does anyone else find the social scene at Janney hard to take?

[Anonymous]

Wow, my kid is just starting pre-k but it seems a lot has changed since I went to school. Who would want to have a sleepover at school?!! And if my parents had 4k to spend on it, I'd tell them to give me the money and we'll book the penthouse at the Four Seasons instead.

[Anonymous]

We bought at auction being "principal for a day" at our DCPS elementary school. As acting principal, my DS then conducted spot residency checks on students and found a substantial number who had sneaked in from Maryland!

[Anonymous]

I thought last week it was the charter school parents that were doing everything they can to exclude all non-millionaires by having impromptu pizza gatherings and contributing $15 a month for snacks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:How do parents get one of the coveted Janney garage parking passes? A few parents have them. Are they the "queen bee" volunteers?

They buy them at the auction. $3-4k for a spot.

This being a Janney thread, I actually cannot tell if you are serious or this is a joke, people paying ("donating") for these privileges at a public school.

This is not a joke!

Back in the days before the construction, it was possible to buy a reserved parking spot in the teacher parking lot at the annual Mann auction. I don't remember what it would usually fetch. I do remember that one year it was won by a family whose kids were always late to school. It allowed them to pull in at 8:44 and drop their kids off before the second bell without having to waste time circling the block looking for parking.

It is still possible to buy prime reserved seating for the school play, principal for the day, sleepover birthday parties at school hosted by the principal, etc. at the Mann auction.

This seems wildly inappropriate, and possibly illegal.

Janney has sleepovers sold at the school auction too. About 4 to 5 grand a night. Buying these definitely helps you with popularity.

Yu Ying also auctions such items (parking spot/carpool lane access without a carpool, sleepover at school, playdates with teachers). It's called a fund-raiser - the point is to raise funds for the school: everybody wins. I've never heard anybody complain about such things until this thread. The popularity obsession comes across as particularly juvenile. It seems more likely to reflect a chip on one or two persons' shoulders than a characteristic which applies to the entire Janney population.

Agreed, our school offers these things in our auction, and they usually bring in several hundred (not thousands) of dollars. They are great because you don't have to go begging to local businesses and they are something people really like. For the sleepover, like 8 parents will chip in $75 to get it. We are not big spenders at our school but it is an easy way to raise money, an easy offering from the teachers, and a great treat for the kids. It is crazy to me that people are offended by this.

[Anonymous]

Wow. My kids are at a private school and people have asked why we don't send them to Janney, since we live in-bounds. Now I'm glad we don't. Truly, I have never seen anything there that is to the level described here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. My kids are at a private school and people have asked why we don't send them to Janney, since we live in-bounds. Now I'm glad we don't. Truly, I have never seen anything there that is to the level described here.

I agree the toe shoes are pretty bad, but is that really enough reason to avoid the school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do parents get one of the coveted Janney garage parking passes? A few parents have them. Are they the "queen bee" volunteers?

They buy them at the auction. $3-4k for a spot.

This being a Janney thread, I actually cannot tell if you are serious or this is a joke, people paying ("donating") for these privileges at a public school.

This is not a joke!

Back in the days before the construction, it was possible to buy a reserved parking spot in the teacher parking lot at the annual Mann auction. I don't remember what it would usually fetch. I do remember that one year it was won by a family whose kids were always late to school. It allowed them to pull in at 8:44 and drop their kids off before the second bell without having to waste time circling the block looking for parking.

It is still possible to buy prime reserved seating for the school play, principal for the day, sleepover birthday parties at school hosted by the principal, etc. at the Mann auction.

No one cares about Mann. The school is like apartheid era South Africa.

Don't say that! We are zoned to Mann.

[Anonymous]

"Janney is fine, really, but money does matter in the community in terms of access to the principal and getting particular teachers. Those who are involved in the school and who give money do have influence."

That really isn't true, and I don't contribute $$ and am not with the "in crowd."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. My kids are at a private school and people have asked why we don't send them to Janney, since we live in-bounds. Now I'm glad we don't. Truly, I have never seen anything there that is to the level described here.

PP, take all the sour grapes with a grain of salt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Janney is fine, really, but money does matter in the community in terms of access to the principal and getting particular teachers. Those who are involved in the school and who give money do have influence."

That really isn't true, and I don't contribute $$ and am not with the "in crowd."

This is just a lie. We are not $$$ contributors. Our DC is having some issues. The principal is great. We met with her many times this year to discuss DC. Each meeting lasted easily 1.5hrs. The principal is great, very accessible, really cares about the kids, a great communicator. Access to the principal really does not depend on how much money you have or grant the school.
Please. Get a grip, people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. My kids are at a private school and people have asked why we don't send them to Janney, since we live in-bounds. Now I'm glad we don't. Truly, I have never seen anything there that is to the level described here.

Do you really believe everything you read on the internet? I'd take most of this thread with a grain of salt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow. My kids are at a private school and people have asked why we don't send them to Janney, since we live in-bounds. Now I'm glad we don't. Truly, I have never seen anything there that is to the level described here.

Do you really believe everything you read on the internet? I'd take most of this thread with a grain of salt.

It is on DCUM so it must be true.

[Anonymous]

I think Janney is a little different than other DCPS schools, even other NW schools. It is much more of a parent club. I've heard this from parents who later moved their kids to private and were surprised to see that parents could not influence school decisions as much as they were able to at Janney. That's one reason, I did not send my children there. I just felt that too many stay at home moms were running the show. I want real educators.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do parents get one of the coveted Janney garage parking passes? A few parents have them. Are they the "queen bee" volunteers?

They buy them at the auction. $3-4k for a spot.

This being a Janney thread, I actually cannot tell if you are serious or this is a joke, people paying ("donating") for these privileges at a public school.

This is not a joke!

Back in the days before the construction, it was possible to buy a reserved parking spot in the teacher parking lot at the annual Mann auction. I don't remember what it would usually fetch. I do remember that one year it was won by a family whose kids were always late to school. It allowed them to pull in at 8:44 and drop their kids off before the second bell without having to waste time circling the block looking for parking.

It is still possible to buy prime reserved seating for the school play, principal for the day, sleepover birthday parties at school hosted by the principal, etc. at the Mann auction.

No one cares about Mann. The school is like apartheid era South Africa.

Please explain- my kid goes to Mann and I don't see it.

[Anonymous]

A few years back ex-council chairman Kwame Brown was auction chair at a NW school where his children attended. By some good fortune various businesses having business with the city were selflessly motivated to make generous contributions to the auction that year. Ain't life grand?