What did the board say about the Regional model and the DCC for upcoming school year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There won't be too few seats, except in regions where only one of the academic magnets ends up being considered desirable and the others are avoided.

They are assuming 15%+ of kids will attend criteria-based academic magnets (and over 40% will attend regional programs total) and creating spaces accordingly. Many families will not be able to make the transportation work, will not want to leave their home school, and/or will pick a different regional program other than the criteria-based ones (i.e. if they are interested in arts, for example.) So I would expect that anyone in the top 25%-30% of a given school/grade will be able to get into a criteria-based academic program if they want it (not necessarily the specific one they want, but one of them.)

The real problem will be putting some of these schools into academic "death spirals." If anyone in the top 25-30% of a given school -- which at most non-rich schools includes all or almost all kids who would be qualified for and interested in advanced classes-- can leave for a magnet at another school, and half or more of them actually do, it's really going to hollow out what's available at these schools. And if these schools have fewer advanced classes and fewer kids taking advanced classes (and probably also fewer skilled teachers with experience teaching advanced classes, many of whom will likely move to magnets and/or rich schools that still have a strong cohort of advanced kids), their academic reputations will drop. This will cause families who otherwise wanted to stay at their home school to feel like they have to travel elsewhere for their kids to get the basic education and course availability they need, which will then hollow out the home school even further, and the cycle will continue.

DP

This is exactly my worry

In the DCC my impression is that Kennedy HS death spiraled. I don't see how the regional model will help Kennedy at all. The same kids that left Kennedy before will still leave, just to different schools.

They're banking on the Regional IB program at Kennedy being a big enough draw to bring in whiter, upper middle class families to Kennedy. I think that's wishful thinking, since the program thus far has had terrible outcomes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There won't be too few seats, except in regions where only one of the academic magnets ends up being considered desirable and the others are avoided.

They are assuming 15%+ of kids will attend criteria-based academic magnets (and over 40% will attend regional programs total) and creating spaces accordingly. Many families will not be able to make the transportation work, will not want to leave their home school, and/or will pick a different regional program other than the criteria-based ones (i.e. if they are interested in arts, for example.) So I would expect that anyone in the top 25%-30% of a given school/grade will be able to get into a criteria-based academic program if they want it (not necessarily the specific one they want, but one of them.)

The real problem will be putting some of these schools into academic "death spirals." If anyone in the top 25-30% of a given school -- which at most non-rich schools includes all or almost all kids who would be qualified for and interested in advanced classes-- can leave for a magnet at another school, and half or more of them actually do, it's really going to hollow out what's available at these schools. And if these schools have fewer advanced classes and fewer kids taking advanced classes (and probably also fewer skilled teachers with experience teaching advanced classes, many of whom will likely move to magnets and/or rich schools that still have a strong cohort of advanced kids), their academic reputations will drop. This will cause families who otherwise wanted to stay at their home school to feel like they have to travel elsewhere for their kids to get the basic education and course availability they need, which will then hollow out the home school even further, and the cycle will continue.

DP

This is exactly my worry

In the DCC my impression is that Kennedy HS death spiraled. I don't see how the regional model will help Kennedy at all. The same kids that left Kennedy before will still leave, just to different schools.

They're banking on the Regional IB program at Kennedy being a big enough draw to bring in whiter, upper middle class families to Kennedy. I think that's wishful thinking, since the program thus far has had terrible outcomes.

No one is going to pick Kennedy over their home school except if they had a terrible experience. If they want kids to go put in something desirable like stem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There shouldn't be. Taylor promised abundant program access and an end to the scarcity model that shut kids out from the countywide magnets.

I wish there had been a discussion about what worked and what didn't work about the DCC. They never talked about that, just threw shade at DCC parents as though it's racist to want to keep access for our very economically and racially diverse populations to programs and coursework that the wealthier and less diverse neighborhoods get at their home schools. The DCC schools are geographically closer to each other and easier to get between than the east-west regions they are proposing. Traveling from Silver Spring to Bethesda in the mornings is a nightmare, to Whitman is even worse.

Whitman would be a nightmare plus very different culture. DCC worked but it needed more funding and more course opportunities at all schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There shouldn't be. Taylor promised abundant program access and an end to the scarcity model that shut kids out from the countywide magnets.

He also promised closer programs with easy transportation, but his current plan has some students needing to travel further and offering buses from the home high school only.

He also said he'll balance overcrowding at schools by adjusting the number of seats in magnets - seems in direct conflict with his promise to end the scarcity model.

Even if kids are bussed it doesn’t help parents with transportation for before, after school and weekend activities. For richer parents, they can make it work. Others it’s much harder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There won't be too few seats, except in regions where only one of the academic magnets ends up being considered desirable and the others are avoided.

They are assuming 15%+ of kids will attend criteria-based academic magnets (and over 40% will attend regional programs total) and creating spaces accordingly. Many families will not be able to make the transportation work, will not want to leave their home school, and/or will pick a different regional program other than the criteria-based ones (i.e. if they are interested in arts, for example.) So I would expect that anyone in the top 25%-30% of a given school/grade will be able to get into a criteria-based academic program if they want it (not necessarily the specific one they want, but one of them.)

The real problem will be putting some of these schools into academic "death spirals." If anyone in the top 25-30% of a given school -- which at most non-rich schools includes all or almost all kids who would be qualified for and interested in advanced classes-- can leave for a magnet at another school, and half or more of them actually do, it's really going to hollow out what's available at these schools. And if these schools have fewer advanced classes and fewer kids taking advanced classes (and probably also fewer skilled teachers with experience teaching advanced classes, many of whom will likely move to magnets and/or rich schools that still have a strong cohort of advanced kids), their academic reputations will drop. This will cause families who otherwise wanted to stay at their home school to feel like they have to travel elsewhere for their kids to get the basic education and course availability they need, which will then hollow out the home school even further, and the cycle will continue.

DP

This is exactly my worry

In the DCC my impression is that Kennedy HS death spiraled. I don't see how the regional model will help Kennedy at all. The same kids that left Kennedy before will still leave, just to different schools.

They're banking on the Regional IB program at Kennedy being a big enough draw to bring in whiter, upper middle class families to Kennedy. I think that's wishful thinking, since the program thus far has had terrible outcomes.

Kennedy's IB program is already open to WJ and Wheaton and they don't send a lot of students to it. Yes, WJ does send a good number to RMIB, but given the low RMIB acceptance rates it is likely there are many more students at WJ interested in IB, yet they don't go to Kennedy. Wheaton only sent 20 kids to Kennedy IB in FY25. The regional program proposal does add a criteria based biotech/medical science program, but Wheaton keeps their existing biomedical program so I don't see how that will draw additional kids to Kennedy.

One success of the DCC was putting desirable programs, like engineering, at Wheaton. Wheaton has the same FARMS rate as Kennedy but it draws kids from other schools. That doesn't seem to be the approach they are taking with the regional model.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There won't be too few seats, except in regions where only one of the academic magnets ends up being considered desirable and the others are avoided.

They are assuming 15%+ of kids will attend criteria-based academic magnets (and over 40% will attend regional programs total) and creating spaces accordingly. Many families will not be able to make the transportation work, will not want to leave their home school, and/or will pick a different regional program other than the criteria-based ones (i.e. if they are interested in arts, for example.) So I would expect that anyone in the top 25%-30% of a given school/grade will be able to get into a criteria-based academic program if they want it (not necessarily the specific one they want, but one of them.)

The real problem will be putting some of these schools into academic "death spirals." If anyone in the top 25-30% of a given school -- which at most non-rich schools includes all or almost all kids who would be qualified for and interested in advanced classes-- can leave for a magnet at another school, and half or more of them actually do, it's really going to hollow out what's available at these schools. And if these schools have fewer advanced classes and fewer kids taking advanced classes (and probably also fewer skilled teachers with experience teaching advanced classes, many of whom will likely move to magnets and/or rich schools that still have a strong cohort of advanced kids), their academic reputations will drop. This will cause families who otherwise wanted to stay at their home school to feel like they have to travel elsewhere for their kids to get the basic education and course availability they need, which will then hollow out the home school even further, and the cycle will continue.

DP

This is exactly my worry

In the DCC my impression is that Kennedy HS death spiraled. I don't see how the regional model will help Kennedy at all. The same kids that left Kennedy before will still leave, just to different schools.

They're banking on the Regional IB program at Kennedy being a big enough draw to bring in whiter, upper middle class families to Kennedy. I think that's wishful thinking, since the program thus far has had terrible outcomes.

Kennedy's IB program is already open to WJ and Wheaton and they don't send a lot of students to it. Yes, WJ does send a good number to RMIB, but given the low RMIB acceptance rates it is likely there are many more students at WJ interested in IB, yet they don't go to Kennedy. Wheaton only sent 20 kids to Kennedy IB in FY25. The regional program proposal does add a criteria based biotech/medical science program, but Wheaton keeps their existing biomedical program so I don't see how that will draw additional kids to Kennedy.

One success of the DCC was putting desirable programs, like engineering, at Wheaton. Wheaton has the same FARMS rate as Kennedy but it draws kids from other schools. That doesn't seem to be the approach they are taking with the regional model.

Wheaton's principal is excellent and very savvy. She calculated that there was a sufficient number of students who didn't gain acceptance to Blair's magnet, but who had excellent technical academic skills; she created the Project Lead the Way engineering at Wheaton to attract those students, and it worked. Wheaton currently has the more students accepted into UMD's engineering school than any other high school.

I hope she can figure out a way to maintain this success and overcome Taylor's bungled regional program initiative.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There won't be too few seats, except in regions where only one of the academic magnets ends up being considered desirable and the others are avoided.

They are assuming 15%+ of kids will attend criteria-based academic magnets (and over 40% will attend regional programs total) and creating spaces accordingly. Many families will not be able to make the transportation work, will not want to leave their home school, and/or will pick a different regional program other than the criteria-based ones (i.e. if they are interested in arts, for example.) So I would expect that anyone in the top 25%-30% of a given school/grade will be able to get into a criteria-based academic program if they want it (not necessarily the specific one they want, but one of them.)

The real problem will be putting some of these schools into academic "death spirals." If anyone in the top 25-30% of a given school -- which at most non-rich schools includes all or almost all kids who would be qualified for and interested in advanced classes-- can leave for a magnet at another school, and half or more of them actually do, it's really going to hollow out what's available at these schools. And if these schools have fewer advanced classes and fewer kids taking advanced classes (and probably also fewer skilled teachers with experience teaching advanced classes, many of whom will likely move to magnets and/or rich schools that still have a strong cohort of advanced kids), their academic reputations will drop. This will cause families who otherwise wanted to stay at their home school to feel like they have to travel elsewhere for their kids to get the basic education and course availability they need, which will then hollow out the home school even further, and the cycle will continue.

DP

This is exactly my worry

In the DCC my impression is that Kennedy HS death spiraled. I don't see how the regional model will help Kennedy at all. The same kids that left Kennedy before will still leave, just to different schools.

They're banking on the Regional IB program at Kennedy being a big enough draw to bring in whiter, upper middle class families to Kennedy. I think that's wishful thinking, since the program thus far has had terrible outcomes.

Kennedy's IB program is already open to WJ and Wheaton and they don't send a lot of students to it. Yes, WJ does send a good number to RMIB, but given the low RMIB acceptance rates it is likely there are many more students at WJ interested in IB, yet they don't go to Kennedy. Wheaton only sent 20 kids to Kennedy IB in FY25. The regional program proposal does add a criteria based biotech/medical science program, but Wheaton keeps their existing biomedical program so I don't see how that will draw additional kids to Kennedy.

One success of the DCC was putting desirable programs, like engineering, at Wheaton. Wheaton has the same FARMS rate as Kennedy but it draws kids from other schools. That doesn't seem to be the approach they are taking with the regional model.

Wheaton's principal is excellent and very savvy. She calculated that there was a sufficient number of students who didn't gain acceptance to Blair's magnet, but who had excellent technical academic skills; she created the Project Lead the Way engineering at Wheaton to attract those students, and it worked. Wheaton currently has the more students accepted into UMD's engineering school than any other high school.

I hope she can figure out a way to maintain this success and overcome Taylor's bungled regional program initiative.

Wheaton's had at least 3 principals since the engineering program was created.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

That's what this resolution seems to be saying:

Resolved, That students who are assigned through the Northeast Consortium or Downcounty Consortium school assignment processes prior to the 2027-2028 school year, or who enroll in a centrally-managed regional or countywide program through the existing admissions process, may continue in their assigned or selected program through graduation

It sounds like out-of-consortium 6th graders would also be grandfathered in and can apply to Wheaton engineering?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

That's what this resolution seems to be saying:

Resolved, That students who are assigned through the Northeast Consortium or Downcounty Consortium school assignment processes prior to the 2027-2028 school year, or who enroll in a centrally-managed regional or countywide program through the existing admissions process, may continue in their assigned or selected program through graduation

It sounds like out-of-consortium 6th graders would also be grandfathered in and can apply to Wheaton engineering?

No. The last class to have access to the DCC program options begins classes in Fall 2026.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There shouldn't be. Taylor promised abundant program access and an end to the scarcity model that shut kids out from the countywide magnets.

I wish there had been a discussion about what worked and what didn't work about the DCC. They never talked about that, just threw shade at DCC parents as though it's racist to want to keep access for our very economically and racially diverse populations to programs and coursework that the wealthier and less diverse neighborhoods get at their home schools. The DCC schools are geographically closer to each other and easier to get between than the east-west regions they are proposing. Traveling from Silver Spring to Bethesda in the mornings is a nightmare, to Whitman is even worse.

Whitman would be a nightmare plus very different culture. DCC worked but it needed more funding and more course opportunities at all schools.

Whitman is somewhere around 8 minutes longer on average by auto from the 3 easternmost Region 1 MS's (Eastern/TPMS/SSIMS) than are Kennedy or Wheaton. BCC is around 2 minutes closer. The problem has much more to do with ensuring equivalent access to similar academic opportunities, whether magnet or home school, for all populations/locales than with the associated transportation when compared with that for the current DCC.

They'd have to make sure that the desired programs not only have enough space to take any interested student meeting criteria, but also are distributed in a region such that there is no overall transportation disadvantage to living in one neighborhood/zip code vs. another. Taking the Region 1 example, again, there is far too much concentration of academically rigorous magnets on the west side in their plans as stated thus far.

They'd also have to make sure that each school's non-magnet offerings were reasonably equivalent. Taking that Region 1 example, the set of advanced classes they expect at every school per the plans shared thus far falls very far short of that equivalence, with Whitman, BCC and Blair offering far more than Northwood or Einstein.

Without correcting these in the rollout, they'll simply be setting up a continuation of the have/have-not MCPS dichotomy that leads to the inequities on which they focus their rhetoric but not their resources.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There won't be too few seats, except in regions where only one of the academic magnets ends up being considered desirable and the others are avoided.

They are assuming 15%+ of kids will attend criteria-based academic magnets (and over 40% will attend regional programs total) and creating spaces accordingly. Many families will not be able to make the transportation work, will not want to leave their home school, and/or will pick a different regional program other than the criteria-based ones (i.e. if they are interested in arts, for example.) So I would expect that anyone in the top 25%-30% of a given school/grade will be able to get into a criteria-based academic program if they want it (not necessarily the specific one they want, but one of them.)

The real problem will be putting some of these schools into academic "death spirals." If anyone in the top 25-30% of a given school -- which at most non-rich schools includes all or almost all kids who would be qualified for and interested in advanced classes-- can leave for a magnet at another school, and half or more of them actually do, it's really going to hollow out what's available at these schools. And if these schools have fewer advanced classes and fewer kids taking advanced classes (and probably also fewer skilled teachers with experience teaching advanced classes, many of whom will likely move to magnets and/or rich schools that still have a strong cohort of advanced kids), their academic reputations will drop. This will cause families who otherwise wanted to stay at their home school to feel like they have to travel elsewhere for their kids to get the basic education and course availability they need, which will then hollow out the home school even further, and the cycle will continue.

DP

This is exactly my worry

In the DCC my impression is that Kennedy HS death spiraled. I don't see how the regional model will help Kennedy at all. The same kids that left Kennedy before will still leave, just to different schools.

They're banking on the Regional IB program at Kennedy being a big enough draw to bring in whiter, upper middle class families to Kennedy. I think that's wishful thinking, since the program thus far has had terrible outcomes.

Agree. It is a terrible program in terms of outcomes. And it accepts everyone who applies, so there is not selectivity at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There won't be too few seats, except in regions where only one of the academic magnets ends up being considered desirable and the others are avoided.

They are assuming 15%+ of kids will attend criteria-based academic magnets (and over 40% will attend regional programs total) and creating spaces accordingly. Many families will not be able to make the transportation work, will not want to leave their home school, and/or will pick a different regional program other than the criteria-based ones (i.e. if they are interested in arts, for example.) So I would expect that anyone in the top 25%-30% of a given school/grade will be able to get into a criteria-based academic program if they want it (not necessarily the specific one they want, but one of them.)

The real problem will be putting some of these schools into academic "death spirals." If anyone in the top 25-30% of a given school -- which at most non-rich schools includes all or almost all kids who would be qualified for and interested in advanced classes-- can leave for a magnet at another school, and half or more of them actually do, it's really going to hollow out what's available at these schools. And if these schools have fewer advanced classes and fewer kids taking advanced classes (and probably also fewer skilled teachers with experience teaching advanced classes, many of whom will likely move to magnets and/or rich schools that still have a strong cohort of advanced kids), their academic reputations will drop. This will cause families who otherwise wanted to stay at their home school to feel like they have to travel elsewhere for their kids to get the basic education and course availability they need, which will then hollow out the home school even further, and the cycle will continue.

DP

This is exactly my worry

In the DCC my impression is that Kennedy HS death spiraled. I don't see how the regional model will help Kennedy at all. The same kids that left Kennedy before will still leave, just to different schools.

They're banking on the Regional IB program at Kennedy being a big enough draw to bring in whiter, upper middle class families to Kennedy. I think that's wishful thinking, since the program thus far has had terrible outcomes.

Agree. It is a terrible program in terms of outcomes. And it accepts everyone who applies, so there is not selectivity at all.

Cart before the horse. Make the school offer high academic rigor, including but not limited to the IB, on par with that which RMIB routinely offered and IB-interested/academically minded students/families will go in numbers enough to demonstrate good outcomes. Support academic rigor with fidelity at every ES & MS and they will come from everywhere, too (good brains aren't reserved to the rich).

Don't and they won't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There shouldn't be. Taylor promised abundant program access and an end to the scarcity model that shut kids out from the countywide magnets.

I wish there had been a discussion about what worked and what didn't work about the DCC. They never talked about that, just threw shade at DCC parents as though it's racist to want to keep access for our very economically and racially diverse populations to programs and coursework that the wealthier and less diverse neighborhoods get at their home schools. The DCC schools are geographically closer to each other and easier to get between than the east-west regions they are proposing. Traveling from Silver Spring to Bethesda in the mornings is a nightmare, to Whitman is even worse.

Whitman would be a nightmare plus very different culture. DCC worked but it needed more funding and more course opportunities at all schools.

It’s really interesting that folks talk about this as if only the DCC schools, Wootton and Whitman are included or matter. Like you can’t fathom that the other 18 HS in the county might have needs, wants, and thoughts on how things have been working to date.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There shouldn't be. Taylor promised abundant program access and an end to the scarcity model that shut kids out from the countywide magnets.

I wish there had been a discussion about what worked and what didn't work about the DCC. They never talked about that, just threw shade at DCC parents as though it's racist to want to keep access for our very economically and racially diverse populations to programs and coursework that the wealthier and less diverse neighborhoods get at their home schools. The DCC schools are geographically closer to each other and easier to get between than the east-west regions they are proposing. Traveling from Silver Spring to Bethesda in the mornings is a nightmare, to Whitman is even worse.

Whitman would be a nightmare plus very different culture. DCC worked but it needed more funding and more course opportunities at all schools.

It’s really interesting that folks talk about this as if only the DCC schools, Wootton and Whitman are included or matter. Like you can’t fathom that the other 18 HS in the county might have needs, wants, and thoughts on how things have been working to date.

Lol

Obviously folks are sharing their own needs, wants and thoughts and not trying to pretend they know how people in other school communities feel.

If you don't like hearing from people in certain clusters feel they don't have to read these threads.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So what I understand is all 3 MSMC schools feed into the region where Kennedy and Wheaton are.

My question now is can all the CURRENT 7th graders in those schools, (regardless of where they will go in 2027/28 when DCC will be dissolved) apply to Kennedy and Wheaton coming FALL since all three schools feed into that region? Basically grandfathering them because they are already attending those schools.

Yes. Current 7th graders in those schools can continue and will be grandfathered in.

But starting next year, those DCC kids outside of Region 3 should be cut off since the DCC no longer exists and they can't cross regions anymore.

Interesting. So my kid from Clarksburg who goes to Argyle now can actually apply to Blair CAP or Wheaton Engineering, along with applying to the magnets in our region?

Is Wheaton Engineering the only engineering focused high school is MCPS?

I doubt that seriously. Usually you can apply to the HS magnets/programs in your region unless they were countywide. Given that there is no longer countywide programs/schools your kid can apply to the programs/magnets in region.

The ability to continue with your program is respect to the school and program the student would currently be in when the new model takes affect. Meaning if that if they are already in a HS program they won’t have to leave that school/program.

I wonder if the kids in the MSMC will actually be told which school's magnet program they can apply to or it will be left to the parents to figure it out themselves.

It worked a bit different with MSMC before - basically any kid attending those middle schools, even if they were not part of the DCC could apply to specific programs in the DCC - that was how they pulled in out of consortium kids by dangling this carrot in front of them. It was the only way upcounty school kids were able to go to down county schools like Wheaton Engineering and Blair CAP

Yes, and that would be part of the inequity that folks want to see resolved. All 8th graders are sent letters indicating which programs they are eligible to apply currently. I don't see why that wouldn't continue.

So far all they have done is get rid of the NEC and DCC. If they were offering something they want others to have why are they getting rid of them?

In what will be a futile attempt to entice westside students to apply for eastside schools' ill-conceived, or collapsed, regional programs, MCPS instituted east-west regions. Instead there will be a Hunger Games scenario of eastside parents with the social/financial capital applying to get their students into westside programs, for which there will be too few seats.

Rearranging the chairs on the ship deck here.

There shouldn't be. Taylor promised abundant program access and an end to the scarcity model that shut kids out from the countywide magnets.

I wish there had been a discussion about what worked and what didn't work about the DCC. They never talked about that, just threw shade at DCC parents as though it's racist to want to keep access for our very economically and racially diverse populations to programs and coursework that the wealthier and less diverse neighborhoods get at their home schools. The DCC schools are geographically closer to each other and easier to get between than the east-west regions they are proposing. Traveling from Silver Spring to Bethesda in the mornings is a nightmare, to Whitman is even worse.

Whitman would be a nightmare plus very different culture. DCC worked but it needed more funding and more course opportunities at all schools.

Whitman is somewhere around 8 minutes longer on average by auto from the 3 easternmost Region 1 MS's (Eastern/TPMS/SSIMS) than are Kennedy or Wheaton. BCC is around 2 minutes closer. The problem has much more to do with ensuring equivalent access to similar academic opportunities, whether magnet or home school, for all populations/locales than with the associated transportation when compared with that for the current DCC.

They'd have to make sure that the desired programs not only have enough space to take any interested student meeting criteria, but also are distributed in a region such that there is no overall transportation disadvantage to living in one neighborhood/zip code vs. another. Taking the Region 1 example, again, there is far too much concentration of academically rigorous magnets on the west side in their plans as stated thus far.

They'd also have to make sure that each school's non-magnet offerings were reasonably equivalent. Taking that Region 1 example, the set of advanced classes they expect at every school per the plans shared thus far falls very far short of that equivalence, with Whitman, BCC and Blair offering far more than Northwood or Einstein.

Without correcting these in the rollout, they'll simply be setting up a continuation of the have/have-not MCPS dichotomy that leads to the inequities on which they focus their rhetoric but not their resources.

With an is not 8 minutes, nor is BCC when you take into account traffic. It’s not reasonable to travel from Northwood or Einstein daily especially without transportation.