Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 11:38     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:OP here - I mean I am looking for a school with religious (Catholic) education, religious beliefs and ethical teaching etc. Jesuits fit the bill of what I would consider a Catholic education for sure.


Then you do not want the Heights or Oakcrest.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 11:21     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:I am a city dweller. Gonzaga is not in a safe neighborhood. If you take the time to read the Washington Post, you will see reports of Gonzaga boys being beaten up every year.


Did you know that it is 2014, not 2004?

Gonzaga's neighborhood is now called NoMa. Perhaps you've heard of it? NoMa includes not only the Harris-Teeter and the Wal-Mart, but also the new NPR headquarters, a Hilton, a lot of federal offices, and about a billion square feet of fancy new apartments.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 11:03     Subject: Re:Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Gonzaga is not safe. Are you serious? Have you ever been around that neighborhood? You are seriously comparing the safety of the Gonzaga campus to other private schools?


Gonzaga is 3 blocks from a new Harris-Teeter.


And walmart. So dangerous.


And Big Bear Cafe. So gay

Better stay in great falls.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 11:02     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:St Anselms is more for the neerdy boy not involved in sports. Many Catholics won't even consider it precisely because they allow so many non-Catholics to attend. Those from the CYO-obsessed parishes much prefer Prep/Gonzaga/St Johns. Not sure, however, if St Anselms could stay afloat without the non-Catholic enrollment. So its a catch-22 for them, in order to keep thier numbers up and stay financially secure, they must admit the non-sportsy boys who tend to be more non-Catholic.


Many Catholics won't consider St. Anselm's because it is 40% non-Catholic? I doubt that. It's more academically selective than the schools you listed, and more rigorous. It's not as sports- and country-club oriented, though. And no, I don't have a kid there.

OP, SAAS has a tremendous reputation here independent school administrators. I think it's the most academic Catholic high school here.


Without question. No other Catholic school is in its league wrt pure academics (ie, no recruited athlete boost to achieve an ivy admit). That said, it's a long haul from oakton or west falls church or wherever OP lives.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 10:51     Subject: Re:Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Another shout out for O'Connell. It really exceeded all of our expectations (ok, so the bar was not high). But it was a great 4 years of growth and learning for my daughter. She'll be home next week from her first year at her #1 college choice.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 10:49     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:I am a city dweller. Gonzaga is not in a safe neighborhood. If you take the time to read the Washington Post, you will see reports of Gonzaga boys being beaten up every year.


Can you post a link to the WaPo article?
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 10:47     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
I am a city dweller. Gonzaga is not in a safe neighborhood. If you take the time to read the Washington Post, you will see reports of Gonzaga boys being beaten up every year.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 09:50     Subject: Re:Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Gonzaga is not safe. Are you serious? Have you ever been around that neighborhood? You are seriously comparing the safety of the Gonzaga campus to other private schools?


Gonzaga is 3 blocks from a new Harris-Teeter.


And walmart. So dangerous.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 09:37     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have heard that O'Connell's scores are brought down vs. Ireton b/c O'Connell accepts more kids with mild or greater learning disabilities, but that for the middle/top kids there's not a big difference. I have a kids with mild LD's and I am looking at O'Connell for the future.
O'Connell parent here - the school does a GREAT job for the kids with learning disabilities. DS has grade school friends who are in the Muller program and says "it's not a big deal" that they are in the program (by which he means, no one thinks less of them and they are fully integrated into the school). Their parents are thrilled that for the first time (this is a quote) "the school focuses on what they can do, not what they can't do" - and formerly struggling kids are thriving, achieving honors and even in some cases excelling in AP classes. DS had the opportunity to go to several of the bigger-name Catholic boys' schools in the area, on merit scholarship, and chose O'Connell because the co-ed atmosphere was the most fun, friendly, and engaging, and he could take the same classes at O'Connell as at the other schools. He is in the top 10% of his class (estimated - they don't rank), is plenty challenged with a wide range of honors and AP courses, has participated in a varsity sport since 9th grade, and has grown tremendously. I don't worry about overall scores since he's thriving and doing so well, but I'm proud that the school supports kids with a range of abilities and from a really diverse set of backgrounds.

(BTW, Ireton may have a similar program - I am just not that familiar with the school.)



We picked O'Connell for our student athlete son even though both Gonzaga and Meret pursued us. My student is a very strong athlete in two sports, speaks two languages and have had all honors classes with one exception. We didn't choose Gonzaga because of the single sex aspect. We couldn't afford Meret without financial aid. We thought it was strange that a recruiter would pursue us and then tell us to apply for aid if the price tag was to big. We didn't think what they had to offer was that much greater than O'Connell. Our DC had been in a top prep school in the UK, we didn't feel any of the school here offered what we were used to. We visited and picked O'Connell for things other than just sports and academies. We were impressed with the school community in general. We've had experience with a broad spectrum of schools from different countries, we are satisfied with what O'Connell has to offer. Test scores and peoples' perception is not enough to sway me in school decisions. You have to trust what your child is made of and his resolve to reach his destination.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 09:27     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:St Anselms is more for the neerdy boy not involved in sports. Many Catholics won't even consider it precisely because they allow so many non-Catholics to attend. Those from the CYO-obsessed parishes much prefer Prep/Gonzaga/St Johns. Not sure, however, if St Anselms could stay afloat without the non-Catholic enrollment. So its a catch-22 for them, in order to keep thier numbers up and stay financially secure, they must admit the non-sportsy boys who tend to be more non-Catholic.


Many Catholics won't consider St. Anselm's because it is 40% non-Catholic? I doubt that. It's more academically selective than the schools you listed, and more rigorous. It's not as sports- and country-club oriented, though. And no, I don't have a kid there.

OP, SAAS has a tremendous reputation here independent school administrators. I think it's the most academic Catholic high school here.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 09:16     Subject: Re:Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:
Gonzaga is not safe. Are you serious? Have you ever been around that neighborhood? You are seriously comparing the safety of the Gonzaga campus to other private schools?


Gonzaga is 3 blocks from a new Harris-Teeter.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 09:05     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have heard that O'Connell's scores are brought down vs. Ireton b/c O'Connell accepts more kids with mild or greater learning disabilities, but that for the middle/top kids there's not a big difference. I have a kids with mild LD's and I am looking at O'Connell for the future.
O'Connell parent here - the school does a GREAT job for the kids with learning disabilities. DS has grade school friends who are in the Muller program and says "it's not a big deal" that they are in the program (by which he means, no one thinks less of them and they are fully integrated into the school). Their parents are thrilled that for the first time (this is a quote) "the school focuses on what they can do, not what they can't do" - and formerly struggling kids are thriving, achieving honors and even in some cases excelling in AP classes. DS had the opportunity to go to several of the bigger-name Catholic boys' schools in the area, on merit scholarship, and chose O'Connell because the co-ed atmosphere was the most fun, friendly, and engaging, and he could take the same classes at O'Connell as at the other schools. He is in the top 10% of his class (estimated - they don't rank), is plenty challenged with a wide range of honors and AP courses, has participated in a varsity sport since 9th grade, and has grown tremendously. I don't worry about overall scores since he's thriving and doing so well, but I'm proud that the school supports kids with a range of abilities and from a really diverse set of backgrounds.

(BTW, Ireton may have a similar program - I am just not that familiar with the school.)


PVI and St. John's also have programs (as well as Good Counsel) for mild lds. PVI actually has a special education program too and a buddy program.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 08:50     Subject: Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:I have heard that O'Connell's scores are brought down vs. Ireton b/c O'Connell accepts more kids with mild or greater learning disabilities, but that for the middle/top kids there's not a big difference. I have a kids with mild LD's and I am looking at O'Connell for the future.
O'Connell parent here - the school does a GREAT job for the kids with learning disabilities. DS has grade school friends who are in the Muller program and says "it's not a big deal" that they are in the program (by which he means, no one thinks less of them and they are fully integrated into the school). Their parents are thrilled that for the first time (this is a quote) "the school focuses on what they can do, not what they can't do" - and formerly struggling kids are thriving, achieving honors and even in some cases excelling in AP classes. DS had the opportunity to go to several of the bigger-name Catholic boys' schools in the area, on merit scholarship, and chose O'Connell because the co-ed atmosphere was the most fun, friendly, and engaging, and he could take the same classes at O'Connell as at the other schools. He is in the top 10% of his class (estimated - they don't rank), is plenty challenged with a wide range of honors and AP courses, has participated in a varsity sport since 9th grade, and has grown tremendously. I don't worry about overall scores since he's thriving and doing so well, but I'm proud that the school supports kids with a range of abilities and from a really diverse set of backgrounds.

(BTW, Ireton may have a similar program - I am just not that familiar with the school.)
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 08:41     Subject: Re:Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:St Anselm's neighborhood is much safer than Gonzaga's neighborhood. Sursum Corda is the real deal.


Gonzaga is a safe place. The reputation of the school and the respect for it that the people of the neighborhood have for it are well known.

Boys learn how to navigate in the City or in any city.

No school is perfectly safe. Parents should try and restrain their obsession with safety.

The life experience of attending a school like Gonzaga is far superior to the life experience that boys get in hermetically-sealed hot houses.



Gonzaga is not safe. Are you serious? Have you ever been around that neighborhood? You are seriously comparing the safety of the Gonzaga campus to other private schools?


Your response is perfect.

You don't know what separates "safe" from "unsafe". Because, unlike the Gonzaga students, you aren't "City-smart". Nor are your children, in all likelihood.

A thousand young men go to Gonzaga every school day and on weekends for athletic contests. Incidents are rare. They have been doing this for decades. The school co-exists with the neighborhood.

Not everyone in the neighborhood is a gun-toting, crack-smoking fiend. The Gonzaga kids know this. They know how to behave in this neighborhood. You and your children don't.

There's a homeless facility and "soup kitchen" on the Gonzaga campus. At the other schools there's a fence to keep them out.

"Safety" is important. Engaging the real world is more important.
Anonymous
Post 05/01/2014 08:29     Subject: Re:Most Academic Catholic HS in the area
Anonymous wrote:

Gonzaga is not safe. Are you serious? Have you ever been around that neighborhood? You are seriously comparing the safety of the Gonzaga campus to other private schools?


I have. I'm guessing you haven't, lately.