Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Op, I would consider Friends and Saint Paul’s to not really be religious despite the religious affiliation. I know, for example, Jewish students at both schools. If you are in the city, I would take a look at both as well as Park. Mcdonogh has a free bus.
I attended a JDS and would never subject my child to that or vice versa, not enough diversity in culture or thought. Our family is also interfaith and it really makes it uneven in the grand scheme of things. It's complicated, but we have to aim for neutrality at all costs.
I grew up in the private school circuit, so I'm familiar with most of the options you mentioned and definitely agree with you, it's just that my values truly do not align with mixing religion & education and I'm having a hard time getting past that to be more open minded and cast a wider net.
You are bringing preconceived biases to quite different schools. And it's only detrimental. Friends, for example, would be the perfect school for an interfaith family in so many ways. But you need to visit more schools than just Gilman even if just because admissions is no guarantee and if you are already getting these vibes from Gilman the odds are your kid isn't going to be accepted. Baltimore does have seemingly many private schools but once you start pigeonholing your kid into certain categories and with certain restrictions, suddenly the options become much more limited.
Anonymous wrote:My investment advisor graduated from Gilman. He is African American. He liked his time there and felt like his education was well rounded. He donates to Gilman now.
He grew up in Baltimore and I think Gilman was his ticket out.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Our family, very recently started considering private school, Gilman in particular. We did not consider other private schools due to distance & religious affiliation. Having visited Gilman, I'm reconsidering our approach to not look at other schools.
While our student is very gifted, we have concerns about admissions after our visit. See, our student skipped a grade two years ago. Public school was not providing him a challenging enough environment, he was testing out of every subject and performing well above grade level for many years. At the time, private school was only a passing thought due to cost. When we mentioned our students grade elevation during our visit, we received mixed responses from the admissions team. A concern that had not crossed my mind until that conversation. Maturity & social development seemed to be a point of general concern, but I don't believe they were speaking about my child directly.
However, over the past two years our financial situation has changed and we would now be able to pay for tuition in full. While we could swing 35k, it would be a considerable amount of savings that would be sacrificed. We would still like to apply for FA.
For context, our student is very poised and mature, maintains a 3.9, is active in a handful of clubs/sports. Our student also has ADHD and requires medication to maintain focus which is well controlled. Executive functioning skills are very good and do not require any additional accommodations. Grade skipped was 6th grade.
1. What is the general consensus on students who skip a grade/gifted students.
2. Even though the FA application is separate, will it have an impact on admissions?
3. How selective is Gilman? (No stats available online and did not feel comfortable asking directly.)
I suspect they probably were describing your child but most of us don't want to hear the negative.
a few thoughts:
1) never heard of Gilman so looked it up
2) it's not boarding so I'm assuming you live in Baltimore?
3) 58% of teachers don't have advanced degrees. that's a red flag for me. our privates insisted on teachers working or obtaining their Masters degrees.
4) You said he's "very gifted" (the term used is "profoundly gifted") but Gilman doesn't seem to be oriented towards either giftedness or ADHD. Maybe I read too fast.
5) whether or not you think you can swing $35K a year is irrelevant to them. You will have to provide extensive financials to get financial aid. Every school is different. We never received aid.
6) while skipping grades used to be a positive a few decades back it is a practice frowned upon now. In fact, we have the other problem of children being "red-shirted" to give them more years of maturation before they compete for college, so yes, skipping two years is odd and something you will have to explain. That's why we now have 7 year olds in K. My own DD was red-shirted by her private and it was absolutely the best thing in the world for her.
6) If you live in the DC area the perfect school for you would be Commonwealth Academy because it serves both gifted and ADHD. But it's in Alexandria, VA.
best of luck
If you aren’t familiar with Gilman, maybe you just not respond. Never change DCUM.
and just what are YOU contributing to this post? absolutely nothing but criticism. PP acknowledged they didn't know about Gilman up front but has served on private school boards and other PPs think the comments valid. Does it make you feel better to try and find one fault in a post and deride the person offering comment -- with no other constructive comments of your own? Try offering up some constructive thoughts here and not tear down other PPs. WHAT A THOUGHT!
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Our family, very recently started considering private school, Gilman in particular. We did not consider other private schools due to distance & religious affiliation. Having visited Gilman, I'm reconsidering our approach to not look at other schools.
While our student is very gifted, we have concerns about admissions after our visit. See, our student skipped a grade two years ago. Public school was not providing him a challenging enough environment, he was testing out of every subject and performing well above grade level for many years. At the time, private school was only a passing thought due to cost. When we mentioned our students grade elevation during our visit, we received mixed responses from the admissions team. A concern that had not crossed my mind until that conversation. Maturity & social development seemed to be a point of general concern, but I don't believe they were speaking about my child directly.
However, over the past two years our financial situation has changed and we would now be able to pay for tuition in full. While we could swing 35k, it would be a considerable amount of savings that would be sacrificed. We would still like to apply for FA.
For context, our student is very poised and mature, maintains a 3.9, is active in a handful of clubs/sports. Our student also has ADHD and requires medication to maintain focus which is well controlled. Executive functioning skills are very good and do not require any additional accommodations. Grade skipped was 6th grade.
1. What is the general consensus on students who skip a grade/gifted students.
2. Even though the FA application is separate, will it have an impact on admissions?
3. How selective is Gilman? (No stats available online and did not feel comfortable asking directly.)
I suspect they probably were describing your child but most of us don't want to hear the negative.
a few thoughts:
1) never heard of Gilman so looked it up
2) it's not boarding so I'm assuming you live in Baltimore?
3) 58% of teachers don't have advanced degrees. that's a red flag for me. our privates insisted on teachers working or obtaining their Masters degrees.
4) You said he's "very gifted" (the term used is "profoundly gifted") but Gilman doesn't seem to be oriented towards either giftedness or ADHD. Maybe I read too fast.
5) whether or not you think you can swing $35K a year is irrelevant to them. You will have to provide extensive financials to get financial aid. Every school is different. We never received aid.
6) while skipping grades used to be a positive a few decades back it is a practice frowned upon now. In fact, we have the other problem of children being "red-shirted" to give them more years of maturation before they compete for college, so yes, skipping two years is odd and something you will have to explain. That's why we now have 7 year olds in K. My own DD was red-shirted by her private and it was absolutely the best thing in the world for her.
6) If you live in the DC area the perfect school for you would be Commonwealth Academy because it serves both gifted and ADHD. But it's in Alexandria, VA.
best of luck
If you aren’t familiar with Gilman, maybe you just not respond. Never change DCUM.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The website says 66% of faculty have advanced degrees.
My son graduated from Gilman. Most students who enter in middle school or high school are the usual age for each. They’re transferring from 5th grade in public or private and have not done pre-first anywhere.
Great school in every way. Diverse, challenging, and supportive. No one school is perfect for everyone. Good luck with your search.
OK, whatever I read about Gilman said 58%. Whatever. I've served on boards of privates and we want to see 100%
Gilman is an academic powerhouse with a strong record of sending boys to elite colleges. I don't care what you think because you don't live in Baltimore or know the school so your observations are pointless.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Many/most kids at Gilman do a "pre-1st" year after kindergarten and before 1st grade. This is extremely common for all but the oldest kids in the grade.
This means that a solid number of the boys (more than half?) turn 15 in their 8th grade year or the summer. They will turn 16 as freshmen.
If I were you, I'd think long and hard about what that would mean for my super young 9th grader. (I have a kid who will start 9th as a 13-year-old. I get it.)
This is true at nearly all the independent schools that are k-12 in Baltimore. The exception might be the catholic schools like Loyola and Calvert Hall, since they don’t have lower schools. Op may also find their pricing more palatable.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Op, I would consider Friends and Saint Paul’s to not really be religious despite the religious affiliation. I know, for example, Jewish students at both schools. If you are in the city, I would take a look at both as well as Park. Mcdonogh has a free bus.
I attended a JDS and would never subject my child to that or vice versa, not enough diversity in culture or thought. Our family is also interfaith and it really makes it uneven in the grand scheme of things. It's complicated, but we have to aim for neutrality at all costs.
I grew up in the private school circuit, so I'm familiar with most of the options you mentioned and definitely agree with you, it's just that my values truly do not align with mixing religion & education and I'm having a hard time getting past that to be more open minded and cast a wider net.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Op, I would consider Friends and Saint Paul’s to not really be religious despite the religious affiliation. I know, for example, Jewish students at both schools. If you are in the city, I would take a look at both as well as Park. Mcdonogh has a free bus.
I attended a JDS and would never subject my child to that or vice versa, not enough diversity in culture or thought. Our family is also interfaith and it really makes it uneven in the grand scheme of things. It's complicated, but we have to aim for neutrality at all costs.
I grew up in the private school circuit, so I'm familiar with most of the options you mentioned and definitely agree with you, it's just that my values truly do not align with mixing religion & education and I'm having a hard time getting past that to be more open minded and cast a wider net.
Anonymous wrote:Op, I would consider Friends and Saint Paul’s to not really be religious despite the religious affiliation. I know, for example, Jewish students at both schools. If you are in the city, I would take a look at both as well as Park. Mcdonogh has a free bus.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The website says 66% of faculty have advanced degrees.
My son graduated from Gilman. Most students who enter in middle school or high school are the usual age for each. They’re transferring from 5th grade in public or private and have not done pre-first anywhere.
Great school in every way. Diverse, challenging, and supportive. No one school is perfect for everyone. Good luck with your search.
OK, whatever I read about Gilman said 58%. Whatever. I've served on boards of privates and we want to see 100%