Most hispanic high schools in the county?

[Anonymous]

Hi

I have decided to move to my DH and my son who is going to be a rising senior this year. We have planned to move to around the Wheaton-Glenmont area of the county, and I’m wondering the school environment based on the high schools surrounding the area. Based on my views, the area has a high concentration of hispanic/latinos, but does anyone know which ones are the most hispanic concentrated schools and do you recommend them?

[Anonymous]

Avoid Kennedy. Despite it’s population being almost 70% hispanic/latino, the school has one of the lowest graduation rates in the county and has probably one of the worst environments out of all the schools in Montgomery.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Avoid Kennedy. Despite it’s population being almost 70% hispanic/latino, the school has one of the lowest graduation rates in the county and has probably one of the worst environments out of all the schools in Montgomery.

My neighbor, who is hispanic, graduated a year early from Kennedy and was accepted into the business proggram at UMD. Good students who have family support and who avoid the drug/party/gang culture can do well at any school, including Kennedy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Avoid Kennedy. Despite it’s population being almost 70% hispanic/latino, the school has one of the lowest graduation rates in the county and has probably one of the worst environments out of all the schools in Montgomery.

My neighbor, who is hispanic, graduated a year early from Kennedy and was accepted into the business proggram at UMD. Good students who have family support and who avoid the drug/party/gang culture can do well at any school, including Kennedy.

+1

Plus, about a quarter of Kennedy’s hispanic population is in ESOL, which makes their education harder for them, and probably why most of them aren’t able to graduate, or they are either low-income families. I have a son who got accepted to UMD back then and he graduated from Kennedy in 2017.

[Anonymous]

Wheaton has a good rep. It's about 60% Hispanic and has two very prestigious engineering magnets and is adjacent to Edison which gives you the option of the pre-professional classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wheaton has a good rep. It's about 60% Hispanic and has two very prestigious engineering magnets and is adjacent to Edison which gives you the option of the pre-professional classes.

+1. Einstein and Blair are also good options for Hispanic students.

[Anonymous]

Hard not to find hispanic schools since hispanics are the largest cohort of any in MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Blair is going to be the highest performing school nearby. I don't know if the house will be zoned for the DCC but if you can get into Blair it would be my choice. It's about 37% Hispanic and because it's a huge school the number of Hispanic students will be larger than at some schools which have a higher percentage. Wide range of backgrounds from new immigrant families to Hispanic families that have been in the US for generations and whose kids don't speak Spanish well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi

I have decided to move to my DH and my son who is going to be a rising senior this year. We have planned to move to around the Wheaton-Glenmont area of the county, and I’m wondering the school environment based on the high schools surrounding the area. Based on my views, the area has a high concentration of hispanic/latinos, but does anyone know which ones are the most hispanic concentrated schools and do you recommend them?

If you are moving to Wheaton-Glenmont you are zoned for the DCC. All of the DCC schools have a significant hispanic population. Since you're moving your kid as a senior, I'd choose based on what classes your kid wants to take. Because there is highschool choice, different schools have different higher level course offerings, different foreign languages, and could be AP or IB focused. I'd look through course catalogs and talk to counselors, then rent something in whatever cluster makes the most sense for your kid academically.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hard not to find hispanic schools since hispanics are the largest cohort of any in MCPS.

The W schools and Poolesville don't have many Hispanics compared to the overall MCPS population.

[Anonymous]

Kennedy, Gaithersburg and Watkins Mill are the MCPS high schools with the highest concentrations of Hispanic students, I believe.

[Anonymous]

Kennedy is 70%
Wheaton, Northwood, Gaithersburg, Watkins Mill all about 60%
Einstein 50%
Blair About 40%

DCC choices are Kennedy, Wheaton, Northwood, Einstein, Blair - all have significant Hispanic populations

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Kennedy is 70%
Wheaton, Northwood, Gaithersburg, Watkins Mill all about 60%
Einstein 50%
Blair About 40%

DCC choices are Kennedy, Wheaton, Northwood, Einstein, Blair - all have significant Hispanic populations

The county has an overall Hispanic population of 35% which is the largest single demographic cohort. You will find a large group at almost every school except the W's at least until they update the boundaries.

[Anonymous]

Here are the high schools' percentages of Hispanic students:

John F. Kennedy 67.9
Watkins Mill 60.9
Gaithersburg 59.6
Wheaton 57.8
Northwood 57.7
Albert Einstein 50.3
Springbrook 45.0
Rockville 44.2
Col. Zadok Magruder 42.2
Montgomery Blair 36.9
Seneca Valley 34.2
Quince Orchard 33.5
James Hubert Blake 33.4
Damascus 28.4
Richard Montgomery 27.2
Clarksburg 27.0
Paint Branch 25.3
Northwest 24.0
Bethesda-Chevy Chase 21.2
Sherwood 19.3
Walter Johnson 18.3
Walt Whitman 12.0
Poolesville 10.6
Winston Churchill 9.0
Thomas S. Wootton 8.2

[Anonymous]

We don't have a child at Kennedy but know a few families that do and they are very happy with the school. Kennedy does have a high performing cohort in its leadership magnet and its IB program and these families have kids there. I wouldn't cross Kennedy off your list if you find a house that you like that's in-bounds and your child may want to do IB classes.