I regret buying in ACPS...should we try to move before ES or wait until DC is older?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op, I would suggest doing some more homework to find out more about the school and actual family experiences there, instead of just having your generic concerns. Attend an open house. Find out about the PTA, consider attending a meeting even before you have a student there. We are in ACPS (not west end, but not one of the schools you listed in your post either), and I too had the "acps is crummy do we need to move" fears before my kid started. So I did some real homework, talked to people, etc and now four years later we are quite happy in our school, and I'm glad that I didn't uproot our family. I've said that we will have to do the same thing as MS approaches, because I do have some concerns (generic ones, much as I did about ES.) That being said, seeing older siblings of my child's friends head to MS, I'm wondering if my fears are unsubstantiated, much like they were re ES (hearing good reports from the sibs who have moved up). We're not at that point yet, but I'm definitely going to do as much as I can to get real data and input (not just rely on people who hang out on dcum) to make our decision. I think it would be helpful for you to do the same!

We are in the West End too, similar experience but we love our house and neighbors. I went to the Kindergarten open house this year at our currently districted school and was blown away by the polish and professionalism of teachers and the behavior and work the kids were doing-- yes, there were a lot of kids on free lunch and most didn't look like my kid, but I was really impressed. (As a point of reference, our child is currently in a very well regarded preschool). I've also joined the PTA list. A couple of big unknowns on the West End... A new school is likely to be opened in 2017 b/t Ramsay and Tucker, pulling overflow from those schools. That will not only change boundaries but kids from those schools may leave where they have been reassigned to and go to that new school. Do you think you will be affected by redistricting-- that is another piece. The last piece is the massive redevelopment that will take place over the next few years-- the Beauregard Plan and others will be full swing my middle school years. At least on predictions that could cause numbers to plummet at ES and definitely by the time your kids are at Hammond.

We are watching things closely this year and haven't ruled anything out yet, but having done the research, I'm cautiously optimistic.

Curious what school you feed into but understand if you don't want to share!

I don't know what I don't know regarding the redistricting issue, but our school, Polk, is very close to us and is one of the less crowded schools in ACPS from what I've heard.

[Anonymous]

Consider Annandale, just outside the beltway in neighborhoods that feed to Woodson, commute to Pentagon should be doable

[Anonymous]

We lived in the Alexandria section of Fairfax County and moved when our oldest was about to start 1st. No regrets. We had the same concerns as PPs and stayed in the county but are in a different pyramid. We wish we moved before any of our kids started K.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Consider Annandale, just outside the beltway in neighborhoods that feed to Woodson, commute to Pentagon should be doable

Agree with PP. There are pockets of Annandale that are zoned for Woodson, neighborhoods have 1/2 acre lots, green space, and numerous routed to choose from: 236, 495, 50, 29.

[Anonymous]

Just give the school a chance. If you don't like it for K, you can start looking elsewhere. We moved from one of the better regarded ACPS schools to Burke when my son was starting 2nd grade, not because we didn't like our ACPS school, but because we needed more room. It was not a big deal, our son has made new friends easily and the transition was fairly seamless.

[Anonymous]

What's your price range? . You could move within the City and get zoned for a non West End school as well as for GW for middle school. There are some pockets with homes in the 500- 600K range and then there are also some smaller townhomes in the 360 - 450K ranges

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the West Springfield pyramid at some point? Both Irving MS and West Springfield HS are good, although Springfield would be a pain for you.

Would it really be terrible to the Pentagon from there? I worried it would be which was ultimately why we ended up in Alexandria in the first place. What's a realistic commute time for arriving by 7:30? Leaving at 5? I probably am not interested in slugging but would consider driving sluggers. Aren't there non-stop buses to the Pentagon, too?

30 min by express bus directly to Pentagon

[Anonymous]

Move now. We waiting way too long and moved in MS. Wish we had moved 5 years sooner. Hard for the kids to restart friendships.

[Anonymous]

In general, the people who tough it out in ACPS and profess happiness about their decision to stay have some confirmation bias and have never experienced anything else.

We were you, OP. Moved to Arlington in second graded for the same reasons (although we were in an East End school). It was absolutely shocking how much better the schools are, up and down the line in terms of programming, classroom environment, amenities, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In general, the people who tough it out in ACPS and profess happiness about their decision to stay have some confirmation bias and have never experienced anything else.

We were you, OP. Moved to Arlington in second graded for the same reasons (although we were in an East End school). It was absolutely shocking how much better the schools are, up and down the line in terms of programming, classroom environment, amenities, etc.

That's the thing, everyone whos happy has confirmation bias. Those who stay and are happy, confirmation bias. Those who go and are happy, confirmation bias. We don't have magical machines that allow people to do one path, rewind, then take the other path and therefore have full information to compare which was "better", factoring in all of the variables. I'm glad you're happy with your choice, PP, but that doesn't mean that someone who made the opposite choice is wrong or wouldn't be happy too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Consider Annandale, just outside the beltway in neighborhoods that feed to Woodson, commute to Pentagon should be doable

OP - this is where I live and I would consider here or in the West Springfield/Lake Braddock area. My DH works at the Pentagon and there are express buses that go up Braddock and take HOV straight to Pentagon, and others that do the same from Little River. He gets on the 17 express bus at Wakefield Chapel (there is a commuter parking lot) and it takes 25 minutes to get to Pentagon at 8am. I think it would take about the same at 7am. If you do change jobs and end up working in the city, you would just hop on the metro at Pentagon from the express bus, the yellow line comes every few minutes and is rarely delayed like the constant problems on the other lines. I work in Chinatown and it takes me 35-45 minutes in the morning. You could also take the VRE if you end up in Burke, or you can try to find a carpool. If you want to drive alone, regular 395 is ok if you go early enough but it gets very backed up by 7/7:30 and I wouldn't count on doing that if you can avoid it.
We moved here from the West End for the schools as well!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In general, the people who tough it out in ACPS and profess happiness about their decision to stay have some confirmation bias and have never experienced anything else.

We were you, OP. Moved to Arlington in second graded for the same reasons (although we were in an East End school). It was absolutely shocking how much better the schools are, up and down the line in terms of programming, classroom environment, amenities, etc.

That's the thing, everyone whos happy has confirmation bias. Those who stay and are happy, confirmation bias. Those who go and are happy, confirmation bias. We don't have magical machines that allow people to do one path, rewind, then take the other path and therefore have full information to compare which was "better", factoring in all of the variables. I'm glad you're happy with your choice, PP, but that doesn't mean that someone who made the opposite choice is wrong or wouldn't be happy too.

They literally just don't know any better.

[Anonymous]

OP I think I know the school/neighborhood you live in. I'd recommend leaving now before school starts. It's such a shame that Alexandria City loses great families each year because they can't get the school thing right. But I'd recommend the PP suggestion of Springfield /Burke.

[Anonymous]

OP, I am in a school in South Arlington that is a 5 on GS. I never even consulted great school. I picked our current school by word of mouth and by visiting the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In general, the people who tough it out in ACPS and profess happiness about their decision to stay have some confirmation bias and have never experienced anything else.

We were you, OP. Moved to Arlington in second graded for the same reasons (although we were in an East End school). It was absolutely shocking how much better the schools are, up and down the line in terms of programming, classroom environment, amenities, etc.

That's the thing, everyone whos happy has confirmation bias. Those who stay and are happy, confirmation bias. Those who go and are happy, confirmation bias. We don't have magical machines that allow people to do one path, rewind, then take the other path and therefore have full information to compare which was "better", factoring in all of the variables. I'm glad you're happy with your choice, PP, but that doesn't mean that someone who made the opposite choice is wrong or wouldn't be happy too.

They literally just don't know any better.

Yes, OP, you totally should make your life choices based on commenrs from anonymous strangers on the internet (who need to validate their own decisions by telling everyone who didn't make the same choice how stupid they are)