Olney schools

[Anonymous]

Hi all,

We're moving to the area from out of state for work, and I was hoping I could hear from parents with kids currently in Olney schools. We're looking at houses in Olney Elem, Belmont, Cashell, Sherwood and Greenwood. I've seen online some negative reviews for Greenwood and was hoping I could hear from current parents at the school.

I know this has been posted before but hoping for a current update.

Thanks in advance!
KC

[Anonymous]

What are you looking for in a school?

[Anonymous]

Sherwood ES is very overcrowded. Behavior issues that go along with it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What are you looking for in a school?

Dedicated teachers, good academics, involved parent community, an administration that addresses problematic issues to keep a positive learning environment for our kids

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sherwood ES is very overcrowded. Behavior issues that go along with it

None of the schools in the Sherwood cluster are overcrowded.

https://gis.mcpsmd.org/cipmasterpdfs/MP25_Chapter4Sherwood.pdf

[Anonymous]

I've had a lot of problems at Greenwood for my neurodivergent child. I would never send them here again if given a choice. If you have a typical learner it should be okay. The amount of supplementing I've had to do has been significant and very taxing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've had a lot of problems at Greenwood for my neurodivergent child. I would never send them here again if given a choice. If you have a typical learner it should be okay. The amount of supplementing I've had to do has been significant and very taxing.

Administration has been very unsupportive when problems come up that need ongoing actions. The principal will give a really nice speech but with no or limited action behind it. Expect to problem solve your own solutions.

[Anonymous]

But as a school community, Greenwood (and Rosa Parks for that matter) is fantastic. Involved parents without being intrusive. A cohort that grows and stays together.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sherwood ES is very overcrowded. Behavior issues that go along with it

None of the schools in the Sherwood cluster are overcrowded.

https://gis.mcpsmd.org/cipmasterpdfs/MP25_Chapter4Sherwood.pdf

Maybe understaffing is the issue then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But as a school community, Greenwood (and Rosa Parks for that matter) is fantastic. Involved parents without being intrusive. A cohort that grows and stays together.

That's great to know, thanks for sharing.

[Anonymous]

Belmont was awesome for my DD, but that was a while ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Belmont was awesome for my DD, but that was a while ago.

I've heard really good things about Belmont and rumblings about olney es and greenwood.

[Anonymous]

The school building for Belmont ES is very very very old and it has been scheduled for renovations for over a decade now. It should just be demolished at this point. The other issue is that, demographic-wise, it doesn't reflect the diversity of the county, either with students and definitely not with staff. (It felt very weird at times.) The upside of Belmont ES is that it has a very strong and outsized PTA.

[Anonymous]

Sherwood and Olney are just over capacity, per the most recent Schools at a Glance, the rest are below. If you are thinking ahead, note that Cashell feeds to Redland MS/Magruder HS, and Sherwood ES splits after Farquhar between Sherwood HS and Blake.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But as a school community, Greenwood (and Rosa Parks for that matter) is fantastic. Involved parents without being intrusive. A cohort that grows and stays together.

I agree that the parent community is wonderful and we really like rosa parks. I wish my child had a better experience at Greenwood, socially and academically.