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My wife and I are seriously considering Brunswick for our son and its sister equivalent for my daughter. We would enroll them in K through 12.
Our 1st preference is St Annes in Brooklyn, however we want to provide a more suburban life to our kids and therefore are narrowing in on the above. Questions are

1) what is the average class size

2) what % of students go on to a Ivy league school

3) what is quality of life for the students.

4) Is there aggressive sales tactics for extra and over the top donations.

5) What are 3 pros and 3 cons of the school.


I appreciate any help with respect to this matter.

By Gianscolere (Gianscolere) on Friday, April 02, 2004 - 11:21 pm: Edit

brunswick is ranked in the top 20 among schools nationwide that send the highest percentages of graduating classes to HYP.

source: http://www.meehawl.com/Webstore/Education/Getting%20Inside%20the%20Ivy%20Gates.html

By Momsdream (Momsdream) on Friday, April 02, 2004 - 11:35 pm: Edit

Pros and cons are going to depend on what you find attractive. Same with quality of life.

That fact that it's on the list is promising. My son's school is on this list and I know they have a high % of kids feeding to Ivies. But, that's not an automatic equivalent to happiness in school or college.

I would seek to understand the culture of the school in relation to YOUR lifestyle. My son's schol is full of hippie parents with PhDs and ooooold cars, faded jeans and clogs. How wonderful!! No pretention here! But, if you want the car line to reflect a Mercedes Benz lifestyle then you need to seek accordingly. If you pull into my son's school parking lot in a Benz it is likely to be spraypainted with the peace symbol.

See what I mean? It isn't all about feeders to the Ivies. You have to deal with these people every day for 12 years. Make sure they reflect your values.

By Jamimom (Jamimom) on Saturday, April 03, 2004 - 11:42 am: Edit

I am very familiar with Brunswick School in Greenwich. One of my kids was accepted there when we lived in Westchester County. It is a top school in the CT/Westchester area without a doubt. However, when S spent a day at the school, he reported that the curriculum, difficulty level, and student quality was absolutely no different than any of the other prep schools where he visted or attended. He chose not to go to that school because he felt that there were simply too many kids from Greenwich that all knew each other and their families were intertwined. More so than schools like Horace Mann, Hackley, etc in the area.

In looking at these schools it is important to understand that many of the kids who go to these schools are legacies at the top colleges. They would have an advantage getting into HPY just by their birthright. If they perform well academically, and get the right stats, they are at the front of the admit line. Your kid in a school like that would have to come up with some extras, all things equal to get a place ahead of any of these kids. Many times it is NOT an advantage for elite schools admissions to place a child in any of these school, public or private. A standout at most highschools would end up as nothing special at these schools and certainly behind the legacies, celebrities and development families.

I am not so concerned about the Merecedes or peace symbols, but the kids do need to take a good, hard look at their peers. Unlike boarding schools where the different homelives are melded into one experiences, at private day schools there is a whole new life each day after school. If too many of these kids are in one type of group that your kid does not fit, he may not feel like he fits in. Some schools have this characteristic more than others.

We have to deal with this issue with the school S2 attends as we live more than an hour from this school that has a boarding component and he does not board. However the offerings of the school fit so well with S2's profile and interests that we went ahead with the choice and it has worked out well. Also there are a sizeable number of kids who do not board and they seem to be scattered geographically and a lot of the boarders go home on weekends. I am hoping to board S3 when he goes there as his fit with the school is more nebulous--I would have preferred a local private school for him but he did not get in. It so depends on the child and the family.

So visit the schools, and feel them out. Both St Anne's and Brunswick are top rated schools but the cultures may be quite different. You may visit Brunswick and embrace it as home. You may look at it and say, "Hooom, don't feel like S will fit in here."

I know little firsthand about St Anne's so cannot comment about its culture. Momsdreams comments are righton. You and S will have to deal with the families involved in the school for many years, hopefully. Make sure the fit is a good one. Educationwise, you will not lose out at either excellent school.

By Kevint (Kevint) on Monday, April 05, 2004 - 10:16 pm: Edit

Thanks for the responses. I am no legacy from HYP and trying to adjust my lifestyle accordingly so my 2 kids can have a great education. I will visit the schools and test the waters. Again thanks for the responses.

Regards,

Kevin

By School_Mom2004 (School_Mom2004) on Saturday, June 05, 2004 - 02:43 pm: Edit

Hello,

I would like to ask Momsdream what school her son attends as this sounds like the type of culture that would be a good match for our family. My son has been accepted into Hackely as well as a few other prep schools. It seems like a good school with good values, but we don't know a lot about it. Culture is a significant issue for us as we believe this has a huge impact on a child's day to day experience. I did avoid the Greenwich schools even though we are moving back to CT, because the culture often found in these schools.

Any input about Hackley would be most appreciated, and I would also greatly appreciate any input about Wooster School in Danbury CT, as my son was also accepted there.

Thank you.