The parents of students at elite Washington school Sidwell Friends have been reprimanded for their conduct toward the school’s employees over their children’s admission to Ivy League universities.
Bryan Garman, head of the Quaker-run school, sent a letter to parents telling them to stop “the verbal assault of employees.” He said they not allowed to record conversations with school counselors or call the employees from blocked numbers. Some parents were behind the “circulation of rumors about students,” he said.
In May, two of the school’s three college counselors left Sidwell, which counts former first daughters Chelsea Clinton, 39, and Malia Obama, 20. as alumni. Former President Barack Obama’s younger daughter, Sasha, 17, is still a student there.
Former Vice President Joe Biden’s granddaughter Maisy, 18, a close friend of Sasha, is also at Sidwell Friends. Her sisters Naomi, 25, and Finnegan, 19, are graduates.
The school was recently involved in a controversy over swastikas being shown at an assembly
Garman’s letter was published by the Atlantic. “The new policies stem from a handful of unfortunate and uninformed interactions, some of which have been unkind to students, others that have disrespected our counselors,” he said.
“Instances of disrespect are anomalous and often anonymous, but have nevertheless become increasingly intense and inappropriate. The circulation of rumors about students and/or the verbal assault of employees are antithetical to the School’s values and create a dispiriting work environment.”
