Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We didn’t do well and this hspt score is our one hole in our application. Son has Great grades, Strong teacher recommendations, good essay, but low hspt. Do we have a chance or is it you must have every category to get in? Not coming from a Catholic school either.

This is going to be an interesting year. We’ve spoken to many MOCO parents who are uncomfortable with the crime situation in DC and in the Capitol Hill area specifically. At least in our circle it sounds like GC, Prep, and SJC may see a higher acceptance rate in part because of this.

This is giving me pause too. Are boys being robbed walking to metro?

Fortunately my kid has not reported any issues taking the metro or walking from Union station to the school and back. I understand how it must seem a little scary if you don’t live in DC but I have not heard of any reported issues and most of the boys commute by metro all the time

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you admit boys from Catholic K8’s like St. Bernadette’s, St Jerome’s, Queen of Peace, St Martins, and st Anthony’s you will get plenty of racial and socioeconomic diversity to mix in with the crowd from Mercy, Blessed Sacrament, Holy Trinity and St Elizabeth’s.

It’s been that way for decades. This isn’t anything new for Gonzaga.

Well statistically speaking Gonzaga is the least diverse school in the ADW and yes it’s odd.

Gonzaga isn't part of the ADW. It's a Jesuit school and it reports to the Jesuit Province in Baltimore.

Maybe you are using ADW to mean in the Washington, DC area.

And because it's a Catholic school run for and by Catholics it's not particularly surprising that there aren't large numbers of URMs there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We didn’t do well and this hspt score is our one hole in our application. Son has Great grades, Strong teacher recommendations, good essay, but low hspt. Do we have a chance or is it you must have every category to get in? Not coming from a Catholic school either.

This is going to be an interesting year. We’ve spoken to many MOCO parents who are uncomfortable with the crime situation in DC and in the Capitol Hill area specifically. At least in our circle it sounds like GC, Prep, and SJC may see a higher acceptance rate in part because of this.

This is giving me pause too. Are boys being robbed walking to metro?

Interesting question.

My family started going to GZ in 1940’s but in the 60’s we had long time GZ families send their kids (at least the younger ones) to St. Johns during the DC riots.

You’ll have 3 older brothers who went to GZ but the younger few go to STJ.

Some things never change.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gonzaga takes

Alumni kids 1st
Athletes
Catholic school kids from each and every 52 lower schools
Others who are outstanding who would beat out the other 3 in any other place and even some of those kids won’t get in

It’s not about being the best it’s about who you know, being and athlete or being positioned well from a Catholic school,

What about if you know a lot of people, but are coming from a va public?

If the people you know donate $ it will bump you up.

Anonymous wrote:If you admit boys from Catholic K8’s like St. Bernadette’s, St Jerome’s, Queen of Peace, St Martins, and st Anthony’s you will get plenty of racial and socioeconomic diversity to mix in with the crowd from Mercy, Blessed Sacrament, Holy Trinity and St Elizabeth’s.

It’s been that way for decades. This isn’t anything new for Gonzaga.

Well statistically speaking Gonzaga is the least diverse school in the ADW and yes it’s odd.

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone think diversity - both socioeconomic and race - come into play for these Catholic high schools? Maybe not so much for schools that would be considered diverse already like the Catholic high schools in Pg county but for others.

Oddly Gonzaga is the least diverse ADW Hs, even less diverse than Prep so no they don’t care.

Anonymous wrote:Do ‘B’s’ translate to bad grades as it relates to DMV Catholic schools?

The answer is if they were not admitted for other reasons… alum child, rec from donor or athlete… they better be “something else” so grades might matter at that point.

If you have 1 of the other only the number of D’s matter.

I don’t think it is that hard. In Philly you have different families going to Malvern vs St Joe’s vs Ryan or Father Judge.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gonzaga takes

Alumni kids 1st
Athletes
Catholic school kids from each and every 52 lower schools
Others who are outstanding who would beat out the other 3 in any other place and even some of those kids won’t get in

It’s not about being the best it’s about who you know, being and athlete or being positioned well from a Catholic school,

How do parents have this insider information?

If you have lived in this area for any amount of time, you learn how the system works.

I wouldn't say it's even close to "insider" information. It's information that people new to the area and/or new to the DC private school world are unlikely to have.

Those who are from here or have lived here for a significant period know a lot of it. They get it by experience and osmosis.

I feel sorry for people coming to this forum to learn. They need to find someone or multiple people they trust to learn about these schools and who sends their kids to them and why.

Yeah, our kids go to a Catholic k-8 and in our time in the dc area, we have lived in a few neighborhoods with Catholic high school. Our knowledge about the process is gleaned from our own school and neighbors, friends, acquaintances, and coworkers with first hand experience with the process whether as part of the process or who has kids or relatives gone through the application process.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gonzaga takes

Alumni kids 1st
Athletes
Catholic school kids from each and every 52 lower schools
Others who are outstanding who would beat out the other 3 in any other place and even some of those kids won’t get in

It’s not about being the best it’s about who you know, being and athlete or being positioned well from a Catholic school,

How do parents have this insider information?

If you have lived in this area for any amount of time, you learn how the system works.

I wouldn't say it's even close to "insider" information. It's information that people new to the area and/or new to the DC private school world are unlikely to have.

Those who are from here or have lived here for a significant period know a lot of it. They get it by experience and osmosis.

I feel sorry for people coming to this forum to learn. They need to find someone or multiple people they trust to learn about these schools and who sends their kids to them and why.

Anonymous wrote:Who are the ‘right people.’ Is this a D.C. thing. It feels like the odds are stacked against any applicant that does not fit the required mold. Yuck.

I guess you could say they are "stacked" because everyone doesn't have the same chance.

Even in public school, you have to live inside the geographic boundaries.

But versus the public schools, most private schools are a different world. They are different from one another. They have different missions and histories. They appeal to different groups and have different constituencies.

I don't think this is any different from other major metros in this regard.

I wouldn't worry too much about the "right People" thing. That happens, but it's rare. There really aren't a lot of "right people". But the rest of the stuff the school looks for in applicants (the mold) is real.

What you might worry about is understanding at which school your son best fits. Where his mold is the norm and not aspire to shoehorn him in somewhere where he "doesn't fit the required mold".

Who are the ‘right people.’ Is this a D.C. thing. It feels like the odds are stacked against any applicant that does not fit the required mold. Yuck.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gonzaga takes

Alumni kids 1st
Athletes
Catholic school kids from each and every 52 lower schools
Others who are outstanding who would beat out the other 3 in any other place and even some of those kids won’t get in

It’s not about being the best it’s about who you know, being and athlete or being positioned well from a Catholic school,

How do parents have this insider information?

If you have lived in this area for any amount of time, you learn how the system works.

We lived in NE dc before moving to MD. My DS is in 8th grade and is now used to taking public transport (metro and bus) on his own. He was not uncomfortable with the area or the commute he would have to take. But I can understand if others are uncomfortable.

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone think diversity - both socioeconomic and race - come into play for these Catholic high schools? Maybe not so much for schools that would be considered diverse already like the Catholic high schools in Pg county but for others.

If you have the right scores/grades. If you follow Black Parents Navigating Private Schools on FB, we are definitely shut out if we don't satisfy the entrance criteria, unlike the narrative on this board that you can be a salivating, backwards neanderthal and still get in just because you are an URM. It is an urban myth designed to cushion the fall when mediocre white kids or white kids who are not connected don't get in.