Anonymous
Post 05/08/2026 23:35     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they won't have the opportunity to be miserable, they won't get in.


Completely agree with this. They seem to know what they’re looking for and are very good at picking kids who will excel there.


well . they counsel kids out every year (like plenty of schools) so I wouldnt be so sure about that
Anonymous
Post 05/08/2026 20:02     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they won't have the opportunity to be miserable, they won't get in.


Completely agree with this. They seem to know what they’re looking for and are very good at picking kids who will excel there.
Anonymous
Post 05/08/2026 20:02     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they won't have the opportunity to be miserable, they won't get in.


Completely agree with this. They seem to know what they’re looking for and are very good at picking kids who will excel there.
Anonymous
Post 05/08/2026 15:07     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Reviving this thread to ask about Saint Ann’s. I posted in the college Instagram page thread but nobody responded. It seems like Saint Ann’s is doing so much better for college admissions compared to other Brooklyn schools. Not that I think Packer is doing poorly, but there’s a massive gap between the two. I’ve heard that Packer is getting very hard to get into and Saint Ann’s isn’t as competitive as used to be.

I don’t think Saint Ann’s is quite a great fit for my family, but is it really that much better than other Brooklyn privates? I have to admit when I see the colleges that grads are attending, I wonder if it’s worth it? Or will Packer catch up in the coming years? Saint Ann’s doesn’t seem to be faltering college admissions wise.


I would not go to St. Ann's just for exmissions. If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they will be miserable.


If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they won't have the opportunity to be miserable, they won't get in.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2026 14:13     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:Reviving this thread to ask about Saint Ann’s. I posted in the college Instagram page thread but nobody responded. It seems like Saint Ann’s is doing so much better for college admissions compared to other Brooklyn schools. Not that I think Packer is doing poorly, but there’s a massive gap between the two. I’ve heard that Packer is getting very hard to get into and Saint Ann’s isn’t as competitive as used to be.

I don’t think Saint Ann’s is quite a great fit for my family, but is it really that much better than other Brooklyn privates? I have to admit when I see the colleges that grads are attending, I wonder if it’s worth it? Or will Packer catch up in the coming years? Saint Ann’s doesn’t seem to be faltering college admissions wise.


Np. Former poly parent here. My dc moved there for high school for a sport. It is a sporty school for high school but academics are strong too.

I see parents get very enamored by college exmissions and of course that’s a focus but please keep in mind that it’s very difficult to judge that from where you stand, and in most cases it has more to do with the kid/their family/finances than any magic from the school. Of course private schools with parents with money will tend to do well bc they are able to do ED (which is a huge admission advantage in most cases). And if the kids in that particular year happen to have other advantages- legacy, recruited athletes, etc- that can lead to a year looking particularly strong for the school.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2026 11:04     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Reviving this thread to ask about Saint Ann’s. I posted in the college Instagram page thread but nobody responded. It seems like Saint Ann’s is doing so much better for college admissions compared to other Brooklyn schools. Not that I think Packer is doing poorly, but there’s a massive gap between the two. I’ve heard that Packer is getting very hard to get into and Saint Ann’s isn’t as competitive as used to be.

I don’t think Saint Ann’s is quite a great fit for my family, but is it really that much better than other Brooklyn privates? I have to admit when I see the colleges that grads are attending, I wonder if it’s worth it? Or will Packer catch up in the coming years? Saint Ann’s doesn’t seem to be faltering college admissions wise.


I would not go to St. Ann's just for exmissions. If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they will be miserable.


Even as a parent, the St. Ann's culture is super specific. We have a few friends who send their kids, and while they love it, they confirmed the running joke that you drop your kids off at kindergarten and pick them up at HS graduation - AKA the school does not engage parents in much at all. There is no Parents Association, they are laser focused on the kids, which is how they pitch it. We were looking for more of a community vibe where we could volunteer, etc.
Anonymous
Post 04/24/2026 18:33     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Reviving this thread to ask about Saint Ann’s. I posted in the college Instagram page thread but nobody responded. It seems like Saint Ann’s is doing so much better for college admissions compared to other Brooklyn schools. Not that I think Packer is doing poorly, but there’s a massive gap between the two. I’ve heard that Packer is getting very hard to get into and Saint Ann’s isn’t as competitive as used to be.

I don’t think Saint Ann’s is quite a great fit for my family, but is it really that much better than other Brooklyn privates? I have to admit when I see the colleges that grads are attending, I wonder if it’s worth it? Or will Packer catch up in the coming years? Saint Ann’s doesn’t seem to be faltering college admissions wise.


I would not go to St. Ann's just for exmissions. If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they will be miserable.


Thanks, I think they would be happy with the curriculum. The wide breadth of classes seems awesome. It’s more my husband and I not being okay with the culture as the administration seems to not have great judgement and I don’t know how professionally prepared students end up.
Anonymous
Post 04/24/2026 18:25     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:Reviving this thread to ask about Saint Ann’s. I posted in the college Instagram page thread but nobody responded. It seems like Saint Ann’s is doing so much better for college admissions compared to other Brooklyn schools. Not that I think Packer is doing poorly, but there’s a massive gap between the two. I’ve heard that Packer is getting very hard to get into and Saint Ann’s isn’t as competitive as used to be.

I don’t think Saint Ann’s is quite a great fit for my family, but is it really that much better than other Brooklyn privates? I have to admit when I see the colleges that grads are attending, I wonder if it’s worth it? Or will Packer catch up in the coming years? Saint Ann’s doesn’t seem to be faltering college admissions wise.


I would not go to St. Ann's just for exmissions. If your child is not a good fit for its unique culture and curriculum, they will be miserable.
Anonymous
Post 04/24/2026 18:18     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Reviving this thread to ask about Saint Ann’s. I posted in the college Instagram page thread but nobody responded. It seems like Saint Ann’s is doing so much better for college admissions compared to other Brooklyn schools. Not that I think Packer is doing poorly, but there’s a massive gap between the two. I’ve heard that Packer is getting very hard to get into and Saint Ann’s isn’t as competitive as used to be.

I don’t think Saint Ann’s is quite a great fit for my family, but is it really that much better than other Brooklyn privates? I have to admit when I see the colleges that grads are attending, I wonder if it’s worth it? Or will Packer catch up in the coming years? Saint Ann’s doesn’t seem to be faltering college admissions wise.
Anonymous
Post 03/07/2026 12:49     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:I have a random question about grading practices - how common are all As at Brooklyn or even Manhattan privates in the various grades? I have no idea whether certain schools have easy v hard standards.


For the three that provide grades in their school profiles, it seems that Packer is the easiest grader.

https://issuu.com/berkeleycarrollschool/docs/2025_school_profile?ff

https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1758028010/packer/uvjdqpplcgojpcsekn5s/PackerSchoolProfile2025-26_091525.pdf

https://www.polyprep.org/files/25-26/2025-26_poly-prep-profile-tear-sheet_FINAL.pdf

Anonymous
Post 03/07/2026 10:57     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:I have a random question about grading practices - how common are all As at Brooklyn or even Manhattan privates in the various grades? I have no idea whether certain schools have easy v hard standards.


Good question. I think each school is a little different. I think that at most a 4.0 is not common, but high 3's is. Some schools are more transparent about class rank than others, so it is hard to tell how your kids stack up. They generally know who is smart and who isn't but that doesn't always equate to grades.
Anonymous
Post 03/07/2026 09:37     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
I have a random question about grading practices - how common are all As at Brooklyn or even Manhattan privates in the various grades? I have no idea whether certain schools have easy v hard standards.
Anonymous
Post 03/07/2026 07:18     Subject: Brooklyn Private Schools
What are the academics like at poly? I’m having a hard time understanding their educational point of view. They seem to really emphasize how the parents are all friends / very social / the community is strong, which is great, but I haven’t gotten a clear sense of the actual teachers/classrooms. This is for lower school, but I guess my question applies to the higher grades too.
Anonymous
Post 03/06/2026 22:07     Subject: Re:Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I’ve also heard Poly is becoming more progressive and push more DEI content into curriculum. One of their PreK teachers is also labeled as long term activist.


I was looking at school DEI pages recently and I thought of this comment. At the time I thought it was someone overreacting. But, I was shocked at Poly’s page - it seemed more “activist” oriented than BFS. We’re probably not liberal enough for the school, which is surprising because I always perceived it as the most conservative of Brooklyn schools.


They made a very conscious choice with their new head of school and she is quickly transforming it. For better or worse. It's not like it was some hot bed of MAGA or anything. Not sure why they made this decision, especially now. 5-10 years ago it might have made more sense. They're not going to out-activist/"woke" (I hate that word but it applies) St. Ann's.
Anonymous
Post 03/06/2026 20:00     Subject: Re:Brooklyn Private Schools
Anonymous wrote:I’ve also heard Poly is becoming more progressive and push more DEI content into curriculum. One of their PreK teachers is also labeled as long term activist.


I was looking at school DEI pages recently and I thought of this comment. At the time I thought it was someone overreacting. But, I was shocked at Poly’s page - it seemed more “activist” oriented than BFS. We’re probably not liberal enough for the school, which is surprising because I always perceived it as the most conservative of Brooklyn schools.