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Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)
Cunningham Park
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Anonymous
| We were considering a move to the Cunningham Park district in Vienna but I now see that school is one of the "priority schools" singled out for special resources, just like Dogwood in Reston and a number of schools in the Route 1 area. I had been under the impression that Cunningham Park was improving. Is that not the case? |
Anonymous
| I was under the impression that they were improving, dramatically, in fact (look at SOL scores from past three years). We were not able to find a livable, renovated home with a decent lot for under $900K (yes, you read that right) in-boundary for either Archer or Vienna ES so we are still looking around. I simply don't like the area around Cunningham Park. Maybe look around Oakton? I wish you luck,OP-- maybe you'll have better luck than me. |
Anonymous
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I have friends with children at CPES and they love the school. Yes, these are upper-middle class families and they see the diversity at CP as an advantage. I'd have no problem sending my children there.
12:35 - We are in the Flint Hill district and we love it around here. You can find a nice renovated home that feeds to FHES for under $900k with no problem. We paid $695 for our renovated 4br 3ba home on 1/3 acre a year ago. It's definitely do-able! We are in Vienna, but FHES also pulls in homes from Oakton. Also, there's a cute home for sale in the Archer district right now for $600k. I don't know how much much space you need, but I think this home's definitely worth a look: http://www.homesdatabase.com/home-listings-WINDOVER+HEIGHTS-VIENNA-VA-MRIS-FX7332459 |
Anonymous
1235 here. Thanks for the link, 1244, but there's neither a garage nor a carport  and it's simply too small and old albeit renovated. We have made an effort to see desirable homes the day they go on the market and they have gone under contract immediately. On many Vienna streets, IMO, lovely teardowns are situated right next door to total dumps.
OP, perhaps make an appointment with the Cunningham Park ass't prinicipal or other front office staff member to tour the school, get current parents' opinions and then decide for yourself. I would say those improving test scores are very encouraging. |
Anonymous
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Check the archives b/c there have been some threads about CPES fairly recently.
Also, I think it is definitely possible to find something nice and up-to-date in the Louise Archer boundary (I live there). If you are looking for a large lot, no, there aren't any acre lots. But there are nice homes in nice neighborhoods for under $900K. And w/in the Flint Hill boundary, there are some neighborhoods with larger lots. |
Anonymous
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Barrister's Place is a GREAT neighborhood in the LA boundary - I just saw at least 2 houses for sale there, one at $775K and one at $650K. Lawyers North is another great neighborhood and I know there's at least one for sale there too under $800K. I live near both of these and drive through often - lots of kids & families, etc.
There's a nice-looking one on Helmwood (Flint Hill) on a large lot w/ renovated kitchen. So there are options for under $900K in LA/Flint Hill boundaries. If you are not set on this part of Vienna, you might try looking around Wolftrap ES. Some lovely neighborhoods near there as well. |
Anonymous
If a poster is concerned about renovated homes being close to "total dumps," they would probably be better served looking at homes in the Wolftrap and Flint Hill districts as opposed to homes in the Archer, Vienna or Cunningham Park districts. They aren't as close to downtown Vienna, but the homes range from 70s split-levels that aren't too expensive to very luxurious properties. Good luck!! |
Anonymous
I'm the poster who just suggested looking near Wolftrap, but I also wanted to point out that it's really a very small portion of the Louise Archer area in which you'd find teardown/rebuilds located next to a "total dump." A lot of the area that's in boundary for LA is the neighborhoods along Lawyers Road (Blair Rd, Barristers, Lawyers North, Balmoral, Gunnell Farms, etc.), and you won't find teardowns there. It's really just a few streets that are walking distance to the school where you'd find that kind of situation. On the other side of Lawyers Rd from the school, there are some streets with older homes but not things I'd describe as a "total dump." It may be more of an issue with Vienna ES as I think the entire boundary is inside the Town of Vienna limits. |
Anonymous
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Since we're offering up neighborhood options for the various Vienna elementary schools, don't forget to look in the "Town of" section of Vienna that goes to Freedom Hill Elem. (then back to Thoreau and Madison for the "Town of" kids). That section of Vienna is nice, walkable and has a nice variety of homes...
Back to the OPs question on Cunningham Park ES, my cousin's child goes there, and some other friends send their kids there as well... They love it! |
Anonymous
That section of town (Madrillion) sends their kids to Marshall HS, not Madison. |
Anonymous
Not true. The prior poster was describing a small section of the Town of Vienna (22180) where the school pyramid is Freedom Hill/Thoreau/Madison. Madrillon is a development in a nearby unincorporated part of Fairfax County with a Vienna mailing address, for which the school pyramid is Freedom Hill/Kilmer/Marshall. All these schools are good. However, about 85-90% of Freedom Hill feeds into Kilmer/Marshall, rather than Thoreau/Madison. If you live in that part of the Town of Vienna, your kids won't necessarily know a lot of their classmates when they hit middle school, unless they've been involved with other activities. |
Anonymous
| One thing is every child that lives in the town of vienna will have the base HS of madison. That is defined by zip of 22180, or by the extra taxes (town taxes). I believe the TOV has contributed some $$$ to Madison infrastructure over the years, and I know the TOV closes highways for Madison events (e.g., homecoming parade). |
Anonymous
All of the town of Vienna is assigned to Madison HS, but there's no legal requirement that town students attend Madison. The town doesn't have its own schools, and Madison is outside the town limits and part of the Fairfax County school system. Some students in the town with Madison as their base school transfer to Marshall for the IB program, and many Madison students live outside the town in subdivisions off Beulah, Lawyers or Vale Road. And, while the town is in the 22180 zip code, not all of 22180 is in the town. There are neighborhoods in 22180 outside the town that are assigned to Falls Church or Marshall HS. |
Anonymous
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PP, you are right..11:39 here...I did not realize it untill now, but the zip 22180 covers all of Vienna plus some county areas east of Cedar lane, and a small area south of I-66 surrounding Cedar lane.
North of Maple Ave (123) Vienna and 22180 overlap |
Anonymous
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Cunningham Park is a very good school with an active PTA and supportive community. Most of the kids who go there score very well on the SOLs and do just as well as students from other Vienna elementary schools.
However because the school is so small there is a relatively large percentage of ESOL students who do not do as well on the SOLs and need additional support. My guess is the county included Cunningham on its priority list to make sure that those kids get the resources they need and that the school is not overwhelmed. My kids have really enjoyed the school and the friends they have made there. |