Moving to DC - what would be your ideal location based on DCPS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I personally had a 2 year old and wanted a walkable, urban lifestyle, I would still despite the school situation look in the Capitol Hill area. The elementary schools are mostly really good. In the Capitol Hill area, it is really middle school that causes a lot of angst. But Stuart-Hobson (neighborhood DCPS) is overall okay and the Washington Latin charter schools (which require some lottery luck) both run buses to and from the Hill. People for high school go to a mix of the DCPS application high schools, the Latin and Basis charter schools, and many different private school options.

Do you live on the Hill? How old are your kids?

I basically made exactly the choice you are describing and deeply regret it. Elementary goes by fast. S-H is okay but not a good fit for all kids. Latin and BASIS are a total crapshoot -- you have to win the lottery and if you don't, you will be at your elementary for 5th and Hill elementaries are gutted for 5th grade because of people who leave for charters and privates, or move. Most of the private options are a big commute.

There are people who can deal with this uncertainty and find a way to make it work and kudos to them -- I salute you. I am not built for it and it stresses me out a lot and I really, really wish we'd just bought somewhere with an acceptable path through HS with by right schools. Which is what OP says she wants. Good for her to know this now. I wish I'd realized when we were buying. I was young, childless, and naive, knew next to nothing about DC schools except that the lottery exists and our IB elementary seemed to have a lot of nice families based on my limited interaction with them while we were renting. I was an idiot. Don't be like me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

Talk to parents, but do not believe any who tell you they’re committed to their current school and especially any saying they are committed to the middle school feed. Many of them will be gone. Most will have a valid reason, but it doesn’t change reality.

[Anonymous]

Eaton is more diverse, racially and socioeconomically, than many ward 3 elementary schools. That being said, test scores do not reflect the quality of the education there. Hard to put a finger on it, but the community nurtures thought and creativity in a way that sets kids up to do great things. My child's most accomplished friends, all of whom attended outstanding colleges and have interesting careers, attended Eaton.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

Talk to parents, but do not believe any who tell you they’re committed to their current school and especially any saying they are committed to the middle school feed. Many of them will be gone. Most will have a valid reason, but it doesn’t change reality.

+1, this is a bitter pill but it's real. The neighbors who told us they "loved" the IB elementary, and were ready to stick it out for MS on the Hill left one year after we enrolled. It was for a job move and was the right choice for them but I couldn't help but feel like it was a bit of a con. I think they were big boosters because they wanted to make the local schools work, but also privately were realistic and took another option when it came up.

Now we're planning our own move and I am careful not to give people rosy reviews of the school situation on the Hill. Sure, it would be good for our elementary if I talked up the MS option or said I was totally happy without reservations. But it's not true and I don't want to the person who's like "we LOVE it, it's perfect, you should stay and send your kids" and then moves away two years later for a suburban school district with good middle and high schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

Talk to parents, but do not believe any who tell you they’re committed to their current school and especially any saying they are committed to the middle school feed. Many of them will be gone. Most will have a valid reason, but it doesn’t change reality.

+1, this is a bitter pill but it's real. The neighbors who told us they "loved" the IB elementary, and were ready to stick it out for MS on the Hill left one year after we enrolled. It was for a job move and was the right choice for them but I couldn't help but feel like it was a bit of a con. I think they were big boosters because they wanted to make the local schools work, but also privately were realistic and took another option when it came up.

Now we're planning our own move and I am careful not to give people rosy reviews of the school situation on the Hill. Sure, it would be good for our elementary if I talked up the MS option or said I was totally happy without reservations. But it's not true and I don't want to the person who's like "we LOVE it, it's perfect, you should stay and send your kids" and then moves away two years later for a suburban school district with good middle and high schools.

+2 also for people planning to go private, they tend to be quiet about it because people who stay don’t need to hear about how the school they’ll attend isn’t good enough for you. And privates are outrageous $$$. It’s not an option for alot do people so I don’t mention it’s our plan, because I am aware having the option to leave is a privilege.

But I also don’t boost our MS and am vocal about concerns and am working to make the school better. It has a lot of good parts but the parts I prioritize for MS, it lacks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

+100 Great community, awful schools beyond ECE (even the charters). We live in Brookland--no good options here. Would not move here.

Another Capitol Hill family and totally agree. If I knew then what I knew now, I would have bought in upper NW or the burbs. We've been troubleshooting our school situation since our kids first entered PK because the schools here are so uneven (including MANY genuinely bad schools). We are now planning to move between elementary and MS (out of DC, and actually out of the area entirely) because we found an elementary school situation that is okay but we have no real path here other than playing the lottery and hoping it works out, which would also require us to commute far to school.

We bought here before kids and then were persuaded by friends and neighbors who told us the schools were good and "getting better" and there are so many other great things about living on the Hill with kids. Like 90% of those friends and neighbors have moved away when their kids hit MS. Not kidding. Only the die hards, or people who luck into charter spots and are willing to do the commute, stick around. It's all a big lie! It's my biggest parenting regret.

Yep. We are actually here for the long haul (through HS) because of lottery luck and DS is settled into school/friends/etc, but the schools local to Capitol Hill have not and will not get better. Families went the private school route and are happy but also can well afford it.

Another Cap Hill family that also agrees. DCPS policies make it next to impossible to improve the school situation. They don’t want another Ward 3 here.

Ward 3 parent here. They don’t want a Ward 3 anywhere. If you move here you will definitely get the best schools in the city. But be prepared to fight each year to keep them that way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

+100 Great community, awful schools beyond ECE (even the charters). We live in Brookland--no good options here. Would not move here.

Another Capitol Hill family and totally agree. If I knew then what I knew now, I would have bought in upper NW or the burbs. We've been troubleshooting our school situation since our kids first entered PK because the schools here are so uneven (including MANY genuinely bad schools). We are now planning to move between elementary and MS (out of DC, and actually out of the area entirely) because we found an elementary school situation that is okay but we have no real path here other than playing the lottery and hoping it works out, which would also require us to commute far to school.

We bought here before kids and then were persuaded by friends and neighbors who told us the schools were good and "getting better" and there are so many other great things about living on the Hill with kids. Like 90% of those friends and neighbors have moved away when their kids hit MS. Not kidding. Only the die hards, or people who luck into charter spots and are willing to do the commute, stick around. It's all a big lie! It's my biggest parenting regret.

Yep. We are actually here for the long haul (through HS) because of lottery luck and DS is settled into school/friends/etc, but the schools local to Capitol Hill have not and will not get better. Families went the private school route and are happy but also can well afford it.

Another Cap Hill family that also agrees. DCPS policies make it next to impossible to improve the school situation. They don’t want another Ward 3 here.

Ward 3 parent here. They don’t want a Ward 3 anywhere. If you move here you will definitely get the best schools in the city. But be prepared to fight each year to keep them that way.

+100

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

+2 also for people planning to go private, they tend to be quiet about it because people who stay don’t need to hear about how the school they’ll attend isn’t good enough for you. And privates are outrageous $$$. It’s not an option for alot do people so I don’t mention it’s our plan, because I am aware having the option to leave is a privilege.

But I also don’t boost our MS and am vocal about concerns and am working to make the school better. It has a lot of good parts but the parts I prioritize for MS, it lacks.

We are on the Hill and went private for K to get a spot now - this is a privilege. Having now been at our private with a better understanding of admissions I can see that demand far outstrips supply: the number of spaces at the top privates has not increased and competition is tough. I've talked to a lot of parents who plan on moving to private for middle or high school - the challenge is that there are just not enough spots for all the people who say this is their plan. So even if you're comfortable with the money and commute and decide to move to the Hill OP, you may not have the option.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

+100 Great community, awful schools beyond ECE (even the charters). We live in Brookland--no good options here. Would not move here.

Another Capitol Hill family and totally agree. If I knew then what I knew now, I would have bought in upper NW or the burbs. We've been troubleshooting our school situation since our kids first entered PK because the schools here are so uneven (including MANY genuinely bad schools). We are now planning to move between elementary and MS (out of DC, and actually out of the area entirely) because we found an elementary school situation that is okay but we have no real path here other than playing the lottery and hoping it works out, which would also require us to commute far to school.

We bought here before kids and then were persuaded by friends and neighbors who told us the schools were good and "getting better" and there are so many other great things about living on the Hill with kids. Like 90% of those friends and neighbors have moved away when their kids hit MS. Not kidding. Only the die hards, or people who luck into charter spots and are willing to do the commute, stick around. It's all a big lie! It's my biggest parenting regret.

Yep. We are actually here for the long haul (through HS) because of lottery luck and DS is settled into school/friends/etc, but the schools local to Capitol Hill have not and will not get better. Families went the private school route and are happy but also can well afford it.

Another Cap Hill family that also agrees. DCPS policies make it next to impossible to improve the school situation. They don’t want another Ward 3 here.

Ward 3 parent here. They don’t want a Ward 3 anywhere. If you move here you will definitely get the best schools in the city. But be prepared to fight each year to keep them that way.

Can you please expand what you mean to fight to keep them that way? Are those things the pta does? What you do at home to supplement? Super curious. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

We're super happy at our Cap Hill ES. Yes, we'll play the lottery for MS, but SH-->Walls or private is a fine back-up path from my perspective. It isn't for everyone, but it is for us. That said, I don't anyone should realistically answer Cap Hill to the question posed by OP, so I'm not sure why this thread ended up being mostly Hill-centric.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

+100 Great community, awful schools beyond ECE (even the charters). We live in Brookland--no good options here. Would not move here.

Another Capitol Hill family and totally agree. If I knew then what I knew now, I would have bought in upper NW or the burbs. We've been troubleshooting our school situation since our kids first entered PK because the schools here are so uneven (including MANY genuinely bad schools). We are now planning to move between elementary and MS (out of DC, and actually out of the area entirely) because we found an elementary school situation that is okay but we have no real path here other than playing the lottery and hoping it works out, which would also require us to commute far to school.

We bought here before kids and then were persuaded by friends and neighbors who told us the schools were good and "getting better" and there are so many other great things about living on the Hill with kids. Like 90% of those friends and neighbors have moved away when their kids hit MS. Not kidding. Only the die hards, or people who luck into charter spots and are willing to do the commute, stick around. It's all a big lie! It's my biggest parenting regret.

Yep. We are actually here for the long haul (through HS) because of lottery luck and DS is settled into school/friends/etc, but the schools local to Capitol Hill have not and will not get better. Families went the private school route and are happy but also can well afford it.

Another Cap Hill family that also agrees. DCPS policies make it next to impossible to improve the school situation. They don’t want another Ward 3 here.

Ward 3 parent here. They don’t want a Ward 3 anywhere. If you move here you will definitely get the best schools in the city. But be prepared to fight each year to keep them that way.

+100

Oh my gosh, yes. I feel like we are in a constant fight with DCPS to not break the things that work. It’s mind boggling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd live IB for Ross. Great little school, great fun city neighborhood, feeds into SWW at Francis Stevens for middle school, which is solid, then you figure out high school when you get there.

Ahhh we lived right by Ross when our oldest kids were young. Loved the neighborhood and the school community. Office is right by there now and I still love that immediate area

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a Cap Hill family that started in public and then moved mid- elementary for upper NW privates. If you are prioritizing school, would not move here. We love the Hill for many many reasons but the schools are a mess. Even the best schools are in flux and have serious downsides (Brent feeds to an undesirable middle, Maury is getting combined with another school, Ludlow is ok and on the rise but the boundary is more H street than Cap Hill, and Peabody Watkins continues to suffer under poor leadership). They all culminate in Eastern which isn’t performing at all. I do not regret moving to the Hill because we’ve otherwise loved it and have amazing friends but we have commuted to school (first in Gtown and then to our children’s middle and upper campus). Talk to actual parents, not just DCUM people. Look at the school budgets and PTA notes of the schools you are considering.

+100 Great community, awful schools beyond ECE (even the charters). We live in Brookland--no good options here. Would not move here.

Another Capitol Hill family and totally agree. If I knew then what I knew now, I would have bought in upper NW or the burbs. We've been troubleshooting our school situation since our kids first entered PK because the schools here are so uneven (including MANY genuinely bad schools). We are now planning to move between elementary and MS (out of DC, and actually out of the area entirely) because we found an elementary school situation that is okay but we have no real path here other than playing the lottery and hoping it works out, which would also require us to commute far to school.

We bought here before kids and then were persuaded by friends and neighbors who told us the schools were good and "getting better" and there are so many other great things about living on the Hill with kids. Like 90% of those friends and neighbors have moved away when their kids hit MS. Not kidding. Only the die hards, or people who luck into charter spots and are willing to do the commute, stick around. It's all a big lie! It's my biggest parenting regret.

Yep. We are actually here for the long haul (through HS) because of lottery luck and DS is settled into school/friends/etc, but the schools local to Capitol Hill have not and will not get better. Families went the private school route and are happy but also can well afford it.

Another Cap Hill family that also agrees. DCPS policies make it next to impossible to improve the school situation. They don’t want another Ward 3 here.

Ward 3 parent here. They don’t want a Ward 3 anywhere. If you move here you will definitely get the best schools in the city. But be prepared to fight each year to keep them that way.

Can you please expand what you mean to fight to keep them that way? Are those things the pta does? What you do at home to supplement? Super curious. Thanks!

On a per pupil basis the Ward 3 schools are the lowest funded and each year DCPS will try to reduce budget. The Ward 3 councilman and mostly childless ANC commissioners are hellbent on increasing density in Ward 3 without any plan to support the schools which are already comically overcrowded. It’s a weekly fight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're super happy at our Cap Hill ES. Yes, we'll play the lottery for MS, but SH-->Walls or private is a fine back-up path from my perspective. It isn't for everyone, but it is for us. That said, I don't anyone should realistically answer Cap Hill to the question posed by OP, so I'm not sure why this thread ended up being mostly Hill-centric.

Similar -- we live in Shaw are are OK with the uncertainty at every transition, and have a moneybags grandma who offered to pay for private if nothing else works out. We are happy, but it's definitely not for the faint of heart, and the private option is a huge privilege.

If I could go back in time maybe we would buy in Mount Pleasant? Though now it seems like they may get kicked out of Deal/JR so who knows.

[Anonymous]

The further west you are, the less likely you will see any change in your assigned schools over the next two decades. We live in Burleith and there will be no change to our assigned schools give our location to the schools - Hyde, Hardy, MacArthur. Short commutes to all three schools, with the first two being easily walkable.

If you live near the edge of any given boundary, the more likely you are to face a school re-zoning in the the future. If you want stability, live in the heart of your assigned school zone.