Why "preps" when talking about public schools?

Nathan, I went to a private school that was Roman Catholic. It was dubbed a prep school. It may be different in the States, but here the private, religious schools are dubbed as prep schools.

As a writer who covers the schools, I have never referred to private schools as prep schools though. I think it is a slang term.

 

Metro in town called them "scholastic sports" once upon a midnight dreary. Always made me think of the magazine.

 

Shoot, at our paper, we have a once a week "Preps Page" -- in big bold letters at the top.

 

Oxford English Dictionary says "prep" is U.S. slang meaning "to attend a prepatory school, be a prepatory school student". First used in 1915.

F. Scott Fitzgerald popularized it in 1920's This Side of Paradise, writing, "Where'd you prep?" (The answer is Andover, BTW.)

 

Copy editors will do anything to salvage one-column heads. Such as preps. And such as using win as a noun.

 

"Prep" got removed from our in-print vocabulary by the SE a long time ago.

 

Prepatory?

 

Does the NY Times still call it "School Sports" in headers?

 

High school coverage is "preps"
NFL coverage is "perps" (Vick, Pacman, etc.)
Still working on college jargon.

 

Crips.

 

I've been at places that do it both ways, and once had a weekly section with Preps as a prominent part of its name.

No big deal, to me, but I don't like using "win" as a noun when most don't care, so whatever floats your style boat.