Abacus Mom

Going to a NYC Private School Costs More than an Ivy League College

Sophia Hollander of The Wall Street Journal broke news today with her story about how New York City private school annual tuition has risen to $40,000. Private School Tuition Bill Tops $40,000

As I told Hollander in a phone call, given that demand for top school slots outstrips supply, I am not surprised that tuition bills are rising.  A client once said to me, "I wish that the tuition was $100,000 a year so fewer people would apply."  A school like Dalton, Trinity, or Riverdale can name any price and many parents will gladly pay it.  Given this market, there is little incentive for schools to keep down their fees.

Private School Authority Snags Renowned ISEE and SSAT Tutor Nick Ordway

Abacus Guide's ERB / ISEE and SSAT tutoring division, Private School Authority, is expanding rapidly.  Families throughout Manhattan (and also interestingly Westchester, Boston, LA, Germany, and Singapore) are signing up for our uniquely personalized and efficient program, geared exclusively toward ERB /ISEE and SSAT test success. 

Our specialty is motivating our students - progress can only be made once a student wants to make progress.  We internalize students’ desire for success, and then from there we develop strategies and tactics to improve ERB / ISEE and SSAT test scores.

We're delighted that Nick Ordway is joining our team as Master Tutor.  Since 2003, Nick Ordway has been a tutor specializing in standardized test prep, quickly gaining gratitude from his students and respect from his peers.  Nick received a BA in English literature, with a minor in theater, from Princeton University and an MFA in film production from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. When he’s not tutoring, Nick teaches film at the Lee Strasberg Institute.

Nick started his teaching career with an established tutoring company, working in their offices in Connecticut and Thailand. Later he began tutoring independently, with families hearing about him from satisfied friends.  Besides the SSAT and ISEE, Nick has tutored the SAT, ACT, GRE, TOEFL, various SAT II subject tests, physics, chemistry, writing, and mathematics from pre-algebra all the way through to calculus.  

Nick combines exceptional warmth, listening skills and flexibility, teaching to students' individual levels and helping them reach them their greatest potential.  He is a favorite of both students and parents.

If your child will be taking the ERB / ISEE or SSAT now is the time to call for our Jump Start or Blaster Program.  212-712-2228 or email info(at)privateschoolauthority.com

Asians and New York City Private Schools

As someone who works with Asians and non-Asians helping them cultivate the social skills and messaging necessary to succeed in NYC private school admissions, I was fascinated by Wesley Yang's exceptional article, Paper Tigers / Asian Like Me.  New York Magazine describes the essay:

Amy Chua’s triumphalist screed about intense Asian-style parenting triggered hysteria among other parents scared that their children were falling behind. But the Tiger Child generation has the opposite fear: that their upbringing has bled them of the assertiveness and social skills necessary to succeed as American adults.

In the article, Yang describes what he believes are the social skills usually necessary to succeed in the American workplace and in romantic life.  As a student of social skills as well as a coach who teaches them within the private school admissions context, I am fascinated by the parallels between my work and Yang's findings. 

Yang's essay references Hunter College High School and Stuyvesant, two elite selective NYC public schools that are majority Asian.  As a Hunter graduate and a frequent visitor to Stuy, I believe Yang accurately captures the white/Asian dynamic.  After reading Yang's essay, you may find yourself reexamining how you perceive other people and how other people perceive you.

ERB (ISEE): When Should I Take the ERB (ISEE) to Get Into a NYC Private High School or Middle School?

Generally, it's best to take the ERB (ISEE) in December.  The ISEE is an academic-based test, the more you have learned, the better you do.  You're graded against a same-grade based peer group.

From the ERB, the people who administer the ISEE:

It is important to note that the ISEE may not be taken for practice; it may be taken only for the purpose of providing scores to participating schools as part of the admissions process. An applicant may take the ISEE only once per admission season or six month window.

Tutor Anthony-James Green is currently working with students applying to NYC private school who want to improve their math, vocabulary, and writing ISEE and SSAT skills.  To learn more, contact me at 212-712-2228 or eglickman(at)abacusguide.com or contact Manhattan's top ISEE tutor, Anthony-James Green, at 914-400-3859 or anthonyjamesgreen@gmail.com.  Good luck!  www.privateschoolauthority.com

Hackley School Seeks to Raise Its Profile (Think of It as a Riverdale Campus School with a Slightly Longer Commute)

Rumor has it that Hackley School is seeking to expand its pool of applicants to include more students from Manhattan.  The school wants more full-tuition and diverse candidates.  Given that Hackley is already one of the two  most competitive private schools in Westchester, the New York school is clearly looking to increase its selectivity and profile.

Currently, many Westchester families apply to Hackley and the Riverdale campus schools.  In my experience, when they get into both, they always choose to go  to Riverdale.  It makes sense that Hackley would like to change this situation, while tapping into Manhattan’s overflowing private school applicant group.

We have heard so much lately about for-profit private schools like Avenues avidly courting New York City applicants—fascinating that the “not-for-profits”  have the same goals in mind.

The name of the game, whether with New York City private schools or colleges, is raising admissions selectivity.   The more competitive the school to get into, the more power the school has and the more money it can raise.

York Avenue Preschool Fights Back

A client alerted me to York Avenue Preschool's revised website, which has testimonials from real-life parents about the school's many benefits.  Disappointingly, nobody reveals the real juice: Harvard admissions stats.

York Ave. Preschool Website

Free, Expert Information on NYC Private School Admission

We have just emailed out the April edition of our exclusive monthly newsletter, News about Schooling, Enrichment, and Parenting.  It's not too late to get your free copy. 

Simply email info(at)abacusguide.com or click on newsletter sign up form We'll send your copy right out.  You'll learn about NYC (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Riverdale, Westchester) private school admission for kindergarten, middle school and high school, enrichment, tutoring, ERB, including WPPSI, WISC and ISEE, educational toys, and latest education news.

York Avenue Preschool Lawsuit Story Shocks, Amuses Foreigners

Barely a day after the New York Post broke the news of the mom suing York Avenue Preschool for not properly preparing her daughter for the ERB for kindergarten, and hence, Harvard, delighted Europeans have pounced on the story. 

From Will Pavia's amusing Mother Sues Nursery in the London Times:

Observers from outside Manhattan, with its frantic yearly competition for private school places, might point to the fact that the venerable institution to which <child's name> had been entrusted was a nursery school.

(English person chuckles at American antics.)

Pavia was good enough to ask me to contribute my two pence. 

Emily Glickman, a consultant who advises parents on how to secure the best places for their children, said that 2010-11 had been the “most competitive year to date for getting children into private-school kindergarten in Manhattan”.

As for the ERB tests, she said: “Officially, it’s always been true that children are supposed to sit the ERB test without prepping, but in the last few years prepping has become more and more open.”

Are You So Mad at Your Preschool Director that You Want to Sue Her?

One York Avenue Preschool mom is.

From Jose Hernandez at The New York Daily News Manhattan mom sues $19K/yr. preschool for damaging 4-year-old daughter's Ivy League chances:

In court papers, Nicole Imprescia suggests York Avenue Preschool jeopardized little Lucia's chances of getting into an elite private school or, one day, the Ivy League.

She's demanding a refund of the $19,000 tuition and class-action status for other toddlers who weren't properly prepped for the standardized test that can mean the difference between Dalton and - gasp! - public school.

Clearly, Dalton is not the be-all and end-all. You can get into the Ivy League from lots of private and public schools.  Also, it's fascinating that the mom claims that York Avenue Preschool's ERB prep is inadequate--further indicating how muddied the prepping vs. cheating waters have become.

Best New York City Private Schools / NYC Private Schools Ranking Top Schools

Dear Abacus Mom,

Which NYC private schools are the best?  Please tell me which schools are in the top-tier in your rankings.

Whether it's parents reading my blog or my educational consulting clients, almost everyone wants to know which NYC private schools are the "best".  They want to know my Manhattan, Brooklyn, Riverdale, and Westchester private school ranking.

Here's the problem: best is subjective.  How do you define it?

In my experience, rightly or wrongly, many parents define best as tops in graduate admission to Ivy League colleges.

The problem with this definition, in my view, is that Ivy League admissions stats tell you more about the students (and their parents) than about NYC private schools.  As I commented in The Wall Street Journal after the publication of their high school rankings based upon admission to top colleges:

As an educational consultant, I help families get into the New York-area high schools on your list.  Every school cited is either elite private (taking only smart, top-performing students, often from well-connected, wealthy families), selective public (admitting only the highest achievers on standardized tests), or suburban public (accepting teens whose affluent, ambitious families can afford the high school taxes).  Of course these students will come out ahead in the college admissions race.

However, I do concede that top NYC private schools often have excellent college counseling, which certainly is an important factor in Ivy League college admissions.

I do rank Manhattan, Brooklyn, Riverdale, and Westchester private schools based upon their selectivity.  After twelve years in practice, with many of my clients admitted, I am well aware of what kinds of students--including ERB score, grades, and extracurricular activities--and what kinds of parents the most competitive schools, like Dalton, Collegiate, Trinity, and Brearley seek.  There is a strong correlation between private school selectivity, overall offerings and college admissions stats.  This is the information that I share with my private clients, as I help them present themselves to private schools in the best possible light. For help in 2011-2012, eglickman(at)abacusguide.com or 212-712-2228, and hurry please as my schedule will be filled.