Elementary Schools In Capitol Hill

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do Maury and Brent parents seriously not see a problem with their kids attending majority white schools in a city that is majority-minority? I always wonder this about SWS too. It’s not that I don’t understand that it’s no individual parent’s “fault” that this is the case, but… doesn’t it bother you? Of course we all want our kids to get a good education, but one question I’d ask myself is what we are teaching our kids when we tell them the best schools are the whitest schools. Do you not think they pick up in this stuff? Trust me: by MS they know exactly what the score is. That’s part of the education you are giving them too.

POC inbounds for Maury. We don’t send out kids there because they would be one of the only nonwhite kids in the classroom. We got in SWS- turned it down for the same reason. We drive to a charter and get some pushback from some neighbors for not supporting our neighborhood schools (these are exclusively white women who feel at liberty to say this).

Then point I am trying to make is that you can’t win. I do not feel offended at people who choose to go to their neighborhood school. It’s a rich white neighborhood and attacking people who send their kids to the local public school won’t help. SWS on the other hand……

Maury is 40% non-white though? I mean you do you (and it's nice that you found a charter you like), but I don't think it's accurate to say that your child would be "one of the only" nonwhite kids.

Not in the lower grades

Was just going to post this.

It is common in Capital Hill schools for them to be majority or even mostly white in the PK and early grades, and then become less and less white as the ages increase. It's generally pretty obvious to anyone who has attended one of these schools, and the implications are uncomfortable. That doesn't mean anyone is wrong for attending or not attending their in-bound school -- families have to make the choices that make the most sense for them, and no one should be expected to sacrifice their child to an abstract value, especially because one family doing this alone will have no impact.

But it is something we should keep talking about, even if it's uncomfortable. I honestly think we need some kind of "come to Jesus" moment with DC public school and that we probably need to overhaul the whole system. And that is scary to people who have gotten comfortable with the current system and found ways to make it work for them. But it is very hard to look at DC schools and say "yep, this seems fine, why change it." The inequities are alarming and I actually really do wonder what my child is learning about the world from that. The kids see it, they know what is going on. And I think it impacts kids on both sides of the privilege divide negatively, because what we're really telling our kids is that we don't know how to do any better and have basically given up on trying.

I have a kid in an upper grade in Maury and the race composition has not really changed since K. I think it’s an outdated perception that white parents leave Hill schools because they get “too black” in upper grades (and also doesn’t really make sense since there’s not a huge # of lottery spots that open in upper grades to change demographics.) I think this perception comes from a few years where the rapid pace of gentrification meant black families did not move IB at the same rates due to loss of affordable rental housing. So the lower grades looked whiter. For better or for worse, the crack down on boundary violations played a part as well. Plenty of white (and POC) families leave our school but generally it’s to move to the burbs or for a charter with MS/HS options. Nobody is leaving Maury because the 4th grade is too black.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do Maury and Brent parents seriously not see a problem with their kids attending majority white schools in a city that is majority-minority? I always wonder this about SWS too. It’s not that I don’t understand that it’s no individual parent’s “fault” that this is the case, but… doesn’t it bother you? Of course we all want our kids to get a good education, but one question I’d ask myself is what we are teaching our kids when we tell them the best schools are the whitest schools. Do you not think they pick up in this stuff? Trust me: by MS they know exactly what the score is. That’s part of the education you are giving them too.

POC inbounds for Maury. We don’t send out kids there because they would be one of the only nonwhite kids in the classroom. We got in SWS- turned it down for the same reason. We drive to a charter and get some pushback from some neighbors for not supporting our neighborhood schools (these are exclusively white women who feel at liberty to say this).

Then point I am trying to make is that you can’t win. I do not feel offended at people who choose to go to their neighborhood school. It’s a rich white neighborhood and attacking people who send their kids to the local public school won’t help. SWS on the other hand……

Maury is 40% non-white though? I mean you do you (and it's nice that you found a charter you like), but I don't think it's accurate to say that your child would be "one of the only" nonwhite kids.

Not in the lower grades

Was just going to post this.

It is common in Capital Hill schools for them to be majority or even mostly white in the PK and early grades, and then become less and less white as the ages increase. It's generally pretty obvious to anyone who has attended one of these schools, and the implications are uncomfortable. That doesn't mean anyone is wrong for attending or not attending their in-bound school -- families have to make the choices that make the most sense for them, and no one should be expected to sacrifice their child to an abstract value, especially because one family doing this alone will have no impact.

But it is something we should keep talking about, even if it's uncomfortable. I honestly think we need some kind of "come to Jesus" moment with DC public school and that we probably need to overhaul the whole system. And that is scary to people who have gotten comfortable with the current system and found ways to make it work for them. But it is very hard to look at DC schools and say "yep, this seems fine, why change it." The inequities are alarming and I actually really do wonder what my child is learning about the world from that. The kids see it, they know what is going on. And I think it impacts kids on both sides of the privilege divide negatively, because what we're really telling our kids is that we don't know how to do any better and have basically given up on trying.

Is the implication that the white kids are leaving after K or that the school is getting whiter over time?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do Maury and Brent parents seriously not see a problem with their kids attending majority white schools in a city that is majority-minority? I always wonder this about SWS too. It’s not that I don’t understand that it’s no individual parent’s “fault” that this is the case, but… doesn’t it bother you? Of course we all want our kids to get a good education, but one question I’d ask myself is what we are teaching our kids when we tell them the best schools are the whitest schools. Do you not think they pick up in this stuff? Trust me: by MS they know exactly what the score is. That’s part of the education you are giving them too.

POC inbounds for Maury. We don’t send out kids there because they would be one of the only nonwhite kids in the classroom. We got in SWS- turned it down for the same reason. We drive to a charter and get some pushback from some neighbors for not supporting our neighborhood schools (these are exclusively white women who feel at liberty to say this).

Then point I am trying to make is that you can’t win. I do not feel offended at people who choose to go to their neighborhood school. It’s a rich white neighborhood and attacking people who send their kids to the local public school won’t help. SWS on the other hand……

Maury is 40% non-white though? I mean you do you (and it's nice that you found a charter you like), but I don't think it's accurate to say that your child would be "one of the only" nonwhite kids.

Not in the lower grades

Was just going to post this.

It is common in Capital Hill schools for them to be majority or even mostly white in the PK and early grades, and then become less and less white as the ages increase. It's generally pretty obvious to anyone who has attended one of these schools, and the implications are uncomfortable. That doesn't mean anyone is wrong for attending or not attending their in-bound school -- families have to make the choices that make the most sense for them, and no one should be expected to sacrifice their child to an abstract value, especially because one family doing this alone will have no impact.

But it is something we should keep talking about, even if it's uncomfortable. I honestly think we need some kind of "come to Jesus" moment with DC public school and that we probably need to overhaul the whole system. And that is scary to people who have gotten comfortable with the current system and found ways to make it work for them. But it is very hard to look at DC schools and say "yep, this seems fine, why change it." The inequities are alarming and I actually really do wonder what my child is learning about the world from that. The kids see it, they know what is going on. And I think it impacts kids on both sides of the privilege divide negatively, because what we're really telling our kids is that we don't know how to do any better and have basically given up on trying.

Is the implication that the white kids are leaving after K or that the school is getting whiter over time?

A bit of both, but more the latter. The tipping point used to be 3rd grade. Now more of the elementary are holding their cohorts over the years mostly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in Peabody / Watkins and sending our son there for prek3. Watkins is the only truly racially diverse school amongst Brent, Maury and LT. Other posters aren't saying that but so much of the Maury, Brent and LT hype is because upper middle class white parents who can't afford private school are happy that their kids aren't going to school with black kids. Just keep that in mind when you think about what kind of school experience you want for your kids.

What are you even talking about? Peabody is the WHITEST of all these schools, at 66%. And they are all racially diverse, by any objective standard.

And it's pretty telling how many of those families bail on Watkins either early or outright. Lots of Hill families will 'tolerate' DC public schools for young kids but are easily scared off when they hit elementary. The Peabody families who stick around are likely the ones who actually value the diversity, but LOTS of Peabody families do not. Sadly that's not unique for Cap Hill public schools.

We are a Watkins family that left. The diversity isn't the issue - the lack of a high quality education and a school administration with misguided approaches is the issue. Have you seen the photos of what students were greeted with when they arrived at campus this week? Overflowing trash cans and porta potties. The fact that the administration didn't see this as being an issue and nothing was done about it until parents showed up is a good indicator of where we are at.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do Maury and Brent parents seriously not see a problem with their kids attending majority white schools in a city that is majority-minority? I always wonder this about SWS too. It’s not that I don’t understand that it’s no individual parent’s “fault” that this is the case, but… doesn’t it bother you? Of course we all want our kids to get a good education, but one question I’d ask myself is what we are teaching our kids when we tell them the best schools are the whitest schools. Do you not think they pick up in this stuff? Trust me: by MS they know exactly what the score is. That’s part of the education you are giving them too.

POC inbounds for Maury. We don’t send out kids there because they would be one of the only nonwhite kids in the classroom. We got in SWS- turned it down for the same reason. We drive to a charter and get some pushback from some neighbors for not supporting our neighborhood schools (these are exclusively white women who feel at liberty to say this).

Then point I am trying to make is that you can’t win. I do not feel offended at people who choose to go to their neighborhood school. It’s a rich white neighborhood and attacking people who send their kids to the local public school won’t help. SWS on the other hand……

Maury is 40% non-white though? I mean you do you (and it's nice that you found a charter you like), but I don't think it's accurate to say that your child would be "one of the only" nonwhite kids.

Not in the lower grades

Was just going to post this.

It is common in Capital Hill schools for them to be majority or even mostly white in the PK and early grades, and then become less and less white as the ages increase. It's generally pretty obvious to anyone who has attended one of these schools, and the implications are uncomfortable. That doesn't mean anyone is wrong for attending or not attending their in-bound school -- families have to make the choices that make the most sense for them, and no one should be expected to sacrifice their child to an abstract value, especially because one family doing this alone will have no impact.

But it is something we should keep talking about, even if it's uncomfortable. I honestly think we need some kind of "come to Jesus" moment with DC public school and that we probably need to overhaul the whole system. And that is scary to people who have gotten comfortable with the current system and found ways to make it work for them. But it is very hard to look at DC schools and say "yep, this seems fine, why change it." The inequities are alarming and I actually really do wonder what my child is learning about the world from that. The kids see it, they know what is going on. And I think it impacts kids on both sides of the privilege divide negatively, because what we're really telling our kids is that we don't know how to do any better and have basically given up on trying.

I have a kid in an upper grade in Maury and the race composition has not really changed since K. I think it’s an outdated perception that white parents leave Hill schools because they get “too black” in upper grades (and also doesn’t really make sense since there’s not a huge # of lottery spots that open in upper grades to change demographics.) I think this perception comes from a few years where the rapid pace of gentrification meant black families did not move IB at the same rates due to loss of affordable rental housing. So the lower grades looked whiter. For better or for worse, the crack down on boundary violations played a part as well. Plenty of white (and POC) families leave our school but generally it’s to move to the burbs or for a charter with MS/HS options. Nobody is leaving Maury because the 4th grade is too black.

Also the original PP had the exact opposite concern, right? She thinks Maury is too white. So if white kids are leaving after K that would be a good (or at least neutral) thing from her perspective

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do Maury and Brent parents seriously not see a problem with their kids attending majority white schools in a city that is majority-minority? I always wonder this about SWS too. It’s not that I don’t understand that it’s no individual parent’s “fault” that this is the case, but… doesn’t it bother you? Of course we all want our kids to get a good education, but one question I’d ask myself is what we are teaching our kids when we tell them the best schools are the whitest schools. Do you not think they pick up in this stuff? Trust me: by MS they know exactly what the score is. That’s part of the education you are giving them too.

I mean, a school that is 60% white in a city that is 45% white is not exactly a crazy discrepancy

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do Maury and Brent parents seriously not see a problem with their kids attending majority white schools in a city that is majority-minority? I always wonder this about SWS too. It’s not that I don’t understand that it’s no individual parent’s “fault” that this is the case, but… doesn’t it bother you? Of course we all want our kids to get a good education, but one question I’d ask myself is what we are teaching our kids when we tell them the best schools are the whitest schools. Do you not think they pick up in this stuff? Trust me: by MS they know exactly what the score is. That’s part of the education you are giving them too.

POC inbounds for Maury. We don’t send out kids there because they would be one of the only nonwhite kids in the classroom. We got in SWS- turned it down for the same reason. We drive to a charter and get some pushback from some neighbors for not supporting our neighborhood schools (these are exclusively white women who feel at liberty to say this).

Then point I am trying to make is that you can’t win. I do not feel offended at people who choose to go to their neighborhood school. It’s a rich white neighborhood and attacking people who send their kids to the local public school won’t help. SWS on the other hand……

Maury is 40% non-white though? I mean you do you (and it's nice that you found a charter you like), but I don't think it's accurate to say that your child would be "one of the only" nonwhite kids.

Not in the lower grades

Was just going to post this.

It is common in Capital Hill schools for them to be majority or even mostly white in the PK and early grades, and then become less and less white as the ages increase. It's generally pretty obvious to anyone who has attended one of these schools, and the implications are uncomfortable. That doesn't mean anyone is wrong for attending or not attending their in-bound school -- families have to make the choices that make the most sense for them, and no one should be expected to sacrifice their child to an abstract value, especially because one family doing this alone will have no impact.

But it is something we should keep talking about, even if it's uncomfortable. I honestly think we need some kind of "come to Jesus" moment with DC public school and that we probably need to overhaul the whole system. And that is scary to people who have gotten comfortable with the current system and found ways to make it work for them. But it is very hard to look at DC schools and say "yep, this seems fine, why change it." The inequities are alarming and I actually really do wonder what my child is learning about the world from that. The kids see it, they know what is going on. And I think it impacts kids on both sides of the privilege divide negatively, because what we're really telling our kids is that we don't know how to do any better and have basically given up on trying.

I have a kid in an upper grade in Maury and the race composition has not really changed since K. I think it’s an outdated perception that white parents leave Hill schools because they get “too black” in upper grades (and also doesn’t really make sense since there’s not a huge # of lottery spots that open in upper grades to change demographics.) I think this perception comes from a few years where the rapid pace of gentrification meant black families did not move IB at the same rates due to loss of affordable rental housing. So the lower grades looked whiter. For better or for worse, the crack down on boundary violations played a part as well. Plenty of white (and POC) families leave our school but generally it’s to move to the burbs or for a charter with MS/HS options. Nobody is leaving Maury because the 4th grade is too black.

Also the original PP had the exact opposite concern, right? She thinks Maury is too white. So if white kids are leaving after K that would be a good (or at least neutral) thing from her perspective

Exactly. There is no winning this thing. That's the nature of a rapidly changing neighborhood and city. Assess your family's priorities and then act with humility and grace; trying always to keep in mind the greater good.

[Anonymous]

I agree there is no winning in the current system, though I guess it depends on how you define winning. But as a parent who cares about my kids' education and ALSO cares about access to quality education for all the kids in this city, I think the point is that complacency with the current system is probably a bad thing.

I would never criticize any family for making an education choice that helps their kid. Whether that's a white parent going to their IB school which is majority white, or a POC parent choosing a charter specifically so their kid won't be in the minority. Or someone choosing private if the can afford it, or lotterying into a charter or other DCPS because they are unhappy with their IB, or homeschooling if that's a realistic option. I definitely support parents in making the choices that work for their kids, especially after the last year.

But I think making those choices and then jumping into defend the system without recognizing how it impact others is a mistake. The system sucks. We should change it. It's troubling to me that so many people on the Hill will list the 2-4 whitest schools on the Hill as "the best" and then dismiss the others as not good enough, and then get mad if you suggest maybe we should do something to change that. Whether it's re-districting, reconfiguring the lottery process, making a certain percentage of seats at all school guaranteed for high risk kids, etc.

You can respect that most parents are doing their best, and also point out that the situation as a whole is pretty crappy. These are not mutually exclusive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree there is no winning in the current system, though I guess it depends on how you define winning. But as a parent who cares about my kids' education and ALSO cares about access to quality education for all the kids in this city, I think the point is that complacency with the current system is probably a bad thing.

I would never criticize any family for making an education choice that helps their kid. Whether that's a white parent going to their IB school which is majority white, or a POC parent choosing a charter specifically so their kid won't be in the minority. Or someone choosing private if the can afford it, or lotterying into a charter or other DCPS because they are unhappy with their IB, or homeschooling if that's a realistic option. I definitely support parents in making the choices that work for their kids, especially after the last year.

But I think making those choices and then jumping into defend the system without recognizing how it impact others is a mistake. The system sucks. We should change it. It's troubling to me that so many people on the Hill will list the 2-4 whitest schools on the Hill as "the best" and then dismiss the others as not good enough, and then get mad if you suggest maybe we should do something to change that. Whether it's re-districting, reconfiguring the lottery process, making a certain percentage of seats at all school guaranteed for high risk kids, etc.

You can respect that most parents are doing their best, and also point out that the situation as a whole is pretty crappy. These are not mutually exclusive.

Agreed. But it helps to keep in mind that the reason things are so screwed up are the adults in charge of making the big, systemic decisions. The situation is extremely crappy. Blaming individual parents and families for that crap storm is not reasonable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in Peabody / Watkins and sending our son there for prek3. Watkins is the only truly racially diverse school amongst Brent, Maury and LT. Other posters aren't saying that but so much of the Maury, Brent and LT hype is because upper middle class white parents who can't afford private school are happy that their kids aren't going to school with black kids. Just keep that in mind when you think about what kind of school experience you want for your kids.

What are you even talking about? Peabody is the WHITEST of all these schools, at 66%. And they are all racially diverse, by any objective standard.

And it's pretty telling how many of those families bail on Watkins either early or outright. Lots of Hill families will 'tolerate' DC public schools for young kids but are easily scared off when they hit elementary. The Peabody families who stick around are likely the ones who actually value the diversity, but LOTS of Peabody families do not. Sadly that's not unique for Cap Hill public schools.

We are a Watkins family that left. The diversity isn't the issue - the lack of a high quality education and a school administration with misguided approaches is the issue. Have you seen the photos of what students were greeted with when they arrived at campus this week? Overflowing trash cans and porta potties. The fact that the administration didn't see this as being an issue and nothing was done about it until parents showed up is a good indicator of where we are at.

Watkins field is a DPR property, not DCPS. Watkins uses the field and playground during school hours but has no control over how the fields/playgrounds are managed. Watkins doesn't even get the fields exclusively for aftercare. They had nothing to do with DPR's mess on E St. Guess a single provocative pic is effective at grabbing eyeballs ... it's not like you were even at dropoff to be put out in any real way, which kind of illustrates the point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in Peabody / Watkins and sending our son there for prek3. Watkins is the only truly racially diverse school amongst Brent, Maury and LT. Other posters aren't saying that but so much of the Maury, Brent and LT hype is because upper middle class white parents who can't afford private school are happy that their kids aren't going to school with black kids. Just keep that in mind when you think about what kind of school experience you want for your kids.

What are you even talking about? Peabody is the WHITEST of all these schools, at 66%. And they are all racially diverse, by any objective standard.

And it's pretty telling how many of those families bail on Watkins either early or outright. Lots of Hill families will 'tolerate' DC public schools for young kids but are easily scared off when they hit elementary. The Peabody families who stick around are likely the ones who actually value the diversity, but LOTS of Peabody families do not. Sadly that's not unique for Cap Hill public schools.

We are a Watkins family that left. The diversity isn't the issue - the lack of a high quality education and a school administration with misguided approaches is the issue. Have you seen the photos of what students were greeted with when they arrived at campus this week? Overflowing trash cans and porta potties. The fact that the administration didn't see this as being an issue and nothing was done about it until parents showed up is a good indicator of where we are at.

So gross... and not the porta potty pic @ to chancellor. Why not share something like this? -> https://twitter.com/chcspta/status/1431675406701244423?s=21

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in Peabody / Watkins and sending our son there for prek3. Watkins is the only truly racially diverse school amongst Brent, Maury and LT. Other posters aren't saying that but so much of the Maury, Brent and LT hype is because upper middle class white parents who can't afford private school are happy that their kids aren't going to school with black kids. Just keep that in mind when you think about what kind of school experience you want for your kids.

What are you even talking about? Peabody is the WHITEST of all these schools, at 66%. And they are all racially diverse, by any objective standard.

And it's pretty telling how many of those families bail on Watkins either early or outright. Lots of Hill families will 'tolerate' DC public schools for young kids but are easily scared off when they hit elementary. The Peabody families who stick around are likely the ones who actually value the diversity, but LOTS of Peabody families do not. Sadly that's not unique for Cap Hill public schools.

We are a Watkins family that left. The diversity isn't the issue - the lack of a high quality education and a school administration with misguided approaches is the issue. Have you seen the photos of what students were greeted with when they arrived at campus this week? Overflowing trash cans and porta potties. The fact that the administration didn't see this as being an issue and nothing was done about it until parents showed up is a good indicator of where we are at.

So gross... and not the porta potty pic @ to chancellor. Why not share something like this? -> https://twitter.com/chcspta/status/1431675406701244423?s=21

honestly people seem to take pleasure out of complaining, even when they could easily take responsibility themselves for the problem. pick up the trash, call DPR, whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in Peabody / Watkins and sending our son there for prek3. Watkins is the only truly racially diverse school amongst Brent, Maury and LT. Other posters aren't saying that but so much of the Maury, Brent and LT hype is because upper middle class white parents who can't afford private school are happy that their kids aren't going to school with black kids. Just keep that in mind when you think about what kind of school experience you want for your kids.

What are you even talking about? Peabody is the WHITEST of all these schools, at 66%. And they are all racially diverse, by any objective standard.

And it's pretty telling how many of those families bail on Watkins either early or outright. Lots of Hill families will 'tolerate' DC public schools for young kids but are easily scared off when they hit elementary. The Peabody families who stick around are likely the ones who actually value the diversity, but LOTS of Peabody families do not. Sadly that's not unique for Cap Hill public schools.

We are a Watkins family that left. The diversity isn't the issue - the lack of a high quality education and a school administration with misguided approaches is the issue. Have you seen the photos of what students were greeted with when they arrived at campus this week? Overflowing trash cans and porta potties. The fact that the administration didn't see this as being an issue and nothing was done about it until parents showed up is a good indicator of where we are at.

So gross... and not the porta potty pic @ to chancellor. Why not share something like this? -> https://twitter.com/chcspta/status/1431675406701244423?s=21

honestly people seem to take pleasure out of complaining, even when they could easily take responsibility themselves for the problem. pick up the trash, call DPR, whatever.

Parents couldn’t have cleaned this up themselves. Used/unusable portapotties left onsite. I actually was surprised the school wasn’t more proactive about contacting DGS (no walkthrough a day or two before?), but agree it’s not ultimately their fault/responsibility.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do Maury and Brent parents seriously not see a problem with their kids attending majority white schools in a city that is majority-minority? I always wonder this about SWS too. It’s not that I don’t understand that it’s no individual parent’s “fault” that this is the case, but… doesn’t it bother you? Of course we all want our kids to get a good education, but one question I’d ask myself is what we are teaching our kids when we tell them the best schools are the whitest schools. Do you not think they pick up in this stuff? Trust me: by MS they know exactly what the score is. That’s part of the education you are giving them too.

POC inbounds for Maury. We don’t send out kids there because they would be one of the only nonwhite kids in the classroom. We got in SWS- turned it down for the same reason. We drive to a charter and get some pushback from some neighbors for not supporting our neighborhood schools (these are exclusively white women who feel at liberty to say this).

Then point I am trying to make is that you can’t win. I do not feel offended at people who choose to go to their neighborhood school. It’s a rich white neighborhood and attacking people who send their kids to the local public school won’t help. SWS on the other hand……

Maury is 40% non-white though? I mean you do you (and it's nice that you found a charter you like), but I don't think it's accurate to say that your child would be "one of the only" nonwhite kids.

Not in the lower grades

Was just going to post this.

It is common in Capital Hill schools for them to be majority or even mostly white in the PK and early grades, and then become less and less white as the ages increase. It's generally pretty obvious to anyone who has attended one of these schools, and the implications are uncomfortable. That doesn't mean anyone is wrong for attending or not attending their in-bound school -- families have to make the choices that make the most sense for them, and no one should be expected to sacrifice their child to an abstract value, especially because one family doing this alone will have no impact.

But it is something we should keep talking about, even if it's uncomfortable. I honestly think we need some kind of "come to Jesus" moment with DC public school and that we probably need to overhaul the whole system. And that is scary to people who have gotten comfortable with the current system and found ways to make it work for them. But it is very hard to look at DC schools and say "yep, this seems fine, why change it." The inequities are alarming and I actually really do wonder what my child is learning about the world from that. The kids see it, they know what is going on. And I think it impacts kids on both sides of the privilege divide negatively, because what we're really telling our kids is that we don't know how to do any better and have basically given up on trying.

I have a kid in an upper grade in Maury and the race composition has not really changed since K. I think it’s an outdated perception that white parents leave Hill schools because they get “too black” in upper grades (and also doesn’t really make sense since there’s not a huge # of lottery spots that open in upper grades to change demographics.) I think this perception comes from a few years where the rapid pace of gentrification meant black families did not move IB at the same rates due to loss of affordable rental housing. So the lower grades looked whiter. For better or for worse, the crack down on boundary violations played a part as well. Plenty of white (and POC) families leave our school but generally it’s to move to the burbs or for a charter with MS/HS options. Nobody is leaving Maury because the 4th grade is too black.

Also the original PP had the exact opposite concern, right? She thinks Maury is too white. So if white kids are leaving after K that would be a good (or at least neutral) thing from her perspective

Just a reminder that there are other races besides black and white.

[Anonymous]

What makes Maury and Brent better is not that they are whiter, but they are richer. Neither has a housing complex that feeds to it. Tyler has Potomac Gardens, LT has whatever that building by the Sherwood Rec center is called. Public housing in DC is, unfortunately, always majority black (except maybe in upper Columbia Heights where there are some latinx).
Most black kids at Maury come from high SES black families. There is also a great chunk of black kids being raised by white or mixed foster or adoptive parents. But the poverty levels are tiny.
They are not a Title 1 school like Watkins, Tyler, and, until recently, LT.