Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 17:35     Subject: Re:Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:When we attended the open house at Prep, we saw families from everywhere. That, plus the international dimension with the boarders led us to feel prep was more diverse. When we attended the open house for Gonzaga, what we saw was predominantly white families with a sprinkling of black families.


We went to both open houses and didn’t see the same thing. I thought Gonzaga felt a lot more diverse and way less country club. Definitely more economic diversity at Gonzaga.

Both schools seem great and appear to have faculty and staff that really care about educating the boys and making sure they grow up to be productive with good character.

My son only ended up applying to Gonzaga and got it. We are going to their event tomorrow so he can make a final decision (applied to some other schools too). He thought GP was too fancy.
Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 17:31     Subject: Re:Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:When we attended the open house at Prep, we saw families from everywhere. That, plus the international dimension with the boarders led us to feel prep was more diverse. When we attended the open house for Gonzaga, what we saw was predominantly white families with a sprinkling of black families.

When the boys cross the street to serve others (or cross campus to the homeless shelter), Gonzaga boys are literally feeding the hungry. This stays with them long after graduation.


What does your statement have to do with PP’s observations?
Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 17:22     Subject: Re:Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:When we attended the open house at Prep, we saw families from everywhere. That, plus the international dimension with the boarders led us to feel prep was more diverse. When we attended the open house for Gonzaga, what we saw was predominantly white families with a sprinkling of black families.

When the boys cross the street to serve others (or cross campus to the homeless shelter), Gonzaga boys are literally feeding the hungry. This stays with them long after graduation.
Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 17:14     Subject: Re:Gonzaga vs. Prep
When we attended the open house at Prep, we saw families from everywhere. That, plus the international dimension with the boarders led us to feel prep was more diverse. When we attended the open house for Gonzaga, what we saw was predominantly white families with a sprinkling of black families.
Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 15:44     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We have had sons at both schools.

Lots of similarities. Same Jesuit education. Same Catholic influence. Very similar kids and families.

Both have student bodies and alumni with great enthusiasm for the school. The Gonzaga people seem a little more committed to that.

There are two big differences.

The first is the city experience versus the burbs. In his senior year, our GZA son was as comfortable as a fish in water in the city. He was completely familiar with all the people, the geography and the transportation system. He ordered half smokes from food trucks regularly. He could move to NYC and not miss a beat.

Prep, of course is in a much less busy place.

The second difference is the "pace". Prep is an idyllic environment. It's a gentler experience. Not only for the boys, but the family members too.

Gonzaga is busier, more frenetic. And it's twice as large. At Prep, you know all your classmates. At Gonzaga, not to the same degree.

After high school, the rivalry greatly dissipates and the boys who stay in DC coalesce into one larger Jesuit educated community. They know their differences are minor compared to those outside the group.

The people who seem to get most exercised about the differences are the non-legacy parents. It seems the less you know, the more likely you are to have a strong (uninformed) opinions.



We are interested in Prep for 9th grade. Can you share more about the gentler experience at Prep? We visited both Prep and Gonzaga's open house this year and Prep resonated more with us. We felt that Prep was more diverse than Gonzaga as well.


I wrote that above and don't know if I can.

I wasn't referring to how the boys treat one another. These are spirited teenagers and they don't always treat one another with kid gloves. The faculty and staff had the same kind of expectations at both schools.

I was really talking about the how busy the campus was on I Street and how relatively calm it is on Rockville Pike.

I thought Gonzaga was more diverse starting with the large number of boys from Virginia.
Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 11:44     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Ime Prep is the a$$holes.


When I read this bit of wisdom it reminded me of that old elementary school come back.

"It takes one to know one."


I was SA by a guy from Prep so yeah that's my opinion. I'm sure others have stories about Gonzaga guys.
Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 11:43     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:New poster here and just want to thank everyone (except maybe the last poster ) for the honest and kind comparisons of the two schools!


I was honest. That was my experience as a girls' school grad.
Anonymous
Post 02/28/2026 11:29     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:We have had sons at both schools.

Lots of similarities. Same Jesuit education. Same Catholic influence. Very similar kids and families.

Both have student bodies and alumni with great enthusiasm for the school. The Gonzaga people seem a little more committed to that.

There are two big differences.

The first is the city experience versus the burbs. In his senior year, our GZA son was as comfortable as a fish in water in the city. He was completely familiar with all the people, the geography and the transportation system. He ordered half smokes from food trucks regularly. He could move to NYC and not miss a beat.

Prep, of course is in a much less busy place.

The second difference is the "pace". Prep is an idyllic environment. It's a gentler experience. Not only for the boys, but the family members too.

Gonzaga is busier, more frenetic. And it's twice as large. At Prep, you know all your classmates. At Gonzaga, not to the same degree.

After high school, the rivalry greatly dissipates and the boys who stay in DC coalesce into one larger Jesuit educated community. They know their differences are minor compared to those outside the group.

The people who seem to get most exercised about the differences are the non-legacy parents. It seems the less you know, the more likely you are to have a strong (uninformed) opinions.



We are interested in Prep for 9th grade. Can you share more about the gentler experience at Prep? We visited both Prep and Gonzaga's open house this year and Prep resonated more with us. We felt that Prep was more diverse than Gonzaga as well.
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2026 22:22     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Our son got into both. Ultimately chose Gonzaga despite my feeling that Prep was a better fit. Know plenty of kids at both and they are both amazing but different options. The kids still interact a ton - half of my son's k-8 friends went to GZA the other half to Prep. They are still all friends.

I will say, only because we now have first hand experience, that Gonzaga is a very special and unique place. And I'm glad that my son made the decision that he did.
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2026 21:14     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:Ime Prep is the a$$holes.


When I read this bit of wisdom it reminded me of that old elementary school come back.

"It takes one to know one."
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2026 20:10     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Agree with one of the PPs - the Prep and Gonzaga kids hang out in high school and post grad. Those two boy schools are very close in terms of sports teams, friend groups, job networks, etc.
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2026 19:01     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Anonymous wrote:New poster here and just want to thank everyone (except maybe the last poster ) for the honest and kind comparisons of the two schools!


Second this. Sincere thanks for the insightful feedback.
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2026 18:57     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
New poster here and just want to thank everyone (except maybe the last poster ) for the honest and kind comparisons of the two schools!
Anonymous
Post 02/27/2026 17:37     Subject: Gonzaga vs. Prep
Ime Prep is the a$$holes.