NYC private school tuition now higher than HARVARD

Parents Forum
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<p>I went to an elite NYC private school.</p>

<p>The main difference between the private schools and Stuy/Bronx Sci is that the small size of the private schools allows a heavy focus on the humanities through seminar--style discussions and an intensive writing focus. Don't go to these schools for science training -- many who come out excel in the humanities and continue to do so. </p>

<p>Stuy kids at my school all graduated with at least ten or so AP tests under their belt. I had only five, and in place of those other AP classes I took some amazing electives that shaped my interest in the humanities. Their atmosphere is intensely competitive to the point where GPA and not intellectual development becomes the prime concern. Some people may call it cheating, but a lot of private schools really choose to de-emphasize the grades in favor of intellectual exploration; college counselors then pursue admissions strategies from that other angle. Some schools like St. Ann's don't even have grades, and their students do amazingly well in admissions.</p>

<p>Also, it doesn't matter that tuition is high, because the schools give financial aid based on need. Of course, their admissions may not be need-blind, but boy are they generous with the money. They make sure economics does not exclude you from anything the school offers - I received subsidized school trips, music lessons, and even free food. I can't say the same for my college.</p>

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<p>To the poster who thinks there are only horror stories, like child molestations, in public schools...you are really, really dreaming. Some of the worst drug problems, and issues with sexual harrassment and abuse (among students, and between faculty members and students) happen where else, but...</p>

<p>PRIVATE SCHOOL!</p>

<p>(Read up on the scandal at Milton Academy, for example. I could cite ten more such examples).</p>

<p>Bad stuff happens everywhere.</p>

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<p>I dont think there are only horror stories in public schools. I said there were good public schools but they are hard to get into. Even my middle school had one of those scandals and it was a public school. So far in my private school there havent been such cases. I have had family members who attended private elementary schools and there have been no cases of teachers molesting a little girl. My example was true because I know someone who had those two choices. There was a good public school near them but the kids could not go there because of different districts. honestly if you dont live in new york city and have never been in NYC public school system dont judge people who want the best for their children.</p>

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<p>I don't know much about the NYC schools- farthest east I have ever been was St Joe MO. and that was when I was 4.
However both of my kids have attended private schools, my oldest has never attended a public school.
I don't see people judging- people are citing their experiences.</p>

<p>My experience is that in public schools, it is true a staff member may be acting inappropriately for years in teh schools, long before any scandal breaks.
But that is not to say it doesn't happen in private school, you might just not have heard about it. For example in my daughters private school, which is one of the best in teh city, she had two friends, both who left the school after a couple years because of the way that their parents felt the school handled two disturbing incidents, one racially based and one sexually based. I only heard about the incidents because as I said she was friends with the girls, no one else heard about it, and we didn't have that experience so she stayed put.
Not to say that it couldn't have happened there to her, or anywhere else.</p>

<p>* Let's say your local elementary public school was involved in a scandal where a teacher molested a little girl. You dont want your kids to go there but cant sent them to another public school because of the zone problem what will you do? Seek a private high school.*</p>

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<p>First, I shall reiterate that if I had a child who couldn't get into one of the top public high schools in NYC AND I lived in an area where my "zone" school wasn't good, I'd pay for private school. I don't blame parents who make that choice at all. </p>

<p>In fact, I don't blame parents who spend the $ for private school. If they want to do so, that's their privilege. </p>

<p>BUT, when I see messages like MCHang23's I see red. Ever heard of Hunter College High School? Townsend Harris? These are NYC public schools which have a humanities focus. They are great schools. (Hunter ranked 26th of all schools in the nation on the Worth list of feeder schools into HYP, which is better than most NYC independent schools. This is despite the fact that there are fewer legacies and fewer recruited athletes. )</p>

<p>And the private school kids aren't as competitive as the Stuy kids and are more intellectual and sincerely interested in learning? Please, you've spent too much time reading your private school's propaganda. </p>

<p>And no drugs in the private schools? This year, two 10th graders at one of the 3 most "prestigious" girls independent schools were kicked out, reportedly for using cocaine and leaving traces of it in the restroom IN SCHOOL. (My source is the parent of a classmate.) The anorexia rate at one of the private girls' schools is UNREAL. A few years ago, one of the local Madison Avenue stores allegedly took a videotape of girls from one of the private schools which clearly showed a group of about a half dozen of them shoplifting while wearing their school uniforms. Rather than calling the police, the store owner is said to have invited the headmistress to view the tape and said if the merchandise weren't paid for, the film would be given to a local TV station. The reports are that it was immediately "purchased." </p>

<p>And anyone who has ever looked at that abysmal series "Gossip Girls" knows EXACTLY which NYC independent school is being portrayed. </p>

<p>I'm not saying these problems don't exist in NYC public schools. They definitely do. ALL I'm saying is that they exist in the private schools too.
Don't think that by paying $30,000 a year you can buy your kid a free pass to avoid any problems. You can't. Life doesn't work that way. </p>

<p>NYC is really a unique place because it has so many outstanding public schools with selective admissions. I don't blame any parent who chooses a private school alternative--but don't feed me the malarkey that the choice was made because you can't get a quality public high school education if you live in NYC. You CAN. Since MCHang23 attends Princeton, I shall prove my point by quoting an excerpt describing the feats of a recent Princeton grad who won a prestigious Marshall scholarship. The quote is from the Princeton Alumni Weekly:
"Geltzer, a New York City native, has twice received the Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence and was awarded the Haarlow Prize for the Best Paper in Humanistic Studies."
He's a Hunter College High School grad--doesn't seem to have been a problem for him to compete with the kids from the private schools.</p>

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<p>Just move out to Long Island.</p>

<p>Great public schools here.</p>

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<p>I go to Zapata High School on the border of Mexico. Yet I managed to get into Yale...</p>

<p>The point I'm illustrating here is that it's utterly pointless to spend 31,000 dollars on a private school education.</p>

<p>You know why public schools across the nation get worse? Because our most involved parents and our best students leave for private education.</p>

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<p>Schools & choosing the appropriate school for each child is a very personal matter. The quality of public schools varies a great deal and has changed over time. Hubby & I were both products of HI public school system, as were my sibblings. We enrolled our kids in public schools but reluctantly transferred them to private school at 9th grade because of the much greater educational opportunities & being able to be with intellectual peers offered by private schools. It has been a very good choice for us & our kids. I have friends who have made similar choices, while other friends had their kids in private school continuously from kindergarten, while still others have their kids graduate from public school. We all hope & expect our kids will go to good colleges.
I & my friends were very active in public school, including working closely with the teachers & getting to know & befriend the administration, running the PTA, volunteering, etc.
Each family must make the choices that work & are appropriate for them. It is a sacrifice to pay private school tuition + taxes to support the public school system. I am sad that my kids were not getting the education they or I wanted them to in the public school and have no regrets about transferring them to private school.</p>

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<p>I agree with the above. Being the product of a NYC private school education. When I ask myself whether or not I would send my daughter to one, I think it really does depend on the child. For a child who is naturally shier and would respond well to the smaller more nurturing environment, I think I would consider a private school. However, I would reconsider private school, once my children are in high school. The rates of eating disorders suffered by young women in private schools is shocking. (Although, I'm sure that the numbers would be just as high in affluent, high pressured, suburban schools as well.) Plus, I do think there is some benefit to middle school/high school aged children experience an economic cross-section which really isn't seen in a private school (the bus ride across town or the few scholarship receiving students, does not really count).
So, in summary, I'm agreeing that it's a really personal choice for the family based on what they think will be of best benefit to each child.</p>

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<p>Hey jonri, I may be rusty at all this NYC stuff but:</p>

<p>IF I recall correctly, you have to be nominated by your school to sit for the Hunter test in 6th grade. The class is filled for 7th grade, and you can't get in at all after that. We just moved back to NYC this Fall, and it's too late for my 7th grade son to sit for the Hunter exam. No Hunter for him.</p>

<p>I recall for sure that at the Pre-k level entry into Hunter was as about as difficult as getting into Harvard, at least. I don't think admission to the High school is quite that bad, but it's probably extremely competitive nonetheless. so your Hunter solution is simply unavailable to most students. Leaving aside that the school has no windows, it is at a location that may be difficult for some to get to, I doubt it has much in the way of athletics, etc.</p>

<p>I don't know anything about the humanities curriculum at Townsend Harris, but I do know it's in Queens. Maybe it's not that easy for everyone to get to Townsend Harris. Does Townsend Harris have buses that take kids to it? Is Townsend Harris even open to students who don't live in its area? Once again, I doubt this is a ubiquitous solution for everyone.</p>

<p>Even if it's true that there are a couple public alternatives that are acceptable, it doesn't necessarily follow that these particular schools are better for a particular kid than a particular private school is, overall.</p>

<p>Based on my own experiences, and those of my kids, I see no substantial problem with mzhang23's first two paragraphs, myself.</p>

<p>Financial aid is another story. In my experience private schools tend to reserve financial aid for groups that help them somehow with some kind of quota or other need; eg minorities, athletes, whatever. I knew a guy who was laid off from his job, upon contract renewal applied for financial aid to his kid's school, as a returning student, and despite qualifying on all the aid calculations the school gave him nothing whatsoever. He had to move out of the city.</p>

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<p>I agree with many of the posters who state that different schools are right for different kids. We have chosen both public and private at different times and for different reasons.</p>

<p>Interestingly, one of the reasons we're considering a private school in our area is that we're looking for MORE diversity than is provided in our affluent and largely homogeneous suburb. There are few students of color in our town and most of the African American students in my children's public school are bussed in from the city. They (understandably) tend to stick together, and they are seen as different from the local students. I want my children to have a healthier idea of diversity, and I want them to experiece something more organic than the artificial diversity created by well-intentioned bussing.</p>

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<p>Ferny, how many of your classmates went ivy with you?</p>