Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are more Asian students (China, Thailand, Korea) than Russian or other European.

There’s plenty of corruption and extreme ill-gotten wealth in those countries too (and in all countries). I wouldn’t want my kids going to a school populated by the children of Trumps, Kochs, or even the Zuckerbergs

I would take those families' children over the Bidens any day!

That’s precisely why I would never choose Madeira for my daughters. Too many families with deep...southern roots, politics and sympathies.

You have no idea what you are talking about.

A hit dog will holler.

Bye Felicia!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are more Asian students (China, Thailand, Korea) than Russian or other European.

There’s plenty of corruption and extreme ill-gotten wealth in those countries too (and in all countries). I wouldn’t want my kids going to a school populated by the children of Trumps, Kochs, or even the Zuckerbergs

I would take those families' children over the Bidens any day!

That’s precisely why I would never choose Madeira for my daughters. Too many families with deep...southern roots, politics and sympathies.

You have no idea what you are talking about.

A hit dog will holler.

Anonymous wrote:Are they basically the daughters of oligarchs and other families who made their money in a shady way? I read an article that the second-tier British boarding schools have become a bastion for these types of people. I would love my DD to make international friends, but not if they have those values.

What a judgmental OP.

Kids are kids. They don't choose who their parents are. Trust your kids to make their own friends.

Most of the oligarch kids go to school in London or Switzerland. I went to Madeira ages ago and there were State Dept kids, some from Asia (Korea and Japan) and some central/south Americans (Panama and Colombia.) it started attracting Chinese girls in the 90s. I imagine most of this holds true today — with more Chinese.

OP, your daughter will never be accepted at Madeira. Sleep in peace. And do not even dream about British schools either. You will never be taken seriously or accepted in social circles as a parent with such an attitude. What a miserable human being. Stay where you are.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are more Asian students (China, Thailand, Korea) than Russian or other European.

There’s plenty of corruption and extreme ill-gotten wealth in those countries too (and in all countries). I wouldn’t want my kids going to a school populated by the children of Trumps, Kochs, or even the Zuckerbergs

I would take those families' children over the Bidens any day!

That’s precisely why I would never choose Madeira for my daughters. Too many families with deep...southern roots, politics and sympathies.

You have no idea what you are talking about.

There were some Russian girls recently. Of the three I knew, two were families living here (and doing work with industry associations or development banks).

It's certainly not a destination school for Oligarch kids. It is a destination school for Asian kids.

All that said, and haters aside, it has proven excellent for our DD. Great, supportive vibe, academics ready to met her where she is, not the heavy competitive vibe of some of the other DC schools.

I think part of the reason Madeira doesn't do so well with those here is that it exists outside the hyper-competitive, status-focused and ratings-focused insanity of DC. They know it's a good school, they know the placements are excellent, and they know the young women go on to do interesting things and be happy in the choices they make. There's not a lot of "we're 4% better because of (insert convenient metric)".

Anonymous wrote:OP here. With the exception of a couple of posters on the first page, nobody has answered my question. I’m actually very interested in Madeira for my DD. We are at a K-8 in VA and DC is a long haul away. But the article I read about corrupt people’s children in British boarding schools bothered me.

There are no Russians that we know of at Madeira. About 7-8 girls from China, a few State Department kids from around the world, few girls from DC/exurban DC metro (md/va), few girls from Mexico, about 5-10 from the “south”, and a smattering from other countries/States constitute the approximate 40 in our DD’s class. The girls we know are smart and none of them give the rich mean girl vibe. I am sure there’s some of those in the mix but we have not come across them. Hope that answers your question.

Nope, no daughters of oligarchs.

OP here. With the exception of a couple of posters on the first page, nobody has answered my question. I’m actually very interested in Madeira for my DD. We are at a K-8 in VA and DC is a long haul away. But the article I read about corrupt people’s children in British boarding schools bothered me.

Also for those obsessed with horses at Madeira - you can see the horses from Georgetown Pike. But what you cannot see is the stables for the unicorns. Those are just beyond the Quidditch fields one you go in. Before you ask, a Russian oligarch paid the field.

The PP who alternately has a child in a DC charter and a Big 3 may not have liked her choices at Madeira. But it works for many of our kids.

PP: *PK-8 school--so all kids were applying out for HS.

This thread is ridiculous enough that I'm going to add to it, perhaps against my better judgement to just let it go and fade into oblivion.

But I also know that when we were researching high schools, Madeira was on our radar and that DCUM was one of the places we looked (knowing we'd need to weed out the helpful from the not helpful to the trollish).

Our daughter ended up at Madeira and is pretty darn happy. So start with that and stop reading if you're anti-Madeira from the jump.

No school is right for every kid. I agree with the above poster who noted that the benefit of a number of private schools in the area means that different schools appeal to different kids. In fact, our daughter looked at a full range of schools, with Madeira being the only all-girls' school, and among the choices of acceptance she had, this one just felt right for her. She was also legitimately happy for people in her grade in a PK-school, whatever their gender, to make their own decisions and find their right fits.

Yes, horses are a thing at Madeira in that they are present, and that you see them when you drive in in the morning, and that some girls ride competitively. But some girls also do lacrosse, swimming, track, tennis (and likely some other sports--I'm not the PR person, even though some people reading here might accuse me of that), and some girls do newspaper or Model UN or any number of extracurriculars at Madeira or outside. It's not a thing in that it's not a "horsey school" in the way you might be picturing it from the outside. If you're not in the equestrian program, it hardly registers with you.

Politics/stance: It's early days for our family to make big pronouncements here. I've found Madeira very pro-young women but not politically edgy or particularly progressive in the classrooms, but there also hasn't been much hint at all of Old South at play. I've also found that the students, these young women are so beyond many of their elders about acceptance and understanding of how the world is changing. (And let's face it, that's true of any DMV school where you have smart students and smart young women in particular.) If you're concerned about that as a parent, then you have bigger worries than any school's particular curriculum.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Several years ago Madeira played my DC's school (a popular DC charter) in soccer. When Madeira lost, their players shook our kids' hands and sneered, "Not bad, for a POOR school."

Nice try. You can find many more skeletons in the Madeira cupboard. So if that is your life stated goal, this attempt was rather feeble.

Just focus your energies elsewhere. May be the spa where your kids heard the owner sneer at a poorly dressed client? Or the nail salon owner where your aunt heard that the homeless were not welcome? Your name is Karen, I presume?

The statute of limitations on talking about that murder has long ago run.