Reston area schools

[Anonymous]

Hello -

Can anyone provide feedback on the public schools in the Reston area? We are looking to potentially buy there and while my daughter will just be starting preschool this fall, want to plan ahead and get a better grasp of the school system there. Any input on schools to look out for/stay away from would be of great help (preschools included!).

Thanks
L

[Anonymous]

there's a post below on Dogwood...

[Anonymous]

Armstrong & Aldrin are great schools.

[Anonymous]

We live in Reston and both our DDs go to Sunset Hills Montessori- we are extremely happy. DDs will go to Armstrong for 1st grade (K is half day so they will stay at Sunset Hills) and I've heard great things about Armstrong and Alrin. I'm a little concerned about Herndon High School, though....

FWIW- we love living in Reston. The pools, trails, parks are fantastic!

[Anonymous]

Forest Edge ES is great. Has a special tech focus and the principal got grant funding to keep the class sizes small. It's also an AAP center school. Kind of a hidden gem. Feeds into Hughes and South Lakes. IMO, South Lakes is completely underrated. I know lots of parents of kids there and they are very happy.

Now, Herndon HS, not so much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Forest Edge ES is great. Has a special tech focus and the principal got grant funding to keep the class sizes small. It's also an AAP center school. Kind of a hidden gem. Feeds into Hughes and South Lakes. IMO, South Lakes is completely underrated. I know lots of parents of kids there and they are very happy.

Now, Herndon HS, not so much.

People seem to like the schools they know. The general consensus is that parents at Aldrin and Armstrong ES (both of which are in Reston) have resisted any suggestion that they be redistricted from Herndon MS/HS to Hughes MS/South Lakes HS, even though the latter schools also are in Reston.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:there's a post below on Dogwood...

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/114897.page

[Anonymous]

People seem to like the schools they know. The general consensus is that parents at Aldrin and Armstrong ES (both of which are in Reston) have resisted any suggestion that they be redistricted from Herndon MS/HS to Hughes MS/South Lakes HS, even though the latter schools also are in Reston.

FWIW Armstrong is not exclusive to Reston. Many of the students are from Herndon.

[Anonymous]

Dogwood is considered the worst school in Reston, AFAIK. The general area it pulls from, off of Glade, includes a lot of the Section 8 housing over there. Obviously, the socioeconmic mix is part of Reston's original charter and all, but for better or for worse it has had an impact on that particular school and being in the Dogwood ES district will actually have an impact on your home value.

We're in boundary for Terraset ES. Have heard nothing but positive things. The nice thing in Reston, too, is that the IB program starts in the middle school IIRC and you're interested in keeping your kids in public school.

I really love South Reston... North Reston feels like a different world to me.

[Anonymous]

I would love to hear more about South Reston....schools, neighborhoods etc...is it possible to buy a nice SFH for $550,000 or less there or a townhome or condo at that price? (I know Reston, having grown up in Herndon, but prices have changed, etc.)....
Thanks
!

[Anonymous]

It's very possible to buy a nice SFH or townhome in South Reston for $550k. I love South Reston, too, especially the sections that border Lawyers Road close to Vienna. It's nice and woodsy and the SFHs seem to have lots of privacy (I live in Vienna, so I'm going by appearances, here).