How or why are Howard County public schools so good?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oakland mills was literally like a scene out of stand and deliver. every student bathroom was flooded from students clogging the toilets, water would seep into the hallways... there is a completely separate group of administrators for the Latino\Latina students.... Whole days of classes in Spanish because learning the language here is pointless right? you'll never need to ask for directions or any question about anything. students watching porn on their phones...in class , but the teacher did nothing....

not only are Howard county schools not good enough to justify the property taxes homeowners pay , but I would argue they are the same as PG county.... or no better than. I have worked for every county in MD except for Frederick and Washington county Maryland.

Furthermore. School is going to be quite different next year , as all the janitors , teachers aids , office staff and all support workers leave the profession because of sub human wages. Its going to be nothing but teachers and principals left , So you'd better hop your school principal is willing to put on a hair net and shoulder up to the lunch ladies...

anonymous Howard county employee.

Good luck Yall!

Do you say that HoCo schools don't justify the taxes but then just talk about Oakland Mills. And even your account form OM is deceptive. Some of what you say is extremely concerning to me -- namely flooded bathrooms that don't get fixed and kids watching porn (or anything really) on their phones in class. But are these frequent occurrences or things that happened one time? That's stuff that absolutely happens at other well regarded public HSs in the area sometimes.

Classes occurring in Spanish... well it depends on the situation. OM has a large Spanish-speaking population. If occasionally non-reading/writing classes were conducted in Spanish, assuming all the students and the teacher are fluent, why would that be so terrible? I am not Latino but that wouldn't bother me unless it negatively impacted my child's education. I've met plenty of OM students and they all spoke English, so what you are saying is that OM has lots of bilingual students? That's considered a huge bonus in schools with majority white populations. Why would it be so terrible in a school with a majority-Latino population?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

I can think of one, right next door: MCPS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

Its not just racial diversity as pointed out in my post.

And yes, my experience at larger public HS were much better than HoCo schools. 100%. Its called a bubble for a reason.

I never said perfection but most HoCo parents are not willing to do two things:
1. Bus their kids
2. Let poor people into their communities, thus "decreasing their home value"

HoCo prides itself on diversity but its a false pride and your kids grow up thinking they've grown up with a diverse cohort of people and backgrounds but they haven't and they do NOT understand the privilege of money and connections. They may understand it in theory, but they do not understand it in reality and they go out into the world- in powerful positions thanks to money and connection- thinking that they come from some beacon of diversity and it is reckless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

Its not just racial diversity as pointed out in my post.

And yes, my experience at larger public HS were much better than HoCo schools. 100%. Its called a bubble for a reason.

I never said perfection but most HoCo parents are not willing to do two things:
1. Bus their kids
2. Let poor people into their communities, thus "decreasing their home value"

HoCo prides itself on diversity but its a false pride and your kids grow up thinking they've grown up with a diverse cohort of people and backgrounds but they haven't and they do NOT understand the privilege of money and connections. They may understand it in theory, but they do not understand it in reality and they go out into the world- in powerful positions thanks to money and connection- thinking that they come from some beacon of diversity and it is reckless.

You seem to only be talking about the western part of Howard County. Come on over to the east - the Route 1 corridor, and tell me that our communities and schools aren't diverse.

And yes, no one on our side of the county wants our kids bussed for the sake of diversity because we already made the choice to live in diverse communities and we like where we are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

Its not just racial diversity as pointed out in my post.

And yes, my experience at larger public HS were much better than HoCo schools. 100%. Its called a bubble for a reason.

I never said perfection but most HoCo parents are not willing to do two things:
1. Bus their kids
2. Let poor people into their communities, thus "decreasing their home value"

HoCo prides itself on diversity but its a false pride and your kids grow up thinking they've grown up with a diverse cohort of people and backgrounds but they haven't and they do NOT understand the privilege of money and connections. They may understand it in theory, but they do not understand it in reality and they go out into the world- in powerful positions thanks to money and connection- thinking that they come from some beacon of diversity and it is reckless.

So tell us. Which public school system in Maryland is the best? You obviously don't like HCPSS. Some people would say MCPS, but I have a feeling you don't like them either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

Its not just racial diversity as pointed out in my post.

And yes, my experience at larger public HS were much better than HoCo schools. 100%. Its called a bubble for a reason.

I never said perfection but most HoCo parents are not willing to do two things:
1. Bus their kids
2. Let poor people into their communities, thus "decreasing their home value"

HoCo prides itself on diversity but its a false pride and your kids grow up thinking they've grown up with a diverse cohort of people and backgrounds but they haven't and they do NOT understand the privilege of money and connections. They may understand it in theory, but they do not understand it in reality and they go out into the world- in powerful positions thanks to money and connection- thinking that they come from some beacon of diversity and it is reckless.

So tell us. Which public school system in Maryland is the best? You obviously don't like HCPSS. Some people would say MCPS, but I have a feeling you don't like them either.

I dont have experience with MCPS, I have experience with HCPS, specifically Hammond, and as I stated in PREVIOUS POSTS there are 2-3 diverse schools in HoCo but not most of them. 2/3 out of 12 is not acceptable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

Its not just racial diversity as pointed out in my post.

And yes, my experience at larger public HS were much better than HoCo schools. 100%. Its called a bubble for a reason.

I never said perfection but most HoCo parents are not willing to do two things:
1. Bus their kids
2. Let poor people into their communities, thus "decreasing their home value"

HoCo prides itself on diversity but its a false pride and your kids grow up thinking they've grown up with a diverse cohort of people and backgrounds but they haven't and they do NOT understand the privilege of money and connections. They may understand it in theory, but they do not understand it in reality and they go out into the world- in powerful positions thanks to money and connection- thinking that they come from some beacon of diversity and it is reckless.

So tell us. Which public school system in Maryland is the best? You obviously don't like HCPSS. Some people would say MCPS, but I have a feeling you don't like them either.

I dont have experience with MCPS, I have experience with HCPS, specifically Hammond, and as I stated in PREVIOUS POSTS there are 2-3 diverse schools in HoCo but not most of them. 2/3 out of 12 is not acceptable.

MCPS has more segregation than Howard County and has maybe 4 diverse schools out of 25. Multiple MCPS high schools have fewer than 8% white kids.

I don’t think any school system in Maryland is acceptable to you. You can bash HCPSS if you want, but it’s objectively one of the best school systems in Maryland, and it does diversity better than most. Otherwise, name me one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

Its not just racial diversity as pointed out in my post.

And yes, my experience at larger public HS were much better than HoCo schools. 100%. Its called a bubble for a reason.

I never said perfection but most HoCo parents are not willing to do two things:
1. Bus their kids
2. Let poor people into their communities, thus "decreasing their home value"

HoCo prides itself on diversity but its a false pride and your kids grow up thinking they've grown up with a diverse cohort of people and backgrounds but they haven't and they do NOT understand the privilege of money and connections. They may understand it in theory, but they do not understand it in reality and they go out into the world- in powerful positions thanks to money and connection- thinking that they come from some beacon of diversity and it is reckless.

So tell us. Which public school system in Maryland is the best? You obviously don't like HCPSS. Some people would say MCPS, but I have a feeling you don't like them either.

I dont have experience with MCPS, I have experience with HCPS, specifically Hammond, and as I stated in PREVIOUS POSTS there are 2-3 diverse schools in HoCo but not most of them. 2/3 out of 12 is not acceptable.

MCPS has more segregation than Howard County and has maybe 4 diverse schools out of 25. Multiple MCPS high schools have fewer than 8% white kids.

I don’t think any school system in Maryland is acceptable to you. You can bash HCPSS if you want, but it’s objectively one of the best school systems in Maryland, and it does diversity better than most. Otherwise, name me one.

DP but you're talking out of your a$$.
MCPS is more diverse than HCPS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:HoCo has the highest median income in the state.

Exactly fewer poor which means higher averages but that's not exactly the same thing as most advanced. There are schools with greater diversity that have many more high fliers.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Money, less poverty and diversity

Howard County is 34% white and 25% black, so let’s not have the idea Howard County isn’t diverse. But Howard County doesn’t have the amount of poverty other counties have to deal with.

Another pro about Howard County schools is that they tinker way less in regards to their curricula. I have not heard anyone complain about it whereas Curriculum 2.0 was a disaster in Montgomery county and had to be scrapped.

The downside to Howard County is that it redistricts A LOT. Like every 5 years. There are stories of kids living in the same house being redistricted 5 times from K to 12.

If you want to live in Howard County then buy a house that’s close to the high school you want. Otherwise, you’re fodder for redistricting.

Yes and 2-3 schools are 70+ white and/or 50+ Asian while others are 50%+ black. Dont kid yourselves here.

Very few counties will have an even distribution of races across their school systems, especially when a good chunk of your land is rural.

As these things go, Howard County has some schools with a great balance, Atholton, Howard, and Reservoir in particular. They are there if you want it. Most of the other high schools are at least 10% black, which isn’t bad for a school system that’s 25% black. Not a single high school is over 50% black.

Glenelg is the main outlier at 70% white. It will stay that way unless a bunch of other races decide they want to live on well water far from DC and Baltimore.

Howard County has a decent racial mix. It’s better than Montgomery County at least.

OM has a 81% MINORITY POPULATION, of which, 44% is black. River Hill is 44% WHITE and 56% minority population (with 35% being asian).

As someone who attended a HoCo HS, and it was my 4th HS attended in 3 different states, there is nothing diverse about a majority of the schools in HoCo. 2 might be a real mix but most are not.

I'm not sure where you're coming from. Earlier PPs have posted school demographics for HoCo and it's a diverse school system by every meaning of the word diversity, except perhaps socioeconomic. Blacks make up 13% of the US population but 25% of HoCo schools.

What is diversity to you?

Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

Sounds like you’re expecting perfection. It’s very rare to find a large school system with an equal distribution of races. I can’t think of one off the top of my head unless it’s predominantly one or two races. Howard County isn’t perfect, but it’s better than most.

Its not just racial diversity as pointed out in my post.

And yes, my experience at larger public HS were much better than HoCo schools. 100%. Its called a bubble for a reason.

I never said perfection but most HoCo parents are not willing to do two things:
1. Bus their kids
2. Let poor people into their communities, thus "decreasing their home value"

HoCo prides itself on diversity but its a false pride and your kids grow up thinking they've grown up with a diverse cohort of people and backgrounds but they haven't and they do NOT understand the privilege of money and connections. They may understand it in theory, but they do not understand it in reality and they go out into the world- in powerful positions thanks to money and connection- thinking that they come from some beacon of diversity and it is reckless.

So tell us. Which public school system in Maryland is the best? You obviously don't like HCPSS. Some people would say MCPS, but I have a feeling you don't like them either.

I dont have experience with MCPS, I have experience with HCPS, specifically Hammond, and as I stated in PREVIOUS POSTS there are 2-3 diverse schools in HoCo but not most of them. 2/3 out of 12 is not acceptable.

MCPS has more segregation than Howard County and has maybe 4 diverse schools out of 25. Multiple MCPS high schools have fewer than 8% white kids.

I don’t think any school system in Maryland is acceptable to you. You can bash HCPSS if you want, but it’s objectively one of the best school systems in Maryland, and it does diversity better than most. Otherwise, name me one.

DP but you're talking out of your a$$.
MCPS is more diverse than HCPS

You are correct. The largest demographic cohort in MCPS is hispanic and the average FARMS rate is something like 35%. Hoco is very different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:HoCo has the highest median income in the state.

Exactly fewer poor which means higher averages but that's not exactly the same thing as most advanced. There are schools with greater diversity that have many more high fliers.

Yep. Almost all of MD Regeneron scholars, Science bowls, Math Olympiads, Sciences Olympiads, etc... are from MCPS

[Anonymous]

Howard County and MoCO are both racially diverse on a county level. MoCo has more white and Hispanic/Latino kids compared to HoCo. HoCo has more Asian kids compared to MoCo.

However, MoCo is more racially segregated on a school by school level. MoCo has multiple high schools with barely any white kids. HoCo doesn't have a single high school with fewer than 18% white kids, despite having fewer white kids on a county level.

MoCo has more diversity in terms of SES as MoCO is about 35% FARMs and HoCo is about 23% FARMs. However, MoCo is more segregated in that the rich areas are much wealthier and the poor areas have higher FARMs concentrations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oakland mills was literally like a scene out of stand and deliver. every student bathroom was flooded from students clogging the toilets, water would seep into the hallways... there is a completely separate group of administrators for the Latino\Latina students.... Whole days of classes in Spanish because learning the language here is pointless right? you'll never need to ask for directions or any question about anything. students watching porn on their phones...in class , but the teacher did nothing....

not only are Howard county schools not good enough to justify the property taxes homeowners pay , but I would argue they are the same as PG county.... or no better than. I have worked for every county in MD except for Frederick and Washington county Maryland.

Furthermore. School is going to be quite different next year , as all the janitors , teachers aids , office staff and all support workers leave the profession because of sub human wages. Its going to be nothing but teachers and principals left , So you'd better hop your school principal is willing to put on a hair net and shoulder up to the lunch ladies...

anonymous Howard county employee.

Good luck Yall!

Do you say that HoCo schools don't justify the taxes but then just talk about Oakland Mills. And even your account form OM is deceptive. Some of what you say is extremely concerning to me -- namely flooded bathrooms that don't get fixed and kids watching porn (or anything really) on their phones in class. But are these frequent occurrences or things that happened one time? That's stuff that absolutely happens at other well regarded public HSs in the area sometimes.

Classes occurring in Spanish... well it depends on the situation. OM has a large Spanish-speaking population. If occasionally non-reading/writing classes were conducted in Spanish, assuming all the students and the teacher are fluent, why would that be so terrible? I am not Latino but that wouldn't bother me unless it negatively impacted my child's education. I've met plenty of OM students and they all spoke English, so what you are saying is that OM has lots of bilingual students? That's considered a huge bonus in schools with majority white populations. Why would it be so terrible in a school with a majority-Latino population?

Not my experience in the OM community. What's described above exists in all high schools. Yes, there are more Hispanics, more AA, but that is diversity. The area is very close knit combined with rental transient areas. Every attempt to reorganize and redistrict has been met with huge backlash from the western side of the county, lots of wealth who don't want mixing of SES.


English is spoken, Hispanic population picks up English quickly. That language comment is crap.

My complaints about OM involve complaints I would have at any HOCO high school, as a teacher and colleague to many high school teachers. They need to get rid of phones and step up consequences for bad behavior . Middle school too.

Teachers are leaving the field, not necessarily because of one school. The profession will be going through a huge shift.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Each school needs to be diverse. By and large, HoCo is diverse (when you look at the whole) but the individual schools are NOT. Blacks are concentrated in a few schools. Asians are concentrated in a few schools. Latinos are concentrated in a few schools. Whites are in every school- some nominally. There is not a huge socioeconomic diversity within each school. Ask any teacher who has taught at multiple schools within the county. Even at OM the wealthy kids from Allview Estates are living in houses around the 500-600k mark, only as of recently. 500-600K house and associated income would be extremely poor in other schools.

I lived in areas that had only 3-4 HS with a larger population than that of Columbia. Columbia has 12? They are all little enclaves of their surroundings and that was purposeful.

There is no school in HoCo where living in a $500k-$600k house would be considered poor, you sound extremely out of touch. Probably 60% of the kids who go to Centennial HS live in a $500k-$600k house, with kids living in a $1M+ house at Centennial HS only making up a small fraction of the student body. Even at Marriotts Ridge HS, a very very large percentage of the students live in homes worth that much. I agree that the affluent students at Oakland Mills, Long Reach, and Hammond HS are on the lower end of upper-middle-class for the most part, as opposed to the wealthy students at River Hill, Centennial, Marriotts Ridge, Glenelg, Mt Hebron, Howard, Atholton, Reservoir, and even Wilde Lake HS, who can often live in $1M+ homes. To say that Oakland Mills' affluent students would be considered poor at those other schools is a huge stretch though.