The Private School Option
by Ronnie Citron-Fink

This article is third of four in a series about schools and education in the AboutTown area.

What is the best school for your child in the Hudson Valley? The answer is easy: The one where your child will be happiest. The scenarios that prompt parents to explore private schools are in fact manifold. Here's how the reasoning often goes: You are a loving, busy parent with a terrific kid and you want to give your child the best education possible.... Or, you are a loving, busy parent with a terrific kid and you want your child to have a more individual approach to learning, so you look at schools with small student/teacher ratios.... Or, you are a loving, etc. and you or your spouse/partner went to a private school and you want the same for your child.... Or, you are a loving, etc. and you want a more academic and college preparatory program for your child. Or, you are a loving, etc. and your child learns differently and you feel their needs would be better addressed at a school where they focus more on learning differences.... Or, you are a loving, etc. and money is no object and you consider private school another investment in your child's future. And so forth.

The private schools in the Hudson Valley, like private schools across this country, provide a different breed of schooling than their public counterparts for more than the obvious financial reason. They do not receive tax revenues and are funded through tuition, fundraising, donations and private grants. Private schools are not subject to as many state and federal regulations as public schools. They are not required to teach a prescribed curriculum. Thus, many believe that private schools have more freedoms to create specialized programs for their students. Since some private schools adhere to an educational philosophy or have a religious foundation, you can usually ascertain the nature of the school's programming from the mission statement on its website.

Two private schools that students of this area attend are Poughkeepsie Day School (PDS) in Poughkeepsie and Dutchess Day School (DDS) in Millbrook. PDS educates approximately 250 students in Pre-kindergarten to twelfth grade. DDS has 175 students from Pre-K to eighth. I interviewed Jill Lundquist, the Director of Admissions at PDS and Hillary Henderson, the Director of Development and Parent Affairs at DDS. Both schools enroll students from Dutchess County and beyond. While PDS has some students from Putnam and Ulster, DDS has students that come from as far as Columbia County and Litchfield County, Conn. (These schools not in your neighborhood? New York State provides transportation to private schools that are within a 15-mile radius from your home.) Both schools invoke a caring respect for their community, as well as an individualized approach for their students. Yet they are also very different in many ways.

I had been to Dutchess Day a few times before and each time I am struck by the beauty of the school's site, situated on the grounds of an old Millbrook estate. What I find most appealing about the setting is the homey atmosphere, with winding halls, and classrooms in all the nooks and crannies of the building. It really does not feel at all institutional. DDS's sports facilities are located in a wonderful new gym with expansive playing fields on the rural property. According to the school's website, "DDS was founded in the 1950s by a group of parents interested in offering their children the advantages of a small-school environment in the Millbrook area.... High academic standards are maintained through a curriculum designed to spark an excitement for learning." Says Henderson: "Teachers write their own curriculum with a department committee that closely follows the NYS curriculum. It is a traditional program. We have a very strong science curriculum for K-8 students. DDS has traditional based testing, which includes grades, an extensive narrative and grade report at quarter marking periods. Students get prepped for the PSAT in seventh and eighth grade."

Poughkeepsie Day School's roots, meanwhile, are deeply entrenched in progressive educational philosophy, having been "founded in 1934 by educational innovators at Vassar College." PDS's child-centered curriculum is said to be "interdisciplinary, inquiry-based and experiential"; it is also enriched by a yearly theme that students explore on both academic and social levels. According to its brochure PDS "students understand that their education.... extends far beyond the school walls." Although they "must meet specific curricular requirements, they are also given the freedom to choose how they will spend part of each day and thereby help to frame their own educational paths." This philosophy is reflected throughout the school. Lower School children have "choice time" and Upper School children have electives. Lundquist explains, "There are no grades and no tracking. All classes are heterogeneous and the students stay with their grade with the exception of math and foreign language. Students are on a first name basis with their teachers because we respect human beings as individuals. Teaching children is not hierarchical, it's personal. Parent/teacher conferences are held each fall and spring to discuss each child's progress and address any specific questions or concerns along with portfolios that chronicle the student's school year. Extensive mid-year and year-end written reports, including a curriculum summary and a narrative description of a child's progress, are sent home in February and June. The Upper School, which includes the Middle and High School programs, have exams that aim to teach critical thinking skills as opposed to the memorization of facts. We don't want the standardized tests such as the NYS Regents to define the daily curriculum, which we feel speaks more to a set of requirements. We aim not to define, but to exceed expectations."

Private school curriculums, assessments and faculty decisions are created solely by the individual school, and New York State mandates generally don't trickle down to them. They do not have to administer standardized tests or the NYS Regents exams, though many schools make them available. One major difference between public schools and private schools seems to be the emphasis on learning a foreign language. Children who are exposed to languages in the early grades are known to find them easier to learn and retain. At DDS, all elementary grade students learn French. In sixth grade they have a choice of Latin or Spanish also. At PDS, the students begin Spanish in the Lower School and have language choices in the Upper School.

Admissions policies at private schools vary widely. Most schools require an application and interview; some are more selective than others. I asked Lundquist what type of student PDS looks for. "We look for kids with passions, strong academics, and expectations.... The admissions process includes a parent interview, an application and school records review and recommendations. The child also visits and meets one on one with a teacher." DDS's Admissions Director Ellen Potter sets up interviews with all applicants, who also visit for a trial day. Teachers observe and give recommendations along with a review of their student records.

Funding for tuition-based private schools can be a constant struggle. The folks I interviewed were both eager to talk about the cost of quality education. PDS's tuition for their Lower School (K-4) is around $16,000 with Middle and High School tuitions topping off around $20,000. DDS's tuition ranges from $4,600 for the pre-school program to $19,200 for the eighth grade. (Parochial school tuition is significantly less. The local parochial high school in Poughkeepsie, Our Lady of Lourdes, has a set tuition of $4,600.)

Many area private schools provide tuition assistance to deserving families. Twenty-five percent of the DDS student body receives financial aid, on a needs basis. Henderson stresses, "DDS is not just a school for the elite. We don't want to turn away any qualified students because of financial need." A similar percentage of students at PDS are on financial aid. Active parent organizations at both schools assist with fundraising, as well as raising funds for capital development.

Diversity is an important aspect for area private schools. Both PDS and DDS boast diversity as high up on their schools achievement lists. "PDS's racial and ethnic diversity is a huge success story that exceeds The National Association of Independent Schools' (NAIS) standards in that at the Lower School it is 24% diverse," states Lundquist. DDS mentions on their website, "The school seeks diversity and welcomes families with varied backgrounds."

It should also be noted that both private and parochial schools pay their teachers considerably less than the state-employed public school teachers. The flip side is that teachers often find that working at private schools can be less restrictive and sometimes the benefits are more attractive. In my experience, private schools have an amazing well of resourceful and talented teachers. Private school teachers do not belong to teachers unions. There is no tenure system. At PDS, "Teachers are not required to have formal teaching training." says Lundquist, but almost all of their 75+ faculty and administrators do. At DDS, according to Henderson, "All teachers are required to have a masters degree or are enrolled in a MS program, with the exception of the specialty teachers."

So where do these lucky kids go after they attend these two schools? How do the PDS kids fare with their non-traditional portfolio resume? Ms. Lundquist was eager to say that, "All PDS graduates go to college. They take with them into their college admissions search a portfolio assessment that many colleges find an advantage over a straight high school grade transcript because PDS students often 'come alive' through this individualized presentation." Of the DDS eighth grade graduates, most go to other private schools. Henderson says: "A lot go to the Millbrook School, Hotchkiss School and other boarding schools. A few go to local public schools."

Choosing a school, as I've already stressed in my two other articles, is just the beginning of the parents' role in their child's education. Staying involved and being an advocate for your child—really for the education of all children at the school—is a gift that can make your kids and yourself happy. You are a loving and busy parent, and now you know that the Hudson Valley can provide some terrific educational options for your terrific kid.

Independent & Religious, Tuition-Based Schools in Our Area

Dutchess Day School, Millbrook. Independent, Pre-K 8. 160 students.

Faith Christian Academy, Poughkeepsie. Christian, Pre-K 8. 170 students.

Holy Trinity School, Poughkeepsie. Roman Catholic, Pre-K 8. 320 students.

Kildonan School, Amenia. Boarding and day, for dyslexic students. 130 students.

Maplebrook School, Amenia. Boarding, for students with learning disabilities. 110 students.

Millbrook School, Millbrook. Boarding and day, grades 9 12. 230 students.

Northern Dutchess Christian School, Red Hook. K 12. 150 students

Oakwood Friends School, Poughkeepsie. Society of Friends (Quakers), grades 6 12. 120 students.

Our Lady of Lourdes High School, Poughkeepsie. Co-ed Roman Catholic, grades 9 12. 900+ students.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel School, Poughkeepsie. Roman Catholic, Pre-K 8. 300 students.

Poughkeepsie Day School, Poughkeepsie. Independent, Pre-K 12. 345 students.

Poughkeepsie Seventh-Day Adventist School, Poughkeepsie. Pre-K 8. 250 students.

The Randolph School, Wappingers Falls. Independent, Pre-K 12. 75 students.

Regina Coeli School, Hyde Park. Roman Catholic. Pre-K 8. 250 students.

St. Joseph's Elementary School, Millbrook. Roman Catholic, Pre-K 8. 290 sudents.

St. Martin De Porres Elementary School, Poughkeepsie. Roman Catholic, Pre-K 8. 270 students.

St. Peter's Elementary School, Poughkeepsie. Roman Catholic, Pre-K 8. 250 students.

Tabernacle Christian Academy, Poughkeepsie. Christian school, K 12. 130 students.

Trinity-Pawling School, Pawling: Boys boarding & some day, grades 7 12. 325 students

Upton Lake Christian School, Clinton Corners. Christian school, K 12. 100 students.