got popular when Chelsea went there, and then when the Obama girls went there. This city is full of a$$ kissers, and people wanted to be there just to be able to say they send their kids to school with the president's kids.

This is true. Many, many people want it for the social climbing aspect.
- Mid 90s Sidwell grad who saw the change when Chelsea came

My kids are at GDS LS. It is definitely worse, but we love our school!

Anonymous wrote:Have you seen lower schools that you do like? And what did you like about them?

Yes, please tell us what other lower schools you visited and what you liked about them. Specifically tell us how they were better than Sidwell.

Not to be a jerk, but its one fewer application! sure they won't mind.

It got popular when Chelsea went there, and then when the Obama girls went there. This city is full of a$$ kissers, and people wanted to be there just to be able to say they send their kids to school with the president's kids.

Have you seen lower schools that you do like? And what did you like about them?

Reputation, notoriety due to Clintons and Obamas

Agree, lower school very unimpressive. Folks join for the upper school for sure, well and some people for the cache of course.

Anonymous wrote:We went to sidwell friend's open house past weekend, I was not very impressed of either the curriculum or the facilities(including outdoor play areas) of the lower school. So I guess I must have missed something. Are teachers better? I guess it is a highly sought-after school, so they don't have to impress any one? Or the strength is at middle/higher school and people just want to get into the school earlier?

I didn't care for it either. Found it dark and humorless. We'll look again at US.

But, yes, many people love it, which is great for them.

We went to sidwell friend's open house past weekend, I was not very impressed of either the curriculum or the facilities(including outdoor play areas) of the lower school. So I guess I must have missed something. Are teachers better? I guess it is a highly sought-after school, so they don't have to impress any one? Or the strength is at middle/higher school and people just want to get into the school earlier?