Two Rivers elementary families -- what is your MS plan

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

[Anonymous]

I will be sending my chickadee to Meret School. I’m sick of my child being around the underachievers. We tried DCPS and it was dreadful. We were enrolled at Janney and weren’t impressed. We then transferred our child to Two Rivers and didn’t like that school either. This will be money well spent. I’m a rich black woman and I refuse to deal with mediocre schools any longer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I will be sending my chickadee to Meret School. I’m sick of my child being around the underachievers. We tried DCPS and it was dreadful. We were enrolled at Janney and weren’t impressed. We then transferred our child to Two Rivers and didn’t like that school either. This will be money well spent. I’m a rich black woman and I refuse to deal with mediocre schools any longer.

I’m the PP. Depending on the cost at Meret, we might just leave the district altogether and enroll at MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I will be sending my chickadee to Meret School. I’m sick of my child being around the underachievers. We tried DCPS and it was dreadful. We were enrolled at Janney and weren’t impressed. We then transferred our child to Two Rivers and didn’t like that school either. This will be money well spent. I’m a rich black woman and I refuse to deal with mediocre schools any longer.

I’m the PP. Depending on the cost at Meret, we might just leave the district altogether and enroll at MCPS.

Lol, what? It's Maret with an A, not Meret. And either you're a troll or you just outed yourself as the one person in the history of DC that left Janney for Two Rivers. Speaking of, if you had spent any time at Janney, you'd know Maret certainly is not better at the elementary level. And if you're rich, you've either got the $40k for tuition or you don't.

[Anonymous]

Be kind, people type on their phones. Typos are commin. I mean common.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

Until the administration and school leaders acknowledge and own the school’s failures, there will be no improvement. We left TRY ES years ago; I was astonished at the denial and excuses dealt out by the school leaders (and parents) regarding serious lapses in curriculum and classroom discipline/management. The death spiral had already begun by the time we left, although maybe things are turning around?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

Until the administration and school leaders acknowledge and own the school’s failures, there will be no improvement. We left TRY ES years ago; I was astonished at the denial and excuses dealt out by the school leaders (and parents) regarding serious lapses in curriculum and classroom discipline/management. The death spiral had already begun by the time we left, although maybe things are turning around?

Well, they did replace some leaders. And things like phasing-in middle school students coming back after Winter break do seem to acknowledge a serious problem. As well as massive attrition from cohorts entering 5th and 6th, to the point where reduced staffing is necessary. I'm not that hopeful just because this is a very, very hard thing to accomplish. But I do think they know they have a big problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I will be sending my chickadee to Meret School. I’m sick of my child being around the underachievers. We tried DCPS and it was dreadful. We were enrolled at Janney and weren’t impressed. We then transferred our child to Two Rivers and didn’t like that school either. This will be money well spent. I’m a rich black woman and I refuse to deal with mediocre schools any longer.

Brave trolling here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

Until the administration and school leaders acknowledge and own the school’s failures, there will be no improvement. We left TRY ES years ago; I was astonished at the denial and excuses dealt out by the school leaders (and parents) regarding serious lapses in curriculum and classroom discipline/management. The death spiral had already begun by the time we left, although maybe things are turning around?

Well, they did replace some leaders. And things like phasing-in middle school students coming back after Winter break do seem to acknowledge a serious problem. As well as massive attrition from cohorts entering 5th and 6th, to the point where reduced staffing is necessary. I'm not that hopeful just because this is a very, very hard thing to accomplish. But I do think they know they have a big problem.

Didn’t they phase in MS students due to their own inability to manage behavioral issues? So because of their own incompetence, students miss out on school and working parents are left figuring out what to do with kids who should be in school? How is this strategic problem solving?!
Im so glad we left this dumpster fire of a school years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

Until the administration and school leaders acknowledge and own the school’s failures, there will be no improvement. We left TRY ES years ago; I was astonished at the denial and excuses dealt out by the school leaders (and parents) regarding serious lapses in curriculum and classroom discipline/management. The death spiral had already begun by the time we left, although maybe things are turning around?

Well, they did replace some leaders. And things like phasing-in middle school students coming back after Winter break do seem to acknowledge a serious problem. As well as massive attrition from cohorts entering 5th and 6th, to the point where reduced staffing is necessary. I'm not that hopeful just because this is a very, very hard thing to accomplish. But I do think they know they have a big problem.

Didn’t they phase in MS students due to their own inability to manage behavioral issues? So because of their own incompetence, students miss out on school and working parents are left figuring out what to do with kids who should be in school? How is this strategic problem solving?!
Im so glad we left this dumpster fire of a school years ago.

Yes, exactly. I think they were trying to impose a behavioral re-set and also change some logistics to minimize overcrowding in hallways. I agree it's because of their own incompetence, I'm just saying, it shows an awareness that they do have a serious problem. I hope that it helped, not sure if it did or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

Until the administration and school leaders acknowledge and own the school’s failures, there will be no improvement. We left TRY ES years ago; I was astonished at the denial and excuses dealt out by the school leaders (and parents) regarding serious lapses in curriculum and classroom discipline/management. The death spiral had already begun by the time we left, although maybe things are turning around?

Well, they did replace some leaders. And things like phasing-in middle school students coming back after Winter break do seem to acknowledge a serious problem. As well as massive attrition from cohorts entering 5th and 6th, to the point where reduced staffing is necessary. I'm not that hopeful just because this is a very, very hard thing to accomplish. But I do think they know they have a big problem.

How much of this was due to TR’s extremely prolonged covid closure? The kids most impacted behaviorally would be the ones kept out of school from 3-5th then dumped into MS. As the kids who didn’t get deprived of the early-tween transition move into MS, maybe things will improve. So that would mean maybe starting with the incoming 6th graders next year (although then you start facing academic deficits from kids who missed out on early literacy/math foundations).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

Until the administration and school leaders acknowledge and own the school’s failures, there will be no improvement. We left TRY ES years ago; I was astonished at the denial and excuses dealt out by the school leaders (and parents) regarding serious lapses in curriculum and classroom discipline/management. The death spiral had already begun by the time we left, although maybe things are turning around?

Well, they did replace some leaders. And things like phasing-in middle school students coming back after Winter break do seem to acknowledge a serious problem. As well as massive attrition from cohorts entering 5th and 6th, to the point where reduced staffing is necessary. I'm not that hopeful just because this is a very, very hard thing to accomplish. But I do think they know they have a big problem.

Didn’t they phase in MS students due to their own inability to manage behavioral issues? So because of their own incompetence, students miss out on school and working parents are left figuring out what to do with kids who should be in school? How is this strategic problem solving?!
Im so glad we left this dumpster fire of a school years ago.

It’s something that the “overton window”
moved on due to covid. School closures are now a tool to solve any kind of issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, I don't go there, but I live in the area and know many who do. I would say:

1) The younger their kids, the more optimistic they are about the middle school. Whether that's just naivete or because they have more time for that to happen, or both, I don't know.

2) Plans tend to be some collection of these ideas:

A. Stay through 5th and then go to Stuart-Hobson, either IB or by lotterying in.
B. Try to lottery into a Stuart-Hobson feeder.
C. Try to lottery into Inspired Teaching.
D. Try to lottery into a DCI feeder school (understanding at your kids' age that DCI isn't guaranteed).
E. Look into Eliot-Hine and Jefferson.
F. St. Anselm's if you have a boy. Other privates such as Capitol Hill Day School and St. Peter's and St. Anthony's.
G. Plan to move-- a lot of people have this idea because they think they'll be wanting (and can afford) a larger home anyway.

+1
We are a current TR4 family. TRY is not an option for middle school unless they can manage to somehow turn things around. My plan is to lottery for ITS, Stuart-Hobson, Truth, or go private. Most TRY4 families leave after 3rd or 4th grade for a chance at a better middle school option.

Until the administration and school leaders acknowledge and own the school’s failures, there will be no improvement. We left TRY ES years ago; I was astonished at the denial and excuses dealt out by the school leaders (and parents) regarding serious lapses in curriculum and classroom discipline/management. The death spiral had already begun by the time we left, although maybe things are turning around?

Well, they did replace some leaders. And things like phasing-in middle school students coming back after Winter break do seem to acknowledge a serious problem. As well as massive attrition from cohorts entering 5th and 6th, to the point where reduced staffing is necessary. I'm not that hopeful just because this is a very, very hard thing to accomplish. But I do think they know they have a big problem.

How much of this was due to TR’s extremely prolonged covid closure? The kids most impacted behaviorally would be the ones kept out of school from 3-5th then dumped into MS. As the kids who didn’t get deprived of the early-tween transition move into MS, maybe things will improve. So that would mean maybe starting with the incoming 6th graders next year (although then you start facing academic deficits from kids who missed out on early literacy/math foundations).

I'm really not sure, but I think TR has so much turnover in upper elementary and the beginning of middle school that it's hard to draw a causal connection. The kids struggling behaviorally at TR middle might not have been enrolled at TR during the COVID closure. Which isn't to say they weren't affected by COVID closure, just that it can't be attributed to TR being closed.

[Anonymous]

Are any of the TR schools fully enrolled (4, Y, or MS)? It doesn’t appear so, and if that’s the case, they are likely taking a big financial hit. And the financials didn’t make much sense years ago (lot of debt, questionable oversight on spending).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are any of the TR schools fully enrolled (4, Y, or MS)? It doesn’t appear so, and if that’s the case, they are likely taking a big financial hit. And the financials didn’t make much sense years ago (lot of debt, questionable oversight on spending).

Well, it's not really a question of reaching their full enrollment cap. The question is whether their budget is in balance, if they have a decrease in enrollment can they offset that by adjusting expenses. You could look at their board meeting minutes.