Forum Index
»
Schools and Education General Discussion
Anyone have kids in MC Downcounty Consortium?
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| What about kids at Blair who aren't in the magnets? We're in boundary for Blair, so that's where our kids will go, magnet or not. |
Anonymous
I think the point is that the Montgomery County school system under Superintendent Jerry Weast is possibly in the process of dismantling what he refers to as "boutique programs." For a discussion, see http://themorechild.com/2009/04/24/people-dont-want-to-give-up-those-boutique-programs/ |
Anonymous
|
I too have heard that the boutique programs may be threatened, and also that the Eastern magnet is threatened. I think an active group of parents is opposing these cuts, however.
FWIW, MoCo now seems committed to offering every HS kid either IB or APs. And there has been a sudden flowering of IB programs in the county which are unlikely to go away. The boutique programs are great for a number of reasons. They address different needs (arty kids now have Loiderman, for example). But I also think they're great because their existence reduces the stress of high stakes testing to get into Eastern or Takoma MS, or Blair and Richard Montgomery County for HS. I say this as a parent whose kids both tested for the magnets last fall, and got in, but we didn't consider this a given and we were glad that there were lots of other choices out there. If it's the magnets or nothing, then there's a perception (maybe not true, but maybe partially true) then the magnet kids have perks and college ins that other kids don't have. And given that the magnets have to turn away 5 out of 6 qualified applicants each year, this seems really unfair. Unless you can buy into a house for Whitman or BCC or one of the other prestiguous HS in western MC, which obviously not everybody can do. (Jerry, are you reading this?) |
Anonymous
| There are plenty of us who can afford to live in the Whitman or Churchill clusters but chose not to, and who can easily afford private school. If MoCo drops magnets and "boutique" programs, the county may find that many of us who live in areas like Takoma Park and Silver Spring may simply go private. I hope the Board of Education isn't that shortsighted, but I sometimes wonder. . . . |
Anonymous
|
So your best bet it to hit the test-in magnets (Drew ES usually feeds into the downcounty middle school magnets which feed into Blair) that have been around for quite some time.
Just because they've been around doesn't mean they will maintain the same structure, or frankly the same quality. Staff turnover is increasing. There are pressures around the scheduling. Look very, very carefully and don't just blythely assume that all is well. |
Anonymous
| We haven't managed to make it into any of the boutique or magnet programs, either by lottery or testing in. Very frustrating. My daughter would have loved to go to Loiederman's arts program. |
Anonymous
|
And if all that's left is 2-3 magnets for MS and HS each, how many more families will be frustrated. And how many more qualified applicants for every magnet slot.
21:50 is right, lots of us will go private. We actually did private and are now back in MoCo because of the magnets. And we know several families in our area -- TP and SS -- who turned down NCS, Sidwell and others for the magnets -- including us. Take these away, and there won't be lots of us left. |
Anonymous
| In Takoma Park and Silver Spring, it really is the magnets, or a boutique program, or moving/private school. Even if you think the local MS or HS is fine, your kid will be competing for the same college with all those kids from the Blair magnet and CAP program. Having a greater number of boutiques spreads the good fortune around. |
Anonymous
I don't understand this rationale - wouldn't you have the same issue in a private school or better public school? All the kids competing for the same colleges? |
Anonymous
Worse than "simply go private" for MoCo would be the flight of people from the county back to DC. Schools are a major reason why people with kids move to MoCo. It was the only reason we did. If MoCo no longer has high quality public schools, there's no longer a good reason to live there. If I'm going to spend major bucks for private school, I'd rather live in DC, where I will have a very short commute to work, and where my kids will be close to their private school. MoCo loses big tax dollars if it allows the schools to disintegrate. Unfortunately, it's the County Council that cares about the general tax base in MoCo. , not the BoE. |
Anonymous
I'm the poster who wrote this and I agree with you WRT the tax base. But the BoE, too, should care about a possible exodus if the county dismantles magnet and boutique programs. The loss of this particular demographic would be a net negative for schools in Takoma Park, Silver Spring, Kensington, etc. The BoE already has enough trouble with disparities between the old green and red zones. The kind of shift we're considering, if it took place on a larger scale, would exacerbate those problems. |
Anonymous
| I think that people with the means to leave would, for the most part, not choose DC + private but would instead choose a stronger part of the MoCo school system. |
Anonymous
Not me. I'll stay in my neighborhood, which I love, and do private if necessary. I really don't want to live in Potomac or Bethesda, or even Chevy Chase. But to each his or her own. |
Anonymous
|
Anonymous wrote:
I think that people with the means to leave would, for the most part, not choose DC + private but would instead choose a stronger part of the MoCo school system. Not me. I'll stay in my neighborhood, which I love, and do private if necessary. I really don't want to live in Potomac or Bethesda, or even Chevy Chase. But to each his or her own. Sorry- I didn't mean to imply that everyone would leave. I don't want to leave either. But of those who leave I think more would go to Bethesda and publics (at least the people I know in my neighborhood in SS) then would move to DC. It's too expensive to live in DC and pay for privates. |
Anonymous
Yes, you're probably right. Frankly, my husband would prefer that too. He'd rather invest in a tangible asset, a house, than in private school. Makes sense. We'll see what happens. . . . |