Marie Reed vs Oyster - deciding where to rent/buy
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Anonymous
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We have a 2 year old and live in Adams Morgan currently, zoned for HD Cook. We do not have a car and prefer not to buy one for school commute, as then I'd have to pay exorbitant parking rates downtown DC. We are thinking of moving this summer/fall to be in Marie Reed for PK3 for 2019/2010 school year, or we are also thinking of buying a condo, and then would probably need to buy in Oyster, which doesn't have PK3 classroom. If we buy in Marie Reed zone, we'd need to either go private (under 25k a year) for middle and high school. Though maybe we will have enough equity build up to sell in 7 years and get into Oyster zone. Or am I thinking too far ahead?
We are not planning on having any more kids and would love to have the urban lifestyle that the Adams Morgan and surrounding areas offer. Has anyone done the Marie Reed/Oyster juggle? What would you recommend? |
Anonymous
| You don't say whether your child would be Spanish dominant or English dominant, but if English dominant just know that there are several people who are IB at Marie Reed for PK3 and PK4 and are wait-listed (for both the dual language and the English-only version). Similarly (if your child is English dominant) you stand a very very slim chance of getting into Oyster for PK4 even if you are IB. Seems like you should be aware that both of those schools now have demand that exceeds supply. |
Anonymous
| For a kid that's not even in PK3 year, McFarland may be a feasible option by the time you're ready for it. |
Anonymous
| Oy, our child is actually Russian dominant, with English a distant second, but on paper will be English dominant so crap! So many moving parts, makes it very difficult to figure out a place where to settle down. Thanks for the feedback! |
Anonymous
| Confused about why these are the only two areas you mention - is it because of language programs? |
Anonymous
No, these are just the two elementary schools that are in the area where we would like to live! We are more into neighborhood amenities/short commute, and much less about space, and definitely never ever want to have a yard.  My husband leans even more urban, like U st and Shaw, but we obviously have to account for schools.
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Anonymous
| Do you like your current place? The risk of not getting in for PK3 at Marie Reed seems pretty high, even if you are in-bound. I would stay where you are, send your child to HD Cooke for 2 years, then move to the Oyster boundary, but on the Adams Morgan side. Basically everything between Columbia and Connecticut is in bounds for Oyster (but check addresses in the boundary system, of course!), as well as a couple of streets behind Pierce Park, so you should have at least some 2 BR condo options. |
Anonymous
This. Ditto for Oyster for PK4. Agree with the advice to just do Cooke, at least for one year. I've heard Cooke is pretty good for PK. Also know people who have their kids in Jubilee Jumpstart in AdMo and love it - and it is free once they get to PK4 (under the DC universal PK program). http://www.myschooldc.org/find-schools/school-options-outside-my-school-dc/ |
Anonymous
| If you're ok with your current IB for PK, then I'd stay where you are and then move to be IB for Oyster in K since it has a better feeder pattern. |
Anonymous
| I would make no housing decisions based on preschool. Oyster is the better school, so I'd move IB for Oyster and just have a back-up plan for PK. |