Private Schools 2023 (Houston, Paris: law school, law, office)

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by abeamishday

What's a "one and done" school?

PK-12’s. One application & you’re done until college admissions.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by seatex222

I had the exact same feeling from one of the lower school open houses. We spent an hour hearing speeches in a large group then toured the school via the "open house" and I came away with no feeling about the school at all, I almost didn't submit an application because of it.

Open Houses are terrible, IMO. You don’t get a good sense of the school culture & quality unless you tour during the day, in a small group (or private tour which admissions offices are happy to do if your schedules don’t synch with the tour times), where you can actually see kids & teachers in their “natural habitat.”

Open House or other events are good if you have follow-up questions or want to another look at the school facilities but I would just say for anyone reading this thread next year, do not make ANY application decisions based on an Open House.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by pisekar

last year lots of families from other states applied to private schools in Texas (parents working remotely)

Yes, the last 2 years (and I assume this year as well), close to 1/3 of the applications at the top schools have been from out-of-state applicants. We have several families at our school who moved from NYC and DC and were totally shocked that it was so difficult to get in to schools here.

[seatex222]

Originally Posted by abeamishday

I'm sure we're talking about the same open house - that presentation at the beginning was excruciatingly overlong (and almost nothing that hadn't been covered in their marketing materials) and then the open house was aimless and filled with parents all jockeying for face-time with the teachers. We had to put our trust in it's great reputation and enthusiasm of families we know enrolled there to move forward with the application process.

Yes totally sounds like the same place! I guess it only matters in that if we got into everywhere we applied (which definitely will not happen) I may be a little less likely to pick this school based on the non-impression, but it probably wouldn't play a role in my decision very much at all.

[abeamishday]

Originally Posted by numbersguy100

One and done = the school starts in PK/1 and goes through grade 12. You apply once, and you're done until college. If you look at where Lamplighter sends kids, a few each year go to Good Shepherd. That's crazy to me because you're setting yourself up for 3 private school applications before college (Lamplighter goes to grade 4, GS goes to grade 8). But I'm sure for those families it is the best option and on the flip side I guess they'll be pros by the time college rolls around.

There's a lot of anxiety around private school admissions and I'm not going to discount it. Been there done that. But the thing to think about is that if you can afford the few private schools that have selective admissions, you have LOTS of options to get your kids a great education in DFW, whether that means a great public school or a less selective private school that will still give them lots of personalized instruction and set them up for success.

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

PK-12’s. One application & you’re done until college admissions.

Thanks - that should have been obvious but my admissions-addled brain immediately jumped to concern that there were schools known to only really give one chance to apply and be admitted - which is such a preposterous scenario and shows how much we are (over)stressing.

[hanlyplano]

Originally Posted by Purplecow20

So glad Dr. Anderson could help! I was hesitant to share this earlier, but, it feels very similar, so I’ll share this story. I know someone who was in a similar situation a couple years back. I believe their child scored below average and it was because they froze up. The parents used that information and put the child in a learning center (Kumon, I believe) so that they could get comfortable being tested by strangers. Fast forward to the next year and the child scored in the superior range. I think it was like a 40 point shift in their cats score in one year. They are now at the Tier 1 school that had rejected them the previous year and child is performing great. It really proved their point because, like you, they knew their child was smart and couldn’t understand the original test results.

I hate that we have to subject our kids to it. I understand that you have to use something, but as Dr. Anderson even notes, there are so many flaws to the process.

That's interesting. I would have said we were the type of parents that would never consider putting our preschoolers in any kind of purely "academic" tutoring/extracurriculars, but I can see why it might be helpful in getting a kid (that struggled) more comfortable in that environment. Thanks for sharing!

[NYinTexas]

How have everyone's observations gone? I believe it's the first time in a few years that schools have done in-person ones.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by NYinTexas

How have everyone's observations gone? I believe it's the first time in a few years that schools have done in-person ones.

Last year observations were in person, too. A few schools required a video component but I think they only watched the videos if the child was unable to test in person due to Covid or quarantine.

[Dallasboymom22]

One application, 1st grade at SMST . Glad it’s wrapped up and complete. I admire those of you that had to do multiple school applications… that was a process!

[Sting06]

Anecdotal, but I was one of those kids who screwed up testing as a 4-year-old and had scores so low that I did not “qualify” for admissions to the top private schools in Houston, despite being a legacy. I ended up being a National Merit Finalist and getting into top 10 undgrad and law schools primarily off of test scores, so the testing issue did not last. I think at that at that age, I just had trouble concentrating and distinctly remember making a mistake on the test, and when I asked for a new piece of paper because I couldn’t erase my mistake and redo it quickly enough, was told not to worry about it. So I have some obvious biases but am skeptical about the value of testing at this age. I’m still debating about putting my 2- and 3-year-olds through the process next year, which is why I’ve been lurking. NGL, this thread is giving me a little anxiety. We’re zoned to Lakewood, which seems fine and is much more convenient than the “top” privates, but I don’t think we’d do the public middle school here and know the transition will be harder later.

In any event, good luck to everyone here, and don’t read too much into the results. At the end of the day, it’s just kids’ school.