Rent in highland park for the schools while saving? Possible? (credit, student loans)

[GreyDay]

Not to be blunt but most considering private school or HPISD the end game is an elite college or upper level 1 at best. Just getting into college isn't the issue but getting into an Ivy, Texas, Vanderbilt.

The cottage industry of college prep preys on these partially unfounded fears. But as the value of a simple bachelors has been watered down, it's more about where that bachelors is from in the era of BA's and MBA and PhDs from university of Phoenix.

So things like NMF, sat scores and yes published list of college matriculation does matter. Like prep school was a decade ago the better upper schools are pushings AP's and global college prep today.

[hsw]

Kids are ultimately products of parental DNA/values...parents need to look in mirror and not attempt to outsource ineptitude in outcomes to schools, etc

Most of wealthy self-made from past 25+yrs are products of middle-income families and mediocre public schools from suburbia everywhere (more akin to Plano not HP/StMarks)

And many of wealthiest self-made aren't even college grads (think Hamm in OK or Ellison in CA or Gates in WA or Zuck in CA)...or are CS undergrads from Stanford or Berk or IL...or from some crappy state undergrad (think Brin from U-MD or Page from U-MI)

The Ivy lib arts thing is a Luddite/OldMedia fixation of 30+yrs ago (which still prevails in Luddite circles), before modern software or hedge funds or shale o&g industry made any formal education (or miseducation) fairly dubious in terms of career/net worth outcomes...

[GreyDay]

Originally Posted by hsw

Kids are ultimately products of parental DNA/values...parents need to look in mirror and not attempt to outsource ineptitude in outcomes to schools, etc

Most of wealthy self-made from past 25+yrs are products of middle-income families and mediocre public schools from suburbia everywhere (more akin to Plano not HP/StMarks)

And many of wealthiest self-made aren't even college grads (think Hamm in OK or Ellison in CA or Gates in WA or Zuck in CA)...or are CS undergrads from Stanford or Berk or IL...or from some crappy state undergrad (think Brin from U-MD or Page from U-MI)

The Ivy lib arts thing is a Luddite/OldMedia fixation of 30+yrs ago (which still prevails in Luddite circles), before modern software or hedge funds or shale o&g industry made any formal education (or miseducation) fairly dubious in terms of career/net worth outcomes...

Only so many folks can write code in a dark room.

There's somethign to be said for 'real' jobs like law, medicine, dentistry, accounting. While not as sexy as CS, they're real jobs. And since when is University of Michigan a crappy state school? Last I checked they didn't exactly have open admissions.

That said, you need to pull the outliers out of the discussion for the need for a formal education. Otherwise, just throw in Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and a host of other actors who never went to college.

And while social mobility is still alive and well St. Mark's or HPISD for the most part build students to populate the SES from which they came.

Crappy state college? Michigan? Check the admission rates.

[jennifw]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

I'm not asking this to be antagonistic. I really am curious--> how many more years will it take before Woodrow turns into the school the Lakewood residents think it already is/ can be?


Wondering if residents other than Lakewooder can give any data to support the academic proof that WW is projected to even rise to RISD quality in the near-term??

As a Lakewood resident, I would like to see this, too. I know my circle doesn't include ALL of Lakewood but I was at a party yesterday with all Lakewood Elem kiddos and the main topic of the parents was Long/Woodrow. The group I was with does not believe the "magic" that is discussed here on the board, so I am wondering what I am missing.

[Lakewooder]

Originally Posted by Pete53FR

I live in East Dallas, my wife is a Woodrow and JL Long Graduate but I sent my kids to private school 80 to 96 cause I watched my friends saving for College and their kids go to Public School and going to Junior College.

Where do you live in East Dallas? During the period you discussed there was quite a pipeline to the Ivies from Woodrow. My classmate's mother helped with the admission applications. Her own children attended Yale and Princeton (and USNA, Vanderbilt and Wesleyan). I think the only Ivy not represented was Harvard - but I did have a friend who went just before that period.

Doug Swanson of the Dallas Morning News did a week-long series on the success of Woodrow in 1986. In 1979 Texas Monthly did a feature story called "Woodrow Wilson: a School that Works".

I have an old brochure stating that there were 12 National Merit, 2 African American and 2 Hispanic scholars along with ten commended students in the early 1990s.

[Lakewooder]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

The school has pretty close to 0% of each graduating class making NMSF vs 2.2-2.5% in the average Highland Park class and anywhere from 3-30% of the elite private schools? It seems like there hasn't been a class in recent memory with more than 1 NMSF @ Woodrow

True I have stated that we have been light on NMSF the last few years. I also posted that there was an advisory board looking into this and they determined that DISD taking the prep course off site to a central location correlates with the drop. Steps are being taken to correct this.

However, let me ask you: Given that 0% of HPHS students are economically disadvantaged, why are the other 97 to 98% NOT making NMSF? Does this make the school at large a failure, as you are trying to project to Woodrow?

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

36% of WW students take AP exams, but only 30% pass. Lake Highlands has similar demographics and a similar % taking AP's, but a early 50% pass rate. Richardson HS also has similar demographics, but a 55% pass rate with 43% enrollment. This doesn't even scratch the elite schools with 75%+ students in AP and over 60% passing exams.

Why do you keep posting that LH and Richardson High have similar demographics to Woodrow? I have posted in response that they do not. Have you been reading my posts? Richardson High was above Woodrow on the Washington Post list and LH was far behind in the rankings (but still in the top 5%) Woodrow was #588 in the nation, LH was #1356 - of approximately 22,000 high schools.

Re: AP passing rate, equated on the WP list as E&E - I have also posted that Woodrow's rate is similar to Southlake Carroll. E & E is the percent of all seniors who had at least one passing grade on an AP or IB exam.

Woodrow has dramatically increased the number of students taking AP tests - I think the 2011 ranking was based on around 600 tests from 2010 and in 2011 Woodrow students took about 800 AP tests. When more students take the test, especially those in economically disadvantaged groups, then the passing rate can fall. However, the premise of Jay Mathew's top schools lists at The Washington Post and Newsweek is that students who take AP classes and tests are better prepared for college than those who do not, regardless of the passing rate.

[karenss]

I don't believe that HPISD is the best & only choice. I have kids at Lakewood, Long & Woodrow, & feel that my kids are very well-educated, well-rounded & have definitely learned how to be empathetic along the way. You can't buy what they receive in these schools.

[betsypucc]

I have three children that are going or have gone through the Lakewood schools. All three kids are different and all have had a great experience at the schools. Lakewood families are very involved in the schools enhancing the education every year. Woodrow is now an academy school with International baccalaureate (the only one in Dallas), business, science technology and math and performing arts academies. The principal is tremendous and always has an open door and is willing to listen and take action.

[synchronicity]

Originally Posted by GreyDay

And since when is University of Michigan a crappy state school?

Well, maybe the undergrad has an OK reputation, but check out the law school. It definitely does NOT have an "OK" reputation.









(PS- well, it IS true that almost nobody would classify UMich law as "OK" )

[GreyDay]

Originally Posted by synchronicity

Well, maybe the undergrad has an OK reputation, but check out the law school. It definitely does NOT have an "OK" reputation.

(PS- well, it IS true that almost nobody would classify UMich law as "OK" )

Wow.
Ever heard of public 'Ivy'?