Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
1) How conservative are St David's and St Timothy's? Would a parent who is politically moderate, anti-Trump, and pro-mask + pro-vaccine, be ostracized as too liberal by most of the parents/faculty?
2) How socially elitist are St David's and St Timothy's? Are you going to be ostracized if you don't live in North Hills or inside the beltway?
3) Any other "red flags" that might be less visible publicly for either school? From searching the forums a few years ago it looks like St. David's was struggling with high faculty/administrator turnover. Is that still an issue? Any other issues of that type for either school that a prospective family should be aware of?
Many thanks to anybody who can provide any feedback of that nature!
I know this is off topic but it makes me sad that any conservative person is now considered a Trumper by many. That’s a little closed-minded in my opinion.
I don’t have any useful info for you about the schools, but hopefully others do. Good luck.
I know this is off topic but it makes me sad that any conservative person is now considered a Trumper by many. That’s a little closed-minded in my opinion.
I don’t have any useful info for you about the schools, but hopefully others do. Good luck.
For the record, I don't immediately consider a conservative person a Trumper. Which is one of the reasons I posted this. I assume parents at these schools lean conservative. But how much so? Enthusiastic Trump supporters? Voted for Trump but find him to be distasteful? Etc.
Really just trying to find out whether politically moderate people would feel like a fish out of water in a St David's/St Timothy's environment. I assume moderates would fit in fine at Ravenscroft, Cary Academy, and most public schools.
This is a genuine question so please take at face value - how deep a dive are you planning to do with the other parents? I can't remember ever getting into a deep political discussion with any of the parents at my kids' schools, public and private. Admittedly times are different and the mask thing can be PERCEIVED as a dead giveaway, but other than that are you hoping to develop deep and lasting friendships with people or just trying to get through "x" number of years at said schools? I mean ostracized is a fairly strong word. What are you really worried about?
This is a genuine question so please take at face value - how deep a dive are you planning to do with the other parents? I can't remember ever getting into a deep political discussion with any of the parents at my kids' schools, public and private. Admittedly times are different and the mask thing can be PERCEIVED as a dead giveaway, but other than that are you hoping to develop deep and lasting friendships with people or just trying to get through "x" number of years at said schools? I mean ostracized is a fairly strong word. What are you really worried about?
Not planning to do a deep dive at all. At a social event, standing around with a group of 5 or 6 other parents, politics eventually comes up. Or more recently, masks/vaccines.
Will a moderate, pro-mask, pro-vaccine type fit in? Or will 5 of the 6 parents be standing around ridiculing those crazy morons who think masks are helpful, etc.?
Edit: I find that if I spend some time here and there with a group of people over the course of a year or two, I will generally gain a sense of how they feel about current events. When you're thinking about comitting to a place to the tune of $10k+ per year, it can't hurt to try to get a feel for what you will find.
Overall, the answer is conservative. Are there centrists or even liberals (gasp!)? Of course. Are there ultra-conservative? Of course. As for social elitism, the fact is that any private school charging $20,000+ for annual tuition in this part of the country will tend to get students whose parents are on the high end of the economic ladder. Do these schools have programs available for folks of lower income? Yes.
Can’t speak for those two, but I’ve found the St. Michael’s school community to be very accepting regardless of your political affiliation. They’ve done a phenomenal job over the past two years and remain fully masked. Not one class quarantined, and excellent communication and management of the covid situation in a preK - 8 setting. I’ve worn a mask to mass, events, etc and never once felt like I was being judged or even got a cross-eye look.
Last edited by NewWaveDad; 02-20-2022 at 09:45 AM..
Reason: Spelling
Not planning to do a deep dive at all. At a social event, standing around with a group of 5 or 6 other parents, politics eventually comes up. Or more recently, masks/vaccines.
Will a moderate, pro-mask, pro-vaccine type fit in? Or will 5 of the 6 parents be standing around ridiculing those crazy morons who think masks are helpful, etc.?
Edit: I find that if I spend some time here and there with a group of people over the course of a year or two, I will generally gain a sense of how they feel about current events. When you're thinking about comitting to a place to the tune of $10k+ per year, it can't hurt to try to get a feel for what you will find.
Yeah I get it. It's definitely harder now than it was 5 years ago, especially with masks.
I think you're going to deal with social elitism anywhere there's people with money. Including public schools, if you live somewhere people have a lot of money (which I have my entire adult life). You can always find your people though, and some of them will be WAY wealthier than the elites. Class and money = two different things.
We spent 3 years at St. David's and live in Cary. We got a number of comments about that, in a bizarre way (not mean spirited, just clear who they wanted to associate with). If you don't live ITB in a $1.5M+ house, you aren't going to "fit in" if you care about that. We are now at GRACE and absolutely love it.
......Will a moderate, pro-mask, pro-vaccine type fit in? Or will 5 of the 6 parents be standing around ridiculing those crazy morons who think masks are helpful, etc.?.....
Well, the web-site for St. Timothy's shows the majority of kids wearing masks, even while playing outside. I would assume most of their parents are accepting of the masking requirement.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
