My mom and dad were at a friend 's party, the subject of where does your children go to school came up. This is a subject we dread and avoid whenever possible. We cannot discuss private school without mentioning costs and income. "Where we choose to send our kids to school is a loaded topic that can come to symbolize a parent 's values, income and worldview. But the public versus private school debate doesn 't even enter the equation for a majority of Americans who can 't afford private school tuition. So why all the judgment?" (Wallace, Kelly) Back in the 90 's, before the dot-com crash, we were making very good income and money was never an issue. When the economy and market tanked, I was a laid off network technician struggling to complete for work against network engineers who were willing to do technician jobs. When my unemployment insurance checks ran out, I joined the Army National Guard. This was not an easy decision to make. At that time, I was a 36 years old man with a wife and two boys to care for, and the Army was my mid-life crisis. I have always regretted not joining the armed forces when I was younger. After multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, I now have the GI Bill to help pay for my continuing education. Both my wife and I grew up under the public school system and we turned out alright. Today I am attending a private school for my nursing program. So why chose a public school for our kids? There are advantages and disadvantages