Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is it so wrong for a Catholic family to experience a Catholic school for part of their children's educational life? Why is it wrong, if you can't afford to pay $40K a year per child for PK-12th to save money and hold off paying the $40K+ until high school? Seems like the smart thing to do and perfectly acceptable to me? If you don't make enough money to afford $40K+ per child every year then why go into debt doing so? Any financial planner would tell you that is the wrong move. Hold off until high school or lower school or middle school, which ever is the most important to you. These schools are not all or nothing, lots of kids enter in later years.

If they are taking up a spot so they can save money to say join a country club, I would say that is wrong and says a lot about their priorities. It is especially wrong if they took a slot of someone that really wanted to attend because they are dedicated to attending Catholic schools.

Seriously? Zero f's given about why a family decides to send their dc to any[i] school. I am not in the business of judging another family's priorities but rather choose to focus on my own family.

BS might be insular, but not particularly snobby. There are a lot of kids at BS whose parents, even a grandparent, went to BS as well. And those parents and grandparents went on to Gonzaga and Visi- so that is where they send their children. Many would say that Gonzaga and Visi are stronger academically than SJHS, a point of view that is changing, but that plays into the decisions.

There is a myth that the administration at BS has a special pull in the high school application process to the more sought after schools, but it's really because most of the BS kids are legacies at these schools. BS isn't the feeder so much as it's the family's relationship with a high school.

Anonymous wrote:SJ only a feeder school for those who don't get into GZ or Prep.

This is really funny and clueless.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:BSS is already fairly hard to get into and has waitlists for numerous grades. I agree, though, things will likely get harder as the popularity of St. John's (which is in the same Chevy Chase neighborhood) continues to grow.

Why would BS demand go up as SJCHS becomes more popular?

It won't because the demographics of SJC do not fit those of BSS but GP, GZ, GV and SR do. That way they don't have to socialize with families outside of their social groups.

Back to the original post- asking if a child of color from outside the neighborhood would be comfortable at BS. From what we observe, there are one or two African American children in a grade and most do not live near the school. We live close to the school but are not from DC and find the place pretty cliquey- even including the teachers. Everyone is genuinely nice and you'd not feel unwelcome but the intrinsic social world of Columbia/Chevy Chase country clubs, shared beach houses, families vacationing together, etc. makes it tough for the kids outside that orbit, especially as they approach their tweens. Doubt your kid would experience open racism but likely won't be part of informal after school and weekend events because the parents happen to be socializing together, with kids tagging along, or because the kids have easy access to friends in the neighborhood for unscheduled playdates. This isn't calculated to exclude others, BS has a very long history of being the center of its families lives.

Parish schools are meant to serve a neighborhood and I don't suggest that's wrong. I'm not encouraging a debate on the concept or Catholic schools in general. Just offering the PP something to think about as she considers her choices.

A number of BSS girls are also starting to attend Holy Child too.

Yes, the majority of grads from BSS go to either Gonzaga/Prep or Visitation/SR. After that the remainder usually head to St. Johns. There is also always a small handful who either go to a Big 3 or 5, public, or one of the other catholics.

And for those girls who don't get into Visi.

SJ only a feeder school for those who don't get into GZ or Prep.

It is a feeder school to SJHS

Anonymous wrote:BSS is already fairly hard to get into and has waitlists for numerous grades. I agree, though, things will likely get harder as the popularity of St. John's (which is in the same Chevy Chase neighborhood) continues to grow.

Why would BS demand go up as SJCHS becomes more popular?

BSS is already fairly hard to get into and has waitlists for numerous grades. I agree, though, things will likely get harder as the popularity of St. John's (which is in the same Chevy Chase neighborhood) continues to grow.

Not as much of a neighborhood school any longer. Many students came over when. St. Ann's school in Tenley closed. I predict BS will swing back to harder to get into because of the popularity of st. John's nearby

Anonymous wrote:I'm the black PP from earlier. I appreciate the reading list. I am just concerned about it being a neighborhood school PLUS us being black as a barrier. Many of my friends from college are southern, country club types (members both here and back home) and I feel like I am confident and secure enough that I am fine if the people are friendly to me and fine if they aren't but I am worried about my kid. Will social opportunities not be there because we don't live in the neighborhood?

In the younger grades, there are a number of families who live EotP and in Silver Spring. I don't think it is as much of a neighborhood school anymore.

Anonymous wrote:Sorry, but YOUR cluelessness is showing because you believe everything your read on the internet. If you were a current parent and actually had first hand knowledge about the school you would know this info is incorrect or outdated.

Also, nice that you categorize my cluelessness as "white". You have no idea what my racial make-up is. Get your head out of the sand, please, and think before you speak. Ignorance is not attractive and gross generalizations are offensive no matter what side of the fence you are on. I recommend a little education and sensitivity training - you might find it helpful.

Are you saying the child won't be the only black boy in his classroom?