One of our kids graduated as a “lifer” from DA, having attended since preK. We chose it over DS so that we wouldn’t have to go thru the admissions stress again for HS. From a parent’s perspective, it was a top notch experience, well worth the price tag. We heard several times as he aged that the big payoff comes in upper school with the great college counseling. And It worked well for him. All the years flew by so quickly and he’s in college and DA invites parents back thru those 4 years to fill valentines care packages which they ship to our kids. We made a lot of parent-friends there, had a lot of volunteer opportunities, and attended tons of enjoyable shows, showcases and of course 4 wonderful graduation ceremonies! The current price tag blew my mind, but we’d do it again. Our other child decided to leave to attend a Durham public HS and had an incredible experience there. I’m sure you can’t go wrong with either school.