<p>Cost control is the main issue IMHO. These schools cost more than a top college and the cost just keeps going up. It’s not a problem for the multi-millonaires or those on financial aid but for those in the “middle” the value is not there.</p>
<p>I also don’t see all the money benefiting students but rather paying for grand facilities and lots of administrative overhead. More staff is hired to raise more money to pay for more fund raising staff - as OW stated "The bureaucracy is expanding to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.</p>
<p>My experience is that the promise of individualization is an empty one. Yes there is a better S:T ratio than public schools but staff have a lot more to do like being house parents, etc. than PS teachers. It’s rare for a student to have someone work with them individually on a math or english assignment to really help meet that student at their level. I think a good PS supplemented with individual tutors is a much better value at least for academics.</p>
<p>I also see a lot of kids come apart in independent schools - the pressure is not always well managed and students aren’t always getting the support they need. If a student isn’t fitting in well, schools are too fast to “dump” them back in the PS systems.</p>