Fix the Cluster/Stuart Hobson
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Anonymous
Has it occurred to anyone that this was written by someone at DCPS trying to see how supportive DCUM Hill parents would be to their plan to sell Peabody? Not that there's anything wrong with that. |
Anonymous
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If anybody on this thread is serious about seeing at least one Hill middle school evolve that could rival Deal, Washington Latin, and now Basis in its ability to draw in middle class families, a tough-minded new pressure group committed to realizing this goal is going to be needed, and soon.
You're obviously not going to find the momentum you're looking for from the ossified Cluster leadership, DCPS, or Tommy Well's office. Kaya Henderson seems content to serve SH on a platter to Ward 7 and 8 families, because the school does a much better job than Anacostia DCPS schools, and the high-SES Hill cohort has proven expendable politically on education (remember Fenty and Rhee?). What I'd like to see emerge is a cohesive Brent-Tyler-Maury PTA coalition (with concerned Watkins parents welcome as individuals) that refuses to take no for an answer on several matters: a Stuart Hobson feed, an honors program at Hobson (I agree that at least one test-in magnet program would work best), and an expansion of Hobson's space/facilities to make enough room for more ES feeds (maybe either at Peabody or Ludlow Taylor). If the coalition doesn't get what it needs to stay in DCPS over the next 2 or 3 years (probable), it moves decisively to leave Wells running scared in his next race. |
Anonymous
Nah, you're sounding paranoid. DCPS isn't interested in DCUM. |
Anonymous
one already exists: CHPSO is working towards a middle school plan. i'm not all that involved b/c my kid is only a rising K. but let's not reinvent the wheel. |
Anonymous
and you're sounding like DCPS trying to head people off. Of course DCPS is interested in hearing what involved parents have to say about the schools -- if only to figure out the best way of brushing off their interests when they don't compliment DCPS interests. There's nothing paranoid about thinking DCPS would tune in here. They'd be remiss to not keep up with DCUM and other school blogs. |
Anonymous
They are working for a plan that works great for the Cluster. |
Anonymous
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I love the idea of having more Hill schools feed into SH. Or at least be considered as in proximity for SH. The idea that CHPSO is planning something privately which is great for all seems unlikely. Frankly, I'm a little scared to get involved because I get the sense that there is strong CHPSO old guard who don't care all that much about my interests and don't want to hear from me. The most annoying thing I've heard is Cluster parents telling me to send my kid to EH because it would be good for Eastern (and thus them). If you wouldn't send your kid to EH, don't expect me to send my kid there.
I HATE the idea of sending my 5th or 6th grader in a bus to Latin, but that's looking like about the best option and of course we have to play the lottery to get there. My oldest is entering 3rd. |
Anonymous
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11:36, Eastern is becoming the best kept secret of success. Don't worry our city-wide attraction and acceptance will be available by the time your children reach the 9th grade in 2018.
The nerve of Cluster parents telling someone where to send their children, I can understand your annoyance. |
Anonymous
The cluster 6th grade in 2012-13 admitted 15 kids via lottery. The grade level is full with the three feeder schools. Watkins: 89 5th graders (84 enrolled at SH) LT: 27 5th graders Wilson: 32 5th graders Total: 148 students in feeder schools SH has five sections of 6th grade. @ 30 students per section, that is 150 6th grade seats. To the extent that Ward 7 & 8 students are going to SH, it is because there are OOB students at Watkins, Wilson, & LT. If you want a Ward 6 only MS at SH, you have to close elementary schools on the Hill, so that only Ward 6 students attend the feeder schools. |
Anonymous
| Although, am I right PP that that is the initial lottery? I suspect another good 25-50 will be admitted from the wait list. |
Anonymous
You are correct, the initial lottery was 15 6th graders. At a July Cluster PTA meeting, the principal said that a lot of Wilson & LT students from 5th had registered at SH, and that 84 of 89 5th graders from Watkins had registered. There are also potential students who live in bounds, but did 5th grade at a non-feeder school (say Two Rivers, or Brent OOB). My big point is that the number of 5th grade slots at feeder schools about equals the number of 6th grade slots at SH. The more desirable SH becomes, the higher the rate of 5th graders going on to 6th. In 2011-12, SH 6th was underenrolled and had to really work the WL right around now. In 2012-13, by July, SH 6th had more than enough registered students. So, my guess is there will not be another 25, certainly not another 50 students, admitted to SH this fall. Anyone's guess could be right, and unfortunately, there is not easy way to get data on that kind of question, I've only found it by going to PTA / LSAT meetings and asking. |
Anonymous
| The fact that 84 of the Watkins 5th graders enrolled in Szh is misleading since most of the IB Cluster kids have already left. We started at SWS and I have on entering 6th grade this year. We have one neighborhood friend who started at SWS with us that is heading to SH. The other kids all came in as the IB kids got out. So my question is more of how many of the 84 Watkins kids going to SH are actually IB? My guess would be no more than 1/4 of them. |
Anonymous
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Click! I think of myself as pretty informed but it only just now finally clicked why SH has that many OOB children but we're told no other schools can be added to the feeder pattern. I knew but it wasn't so clear to me the numbers guy/gal laid it out for me a few posts up. For those who're still confused it helps to think backward: Stuart-Hobson currently has 78% OOB students (http://profiles.dcps.dc.gov/Stuart-Hobson+Middle+School/). But it's not like 78% lotteried into SH, only a fraction thereof. By far most of those 78% OOB students attended one of the feeding elementary schools and then transferred to SH by right (Watkins, Ludlow-Taylor, J.O. Wilson). Just to hammer home the point: Watkins is composed of 74% OOB students (granted, many of them probably from other Ward 6 ES boundaries), Ludlow-Taylor has 77% OOB students. Compare that to J.O. Wilson's 60%, Maury's 61%, and Brent's 62%. So no wonder!
Just funneling additional schools into SH obviously can't be done because there are indeed very few spots left up for grabs. Only solutions are: - Not allow transfers by right (which ain't gonna happen because that would cause a DC-wide upheaval of the entire school system) - Adding additional feeders at the expense of existing ones (e.g. closing schools as suggested) - Adding space, and that's the solution that hasn't received any meaningful attention because there just isn't a way to add much space to SH |
Anonymous
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The real solution is to close Ward 6 elementaries, so that the demand for Ward 6 elementaries equals the number of Ward 6 students.
The complaints about students from PG County, Ward 7, Ward 8 won't stop until there are 2 or 3 fewer elementary schools in Ward 6. I'd close Maury and Ludlow-Taylor |
Anonymous
25% of 5th grade in boundary sounds about right, if not too high. Watkins is overall ~30% out of boundary students, and I'd guess that the 1st grade starts off 70% and if the in bounds drops by 10% - 15% a year. . . 70% 1st 60% 2nd 45% 3rd 30% 4th 15% 5th Average of the above is 44% Don't know if it is true, but I did hear that a couple (maybe 2) students are transferring from Brent to Watkins for 5th for the SH feeder. But who knows, maybe by now they are off the Latin Wait List. . . .. |