<p>Came across this article this morning in the Post re: Landon, Huguely’s prep school. </p>
<p>[url=<a href=“http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/09/AR2010060905925.html]washingtonpost.com[/url”>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/09/AR2010060905925.html]washingtonpost.com[/url</a>]</p>
<p>^^^I saw the same article and had the same thought.</p>
<p>I was in Charlottesville last weekend and spent some time with someone who is very plugged into the athletic department. I asked if the coaches/athletic dept really didn’t know Huguely’s background and the prior incidents. The reply was that they clearly did and “how could they not?” I also learned that the day of the murder the lacrosse boys (I think seniors only) and their dads were at a golf outing at a prestigious C’ville golf club and that everyone was absolutely smashed. That’s how the day began… I didn’t talk to anyone all weekend who had not been aware all along what the team’s culture was like and that did not think the coach should be fired.</p>
<p>There is an article in today’s [Washington</a> Post](<a href=“http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/30/AR2010063005210.html?hpid=dynamiclead]Washington”>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/30/AR2010063005210.html?hpid=dynamiclead) about a lot of soul-searching going on at the Landon School. There were many earlier posts on this thread that questioned whether the atmosphere at the school was a breeding ground for privilege and misogyny. According to this article, apparently the parents and board of trustees at Landon are asking some of the same questions.</p>
<p>Two NMF in a class of 120? Our public high school with a class of 500 has 11. Glad I saved the money.</p>
<p>Thanks for posting the article. Early in the piece: “…the school’s trustees decided it was time to investigate a long-standing perception held by some parents and teachers that Landon treats top athletes and wealthy boys more favorably than other students.”</p>
<p>If this statement isn’t the biggest what my husband would call a “blinding glimpse of the obvious,” I don’t know what is. </p>
<p>It goes on to say that the class (this year, last year?) had two National Merit Finalists and one National Achievement Finalist. To me, for a ultra expensive prep school, this indicates that it isn’t a super academic place. Bryn Mawr (girls) in Baltimore has about half a dozen a year. My daughter’s class had two out of 70 girls and her school was not known for academics.</p>
<p>This could be its own thread.</p>
<p>^^^ Ds old hs (rural w/ 5x the agr classes as AP classes) graduates about 120 students each year usually has 4 NMF and sometimes as many as 8-10 NM commended. The closest SAT prep class is 350+ miles away.</p>
<p>Being rich doesn’t make you smart.</p>
<p>I happen to think there is a lot more to private school education that being a National Merit Finalist. I am not defending Landon, but it’s silly to get hung up on something that has to do with a PSAT score. Neither of my kids were National Merit Finalists and have been extremely successful academically. It just isn’t something that is all that important at some schools.</p>
<p>One of the biggest lessons my daughter learned at her private school was that the privileged kids did not have to follow the rules. I think that is half the reaons she lost any interest she had in giong to an Ivy.</p>
<p>I don’t think anybody is saying that being a NMF is the goal, or what determines success, but since Landon advertises how many they have, I don’t think that two is significant. You can’t advertise that kind of tuition is going to produce results, if those are going to be the results.</p>
<p>^^That was my point. The artilce made it sound like it was a big deal.</p>
<p>
Because a newspaper reporter put that statistic in an article it’s advertising by the school or did I miss something else where the school emphasizes the number of NMFs?</p>
<p>
My wish for this forum is that, at least, the ADULTS could stop with the stereotyping. Just a reminder- the Ivy League schools are not only for the privileged.</p>
<p>MOWC, I agree PSAT scores may not be a big deal for an individual child, but for a private school charging $30K/yr it should be. As far as stereotyping wealth w/ privilege . it is hard not to. We read or hear about it almost everyday in media. Just look at the incident at the end of the Washington Post article. Forty or so graduating seniors at a public school, without influential parents would not have gotten off so easily.</p>
<p>Stereotyping wealth with privilege is one thing, but I don’t get the leap to ruling out all the Ivy League schools because they must be filled with privileged kids! Especially on CC, we are all aware of the abundance of financial aid available. I would consider my son privileged, and he had friends who made him look very poor, but he had plenty of friends and classmates at Penn who were not at all wealthy or privileged. It’s just stupid to foster the perception that highly-selective private universities are only for the privileged. AND- certainly not all the privileged prep school kids are going to Ivy League colleges.
Also, as has been mentioned elsewhere, if you want to see a bunch of wealthy, privileged kids, check out the state universities!</p>
<p>Suspect sketch released in Harrington-UVa murder case</p>
<p>[Charlottesville</a> news, sports, business, events and jobs | Charlottesville Daily Progress](<a href=“http://www2.dailyprogress.com/]Charlottesville”>http://www2.dailyprogress.com/)</p>
<p>Also media trying to break through blockage of info on lacrosse murder case</p>
<p><a href=“http://www2.dailyprogress.com/cdp/news/local/crime/article/daily_progress_fight_continues_today_for_access_to_lax_killing_court_papers/57798/[/url]”>http://www2.dailyprogress.com/cdp/news/local/crime/article/daily_progress_fight_continues_today_for_access_to_lax_killing_court_papers/57798/</a></p>
<p>I didnt rule out Ivy schools … heck, my D attends one. I was only trying to explain the reasoning for the stereotype. Wealth and privilege are viewed negatively when used to allow kids to skirt punishment … like the group of Landon boys caught devising a game in which they would earn points based on sex acts with girls.</p>
<p>Many of the brightest kids in the area where Landon is located attend either the two well-known public selective admit programs or Walt Whitman HS – those three schools are the perennial top schools for NMSFs in MD. The other big-name privates in the MD/DC area don’t get many NMSFs, either. </p>
<p>Also recall that MD was tied last year with MA for the highest PSAT cutoff score in the country – 221.</p>
<p>I was referring to MD Mom’s post.</p>
<p>Just voicing my opinion, MOWC. </p>
<p>That was aimed at my comment, TutuTaxi.</p>
<p>If you did a search of where kids earning NM status live in Maryland, many are in Howard and Montgomery counties. There are about 300 NMF in Maryland and it consistantly is near the top for cut-off scores.</p>