Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montessori - forget which one but one on Old Georgetown Road. They told us to sit in a chair and observe and not interact with the kids. Teachers were cold, uncaring and not attentive to the kids. They walked around the classroom strangely and some of the kids were walking around wild, not engaged.


Holy Cross (K-8) - Surprised how much we liked it but after the other experiences very turned off by a religious school. Staff were very warm and welcoming, had no issue with different viewpoints, kids friendly and seemed happy.

(I'm surprised at the posts on the facilities being old. These schools have been around for years so its not surprising but for the price they charge they should be well maintained).

We had the same experience with that Montessori on Old Georgetown. Sitting on a chair just watching was very weird and the teacher seemed not too excited that I was there.

<b>Holy Cross in Kensington<b> (K-8, not Academy) was an immediate no. Went to an open house and the school seemed shabby and dated. I got the name of a family there from a friend to find out about their experience. Turns out they had already moved their child out of the school because they were not happy. Apparently for such a small school they have a serious bullying problem. Parents were unable to get anyone to take their concerns seriously, so they left. The child apparently came home from school in tears 3 days a week from the bullying. For that price, there are lots of other options.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Weighing in on cookies. We did not see Sidwell logo cookies at any of our visits, I did see Maret logo cookies, no food at all at GDS.

Who wants to eat something that looks like a grasshopper?!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I said NCS has made progress but that it’s reputation as a pressure cooker with mean girls still lingered. Private school parents are probably more aware of that reputation than those from public.

NP. I hesitate in getting involved in this back and forth, except to say that our family is new to NCS this year, and it's been a relief to find that the "pressure cooker" and "mean girls" reputation seems, based on our personal experience so far, not to be based in fact. It's been nothing like that for our DD or us. We really like the AD at NCS, and we're glad we trusted our gut.

That said, I hate seeing contentious responses between independent school parents. We don't have a son, so we never vetted STA, but having also looked closely at Sidwell, GDS, Holton and Maret, I'm fairly confident that they're all great environments as well (and I'm sure STA is too).

I think there's a tendency in these threads to want to find big cultural differences in these schools when, in reality, they all tend to have a lot in common. We should all be thankful to have so many great institutions nearby.

Agree! NCS has fabulous facilities and staff. We went into the application process thinking we wouldn’t like NCS but it has been a great fit from the start.

Following up on other threads, any vaping issues any NCS?
Good to know!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I said NCS has made progress but that it’s reputation as a pressure cooker with mean girls still lingered. Private school parents are probably more aware of that reputation than those from public.

NP. I hesitate in getting involved in this back and forth, except to say that our family is new to NCS this year, and it's been a relief to find that the "pressure cooker" and "mean girls" reputation seems, based on our personal experience so far, not to be based in fact. It's been nothing like that for our DD or us. We really like the AD at NCS, and we're glad we trusted our gut.

That said, I hate seeing contentious responses between independent school parents. We don't have a son, so we never vetted STA, but having also looked closely at Sidwell, GDS, Holton and Maret, I'm fairly confident that they're all great environments as well (and I'm sure STA is too).

I think there's a tendency in these threads to want to find big cultural differences in these schools when, in reality, they all tend to have a lot in common. We should all be thankful to have so many great institutions nearby.

Agree! NCS has fabulous facilities and staff. We went into the application process thinking we wouldn’t like NCS but it has been a great fit from the start.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I said NCS has made progress but that it’s reputation as a pressure cooker with mean girls still lingered. Private school parents are probably more aware of that reputation than those from public.

NP. I hesitate in getting involved in this back and forth, except to say that our family is new to NCS this year, and it's been a relief to find that the "pressure cooker" and "mean girls" reputation seems, based on our personal experience so far, not to be based in fact. It's been nothing like that for our DD or us. We really like the AD at NCS, and we're glad we trusted our gut.

That said, I hate seeing contentious responses between independent school parents. We don't have a son, so we never vetted STA, but having also looked closely at Sidwell, GDS, Holton and Maret, I'm fairly confident that they're all great environments as well (and I'm sure STA is too).

I think there's a tendency in these threads to want to find big cultural differences in these schools when, in reality, they all tend to have a lot in common. We should all be thankful to have so many great institutions nearby.

Anonymous wrote:In Big 3 since K. Decided to look around for hs. Attend one of the schools listed below but don’t want to blow our cover:

GDS - facilities were fine but culture, especially for hs, not was DC looking for.

Did Maret and St. Andrews back to back. Maret wouldn’t have looked so bad but St. Andrews is amazing facility wise. Culture better for DC at Maret.

Sidwell - college campus weird kids (per my DC).

WIS - well taken care of but tired facility. Best culture of the lot. Really enjoyed kids and teachers.

Looked at single sex Catholic schools too. Most had really nice facilities and kids were happy.

Anonymous wrote:Education consultant sent us to Landon. Coming from out of state, we didn't know much about it outside of bad press and snarky people here, so no firm expectations really (I take DCUM with a micro grain of salt) We came away impressed with the students, the school leadership, their philosophy and the campus. it was a school where I could see DS really loving and thriving.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where do kids spend all day in a room with no windows???

River School.

That's pretty crappy TBH.

Huh? We’ve been at River for 4 years and there is not a single classroom without a window!!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I said NCS has made progress but that it’s reputation as a pressure cooker with mean girls still lingered. Private school parents are probably more aware of that reputation than those from public.

NP. I hesitate in getting involved in this back and forth, except to say that our family is new to NCS this year, and it's been a relief to find that the "pressure cooker" and "mean girls" reputation seems, based on our personal experience so far, not to be based in fact. It's been nothing like that for our DD or us. We really like the AD at NCS, and we're glad we trusted our gut.

That said, I hate seeing contentious responses between independent school parents. We don't have a son, so we never vetted STA, but having also looked closely at Sidwell, GDS, Holton and Maret, I'm fairly confident that they're all great environments as well (and I'm sure STA is too).

I think there's a tendency in these threads to want to find big cultural differences in these schools when, in reality, they all tend to have a lot in common. We should all be thankful to have so many great institutions nearby.

We knew girls, in the last 5 years, whose classes had terrible troubles and strife at NCS. Several girls left for other schools. We knew these girls well (from teav sports teams) and they were great girls. So, things do happen. Maybe just depends on the class.

Things do happen.....at all schools. Finished it for you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I said NCS has made progress but that it’s reputation as a pressure cooker with mean girls still lingered. Private school parents are probably more aware of that reputation than those from public.

NP. I hesitate in getting involved in this back and forth, except to say that our family is new to NCS this year, and it's been a relief to find that the "pressure cooker" and "mean girls" reputation seems, based on our personal experience so far, not to be based in fact. It's been nothing like that for our DD or us. We really like the AD at NCS, and we're glad we trusted our gut.

That said, I hate seeing contentious responses between independent school parents. We don't have a son, so we never vetted STA, but having also looked closely at Sidwell, GDS, Holton and Maret, I'm fairly confident that they're all great environments as well (and I'm sure STA is too).

I think there's a tendency in these threads to want to find big cultural differences in these schools when, in reality, they all tend to have a lot in common. We should all be thankful to have so many great institutions nearby.

We knew girls, in the last 5 years, whose classes had terrible troubles and strife at NCS. Several girls left for other schools. We knew these girls well (from teav sports teams) and they were great girls. So, things do happen. Maybe just depends on the class.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Weighing in on cookies. We did not see Sidwell logo cookies at any of our visits, I did see Maret logo cookies, no food at all at GDS.

Who wants to eat something that looks like a grasshopper?!

Anonymous wrote:School facilities are very important. That said, I went to the GDS high school when it was on MacArthur Blvd., in the same building where the river school is now. It was the most amazing educational experience of my life - including college. Ultimately, its your teachers and fellow students that shape your experience.

Anonymous wrote:Weighing in on cookies. We did not see Sidwell logo cookies at any of our visits, I did see Maret logo cookies, no food at all at GDS.