We're also looking for people's opinions on these schools - my daughter is in 2nd grade right now and her public school desperately wants to keep her but I just don't know if they can give her what she needs. I've also sent in an application for SEES in Chicago.
We're willing to move to get her into a better school, but I just don't thnk we can afford any of the private ones. Does anyone know how they are with scholarships? My husband earns a reasonable salary, but we have a lot of medical expenses for my other child, and a lot of debt. Most people wouldn't consider us poor, but I don't know many people who have an extra $17k per year to throw around.
I don't know how far out from the city you'd want to move, but Barrington schools have a great gifted program (at least on paper). They actually differentiate top 5% kids from top 1% kids. There is a self-contained classroom for kids that are profoundly gifted.
I also recently discovered that Rockford Schools (BIG move, may not be possible for you) has a public gifted school that looks outstanding. Housing in Rockford is very reasonable too - much more affordable than Barrington. (Although you can find affording housing in Barrington school district too - just make sure it's district 220).
There are public school options. Of course, being in Illinois there is no guarantee that the gifted programs will continue. Illinois doesn't require schools to have gifted programs, so they are often on the chopping block if a district is struggling financially. Wisconsin, on the other hand, requires and funds gifted programs in it's public schools. We are even debating moving to Wisconsin if the house deal falls through.
Hope that helps. Sorry I don't know much about scholarships to private schools. Most financial aid seems to be in the form of loans to the parents.
Scholarships exist, but I'm sure they are very limited.
