Information on Lakeside High School or alternatives

[SJoy]

My son is signed up to attend West Seattle High School for 9th grade next year. He is pretty intelligent and mature for his age. He is also incredibly bored in school now and has felt that he has never been challenged at Madison, even though he is taking honors math in addition to his second year of Chinese. He has never even received a B on a semester report card, nor has he even really had to try in school.

We thought that when he started high school, he would be challenged by taking the honors classes and the AP classes. But after talking with a couple of students who took those classes just a few years ago and were quite intelligent themselves – they said that the honors and AP classes were pretty much just more homework and didn’t challenge them at all.

These students suggested that I send my son to Lakeside, Bellevue, O’Dea or Eastside Catholic. I am now frantically looking into these schools, unfortunately I am afraid I will not be able to afford them. Does anyone have any recommendations or have knowledge of any of these schools or any other schools and the level of academics they provide. My son desperately wants to be challenged and I think I owe it to him to find him a school that will push him.

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[kootchman]

O’Dea is expensive. Kennedy has a great academic program, lots of nieces and nephews have gone through the system… all got accepted at great colleges, Gonzaga, Yale, NYU, Colgate etc…all with hefty scholarships it’s a slightly less expensive and generally there are car pools throughout the WS area. Pretty much all of the area Catholic Schools meet the standards of the Catholic system. Most have scholarship programs. Seattle Lutheran is a fine school right here in WS. Seattle Prep has lots of WS kids attending, as does Bishop Blanchet. Any of them will give as much academic rigor as he can handle. They generally don’t “push” kids…that’s the kids job to push himself…a tough lesson for some kids and parents…if he needs to be pushed… military schools work. I don’t think the church systems will do that. Some have academic scholarships, work study programs etc. Write to Olympia…. we need a strong voucher program. As a last resort… couple of hundred kids attend Vashon and or Mercer Island …. which is no cost to you… your state allocation goes to the school they attend… some years Mercer has been active in seeking HS students.

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[angelescrest]

Here’s a freebie (except for a ferry pass): Vashon. Fabulous opportunities to become an independent thinker and delve into the subjects. My daughter did five years there, she had really bright friends with interesting pursuits. They’ve all gone to the colleges of their choosing. The biggest hassle for us was/were the away soccer games in…Tillicum!

Addendum: If your child will add ethnic diversity to Lakeside, it has been my experience that there are scholarships and late admits.

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[acemotel]

Lakeside is academically challenging and a great experience all around, but I also thought Garfield was likewise, rigorous and a great all-around experience. I went through the whole high school selection maze (as a parent) a couple years ago and personally, was not too impressed with the Catholic schools in terms of academic rigor. Nor with some of the other private schools that provided the high price tag without the corresponding academic discipline IMO. I did not check out Eastside Catholic, so can’t speak to that one.

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[DBurns]

SJoy, I have written many times on here about my kids’ school experience here in Seattle, and my message continues to be the same throughout the years. Try to find a school that best matches your child in all of the many important ways: academically, socially, culturally, extra curricular-ly, athletically, logistically as well as for your whole family. And…good luck. It doesn’t exist. There is no perfect school!! Now for the good news – there are many great ones out there, both public and private.

My kids have done both and have been successful at both. You really have to know your kids. And you cannot expect (even when you’re paying $$) the school to do it all. Parents have equal responsibility to raise their kids IMO. It is our job to support them in all of those above listed ways and supplement the schools but not depend on them to do it all! You have to volunteer, check classes, know their friends, go to the activities and school events; all the while trying to teach them independence!! High school is a huge transition!

Speaking specifically to our high school experiences, we went with the private schools – but not the same ones! My daughter is a junior at Kennedy. Denny was her MS and she LOVED it there – wanted to go straight to Sealth with her friends. The decision was ours, and we chose Kennedy for a variety of reasons which I would be happy to detail in an email – too much for here! Kennedy has been a rainbow for her and absolutely the right choice.

Our son is an athlete and a very different student then his sister. He is a freshman at O’Dea. This was also our choice, but his first choice as well. Since my kids didn’t go to public hs I can’t speak much to the academics there but for my two kids these academics have been a rigorous step up. O’Dea is especially demanding, and not tons of homework but also projects, Power Point presentations, many hours of service learning and intense lecture and discussions. At Kennedy as well we have experienced some amazing experiential learning that I felt had been a little lost at Denny (“teaching to the test”? Who knows.) As far as the tuition goes – it is expensive, but there is a TON of money available for aid – especially at O’Dea. And neither of these schools is over $10,000 like some of the others you mentioned. We also are counting on getting at least what we pay out back in scholarships, as both schools boast much $$ given and the students and parents are offered constant guidance and help on getting the scholarship opportunities. (Kennedy seniors got almost $9 million in scholarships last year total). So for us, paying a little now and getting some later works.

When we looked at high schools we always look at what the seniors are doing – it’s really what matters the most!

Overall, you know your kid, and when you find the right place for him, you’ll know. Be warned from someone going through it that freshman year (especially for boys?) is rocky – moody, tired, elated and excited. All at once!

GOOD LUCK!!

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[Spring Chicken]

It may be too late to apply to private schools for this fall. We know several families whose kids were not challenged at Madison but they are now happy with WSHS. Both West Seattle and Sealth have become stronger in recent years. WSHS will improve if they can keep a principal longer than the 1-2 years as has been the norm there for awhile now.

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[Smitty]

All I can say is check out Lakeside in person before you make a decision.

Great academics, incredible college admissions statistics(lots of Ivy League), and (like it or not) TONS of connections. Your son will be hanging around some of the wealthiest, well-connected families in the city.

From what I understand they offer lots of scholarship/tuition assitance opportunities as well.

Good luck.

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[kootchman]

The main issue is, in a private school, religious or not…. YOU as a parent are responsible for the the outcome. They don’t “push your kid” to achieve. You have to send the raw material…a kid that will push himself. The help is there if they need it. And as a customer, you can insist that it be provided. Second point I would make, is the peer group in any of the aforementioned schools, is to achieve academically. There is zero tolerance for cliques of chronic underachievers who disrupt and bring down the academic potential of others. Dress codes are enforced in all of them.

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[SJoy]

Thank you everyone for your input. I wish it was easy :( I will definitely keep in mind what you all have said!

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[WSresj]

Seattle Lutheran HS has good academics (honors and AP) as well as a great atmosphere. Classes are small and cost is about the same as other parochial schools.

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[changingtimes]

Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences!!! Non religouse, no dress code, and good scholarships! And demands individuality!

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