So, your eldest is a senior already. Ouch. Okay, the first thing you need to do is register him for the December SAT and ACT. Adding 10 or 20 points should be doable and would change his odds of scholarships.
Second, based on experience, an academic kid from an upper middle class family who attends a private high school is not going to community college - the discussion here is basically merit v. Top 40 private, but with a 1480 that student would also cost himself thousands and thousands of dollars attending CC and losing his freshman status (as well as the scholarships that go with it). So, the goal must be finding appropriate universities with strong Honors colleges and departments of interest, as well as well ranked Universities that offer merit (in particular, he should look at LACs.)
Academic-minded kids can find safeties with merit in Honors Colleges or at colleges such as Earham and Wooster.
(Baside these two, UWisconsin Eau Claire, Western Kentucky University, Grand Valley State University, UNC Asheville, UT Dallas, UMN Morris, would all be good safeties with good honors colleges. Be careful about the deadlines though!) Then you need to look at your flagship: can you pay the costs? Would your child be eligible for scholarships there? That would be one step up from the previously named colleges. Run a lot of NPCs.
Can you start the belt-tightening now and start saving?