Anne

Behavior

School Choice

I have a child at one of New York's most sought-after public elementary schools. In the last year, its population has increased by more than 10%, including going from 7 kindergarten classes to 9. At the same time, it is much less diverse than when we first got acquainted with the school and its community 5 years ago. Similar to what happens when a cold front runs into warm, it rains. Hard. Between the real estate boom and the financial market crash, all the new people in the neighborhood who are panicking are wealthy finance professionals and corporate CEOs who, in the past, would have sent their kids to one of the many elite private schools nearby. Now we have to deal with their sense of entitlement toward their kids and anger that they have had to cut back. Wait until they discover their weakness before the Department of Education...