School Without Walls High School- Pros and Cons and Social Atmosphere?

[Anonymous]

But the college process is really a 3-4 year endeavor as one needs to plan their coursework to align with college requirements. Is no one on top of that at SWW?

[Anonymous]

My child graduated from Walls and having the same counselor for four years worked well for us. We found Walls to be on top of the idea that the college process is a 4 year endeavor -- way more than the HRCS my other child attends.

Personally, I think the social environment at the school is fine. There always seemed to be plenty of school spirit to me. Are there girls running down the hall in cheerleading outfits like in the movies - not that I saw. They are teenage kids like at every other high school. It ranges from peppy-squeely girls to sullen-moody teens -- like any school. My child had a great social experience and visits high school friends whenever there is a college break.

It's a small school with mixed teachers. There were definitely a couple of teachers (tenured) who rubbed us the wrong way but we got through it. No bullying or exclusion that we ever saw and I think there is minimal behavior problems. Also, we did not experience the academic competition that some PP's have mentioned. To us, it was a good school, with plenty of nice, smart, goofy kids.

[Anonymous]

I like that the counselor that stays with the kids for all 4 years. The 4 counselors at Walls are a team and collaborate well, assisting each other.
Not having a full time principal is insignificant-what do they really DO for a school anyway?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pros: Good teachers, small classes, fosters independence- not warm and fuzzy, mix of kids from all over the city, generally not a lot of behavior issues in class

Cons: Bad teachers (more than you would think), competitive (agree with PP about obsessed with academics, no designated college counselor (your DC's counselor loops with them for 4 years, so senior year they become the college counselor) no full time principal,.

Isn't Richard Trogisch permanent?

Richard Trogisch, principal of School Without Walls High School, has been an educator for over 35 years and an educational leader for more than 25 years. He has worked in schools large and small, public and private, national and international, and has held a multitude of leadership positions: assistant principal, athletic director, principal, and headmaster. His broad range of experiences (as a social studies, math, ESL, P.E. and drama teacher and coach of baseball, basketball and squash) has enabled him to develop many skills, different perspectives and a wide range of solutions to educational issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pros: Good teachers, small classes, fosters independence- not warm and fuzzy, mix of kids from all over the city, generally not a lot of behavior issues in class

Cons: Bad teachers (more than you would think), competitive (agree with PP about obsessed with academics, no designated college counselor (your DC's counselor loops with them for 4 years, so senior year they become the college counselor) no full time principal,.

Isn't Richard Trogisch permanent?

Richard Trogisch, principal of School Without Walls High School, has been an educator for over 35 years and an educational leader for more than 25 years. He has worked in schools large and small, public and private, national and international, and has held a multitude of leadership positions: assistant principal, athletic director, principal, and headmaster. His broad range of experiences (as a social studies, math, ESL, P.E. and drama teacher and coach of baseball, basketball and squash) has enabled him to develop many skills, different perspectives and a wide range of solutions to educational issues.

Yes - but he is also the principal of SWW @ FS.

[Anonymous]

As a GWU faculty member who has worked with Walls students on their senior projects, I am personally appalled by the college counseling process. It seems like the college counseling staff is over-worked and that the students, esp those whose parents may not have attended college themselves, are left to do too much of the leg work on their own. It's a complicated process and not intuitive, so I would have hoped that a magnet program like SWW would do a better job of college counseling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a GWU faculty member who has worked with Walls students on their senior projects, I am personally appalled by the college counseling process. It seems like the college counseling staff is over-worked and that the students, esp those whose parents may not have attended college themselves, are left to do too much of the leg work on their own. It's a complicated process and not intuitive, so I would have hoped that a magnet program like SWW would do a better job of college counseling.

I would agree with this. Based on our experience with 2 graduates from there, the counselors don't work as a team. There are many students there who are first in their family to go. Just filling out FAFSA forms is quite complicated. The senior counselor is completely swamped and sometimes has an intern to help with everything- not another counselor. The senior counselor's responsibilities, along with handling all senior schedules ect, is handling all the college recommendations, sending out all records, and advising all the students about schools, where to apply, financial aid, scholarships- merit and need, ect, ect. It's pretty overwhelming. Some counselors are better at the school stuff, others better with the college process. It just seems one counselor should not handle all of it senior year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On the plus side, presumably the counselor knows the students really well by then.

The counselor who knows the student well could write the recommendation, but you really need a counselor who knows the college process well. The counselor cannot know the process well or have any relationships with colleges/ universities if they are only handling the process once very four years. It's a weakness that could be fixed by realigning the counselor responsibilities.

Agree - and it is probably on the margins where it matters. Things like ED/EA and the other permutations that are popping up, financial aid and scholarships, new SAT vs. ACT -- the basics stay the same but there are subtle shifts that are harder to stay on top of it you aren't living it day to day.

What is ED/EA?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On the plus side, presumably the counselor knows the students really well by then.

The counselor who knows the student well could write the recommendation, but you really need a counselor who knows the college process well. The counselor cannot know the process well or have any relationships with colleges/ universities if they are only handling the process once very four years. It's a weakness that could be fixed by realigning the counselor responsibilities.

Agree - and it is probably on the margins where it matters. Things like ED/EA and the other permutations that are popping up, financial aid and scholarships, new SAT vs. ACT -- the basics stay the same but there are subtle shifts that are harder to stay on top of it you aren't living it day to day.

What is ED/EA?

Early Decision and Early Admission applications to colleges -- these are great options for students who truly know their first choice but also can have implications for the financial aid process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On the plus side, presumably the counselor knows the students really well by then.

The counselor who knows the student well could write the recommendation, but you really need a counselor who knows the college process well. The counselor cannot know the process well or have any relationships with colleges/ universities if they are only handling the process once very four years. It's a weakness that could be fixed by realigning the counselor responsibilities.

Agree - and it is probably on the margins where it matters. Things like ED/EA and the other permutations that are popping up, financial aid and scholarships, new SAT vs. ACT -- the basics stay the same but there are subtle shifts that are harder to stay on top of it you aren't living it day to day.

What is ED/EA?

Early Decision and Early Admission applications to colleges -- these are great options for students who truly know their first choice but also can have implications for the financial aid process.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

My daughter has loved SWW. One reason she chose it over Wilson was that there are few in school behavior issues, ie. classes are not disrupted by kids who are not there to learn. I have not heard of any bullying or other excluding issues. Academics are more intense than at some other DCPS high schools, but if your child is interested and engaged it should be a good fit.

I must disagree with previous posters who indicated there is a lack of extra-curricular activities and sports. The school has a lot of opportunities to engage in both. One advantage to the size is that if your child wants to play a sport, they will likely have the opportunity as opposed to Wilson where they must cut to manageable size team.

I am not a polly-anna and think the school has no issues. The biggest being the lack of leadership from administration. This has become a glaring issue since the Principal began his tenure as a half-time leader at both SWW and FS. Still, the school has definitely challenged my child, who has developed great relationships with fellow students, teachers and coaches.

[Anonymous]

FWIW, the Walls kids participate in our Juniors program at Capital Rowing Club so I know there are opportunities to row.

[Anonymous]

I have two very different children, both of whom attend Walls. They both love it. One is very social and a real "joiner," plays on three sports teams and has really loved getting to know kids from other parts of the city. The other is more introverted, but has still made a great set of friends and found enough activities (music, art) that keep him busy.

Both have done well academically, and are able to balance life and fun with the school work just fine. The leadership is not perfect, and as mentioned by many PPs, there are some great teachers and some sub-par and even unpleasant teachers, but that can be the case with any school.

Our experience with college counseling has been fine--the counselor really knows our senior well, and I find her to be very responsive. But we are able to help our son with much of the process ourselves--don't know what it would be like for families without the support at home.

There are plenty of people who love to point out the shortcomings of Walls, and I have friends whose kids have not had good experiences. Again, can happen at any school.

It is very small, and that isn't always best for some kids or families.

I think one of the best things about the school is the fact that there are really NO behavioral issues in school--they are still teens, so they can be a little full of themselves and test some limits, but I don't ever hear my kids complain about unruly behavior or disruptions in the classroom--everyone seems to take the learning pretty seriously and are respectful. They are not perfect--there is drinking and pot and parties outside of school--just like at any other high school.

[Anonymous]

Our DD has loved her experience at Walls so far (sophomore currently). She's got lot of friends, is involved in different extra curriculars, has had great teachers and not so great teachers. But I see that as something that happens everywhere - public and private schools. There's plenty to do and lots of things to get involved with if you want. The kids seem genuinely to like each other on the whole and there is plenty of school spirit. IT's not a traditional high school, but I hated my rah rah school so that's not for everyone either.

The principal situation is appalling and does have some impact but both asst. principals are great. the counseling situation is also a problem but having had a child at a different DCPS high school I think it's a common issue.

Walls is not a terrible option and can be great for the right kid.
We had privates as choices and we're happy we chose Walls.

[Anonymous]

I am a little concerned to hear about so-called bad teachers at SWW. I realize that every school can have not so good teachers here and there, but currently I would say all of my kid's teachers have been either great or good for the past 4 years. We really had no complaints about the teachers and I did meet with every teacher multiple times and kept on top of what the assignments and course work was.

I would really appreciate any info about what these bad teachers are like without naming names or subjects taught. When I hear bad teacher I think of a teacher who is not knowledgeable in the subject matter or who is unfair or boring or who repeatedly gives wrong information. Is this what several posters are referring too? Also, it would help to hear about the not bad teachers but not so good teachers too. I would also be interested in hearing about how many of these teachers your child has had each year.