Are college prep/independent (K-12) schools worth the money?
545696
It depends on your public school district.  If you live in a good public school district, then you don't need to send your kid to a prep school.  If you live in a bad public school district, then it is worth the money.
638085
Do you go to a prep school?
953168
I go to a private school and  like it a lot better than public\nPrivate: Pros:\n1) better education\n2) 1 on 1 attention with teacher\n3) God/Jesus\n4) most of the time your friends with a LOT more people than any public school.\nCons:\n1)money issues (I.E.: Tiuation)\n2) Not as many people as a public school\nPublic: Pros:\n1) more people\n2) lets just say different\n3) not as expensive\ncons:\n1) not learning as much\n2) not as much 1 on 1 attention with the teacher\n3) more peer pressure\n4) hardly NO Jesus or God\n5) etc...
281882
One of my undergrad degrees is Occupational Education.  \n\nMy 3 year old son is in pre-school.  He is a mainstreamed special needs child with downs.  He is very high functioning and has been in early intervention programs since six months age.\n\nThe Pre-k program here is awesome.  We have been in the classrom and observed the teacher and her aids working with the kids and they are thriving and developing exceptionaly well.\n\nWe went and checked it out before we put him in this program which is something I reccomend you do.  But I can not say enough good things about this program and the jump start it gives kids on both an educational and a social skills level.  \nThe spend a lot of time assessing developmental skills and if there are issues will likely spot them quick.  My boy gets his O.T. , P.T., speech, and sign language instruction from board certified therapists and educators, not something easily found at a day care. \n\nExcellent emphasis on communication skills to prep them for  more formal education.   \n\nBy the time these kids are at the Kindergarden age, they are at full speed, minds focused on learning, and are well prepared.  My little guy is up before 6 am and smiling ear to ear, love school, and comes home hunting for more things to learn about.
1036240
Yes if you get straight A's in 10th-12th grade you have a good chance of going to any good private school. BUT you also need a killer essay, good recommendations and good SAT's scores. So you have to have the whole package. \n\nHonestly, I think it's much better to go to a 2-yr college first because\n\na) it's waay cheaper\nb) teachers are generally better..not always though\nc) it's much easier to transition from high school to college life\nd) you get a higher standing when you transfer, than freshmen, because you have college experience and finished at least 70 units. Making you more desirable to 4-yr colleges. \ne) so it makes it easier to get accepted to 4-yr colleges because your previous college experience.
856722
hun, your happiness is key. I personally think you are showing a great amount of maturity in looking at this from the perspective of the future, weighing pros and cons.\nYes, you could get a scholarship if you are good enough, but you must also take in to consideration the schedule. Even though I am a homeschool mom, I do not live in a protective bubble like some people think we do, and I know tons of public and private school students. Those that are involved in high school sports or band or things like that are VERY busy with practices, games, clinics so on and so forth. BUT, they are committed to it. They want to be that involved and they want to do those things as long as they can, and they are hoping for scholarships so they can do that particular thing through college.\nThe highschool softball team in my city is very competitive, and it is very involved in our community, as they conduct clinics for our Little League and girls softball league teams.\nKudos to your parents for raising such a bright individual.\nYou do what you know is right for you.
221551
This sounds oddly worded.\n\nMy kids have gone to a private school most of their lives, and most of the tuition is used for operational costs- building expenses, salaries (a big chunk), etc.\n\nAll of the schools they have been to have several students on scholarships, but then there is still money coming in- a scholarship for $500 means the school GETS $500 from whoever issued the scholarship.\n\nThe bigger problem is when the schools adjust the tuition to meet the families income. For low-income families, this means an operational shortfall that has to be made up in someother way. Anotehr concern is those families that for whatever reason do not meet their tuition obligations.\n\nThe schools I am involved with try to fill in the income gaps with assorted forms of fundraising, such as:\n- golf tournements or other sporting events\n- product sales\n- auctions and banquets\n- inter-class challenges (penny wars, etc.)\n- garage sales\n- grant writing\n- estate planning\n- and so forth.\n\nUnfortunately, the formula is easy- you either need to raise tuition rates, reduce operational costs, or find extra money in the community.\n\nThe last is the most common answer, but the toughest. You can try for a few 'big ticket' fundraisers, or a lot of small fundraisers, or a combination of the two.\n\nOne solution I have seen tried (but not at my kid's schools) was for the school to host evening and weekend classes for adults. The plan is like this:\n- Parents, etc. who have a skill or something to teach let the committee know about their interest and figure out how many classes, how long, etc.\n- The committee offers a catalog of classes for people who are interested, and publishes a price per class or course.\n- The committee and the school provide places for the classes, and provide operational support.\n- The instructor gets a share of the money raised for their class, and the school gets the the rest.\n\nSupposedly, the school gets a nice chunk of money out of this and has been doing it for years.
400334
Private colleges with large endowments usually give substantial grants to excellent students with great financial need, AND to excellent students from middle-income families with sizable financial need (given the high tuition costs of these colleges).  Few students at private colleges get NO financial assistance.  Students who attend these colleges are also usually quite smart, and often attain scholarships from various other sources. \n\nIt sounds like you are a student "in the middle," with a very high parental income, and no academic scholarships.  Students like you do indeed usually go to state schools.  But don't despair.  There are some excellent state universities, eight of which have earned reputations as "public ivies." \n\nHere's a list of "Public Ivies."\n\nThe original eight, from Moll (1985):\nCollege of William and Mary \nMiami University (in Ohio)\nUniversity of California (the entire state system)\nUniversity of Michigan \nUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill \nUniversity of Texas at Austin \nUniversity of Vermont \nUniversity of Virginia \n\nFrom Greene's Guides (2001), additional potential "public ivy" schools:\n\nBinghamton University \nIndiana University Bloomington \nMichigan State University \nThe Ohio State University \nThe Pennsylvania State University \nRutgers University \nUniversity of Arizona \nUniversity of Colorado at Boulder \nUniversity of Connecticut \nUniversity of Delaware \nUniversity of Florida \nUniversity of Georgia \nUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign \nUniversity of Iowa \nUniversity of Maryland, College Park \nUniversity of Minnesota \nUniversity of Washington \nUniversity of Wisconsin
470898
OSU.. I was living in Nevada.. during this time College was aproching for my kids.  We lookied all over For the best Vetmed in the US.. we wrote everyone. Got lititure. Form all the colleges.. \nI sold my house packed the bags and Moved to Oklahoma Stillwater.. MY kids are in the 4th yrs. One dose Vet med the other one Phycoligy.. {MOM cant spell}  That is why kids go to college.. lol.. \nThe tution is only$7000. a year for instate.  That is why i moved her one year prior.. other wise it is like $15000. Out of country is $26000.  big diffrents.\n\nThe town is great. it is all college kids. tons and tons of childcare.. I opend a day care for if my kids fell in love and got married they would have kids.. well 4 yrs later.. I am taking care of my granddaughte..  \n\nDreams do come true you just have to make them happen.. As for being a mother i devoite my life to my kids they all live with me even being married and i am doing all i can to put them thru college..\n\nNO crime.. Lots of gyms, parks, and the huge OSU/ cowboys.  you will love it here.. it is relaxing.. Not a city life just a small country town full of college kids.\nas for work.. we have 3 factorys.. Walmart.. where all the college kids work.. Every damn Fast food "who cooks" not even me.. if it is not micorwaveabul or fast food.. we dont have time. lol  There are tons and tons of jobs at the college.. My kids work at the college.. my daughter husband at Walmart..  \n\nWages are $6.25 to $7.50 depending on job..just a avrage. the gas staytions are $9.50.. tons and tons of conveient stores..\n\nGreat grade schools..  Go check out OSU...
647189
You need to know what the public schools are like in your area.  In some areas the public schools have equal or better student achievement that private schools. You can get as good an education for 'free' and save your money for college. In other areas, the public schools are dangerous zoos with little learning going on. Also, if your child has any special needs, better public schools are required to support him, while private schools that do not accept federal funds are not required to provide (or are not able to provide) appropriate accomodations.  Many large public high schools have a large number of interesting elective courses and clubs for every student to find his niche.  However, a smaller private school may be the better choice for a student who might get lost in a crowd. A little tongue in cheek, here.  When we were looking for schools for our teens, the parking lot made me uncomfortable in one school.   Way too many BMWs and here was I in my old mini-van...that is an issue.  If a school in your area has a reputation of being 'rich', a parent who is making sacrifices to remove their children from the problems in the local public school may be setting their child up for ridicule from those with 'better' cars, clothes etc.
92548
I have never heard of the instructor, but a "Six Trait Writing" workshop is probably worth the money depending on the grade you teach.  I think that it's valuable K-8, but high school writing is a whole other thing.
1186160
Popularity does not necessarily mean quality.\n\nThe only way you child will feel inferior for not attending a "rich kids" school is if YOU teach him to feel inferior about it. Most people never attended such schools, and feel perfectly fine about themselves.\n\nYou want to look for quality instruction, not "image," for his childhood schooling. If he gets quality of instruction, he will be able to attain high enough marks and scores on college admission tests, to be invited to attend colleges and universities that DO matter... Ivy League, or non-Ivy League but an extremely strong program in the career field he ends up interested in. It is at the university level that both the quality of the program AND the image of the college really matters for social status and future job prospects.\n\nLook closely at a variety of private preschools, including those catering to middle class clients. Look for quality... do they provide academic learning through play? Are the children engaged in guided activities through most of the day? Does the school respond to the child's individual developmental levels, both for those that need more time and those that have advanced quickly?\n\nI attended public school, and scored well enough on my college enterance exams to be offered full scholarships to two Ivy League and several other prestigious universities. My mother carefully "shopped"  by evaluating the available teachers each year and had me placed with the best ones in each school I attended. Due to a number of factors (one of which was that I was only 14 years old at the time I took my college enterance exams), it was decided that I would stay close to home, but I did get the offers.
13797
I've researched these types of schools in the past and got a horrible cross-representation of "quality" and angry students. ITT is expensive, and is a franchise, so you can find every type of response you want, and usually in every school.\n\nThe type of people who enroll in these schools are on tight budgets, and the school doesn't necessarily descriminate on brain power. You sign the papers, and it's UP TO YOU to follow through and pass. Buyer beware.\n\nIf you don't have the brains, or the time, or the fortitude, don't spend the money.\n\nOtherwise, it's a good education and you will be considerably employable years down the line.
1146098
I think it is up to you. I am a teacher and parent, and I would not homeschool my children. I have seen many high achievers and early college starters who have been home-schooled. If you are determined and dedicated to doing it, I believe it will be very successful for your children.
13692
If you live midwest, Kansas has a great charter program. $35.00 a year per kid. We have been using it for three years and I am very happy.
137004
For some individuals, Yes.  Two of my high-school age children are currently attending charter schools, and with great results. They get more individualized attention and better grades.
152446
GOODEST ??   a good prep school be better 4 you