best neighborhoods for public schools in nova

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:McLean High is a FANTASTIC school--- #55 in the nation, #19 in open enrollment. You can't go wrong. The academics are on par with the best private schools.

We're considering moving to McLean HS district, but I'm hearing some unflattering stuff about the school. Is it true that there is a lot of gang activity?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:McLean High is a FANTASTIC school--- #55 in the nation, #19 in open enrollment. You can't go wrong. The academics are on par with the best private schools.

We're considering moving to McLean HS district, but I'm hearing some unflattering stuff about the school. Is it true that there is a lot of gang activity?

No, it's not true. You may have heard this because McLean has one feeder elementary school (out of about six) that serves a middle-income neighborhood in Falls Church with a lot of Hispanic students. But it's a very well-run, comparatively small, high school, and gangs are NOT a problem. However, if you only want your children to attend school with affluent children, Langley is a better choice.

[Anonymous]

PP which elementary school are you referring to? We live in McLean and although we have a few more years before KG, the ES listed for address is in Falls Church as is the middle school, Longfellow where a great deal of McLean students attend and which supposedly has a good reputation. It would seem the elementary feeders go into the middle schools first before McLean High School. I couldn't imagine gang activity at an elementary school, or these gang rumors just rumors?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP which elementary school are you referring to? We live in McLean and although we have a few more years before KG, the ES listed for address is in Falls Church as is the middle school, Longfellow where a great deal of McLean students attend and which supposedly has a good reputation. It would seem the elementary feeders go into the middle schools first before McLean High School. I couldn't imagine gang activity at an elementary school, or these gang rumors just rumors?

I am pretty sure he/she is referring to Timber Lane. It is in Falls Church, but feeds into the McLean High School pyramid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP which elementary school are you referring to? We live in McLean and although we have a few more years before KG, the ES listed for address is in Falls Church as is the middle school, Longfellow where a great deal of McLean students attend and which supposedly has a good reputation. It would seem the elementary feeders go into the middle schools first before McLean High School. I couldn't imagine gang activity at an elementary school, or these gang rumors just rumors?

I don't think the PP was indicating that there was gang activity at an elementary school, but that there is an elementary school from a not so great area that feeds in McLean HS, that is perhaps causing rumours of gang acticity at McLean HS.

[Anonymous]

I don't think Hispanic students from Timber Lane going to McLean would create any more of a "gang problem" than Hispanic students from Cunningham Park going to Madison. There have been schools (recently, Edison and South County) with reports of gang initiations taking place on school property or in the area, but I wouldn't worry about it at Madison or McLean. Madison and McLean are both relatively small, close-knit schools. Same is true for George Marshall, which is between McLean and Madison and has more Hispanic students than either Madison or McLean.

[Anonymous]

Actually, I am hearing there are Asian gangs at McLean HS. Maybe I'm more intuned to news in the Asian community because I am Asian. But this scares me more than anything else because I imagine if my son were ever inclined to join a gang, it would be a Asian gang and not any other type of gang.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Actually, I am hearing there are Asian gangs at McLean HS. Maybe I'm more intuned to news in the Asian community because I am Asian. But this scares me more than anything else because I imagine if my son were ever inclined to join a gang, it would be a Asian gang and not any other type of gang.

Most gangs do recruit others from the same ethnic/demographic background. But it's far more likely that you'd find an Asian gang at a place like Annandale, Centreville or Falls Church than at McLean, where almost all of the Asian students come from stable, upper-middle class homes and communities. You can't send an Asian student to any public high school in Fairfax County that won't have a lot of Asian-American students - Asian residents are more equally distributed throughout the county than any other ethnic group.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think Hispanic students from Timber Lane going to McLean would create any more of a "gang problem" than Hispanic students from Cunningham Park going to Madison. There have been schools (recently, Edison and South County) with reports of gang initiations taking place on school property or in the area, but I wouldn't worry about it at Madison or McLean. Madison and McLean are both relatively small, close-knit schools. Same is true for George Marshall, which is between McLean and Madison and has more Hispanic students than either Madison or McLean.

Sadly, there are probably some gang members at all of the schools above. It's just the way it is around here. But that doesn't mean the gang members are roaming the halls trying to recruit anyone and everyone. Most people who join gangs are joining them because they are lacking a sense of belonging or family. That's why many gang members are from the same race or ethnic background. I actually work at one of the above high schools and have taught students who were/are in gangs. Other than wearing their colors and drawing graffiti on some of the desks, I have never had a problem with any of them. In fact, they are often quiet and well behaved because they don't want to draw attention to themselves. So, while it is unfortunate that most if not all of the high schools in NOVA have some gang presence, I wouldn't really worry about it too much as long as you are involved in your child's life and know who his/her friends are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:don't move to Alexandria, at least not where I live, Old Town, elem. school has failed accrediation 6 yrs in a row and the high school, T C Williams has been described to me as "jail or Yale", bc that is were the students in up, no middle of the road. I am looking at Great Falls, the schools there are top notch. (fairfax county, not loudon). good luck

I agree. Don't move to Alexandria. I'm living there and I have to send my DS to private school. I also have a co-worker who used to live there and sent hers to private school too. Just look at all the data on greatschools.net or FPSC website. I know some of kids in Alexandria dropped out of HS or college.

OH MY GOD!!!! You know some kids in Alexandria dropped out of HS or college??? I can't believe people continue to live and raise children in such a place. This kind of thing does NOT happen in Great Falls. I remember reading that no one who ever went through a Fairfax County school system ever dropped out, or got pregnant, or went to jail, or failed.

Dear God in heaven, please please let me one day have the kind of money that allows me to live in such a paradise.

[Anonymous]

I love TC Williams High School in Alexandria. It's a great mix of everyone in the city which supports all types of learners. Kids go to Harvard and they drop out. As teenagers, they need to learn how to interact with all social groups and, at TC, they do.

BTW - have you seen the new campus? I hope my son's college is as environmentally friendly and beautiful...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love TC Williams High School in Alexandria. It's a great mix of everyone in the city which supports all types of learners. Kids go to Harvard and they drop out. As teenagers, they need to learn how to interact with all social groups and, at TC, they do.

BTW - have you seen the new campus? I hope my son's college is as environmentally friendly and beautiful...

It's a nice building. I guess I'd take issue, though, with the notion that teenagers aren't well-grounded, or are more likely to drop out of Harvard, if they aren't harassed or beaten up occasionally by urban toughs from Alexandria. Thanks, but no thanks.

[Anonymous]

The poster you are quoting never made such an assertion. She made the valid point that teens need to interact with all social groups. She made a separate point that kids go to Harvard and they drop out. She didn't connect the two; you did. But, hey, whatever you need to do to convince yourself that your choices are saving your child from a certain fate of being attacked by "urban toughs" from Alexandria. I hear the Sharks are more dangerous than the Jets.

[Anonymous]

My daughter is going to TC instead of one of the "top three" next year, as are two of her friends (one turned down Maret and Potomac, the other turned down Sidwell). I'll let you know how they do, and whether they get beaten up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The poster you are quoting never made such an assertion. She made the valid point that teens need to interact with all social groups. She made a separate point that kids go to Harvard and they drop out. She didn't connect the two; you did. But, hey, whatever you need to do to convince yourself that your choices are saving your child from a certain fate of being attacked by "urban toughs" from Alexandria. I hear the Sharks are more dangerous than the Jets.

Ha, ha. So teens need to interact with all social groups? I bet you'll be more than happy if your own offspring ends up attending a highly selective college where "all social groups" are not well represented. But, hey, whatever you need to do to convince yourself than sending your child to a struggling public school is the right one....why exactly did Mel Riddile high-tail it out of TC in short order?