Oyster-Adams School

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:10:55 That's impressive. Are any of the admitted O/A students going to GDS, Maret or Sidwell or are some of those admits going to Walls?
!

I know that the student who was admitted to Sidwell and GDS is going to Walls, and the Maret admit is going to Maret. I think one of the GDS admittees is going to Field.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oyster parent here. It is NOT going downhill, and the alternative (Washington Latin???) that PP posted are simply not comparable nor even as good.

Oyster is not for everyone, but it is a wonderful school in one of the most child-and-parent-friendly neighborhoods in DC. You'll see a lot of hostility toward Oyster from some posters on this board, maybe because it's one of the old standard "top schools" and inspires a competitive and nasty streak in some.

Principal Aguirre is smart, responsive, and dedicated. Some teachers left but that is something you'll see across DCPS as Rhee cleans house. CHancellor Rhee sends her children their, as does the deputy mayor for EDUCATION, Reinoso. I have close friends who are professional education advocates who chose Oyster. Ask involved parents- Principal Aguirre is not "over her head." Many people found Rhee's decision to fire her predecessor alarming, but due to process as opposed to Aguirre's qualifications. A friend in education reform was on the selection committee and they got it right.

The down side of Oyster is that the achievement gap is visible there-- in large part because it is the only elite non-charter DCPS that has a very diverse student body with over 1/3 economically disadvantaged students. You see the differences in test scores, and principal Aguirre and the Chancellor are completely dedicated to turning that around. You are going to see some lower scores among the students who are coming in behind the eightball-- but Oyster is doing better by them than many other DCPS, and improving all of the time.

Meanwhile, this is a place that fosters, welcomes, and encourages intercultural exchange as part of its core mission. It works. All research shows that kids in these dual bilingual immersion programs come away more open to diversity.

I am not LGBT but I am an LGBT rights attorney and I believe that although Woodley Park does not the have the highest concentration of LGBT people in DC, the neighborhood is progressive and LGBT-friendly and has many lesbian and gay couples (not as many as Takoma Park, MD, but several).

Finally, I can't say enough about how great Woodley Park is for families. There are many NWDC neighborhoods (and Cap Hill) that have a nice playground and a nice school, but Woodley provides good activities for kids AND adults, which is huge to us. We love being able to walk out the door when DD is with her babysitter and grab a meal 100 yards from home, and we love being so close to Adams Morgan and Dupont, and the metro, and work.

Make your own choice but seriously, consider Oyster-- it's the closest to a perfect neigborhood we've ever found.