A common fear I hear from young expecting couples is that kids cannot be raised in the city. We moved to SF 4 years ago from the suburbs and really enjoy the benefits of being here with kids (in 1st & 3rd grade). It is definitely an adjustment from suburbia, but so far it has been worth it.
Edit: Also happy to share my experiences in more detail if you are considering this path. My email is in my profile.
I imagine the dealbreaker for most young couples expecting kids is the cost of renting a 3+ bedroom in SF more than any fear of raising kids in the city.
Well, there is the dreaded PS lottery[1]. So unless you both are working and can put the kids in private school, the kids may well end up in one of the district's poorly run schools.
Not judging you at all, but I can't help but chuckle at the irony that you pay a premium to educate your child at the Christian organization that worships a god who championed the value of the poor.
I don't pay them a premium, I pay them a very fair rate to provide an amazing service in addition to paying my taxes.
Unfortunately, there's a lot of inequity. Most suburban districts get 30% more state funding to do things like build olympic swimming pools and buy iPads. The local taxpayers in urban districts like the one I live in get glorified daycare with classes of 30-35 kindergarteners, and we get to fund a parallel charter school system that enriches the bondholders who built the schools.
I'm not the governor, don't serve in the legislature and have limited ability to influence our school board, whose hands are largely tied. My options are: go private, move, or have my child get an inferior education. I have the good fortune to make the choice that I made. If that makes me a poor christian, so be it.
Not at all what I meant. I might do the same in your situation. My comment was merely to point out how backward the situation is. That the intent of religion to unify people regardless of economic status is defied when their educational service requires wealth. And one of the reasons it's a premium service may (arguably) be due to economic exclusion.
I don't blame you one bit for providing your child the best education you can.
Catholic schools are often cheaper options than other private schools. No need to act condescending.
My parents were considering it because the school I was supposed to go to was a good 40 minute walk and they didn't provide a bus because we were still within the limit.
It's not condescending to point out hypocrisy. Why don't you encourage them to do the Christian thing and open their doors to all economic classes, just like Jesus did. No need to act enabling.
Catholic elementary schools cost on average ~30% of the price of secular elementary schools.
They are often one of the only affordable ways to give your child a good education in neighborhoods where the state fails to provide a minimum acceptable public option.
Not blaming you because that's a rational choice, but if parents who teach their kids to read before elementary school (or at least before 5th grade) never put their kids in that school, how can society expect the average to ever better?
Edit: Also happy to share my experiences in more detail if you are considering this path. My email is in my profile.