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Nation
Print Edition> Nation
UPDATED: June 11, 2012 NO. 24 JUNE 14, 2012
Preschool Puzzle
The New York public school system is in shambles, and good luck trying to secure a spot at one of the city's elite private institutions
By Corrie Dosh
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Mary Wight, 35, a New York mother of two, enrolls her three-year-old son Salvador in a private preschool that offers kindergarten prep such as learning letters, numbers and early reading.

"They have a very diverse program that integrates more academic learning, like letters and numbers, with arts and crafts activities, music, sensory activities like sand and water, and a mix of group activities and free play. They also go out to a local field or playground when it's nice out. That's really important to me, for the kids to have as much outdoor time as possible," Wight said.

But as Salvador and his 16-month-old brother Sebastian grow up, Wight says she may have to switch to more affordable public education. New York City has a number of specialized public high schools such as Stuyvesant High School and Bronx Science for gifted students, but admission to these schools is also difficult.

"There's a growing trend of parents enrolling their preschoolers in test prep for the gifted exam, and higher numbers of kids are placing into gifted schools, particularly in more well-to-do, educated neighborhoods," Wight said. "That bothers me and stresses me out, because now families that have the money to pay for test prep have an advantage in gaining entry into this public program. Also, even if I could afford to formally prep my kids for this kindergarten test, philosophically, I don't really believe in it."

MPSA uses a quota system to maintain diversity in its clientele, Uhry said, from extremely wealthy families to those applying for scholarships. All MPSA clients are parents that simply "don't want to fail their kids," she added.

"This firm would not exist if it wasn't for our failing public school system and it certainly would not be this big," Uhry said. "I feel like a war-time profiteer."

Bill Clinton Sent Me

A "skyrocketing" number of Chinese families, flush with money from the economic boom, are flooding into the private education system in New York City, said Amanda Uhry, founder and President of Manhattan Private School Advisors (MPSA).

"There are a lot of new private schools in China, but they don't have the history the schools in New York have," Uhry said. "[Chinese parents] really want to send their kids to schools in the United States."

Over 40 Chinese families have already approached MPSA for help in 2013 private school admissions, Uhry said. MPSA employs a Mandarin-speaking member of staff to advise the growing demographic.

"[Chinese families] want to come here to a school that's been around 200 years because they figure, rightly, this is a way to get into an American university," she added.

But Chinese parents who expect to buy their way into a top-tier school may be in for an unfortunate reality, Uhry said. Nearly all applicants to top-tier private schools in New York can well afford the tuition, and competition for spots is overwhelming. Even parents with VIP connections may find the process challenging.

"One very rich [Chinese] parent knew [former U.S. President] Bill Clinton and wanted Clinton to write his son a recommendation letter. I told him 'What's the point? Bill Clinton doesn't know your son,'" Uhry said.

The author is a freelance writer living in New York City

Email us at: yaobin@bjreview.com

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