Recommendations for Parent of Black Son With 99th Percentile Test Scores?

Anonymous
I'm moving to the DC area from Chicago, and my black son has a 99th percentile ISEE score and straight-A's. He's very advanced in math and has already completed pre-calculus in 7th grade and is bilingual. I'm not trying to brag, but I want some recommendations for schools that are black-friendly but can also accommodate an advanced student.

Also, would public schools be fine? We are zoned for Jackson-Reed High School in our next home. Is that a good option for advanced black students? Our previous public school was a nightmare, because he was bullied by the other black kids for being too nerdy.
Anonymous
I wonder if he could take advanced math with magnet students at Blair without being a magnet student
Anonymous
Gonzaga, especially if you’d like a Jesuit education
Anonymous
I don’t think many privates can accommodate a kid so advanced he’s doing pre-Calc in 7th. Public is your best bet for that.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I wonder if he could take advanced math with magnet students at Blair without being a magnet student


Not if his inbounds is Jackson-Reed.

Anonymous
St Anslem’s may be a great fit. Diverse demographics and great for bright and academically motivated boys.
Anonymous
Is he going into 8th for next year? 8th grade is a tricky time to apply to private schools and the application season is over. It is the one year that very few seats are available. You could talk to the admissions staff at various schools and see if there is a seat, but you might need to wait until 9th grade to apply. You could send him to Deal Middle School for 8th and make a decision after you see how it goes.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I'm moving to the DC area from Chicago, and my black son has a 99th percentile ISEE score and straight-A's. He's very advanced in math and has already completed pre-calculus in 7th grade and is bilingual. I'm not trying to brag, but I want some recommendations for schools that are black-friendly but can also accommodate an advanced student.

Also, would public schools be fine? We are zoned for Jackson-Reed High School in our next home. Is that a good option for advanced black students? Our previous public school was a nightmare, because he was bullied by the other black kids for being too nerdy.


Since he is bilingual, check out Washington International School. It is an immersion IB school with an opportunity for a bilingual diploma too.

Otherwise I’d recommend Sidwell, GDS, and Maret. If there is any interest in all-boys then St. Albans.

We are a Black family with boys that toured this past fall and were impressed with the aforementioned schools. Good luck!
Anonymous
Sidwell, GDS, Burke, Maret, or Bullis are all good options.

Jackson Reed is a real dc public school. It’s a good mix of kids any element you can encounter in a Chicago public will also exist at Jackson Reed.
Anonymous
Can you move to Virginia instead?
Anonymous
Look at Baneeker
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I'm moving to the DC area from Chicago, and my black son has a 99th percentile ISEE score and straight-A's. He's very advanced in math and has already completed pre-calculus in 7th grade and is bilingual. I'm not trying to brag, but I want some recommendations for schools that are black-friendly but can also accommodate an advanced student.

Also, would public schools be fine? We are zoned for Jackson-Reed High School in our next home. Is that a good option for advanced black students? Our previous public school was a nightmare, because he was bullied by the other black kids for being too nerdy.

Black dad to black dad, I wouldn’t count out your DCPS options. Banneker and Walls could be great options for him in 9th (application public’s). I also wouldn’t count out JR or MacArthur, both will have a high achieving cohort of black students and impressive black male school leaders which is something i personally value. I’d at least visit the schools before deciding on private.

In terms of private i would probably lean towards Maret as i believe it has the the highest proportion of black students. I’d be weary of any private that has really strong cultures around MBB or football, it seems like some of those schools may only value black males that are strong athletes so it might be harder to find community as a nerd.
Anonymous
Definitely check out St. Anselm's. Kid would fit right in.
Anonymous
If you want him to be around other black males, I would do Landon or Bullis or if you want Catholic Damatha or St. John’s.

I’d avoid the all boy Catholic schools, except Damatha.

All the other schools mentioned so far are <5% black students.
Anonymous
^^^ except Maret
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