<p>Just back from Parents Weekend. At the Parents Annual Fund meeting there were a few facts that might be worth sharing:
Form <em>III _</em><em>IV</em>___ V_<strong><em>VI</em></strong><em>Total
Boys </em><strong>54 _77</strong><strong><em>66</em></strong> 70<strong><em>267
Girls </em></strong><em>48 _</em><em>72</em><strong><em>75</em></strong><strong>71</strong><strong>266
Total _102</strong><em>149</em><strong>141</strong><strong>141</strong>_533</p>
<p>States Represented: 35
Countries Represented: 23
Students of Color: 30%<br>
African/African American: 7%
Asian/Asian American: 14%
Litino, Hispanic: 5%
Other: 4%
SPS Legacies: 23%
International: 11%
Percent from Public Schools: 53%
Median SSAT: 88
Top Colleges ('05-'08)
Stanford: 26
Harvard: 23
Yale: 20
Univ. of Penn: 20
Princeton: 17
Others in order: Columbia, Brown, Tufts, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Middlebury, Williams.....</p>
<p>There were lots of other statistics on facilities, faculty, SAT's, financial aid and well of course fund raising. But this posting would go on endlessly. Anything else we should post?</p>
<p>I would love to know how you felt that weekend. I heard at Exeter they closed the dining hall so they could prepare for the dinner and the students were very angry at that. </p>
<p>Did it seem like they went 100% out of there way in an overwhelming way? Nice family greeting? Business first, "This is why you give us your money and kids"?</p>
<p>SPS is the only school that was 100% booked for interviews and tours when I went... Very sad that I didn't get to see it. Really curious about what I missed and what I should know.</p>
<p>In my opinion, SPS always makes the parents and families feel welcome but never in a showy, "full court press" kind of way. It's a very welcoming school. The campus is absolutely gorgeous this time of year. Everything is so well maintained but it's that way year round not just for parents weekend. </p>
<p>One thing I was happy to se this year is the the packets they gave the parents were trimmed down to the bare minimum - just a few sheets of paper. They're trying to be eco-friendly plus they have so much info on their website, I don't really need the glossy folder jammed with stuff.</p>
<p>On Friday evening of parent's weekend, they have performing arts performances. The school's dance, choir, acapella and orchestra performances are amazing.</p>
<p>I doubt the kids feel angry or shoved aside because they're not at SPS. I'm sure most were thrilled that their parents had to attend class on Saturday and they didn't! :)</p>
<p>There was a lunch on Friday for the new parents (not me), but there are three dining rooms and they use the old dining hall (the Hogwarts lookalike). As creative1 said the arts night was great. Other than breakfast, we went out for meals, because our son was dying to get off campus. Saturday chapel was wonderful, followed by each child's class for 20 minute mini-slices. All pretty standard stuff.</p>
<p>So no resentment by any of the kids, although my son did want the parent's coffee after chapel, because the choir had to get up early to practice and sing. At SPS parent's weekend is generally loved by the kids, because they get Saturday classes off, Monday classes off, dorm intervisitation starts, and oh yeah you "get to see the rents" or go home.</p>
<p>Never enough time, but yes its fun. They have a fall "leadership weekend" where you can attend one real class and see what is discussed, but that was 2 weeks ago. But there is also an "Inside SPS" weekend in February, so if you can, there are a number of opportunities. Then there are also sports, performances, long weekends, and short weekends SO IF YOU LIVE close enough and have the time, there are plenty of opportunities. If not, then you hope that other parents will take your teen out to dinner, a weekend or whatever. People also do that a lot.</p>
<p>Sounds like the perfect mix for me at least... a small school with big academics(Exeter/Andover mixed with Kent). Just saying that because I visited those three... All in all I might be at harvard for three days(I earned a trip from my school's travel fund) and I think it is only an hour and a half to St. Paul's... I might hit it up.</p>
<p>Had a great time at SPS Parents' Weekend. Now a bit experienced at this, I did some precision-bombing. I got there in time for the Friday evening performance, took daughter to dinner afterwards, went to Sat morning chapel and classes, advisor meeting, more classes, then lunch, information session on South Africa spring break choir trip, then daughter's volleyball game versus Exeter (SPS lost, oh well). Then whisked daughter off (Boston area), enjoyed birthday party with relatives, going to Maine for lunch today, then taking her back to school and on a plane for me!</p>
<p>Love the school. Daughter is thriving and happy and soooo grown up. She is involved in music, sports, community service, and doing beautifully academically. What more could I want? More calls home? Yeah, maybe that.</p>
<p>Gather i <3 means you love SPS. But what about "crashed like an incline"? Meaning the number of posts is down? If so it could be seasonal, or there could be a new site out there.</p>
<p>Has anyone noticed that after we started this St. Paul's page, Andover and Exeter people started doing the same about a month later? This thread has had almost 7,000 views. NOW THAT is amazing!!</p>
<p>winterset...wondering whether there was any talk at parents' weekend about the economy and possible effect on endowment as it relates to financial aid. Thanks</p>
<p>"St. Paul’s School remains a leader in student selectivity in large part due to its financial aid offerings. In the 2008-09 school year, St. Paul’s School has budgeted nearly $6,400,000 in financial aid—an increase of $300,000 from the previous year. 177 students, or approximately 34 percent of the student body, currently receive tuition assistance. With grants ranging from $1,200 to $41,300, the School makes every effort to ensure that it can provide need-based aid to qualified students from a range of income
brackets. As a general rule, families of admitted students who have a household income of $80,000 or less qualify for full financial aid. In the 2007-08 year, the baseline for full financial aid was $65,000.</p>
<p>Practically speaking, every St. Paul’s School student receives financial aid from the School’s endowment because the cost of educating each student far exceeds the full tuition. As the School strives to attract the best and brightest to St. Paul’s School, total financial aid dollars have increased. SPS is committed to maintaining or increasing its level of funding for the financial aid program. Between FY 2003 and FY 2008 the School has seen a shift in the source of financial aid dollars, with funding from the School’s operating budget now equal to the funding that comes from endowment and other philanthropic sources. The School’s efforts to increase the number of financial aid endowments aims
to reverse this trend by increasing the amount of endowment income available for financial aid awards."</p>
<p>Something new.... Just stumbled across a Department of Energy filing (10/28) for SPS and see that they are requesting approval for a hydroelectric generator for the new dam on the library pond. That is pretty neat!! I know a number of us lobbied for it. It would definitely help them win the Green Prize in the boarding school competition. They have not announced it, but it appears they need government approval first.</p>
<p>Winterset: Would you mind sharing the stats on SATs for St. Paul's students? (As noted in your post #121 above.) Also were the top colleges acceptances or matriculations?</p>
<p>Coldwind: I can answer that from several sources. You might check "PapaChicken's" thread titled: "Top 20 MATRICULATION lists from high school web sites". You have to dig through a number of postings, but on page 2 he lists St. Paul’s , on page 5 he ranks the schools “sorted by Ivy, S & M, +SWAP selectivity”. (SPS #2) for “Ivies, Stanford, MIT, & SWAP (Swarthmore, Williams, Amerst, & Pomona)”. Then there is the paid site the boarding schools report to “<a href="http://www.prepreview.com">http://www.prepreview.com</a>". They show the 2008 average SAT score as 2049 and report 34% of the class went to Ivy League+ MIT Stanford (ranked #1). Finally, if you go to the link I posted above (
<a href="https://www.sps.edu/ftpimages/36/dow...9_id351971.pdf%5B/url%5D">https://www.sps.edu/ftpimages/36/dow...9_id351971.pdf</a>) and scroll to page 17, the list the cumulative matriculation numbers for 2005-08 covers ALL colleges SPS students attended. For SATs you can go to Boarding</a> School Review - College-Prep & Jr. Boarding Schools and they show average SAT’s of 2075 (note higher than PrepReview’s). </p>
<p>Obviously, different sources report for different years. Different surveys select different schools. The SPS book is the most current for college matriculations. Then, when you are done tearing apart all those stats, recognize that weird stuff happens. Last spring I was told Harvard admitted 5 and 4 turned them down. So stats for multiple schools for multiple years may provide a more accurate picture.</p>
<p>And before I trigger another round of meaningless ranking discussions…….the best school is the one YOU like or the one YOU are at. All shades of gray. All have bright and phenomenal teens. But if it matters to you, SPS is always at or near the top for SAT’s and for matriculations (along with a number of other great schools). </p>
<p>I hope no one EVER chooses a school based on these numbers. They never measure your ability at art, dance, concern for people, passion for the environment, public speaking talent, how well you row or skate, or the myriad of things that matter. I went Dartmouth for my MBA and the Admissions Director told me there was an inverse correlation between scores/grades and success as a CEO. Interpersonal abilities and teamwork are better indicators. So, go figure.</p>
<p>I was wondering if anyone could find the SPS financial aid chart judged by family income. I'm pretty sure I saw it from their site, but I can't find it anymore and my parents want to see it.</p>
<p>as the parent of a "9th grader," i only have recent experience with sps. my main learning experience from parent's weekend is that the faculty is passionate and dedicated totally to the success of the students. sps is a 100% boarding school with faculty living on campus. this builds community and attracts faculty dedicated to helping teens develop academically, socially and morally. biggest shock: my son loves attending chapel (four times a week) and saturday classes.</p>
<p>I believe that my ratings & rankings completed last year based on the most recent five years was & is the most complete study ever done on elite prep schools based on college placement success. Roxbury Latin was number one & St. Paul's School finished second, closely followed by Andover, then Deerfield. The biggest surprise was Exeter which finished at #15 or #16. Deerfield Academy, however, had a very strong relationship with the Univ. of Pennsylvania that may have changed with the sudden resignation of the longtime head of admissions at Penn.
My study included placement/matriculations for all graduating students to all US based four year colleges & universities. The most misleading studies have been done by & published in the New York Times. The NYT studies are highly flawed both for college placement & for graduate school placement.
My ratings system is simple but requires substantial data collection. Simply stated, for prep school college placement success, use the PA score in USNews' America's Best Colleges. (this enables one to rate about a thousand different four year colleges & universities without arguing over whether whether Harvard, Princeton, Stanford or MIT is the best as they are all rated at a 4.9 out of a possible 5.0).
The NYT rankings only rated based on placements to Ivies, Stanford, MIT & Williams. Why Williams & not Amherst? If Amherst was included than the NYT rankings would have drastically changed with, for example, St. Paul's surging to the top because of an unusually large # of students matriculating at Amherst with none at Williams that year. But the NYT study may have been manipulated to make someone's alma mater (Exeter) look good.
The same has occurred with the NYT rankings of grad school placement success which handpicks certain grad schools & ignores others without any reasonable explanation. For example, the NYT does not include placements at Northwestern University's Top 5 Ranked MBA school or at its Top Ten law school, while including lower ranked grad schools in the study. This alters the results as obviously a high number of Northwestern grads prefer to attend Northwestern grad schools for law & business than other lower ranked schools, & often over other higher ranked schools.</p>
<p>As an addendum to my post above: The Groton School also finished in the Top 5 re: college placement success; although it is notable that for one of the years studied (Groton Class of 2007, I think) over 10% of the graduating class matriculated at the Univ. of Edinburgh in Scotland. I did not include foreign based college & university placements in my study. FYI, the Univ. of Edinburgh requires a minimum 600 score on each section of the old SAT (CR & math).</p>