Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Friendly question:

What is the rationale for doubling tuition over the span of 15 years? Is it simply that people have the ability to pay and they are profit maximizing? Or is it truly that they provide an incredible lifetime network and or access to the top universities that people from great Publix just don’t have anymore?

Demand and supply. There is not much magic about this. There is a huge demand for schools with a low students teacher ratio, and as long people are willing to pay for it they will continue raising tuition. It is the same phenomenon as in colleges. Also it seems that the quality of public school is deteriorating so some people are willing to pay for avoiding the experience of public schools. But this is a general trend for most private schools.

There are many schools with low student-teacher ratios that are cheaper, including Catholic schools, Waldorf schools, and other smaller private schools.

Catholic diocese schools are cheaper because they’re subsidized by the church.

Yes, what is so great about these $60K schools? Are they really suprior than the cheaper ones?

Why don’t you actually go visit one and see for yourself

I went. Honestly, not sure. Is college admission slightly better? Fancy campus. Not sure if it is worth $60K.

Yes, college admissions to T25 universities, at the Big 3 (Cathedral, GDS, Sidwell), are noticeably stronger than the cheaper schools (SJC, Holy Cross/Child, Visi, Burke, etc). So, nicer campus/facilities, better college admissions, and more elite reputation).

But here's the thing. If YOUR CHILD does not end up at this T25 university, and the majority at all of these schools do not, you will not feel like college admissions are better. So what if 15% of your kids' class goes Ivy, while yours ends up at Alabama?

Sidwell usually sends about 25-30% of its graduates to Ivies. Approximately 60-70% attend T25 universities/T10 SLACs. The bottom 30% basically lands at T50 universities and SLACs. The bottom third of the class has to go somewhere, and a T50 isn’t bad. Especially because they have been exceptionally well prepared to succeed in college.

I can’t speak for the other Big 3 schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would I spend $60k for lower or middle school? No. For high school? Yes, IF the school is a good fit for our kids, it includes things like lunch and laptop and access to trainers etc. It is crazy that that’s those are the numbers we are talking about but we prioritize spending on education which that includes the overall experience. Compared to our zoned mcps Hugh school, yes, it’s worth it.

FWIW—Have a kid in private and one at MCPS (they have learning differences and there isn’t a good private option for their needs) and let me tell you the quality of education IRL is markedly different. I don’t think a lot of parents are really looking closely at what the day to day instruction and overall experience is for those claiming MCPS hs is the gold standard.

For us, lower school is absolutely key. Our kid is dyslexic/twice exceptional and MCPS cannot support them. They’re at a mainstream K-8 and doing great.

IMO, people underestimate the need for strong foundational skills in ES and MS, regardless of whether the kid has learning differences.

I’m pp you are responding to. I just meant for my kids the 60k would not be worth it for LS or MS, but I agree that if your child needs something different and that’s an option financially, go for it. And I agree that a strong foundation is important. The kids coming from private k-8 have had on the balance an easier transition to private school expectations in HS.

This advantage disappears in about 2 weeks.

My dyslexic kid would likely not have learned to read if we depended on MCPS.

So your statement is great for neurotypical kids, but is irrelevant for kids who need systemic phonics instruction and high quality interventions to avoid being illiterate.

Interesting that for some PPs with ND kids, public works better than private and vice versa for others.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Friendly question:

What is the rationale for doubling tuition over the span of 15 years? Is it simply that people have the ability to pay and they are profit maximizing? Or is it truly that they provide an incredible lifetime network and or access to the top universities that people from great Publix just don’t have anymore?

Demand and supply. There is not much magic about this. There is a huge demand for schools with a low students teacher ratio, and as long people are willing to pay for it they will continue raising tuition. It is the same phenomenon as in colleges. Also it seems that the quality of public school is deteriorating so some people are willing to pay for avoiding the experience of public schools. But this is a general trend for most private schools.

There are many schools with low student-teacher ratios that are cheaper, including Catholic schools, Waldorf schools, and other smaller private schools.

Catholic diocese schools are cheaper because they’re subsidized by the church.

Yes, what is so great about these $60K schools? Are they really suprior than the cheaper ones?

Why don’t you actually go visit one and see for yourself

I went. Honestly, not sure. Is college admission slightly better? Fancy campus. Not sure if it is worth $60K.

Yes, college admissions to T25 universities, at the Big 3 (Cathedral, GDS, Sidwell), are noticeably stronger than the cheaper schools (SJC, Holy Cross/Child, Visi, Burke, etc). So, nicer campus/facilities, better college admissions, and more elite reputation).

But here's the thing. If YOUR CHILD does not end up at this T25 university, and the majority at all of these schools do not, you will not feel like college admissions are better. So what if 15% of your kids' class goes Ivy, while yours ends up at Alabama?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would I spend $60k for lower or middle school? No. For high school? Yes, IF the school is a good fit for our kids, it includes things like lunch and laptop and access to trainers etc. It is crazy that that’s those are the numbers we are talking about but we prioritize spending on education which that includes the overall experience. Compared to our zoned mcps Hugh school, yes, it’s worth it.

FWIW—Have a kid in private and one at MCPS (they have learning differences and there isn’t a good private option for their needs) and let me tell you the quality of education IRL is markedly different. I don’t think a lot of parents are really looking closely at what the day to day instruction and overall experience is for those claiming MCPS hs is the gold standard.

For us, lower school is absolutely key. Our kid is dyslexic/twice exceptional and MCPS cannot support them. They’re at a mainstream K-8 and doing great.

IMO, people underestimate the need for strong foundational skills in ES and MS, regardless of whether the kid has learning differences.

I’m pp you are responding to. I just meant for my kids the 60k would not be worth it for LS or MS, but I agree that if your child needs something different and that’s an option financially, go for it. And I agree that a strong foundation is important. The kids coming from private k-8 have had on the balance an easier transition to private school expectations in HS.

This advantage disappears in about 2 weeks.

My dyslexic kid would likely not have learned to read if we depended on MCPS.

So your statement is great for neurotypical kids, but is irrelevant for kids who need systemic phonics instruction and high quality interventions to avoid being illiterate.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would I spend $60k for lower or middle school? No. For high school? Yes, IF the school is a good fit for our kids, it includes things like lunch and laptop and access to trainers etc. It is crazy that that’s those are the numbers we are talking about but we prioritize spending on education which that includes the overall experience. Compared to our zoned mcps Hugh school, yes, it’s worth it.

FWIW—Have a kid in private and one at MCPS (they have learning differences and there isn’t a good private option for their needs) and let me tell you the quality of education IRL is markedly different. I don’t think a lot of parents are really looking closely at what the day to day instruction and overall experience is for those claiming MCPS hs is the gold standard.

For us, lower school is absolutely key. Our kid is dyslexic/twice exceptional and MCPS cannot support them. They’re at a mainstream K-8 and doing great.

IMO, people underestimate the need for strong foundational skills in ES and MS, regardless of whether the kid has learning differences.

I’m pp you are responding to. I just meant for my kids the 60k would not be worth it for LS or MS, but I agree that if your child needs something different and that’s an option financially, go for it. And I agree that a strong foundation is important. The kids coming from private k-8 have had on the balance an easier transition to private school expectations in HS.

This advantage disappears in about 2 weeks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haven't seen next year's tuition because my Snail is moving on but this year was $58K for day, approx. $75K for boarders and an additional $15K if your daughter simply can't live without her own horse.

And, yes, I think it is worth every penny.

Is this Madeira?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would I spend $60k for lower or middle school? No. For high school? Yes, IF the school is a good fit for our kids, it includes things like lunch and laptop and access to trainers etc. It is crazy that that’s those are the numbers we are talking about but we prioritize spending on education which that includes the overall experience. Compared to our zoned mcps Hugh school, yes, it’s worth it.

FWIW—Have a kid in private and one at MCPS (they have learning differences and there isn’t a good private option for their needs) and let me tell you the quality of education IRL is markedly different. I don’t think a lot of parents are really looking closely at what the day to day instruction and overall experience is for those claiming MCPS hs is the gold standard.

For us, lower school is absolutely key. Our kid is dyslexic/twice exceptional and MCPS cannot support them. They’re at a mainstream K-8 and doing great.

IMO, people underestimate the need for strong foundational skills in ES and MS, regardless of whether the kid has learning differences.

I’m pp you are responding to. I just meant for my kids the 60k would not be worth it for LS or MS, but I agree that if your child needs something different and that’s an option financially, go for it. And I agree that a strong foundation is important. The kids coming from private k-8 have had on the balance an easier transition to private school expectations in HS.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would I spend $60k for lower or middle school? No. For high school? Yes, IF the school is a good fit for our kids, it includes things like lunch and laptop and access to trainers etc. It is crazy that that’s those are the numbers we are talking about but we prioritize spending on education which that includes the overall experience. Compared to our zoned mcps Hugh school, yes, it’s worth it.

FWIW—Have a kid in private and one at MCPS (they have learning differences and there isn’t a good private option for their needs) and let me tell you the quality of education IRL is markedly different. I don’t think a lot of parents are really looking closely at what the day to day instruction and overall experience is for those claiming MCPS hs is the gold standard.

For us, lower school is absolutely key. Our kid is dyslexic/twice exceptional and MCPS cannot support them. They’re at a mainstream K-8 and doing great.

IMO, people underestimate the need for strong foundational skills in ES and MS, regardless of whether the kid has learning differences.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Friendly question:

What is the rationale for doubling tuition over the span of 15 years? Is it simply that people have the ability to pay and they are profit maximizing? Or is it truly that they provide an incredible lifetime network and or access to the top universities that people from great Publix just don’t have anymore?

Demand and supply. There is not much magic about this. There is a huge demand for schools with a low students teacher ratio, and as long people are willing to pay for it they will continue raising tuition. It is the same phenomenon as in colleges. Also it seems that the quality of public school is deteriorating so some people are willing to pay for avoiding the experience of public schools. But this is a general trend for most private schools.

There are many schools with low student-teacher ratios that are cheaper, including Catholic schools, Waldorf schools, and other smaller private schools.

Catholic diocese schools are cheaper because they’re subsidized by the church.

Yes, what is so great about these $60K schools? Are they really suprior than the cheaper ones?

Why don’t you actually go visit one and see for yourself

I went. Honestly, not sure. Is college admission slightly better? Fancy campus. Not sure if it is worth $60K.

Yes, college admissions to T25 universities, at the Big 3 (Cathedral, GDS, Sidwell), are noticeably stronger than the cheaper schools (SJC, Holy Cross/Child, Visi, Burke, etc). So, nicer campus/facilities, better college admissions, and more elite reputation).

Anonymous wrote:Would I spend $60k for lower or middle school? No. For high school? Yes, IF the school is a good fit for our kids, it includes things like lunch and laptop and access to trainers etc. It is crazy that that’s those are the numbers we are talking about but we prioritize spending on education which that includes the overall experience. Compared to our zoned mcps Hugh school, yes, it’s worth it.

FWIW—Have a kid in private and one at MCPS (they have learning differences and there isn’t a good private option for their needs) and let me tell you the quality of education IRL is markedly different. I don’t think a lot of parents are really looking closely at what the day to day instruction and overall experience is for those claiming MCPS hs is the gold standard.

Anonymous wrote:Haven't seen next year's tuition because my Snail is moving on but this year was $58K for day, approx. $75K for boarders and an additional $15K if your daughter simply can't live without her own horse.

And, yes, I think it is worth every penny.

Anonymous wrote:Would I spend $60k for lower or middle school? No. For high school? Yes, IF the school is a good fit for our kids, it includes things like lunch and laptop and access to trainers etc. It is crazy that that’s those are the numbers we are talking about but we prioritize spending on education which that includes the overall experience. Compared to our zoned mcps Hugh school, yes, it’s worth it.

FWIW—Have a kid in private and one at MCPS (they have learning differences and there isn’t a good private option for their needs) and let me tell you the quality of education IRL is markedly different. I don’t think a lot of parents are really looking closely at what the day to day instruction and overall experience is for those claiming MCPS hs is the gold standard.