Fintelo : Online Solution

Source: nytimes.com

By: Javier C. Hernandez

The phone keeps ringing at the Upper West Side office of Robin Aronow, an educational consultant and schools guru: anxious families suddenly rethinking whether they can afford private school, distressed parents wondering what to do if their children don’t make it into vaunted gifted and talented programs.

Reader Reactions

With the jittery economy still front and center, are you considering pulling your child from private school, or relocating to take advantage of public school options?

As well-off families confront the new contours of their budgets, education may emerge as an attractive, if painful, place to cut. Families who shunned the public school system may now be tempted to transfer to the nearest P.S., and those just starting a family may look to move to a neighborhood with a rich concentration of esteemed public schools.

“It can be a little bit of a culture shock,” said Dr. Aronow, who helps families find private and elite public schools. “There’s a major difference between public schools and private schools.”

The decision can be particularly vexing for parents who have children already enrolled in private schools and are now considering pulling them out to save money, Dr. Aronow said. “You’re taking them from their friends, from their smaller class size, from generally better facilities,” she said.

The options in New York City are plentiful: Public (free)? Private (up to $36,000)? Catholic ($3,600)? Charter (free)?

With the jittery economy still front and center, are you considering pulling your child from private school, or moving to take advantage of public school options?