S/o if you could choose any MCPS high school, which would you choose?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless, it's safe to say that Blair and RM are easily the strongest high schools in the county.

The only people who would safely say that are the few Blair and RM cheerleaders who have been having a pissing contest the past few pages.

Their specialty programs might be, but their regular HS program/population is not. There is a huge minority population and test scores, the drug/crime scene, and level of overall school spirit is quite low!

But if your kid is in the magnet program most of their school day is spent with high-achieving peer group unlike any in the county. That what matters?


Maybe the title of the thread should have been if your kid does not get into a magnet program which school would you choose? In that case, you choose wherever your child will thrive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless, it's safe to say that Blair and RM are easily the strongest high schools in the county.

The only people who would safely say that are the few Blair and RM cheerleaders who have been having a pissing contest the past few pages.

Their specialty programs might be, but their regular HS program/population is not. There is a huge minority population and test scores, the drug/crime scene, and level of overall school spirit is quite low!

This is absolutely written by someone who does not have a child at Blair. There is a previous post by a parent whose home school is WJ but whose child goes to Blair who said the exact opposite. If you are wrong about Blair, you are probably wrong about RM.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless, it's safe to say that Blair and RM are easily the strongest high schools in the county.

The only people who would safely say that are the few Blair and RM cheerleaders who have been having a pissing contest the past few pages.

Their specialty programs might be, but their regular HS program/population is not. There is a huge minority population and test scores, the drug/crime scene, and level of overall school spirit is quite low!

This is absolutely written by someone who does not have a child at Blair. There is a previous post by a parent whose home school is WJ but whose child goes to Blair who said the exact opposite. If you are wrong about Blair, you are probably wrong about RM.

Agree with this. As a poster on another thread noted, magnet kids typically take half their classes with the general school population (English, Social Studies, Foreign Language and Electives). Granted these are high achieving kids and so they are typically taking honors or AP level classes which means they are in these non magnet classes with the best students in the regular population but the point the PP made stands that the quality of non-magnet and non-CAP classes at Blair are comparable to the quality of these same classes in a W school.
A parent who is zoned for a W school with a kid at Blair who thinks Blair is an excellent school with great academics, a healthy social environment and good school spirit. The school admin does a great job in celebrating the diverse accomplishments of all the kids who attend Blair. It is one of the things that makes the school special.

[Anonymous]

Agree with this. As a poster on another thread noted, magnet kids typically take half their classes with the general school population (English, Social Studies, Foreign Language and Electives). Granted these are high achieving kids and so they are typically taking honors or AP level classes which means they are in these non magnet classes with the best students in the regular population but the point the PP made stands that the quality of non-magnet and non-CAP classes at Blair are comparable to the quality of these same classes in a W school.
A parent who is zoned for a W school with a kid at Blair who thinks Blair is an excellent school with great academics, a healthy social environment and good school spirit. The school admin does a great job in celebrating the diverse accomplishments of all the kids who attend Blair. It is one of the things that makes the school special.

Not so at RM.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Agree with this. As a poster on another thread noted, magnet kids typically take half their classes with the general school population (English, Social Studies, Foreign Language and Electives). Granted these are high achieving kids and so they are typically taking honors or AP level classes which means they are in these non magnet classes with the best students in the regular population but the point the PP made stands that the quality of non-magnet and non-CAP classes at Blair are comparable to the quality of these same classes in a W school.
A parent who is zoned for a W school with a kid at Blair who thinks Blair is an excellent school with great academics, a healthy social environment and good school spirit. The school admin does a great job in celebrating the diverse accomplishments of all the kids who attend Blair. It is one of the things that makes the school special.

Not so at RM.

In 11th and 12th grades it is

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child is in Catholic school here in Montgomery County.

We always planned to move locally for middle school or high school but we must make a decision within the year.

I know very little about local high schools since my child is still a few years away. However, if we are picking a neighborhood for the middle school and high school, I might as well find out all I can.

Why is BCC not mentioned as a "top" high school in Maryland or Montgomery County? I have no reason to select it over others but the area did seem appealing in terms of places to buy a home and I'm wondering why the high school is never mentioned with the W schools?

BCC is a lovely high school with many high achieving graduates. It is not mentioned with the other so-called W schools because it has more than a handful of Black/Latinx kids, and slightly more economic diversity than the Ws.

Despite the "urban" in the name, DCUM skews very heavily upper class, white, and suburban. The kinds of folks that move to all white enclaves and then look down their noses at a school like BCC. Honestly, it isn't our zoned HS, but is IS the one I would choose in OP's thought exercise.

BCC isn't mentioned as a W because it starts with a B. It is wealthy and white (save for the small pocket of bussed kids from Silver Spring) and allowed to opt out of the consortiums just like the other Ws. It is treated like a W it just doesn't test as high most years.

Nope. BCC is not treated like a 'W'.
BCC has too many colored students for the liking of the 'W' and DCUM folks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Agree with this. As a poster on another thread noted, magnet kids typically take half their classes with the general school population (English, Social Studies, Foreign Language and Electives). Granted these are high achieving kids and so they are typically taking honors or AP level classes which means they are in these non magnet classes with the best students in the regular population but the point the PP made stands that the quality of non-magnet and non-CAP classes at Blair are comparable to the quality of these same classes in a W school.
A parent who is zoned for a W school with a kid at Blair who thinks Blair is an excellent school with great academics, a healthy social environment and good school spirit. The school admin does a great job in celebrating the diverse accomplishments of all the kids who attend Blair. It is one of the things that makes the school special.

Not so at RM.

In 11th and 12th grades it is

Right some IB classes are open to any student..and the magnet is also open to most students starting in 11th grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child is in Catholic school here in Montgomery County.

We always planned to move locally for middle school or high school but we must make a decision within the year.

I know very little about local high schools since my child is still a few years away. However, if we are picking a neighborhood for the middle school and high school, I might as well find out all I can.

Why is BCC not mentioned as a "top" high school in Maryland or Montgomery County? I have no reason to select it over others but the area did seem appealing in terms of places to buy a home and I'm wondering why the high school is never mentioned with the W schools?

BCC is a lovely high school with many high achieving graduates. It is not mentioned with the other so-called W schools because it has more than a handful of Black/Latinx kids, and slightly more economic diversity than the Ws.

Despite the "urban" in the name, DCUM skews very heavily upper class, white, and suburban. The kinds of folks that move to all white enclaves and then look down their noses at a school like BCC. Honestly, it isn't our zoned HS, but is IS the one I would choose in OP's thought exercise.

BCC isn't mentioned as a W because it starts with a B. It is wealthy and white (save for the small pocket of bussed kids from Silver Spring) and allowed to opt out of the consortiums just like the other Ws. It is treated like a W it just doesn't test as high most years.

Nope. BCC is not treated like a 'W'.
BCC has too many colored students for the liking of the 'W' and DCUM folks.

Agree that BCC is a great school, and that it's considered to be a top school by people in Bethesda and Potomac. Most people I know with kids at Whitman or Churchill consider those two schools plus BCC to be their peers--not so much Wootton or WJ because they are further out. I'd ignore posters who claim that Bethesda is filled with racists who are seeking to avoid diversity. That's a common claim on DCUM, but is not the reality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Blair CAP Program

+1. Plus your kids (all Blair kids actually, I think) can take the magnet courses they want, so long as they have the prerequisites, without experiencing the full-on magnet pressure cooker. Both my CAP kids took a few magnet classes.

[Anonymous]

iB program HS. stay away from common core and uni's aren't taking AP scores in lieu of prereqs as much as before.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which W HS was the one where the Principal sent out a letter/email to parents telling them to stop hosting drinking parties? So.... not that one.

It was Whitman. We are fortunate to have a truly outstanding principal who cares deeply about the kids and is outraged by the fact that parents would host a drinking party in the wake of the Wootton tragedy and other similar recent ones. I hope no one thinks their community is safe from this sort of idiot parent, and I'd love to see other principals and community leaders take a similar stand.

Maybe other Principals haven't had to send out such a notice because it isn't as pervasive in the other HS as it is in Whitman? From what I understand, it was happening a lot there.

Yes, that Principal cares. Too bad the rich and powerful parents complained when she tried to hold those kids accountable when they broke the pledge to not drink during prom. Principal seems great; parents and the kids... not so much. Only so much a Principal can parent the kids.

Sadly, our BCC principal was not smart enough to create a documented, fair process to monitor kids for alcohol. Her (i.e. the school's) actions were not going to withstand the due process rights challenges and so the Super folded rather than have embarrassing press. As a BCC parent I completely support discouraging drinking, but nog at the expense of civil liberties. The whole situation was due to her own stupidity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which W HS was the one where the Principal sent out a letter/email to parents telling them to stop hosting drinking parties? So.... not that one.

It was Whitman. We are fortunate to have a truly outstanding principal who cares deeply about the kids and is outraged by the fact that parents would host a drinking party in the wake of the Wootton tragedy and other similar recent ones. I hope no one thinks their community is safe from this sort of idiot parent, and I'd love to see other principals and community leaders take a similar stand.

Maybe other Principals haven't had to send out such a notice because it isn't as pervasive in the other HS as it is in Whitman? From what I understand, it was happening a lot there.

Yes, that Principal cares. Too bad the rich and powerful parents complained when she tried to hold those kids accountable when they broke the pledge to not drink during prom. Principal seems great; parents and the kids... not so much. Only so much a Principal can parent the kids.

Sadly, our BCC principal was not smart enough to create a documented, fair process to monitor kids for alcohol. Her (i.e. the school's) actions were not going to withstand the due process rights challenges and so the Super folded rather than have embarrassing press. As a BCC parent I completely support discouraging drinking, but nog at the expense of civil liberties. The whole situation was due to her own stupidity.

Spoken like the bolded.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Agree with this. As a poster on another thread noted, magnet kids typically take half their classes with the general school population (English, Social Studies, Foreign Language and Electives). Granted these are high achieving kids and so they are typically taking honors or AP level classes which means they are in these non magnet classes with the best students in the regular population but the point the PP made stands that the quality of non-magnet and non-CAP classes at Blair are comparable to the quality of these same classes in a W school.
A parent who is zoned for a W school with a kid at Blair who thinks Blair is an excellent school with great academics, a healthy social environment and good school spirit. The school admin does a great job in celebrating the diverse accomplishments of all the kids who attend Blair. It is one of the things that makes the school special.

Not so at RM.

In 11th and 12th grades it is

Right some IB classes are open to any student..and the magnet is also open to most students starting in 11th grade.

The Diploma Program - which spans 11th and 12th grade - is open to ALL students starting in 11th grade for whom RM is their home school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Churchill - good students but not a pressure cooker; little drugs or partying on weekends; best sports; great location; best student body.

you know absolutely nothing about churchill based on this comment. It is the exact opposite of this.

[Anonymous]

Einstein, but only on bring your gun to school day