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Appalachian St. is a big favorite and Apex sends about 50-60 kids a year there.
Reasonable people may disagree that the absolute number of students going to App is a good measure of academic prowess, and might actually view this as an indicator of mediocrity. In my opinion, a much better indicator of quality would be the percentage of students going on to Carolina, Duke, Davidson, or the Ivy League (and equivalents), but especially to Carolina (no, I am not a Carolina grad).
Reasonable people may disagree that the absolute number of students going to App is a good measure of academic prowess, and might actually view this as an indicator of mediocrity. In my opinion, a much better indicator of quality would be the percentage of students going on to Carolina, Duke, Davidson, or the Ivy League (and equivalents), but especially to Carolina (no, I am not a Carolina grad).
for the years ourt kids were in school the statistics were consitently 2-5 to Ivy leagues and Duke, 20-25 to Carolina, 50 to State, 50 to App.
avg SAT's are Carolina 1300+, State 1200+ and then several at at 1100+ including App, Wilmington. Asheville and Charlotte. I believe the average is 1000 so all of those are above the median
there are probably at least twice as many kids with equivilent grades and SAT's than the number that Carolina admits. they can't take them all regardless of where they go to HS
Without a doubt, Apex is a good school, and a smart, motivated kid can get a good education and go to a good college.
What I disagree with is the implication by several posters in this thread that the only advantage of private school is "prestige" or "snob appeal" or "lack of competition," and that parents who send their kids to private school are just dumb louts throwing money around (a general attitude so unfortunately typical of a vocal minority who post here regularly).
In fact, the SAT scores at Ravenscroft, for example, are quite a bit higher than the SAT scores at Apex (1277 v. 1114, according to my brief search), and the college-placement record at Ravenscroft is far superior to the college-placement record at Apex. People who send their kids to expensive private schools are in fact getting something more for their money. In general, rich parents are not stupid (perhaps that's why they are rich), despite what some of the posters here may think.
Again, I have nothing against Apex -- it's a good school. But you're not stupid if you pay more to attend a school that's even better.
Without a doubt, Apex is a good school, and a smart, motivated kid can get a good education and go to a good college.
What I disagree with is the implication by several posters in this thread that the only advantage of private school is "prestige" or "snob appeal" or "lack of competition," and that parents who send their kids to private school are just dumb louts throwing money around (a general attitude so unfortunately typical of a vocal minority who post here regularly).
In fact, the SAT scores at Ravenscroft, for example, are quite a bit higher than the SAT scores at Apex (1277 v. 1114, according to my brief search), and the college-placement record at Ravenscroft is far superior to the college-placement record at Apex. People who send their kids to expensive private schools are in fact getting something more for their money. In general, rich parents are not stupid (perhaps that's why they are rich), despite what some of the posters here may think.
Again, I have nothing against Apex -- it's a good school. But you're not stupid if you pay more to attend a school that's even better.
well of course the avg SAT is higher. you're comparing a few hundred kids from high income familes to 1,000 kids from a wide range of familes including very poor. (one wonders what the free lunch % is at Ravenscroft.) I assume the opposite, that these wealthy parents are very smart, and so are their kids.
if you want to comapre apples to apples you should compare the top 200 students at Ravenscroft and any good public HS school.
i kind of agree. what is the real cost/benefit to paying 20K for 1 year of high school? 80K for a high school education seems a little unwise, but people seem to be doing it. Whats the draw?? if the students are basically getting into the same colleges are WCPSS it doesnt seem worth it.
Reasons for sending kids to private schools usually have more to do with "social issues" in the schools (safety, bullying, etc) than academics per se, though of course a kid who's taken out of a bad environment (bullying etc) and put into a murturing one, their grades (and most other well-being measures) will almost by default go up.
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if you want to comapre apples to apples you should compare the top 200 students at Ravenscroft and any good public HS school.
Ravenscroft doesn't even have 200 kids per graduating class...you'd need to compare the "top X%".
as an alternative to fretting about getting the opportunity to spend a fortune you could spend the additional $40,000 or less a year on a house in a great school district and get the same or better education, particularly in high school
if you want prestige you could buy "inside the beltline" and shoot for Lacy, Martin or Daniels and Broughton. I would say these are equivilent to Ravenscroft in status with many parents being doctors, lawyers and NC St. professors
if you want as good an education for half the home cost buy in Apex and be among regular working professionals from RTP
we been through the process from start to near college graduation, including being denied at the local Catholic middle school, and I see no benefit for the cost. in fact I'd say in highschool it's hard for the private schools to keep up with the top flight of public school students
if you're dead set against public schools with no consideration period I'll be happy to delete the comment
This I agree with wholeheartedly. In a manner of speaking, I've always felt that it's the students that make the school.
If a kid is making solid As in AP level classes at one school, then it's highly likely they'll do the same at another.
I'm the original poster. I can't believe what I started.
My original question was about the difference between two remarkable schools, Ravenscroft and Durham Academy. I then learned we're on a wait list at DA and wondered if anyone had experience being on a wait list.
There are a lot of strong opinions about private school vs. public school in this area. This was not why I posted, but, since there has been a shift, perhaps I can share why our family is interested in private school.
We have three kids. I have heard about the horrors of rezoning in this area. I want to be confident all our kids have the same breaks, and start and end school at the same time. I enjoy the time we visit in the car to and from school. In a private school there seems be more of an opportunity to be involved and get to know other families. I am very concerned about peer groups and from my experience there seems to be more parental involvement in private schools. My youngest child is six years old. I have no idea whether or not she will want to attend Stanford, or if my 11 year old will be a candidate for Harvard. That's not why we want private school. I want a firm bullying policy and I want to know the kids and families at school.
If I wanted prestige or status, the $60k per year we're spending on three kids could be used to purchase something outlandish that would scream status. or maybe it would would scream desperate, but for $60k I could buy something that would scream more loudly than tuition. I know families who put their kids in the "right" school as a status symbol, but I don't think that is the reason most families have their kids in private schools.
We work hard and sacrifice a lot for private school. But, my dad could have worked until his fingers bled and there is no way he could have afforded this kind of tuition. If you are a parent who loves the idea of private school but can't possibly afford tuition please condsider applying for the school (s) you love and asking for financial aid. Private schools want economic diversity and many, if not most families paying full tuition donate additional funds specifically for financial aid.
There are great kids and great families in public schools. I am all for public school but for the reasons listed above, private school would be a better fit for my family. I am aware that my kids are not safe from all problems in private schools. Drugs and alcohol are everywhere. In private schools, the drugs are better, the liquor cabinets may be more impressive and the cars the kids drive are faster and capable of doing more damage. Private school does not ensure safety.
If I want a different school for my child than you want for your child, that doesn't make one of us right and one of us wrong. In the end we all want our kids to be safe, happy, well educated and prepared for the future. There are many roads to getting there.
It is completely your decision to do what you think is best for your kids. With the median household income in Wake county being a little over what you intend on spending to send your kids to private school, I think there are many folks that cannot relate. It's kind of like coming on here and asking if you should go with the ferrari or lamborghini... which I guess would actually be much cheaper than $5000/month if financed.
Wake County does have an extensive bullying policy, but how well it is enforced at each school is a consideration. WCPSS: Board Policy - Harassment/Bullying (2338) I have 2 boys that go to public school and have found that there are many opportunities to get involved, including getting to know other parents. I have no idea what it is like at other schools, but have been very content with our current one.
I realize my post has little relevance to the original question, but hope that you are able to determine the best school for your kids.
[quote=caspian65;23282061]It is completely your decision to do what you think is best for your kids. With the median household income in Wake county being a little over what you intend on spending to send your kids to private school, I think there are many folks that cannot relate. It's kind of like coming on here and asking if you should go with the ferrari or lamborghini... which I guess would actually be much cheaper than $5000/month if financed.
There are 2400 kids currently enrolled in Ravenscroft and Durham Academy. Thousands more in other private schools. There are many opportunities for financial aid for families that cannot afford full tuition. I don't see that my post is like comparing luxury sports cars
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