We are focusing on it because that is the whole idea behind the thread–that people are sick of all the emphasis on the Ivies. That was fine with me, but unfortunately from there the thread devolved into insinuations that those students who made other application or attendance choices were superior in character, and also devolved into the false assertion that the Ivies are no better than any other school.
Yes, you don’t like the idea that there are differences in intelligence. And by editing your post to include the superior-sounding "I don’t feel the need to rank,"phrase, you are again insinuating that your viewpoint is more enlightened. The implication is that I DO feel the need, being somehow flawed or less evolved. Well, actually I don’t, but I have contended on this thread that many other people must feel that need. In fact, I said that that is why they get so bent out of shape about Ivy admissions. They believe that the ranking of the school their child attends reflects upon their S or D’s worth and intelligence. And that belief is the source of the bitterness and animosity toward the Ivies and those who apply and attend.
Me? I don’t like the idea that there are differences in intelligence?? WTH? I see it all the time.
I truly do not rank kids by intelligence. What are you after? Your two went to top schools and you and they can be proud. An occasional crack about Ivies doesn’t equate to universal bitterness. Let other people with kids at other schools be proud as well, even if something occasionally gets worded wrong on a post on a public forum.
Sheesh. I’m done with any further sub argument on Ivy shaming.
MODERATOR’S NOTE: OK, please move on now.
What is the idea behind this thread? It’s that the OP and others are sick of the Ivy hype that is reflected in these articles. But why do people care? Why do these schools inspire so much rancor? Parents care because they have bought into the idea that school ranking = kid ranking. We can all agree that’s undesirable. One solution is to be a realist and humbly acknowledge the fact that some kids are smarter and more accomplished than others (including one’s own children perhaps), and that these high-achieving students will be eligible to attend a higher-ranked school and that’s just life. Another solution is to stop conflating academic and EC achievement with personal worth. If one can do either or both of these things, then it shouldn’t bother parents when newspapers make a big deal about the Ivies, or when their children’s peers apply and are admitted to an Ivy. They also shouldn’t need to get defensive about their child’s character and school quality and certainly shouldn’t have to imply negative things about those Ivy kids.
@MaineLonghorn, I hope you’ll indulge me this post because I feel I have the right to defend myself. And I hope you don’t delete this discussion because it may prove instructional!
Except I never wrote that, @TheGFG! @compmom did, in post #78, and in my opinion, you took HER comments out of context.
Again, @blossom, I never made any such argument! But thanks to @TheGFG everybody seems to think I did! My posting history is available for anybody to read. Show me where I’ve ever made any such argument.
One thing MY education from a Lesser Ivy (don’t want anybody to think I’m claiming to be a HYP grad, God forbid) taught me was to give proper attribution and to quote your sources. And if folks are going to call me out on something, you could at least have the courtesy of tagging me in the thread, so I can properly defend myself.
Oh, and while I might have graduated from an Ivy, one of my best friends from HS graduated from Slippery Rock State College. He’s a long-suffering public middle school math teacher. I’ll be sure to put him in his place if he ever implies that his undergraduate education was as good as mine. (Something he would NEVER do, BTW.)
But please do set me straight on how my poor son attending Big Southern Flagship University on full scholarship with a 4.0 in engineering isn’t “as smart or as talented” as all the kids at Ivies and other elites. I really need that reinforced. He was never “Ivy material,” and I made that clear to him, but it wasn’t because he wasn’t smart enough. He just wasn’t exceptional enough in other ways among the kids with comparable stats and some with much lower stats, who bring other things to the mix. (Like ME back in the day!)
Harrumph! 
Lucie, apologies. I posted late at night and did not stop to verify your actual post.
Most grad schools don’t discriminate and roll out the red carpet whether they are ivies or other top engineering schools when someone shows up with a 4.0 engineering GPA. There might still be chance for branding. 
This thread is full of miscommunications. I realize it may be closed momentarily.
But just want to say that the title of the thread and the article are misleading and I wonder how many actually read the article which starts like this:
"I am scrolling down my Facebook feed and there it is, yet another link to a news headline about the “golden child” who won the Ivy League sweepstakes, admitted to each of the eight prestigious schools. "
For the now third time, I just want to point out that the “golden child” featured in the media for admission to 8 Ivies etc. is usually an immigrant or minority who has overcome obstacles. The human interest that the media grabs on is the obstacle, and the measure of overcoming the obstacle is admission to Ivies. Superficial, yes. Try asking a reporter to ask the editor for more space in an article. That is the solution to the problem described in this thread.
Furthermore, the obstacle and background played a role in those 8 admissions, no doubt.
Posters here appear to have read the title of the thread but not the actual article. We all (I include myself ) got way way off on a tangent.
Here we go…News flash: student from Queens whose mother cleaned toilets while raising him alone, got into all the Colleges that Change Lives schools, and is headed to Beloit.
Sorry Lucie, I must have looked too quickly and saw your name in the post right above compmom’s. The misattribution was certainly unintentional.
Hi, lostaccount,
I tell my daughter everyday that she can go to any ivy leagues. and she can do anything she wants if she puts her
mind to it
I attend a private Catholic school in the Bay Area and I would agree that most of the students are applying to CA schools, but I think that there is a certain arrogance about it. Like "we are the smartest, most enlightened region in the country why would we go anywhere else? This really annoys me.
My sister goes to Vanderbilt with fantastic financial aid and my friends say things like “Why would she want to go there…I mean isn’t the South all racist?” These are the kids that should get out of here for a while…Anywhere.
Of course the elite schools are wonderful, just like driving a Bentley is wonderful.
But the vast majority of car buyers simply aren’t viable customers for a Bentley, just like the vast majority of college applicants aren’t viable customers for elite schools.
Reading about “Golden Kids getting into Harvard” is about as useful to the typical HS guidance counselor as it is for Consumer Reports writers to read that Robert Downey Jr. loves his Bentley.
just read the article or was it a promo for CTCL? I’ll have to tell my little brother and other famly members who did not go to a CTCL school that they will have to wait for their lives to change.
also, news papers publish articles for people to read so people want to click on the most dramatic article ever about college admissions. this helps them sell papers and generate advertisement revenue. so just stop.
also if applying to an ivy like Brown is what the applicant wants to do then let him or her do it b/c hopefully he or she has examined the proper fit of the program.
i went to two ivies - forgive the grammar/syntax - I had a hard day impacting the lives of the student’s i academically and emotionally counsel.
Wow… this thread degenerated a lot. I like the original article. No slam at all on the Ivies – good for you whose kids got in, attended, and had a great experience. But I do think it is worth noting that not everyone (heck, hardly anyone) is Harvard material – and sometimes it would be great if there was a recognition that it is a big accomplishment for some students to get into a lower ranked school. Everyone says, “Wow!” when you say your kid goes to Harvard. Nothing wrong with that. But a “Wow!” for the kid who struggled with a disability or family issues or just didn’t have the horsepower for Harvard, but got into a school that will be a good fit for them and launch them to productive adulthood – I think that is good to recognize as well.
I dropped out of reading the thread, but agree with ^^^ wholeheartedly.
The target audience of an article like that is not a high school guidance counselor, and neither was the piece intended to offer any guidance. As has been stated many times, it’s an inspirational, human interest story. At the same time, perhaps GC’s are precisely who need to read it, since they can be almost as guilty of limited college horizons as the average person. They tend to know a lot about the most popular local schools that students from their high school attend, and for safety’s sake tend to steer kids toward those irrespective of their academic ability. Several coaches and teachers were pushing my D toward schools that were ranked below 20 on the regional USNWR list when she was a strong enough student to be admitted to Harvard and Stanford.
The author makes his point clear: he’d like to see a different sort of inspirational piece, move away from the trophy mentality, look at other good schools that good kids go to.
Not a bad idea. And considering his role at an exclusive prep, makes sense. It’s also similar to what we often suggest on CC.
That simple.
Why CTCL? Because they’re outside the usual top 20. Because the audience may have heard of them, (at least, in principal.). And because, in a short opinion piece, they’re easier to cite than explaining the merits of random schools. Beats me how someone takes offense.
I never understand why parents of Ivy students get defensive about other schools getting some recognition or mention. Mentioning or even promoting CTCL (or any other colleges) does not diminish the luster of Ivy schools. Everyone knows about HYP(CCPDB). Increasingly people are learning about Stanford, UChicago, and other schools as well through the media.
What harm, really, does it do to mention schools such as CTCL? These schools often offer a different approach to the elite colleges as well as the flagship state universities. Not many people know about New College of Florida’s use of written narratives; Cornell College’s One Course at a Time system, or Kalamazoo’s K Plan. CTCL doesn’t imply one can only change at their schools - they do say these schools may offer a system better suited for the B/B+ student (and hopefully change that student’s life). People are way too quick to take offense.
CTCL sounds to me like a marketing gimmick. More importantly, if a GC steers a student of the ivy calibre to CTCL simply because of GC’s personal belief, it is serious breach of his/her professional ethics.