Jefferson Middle School Academy

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It will be faster than people think. There are only so many charter seats available. While families might not move to the new developments, they might purchase some of the existing homes nearby to be close to the new development.

Will it be the next Boston Latin or TJ or other elite school that people point to? No. Could it become the second best MS in the city in the next 5 years? Yes.

No. It couldn't.

When it comes to DCPS, it's at the back of the line behind Deal & Hardy & SH. And that's not including the foundering BM and McF.

The charters are way ahead with Latin, Basis, and DCI.

So, 5 years? Hah! Nope. Maybe 20 (Otoh, SH has been trying to improve for 35 years, so I wouldn't bet on any school that draws so heavily from Ward 9.)

I should have said the 2nd best DCPS MS in the city. The JA PARC scores are already basically equal to SH so it isn't like saying it could be the 2nd best is a big leap. If you are only of the 20% of non-sibs that gets into Latin, congrats. Basis isn't for everyone. Yet, the feeder schools keep growing.

So I'll changes my prediction to answer the question. In 5 years, I think half of the 4th graders (in 3 years) from AB, Brent, Tyler, and VN will end up at a renovated Jefferson. I think that would be attractive to many families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What happened to Jefferson when it went from a junior high to middle school? This is a long time ago when Vera White was principal, but what happened to the math and science within a school program? It was excellent and made Jefferson a really desirable program and alternative to Deal.

The now-removed Wilson feed was also a factor.

No, I don't think Wilson was as much of an attraction back when Jefferson was considered a desireable middle school. It had a gifted program that attracted kids from all over the city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It will be faster than people think. There are only so many charter seats available. While families might not move to the new developments, they might purchase some of the existing homes nearby to be close to the new development.

Will it be the next Boston Latin or TJ or other elite school that people point to? No. Could it become the second best MS in the city in the next 5 years? Yes.

Five years. lol.

[Anonymous]

Hardy is going to have to fill up first.

Families on the Hill will try Latin, Basis and Hardy. Hardy > JA bc of Wilson and fact that there are already honors classes and advanced math.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What happened to Jefferson when it went from a junior high to middle school? This is a long time ago when Vera White was principal, but what happened to the math and science within a school program? It was excellent and made Jefferson a really desirable program and alternative to Deal.

The now-removed Wilson feed was also a factor.

No, I don't think Wilson was as much of an attraction back when Jefferson was considered a desireable middle school. It had a gifted program that attracted kids from all over the city.

There was never a feed from Jefferson to Wilson. But Jefferson's boundary was also IB for Wilson. If you came from Anacostia to Jefferson, you didn't get to go to Wilson; you got to go to Eastern. But if you lived in SW, your IB middle school was Jefferson and your IB high school was Wilson. Even if you never attended Jefferson, you could go to Wilson.

As for the transition, there were really two transitions--Jefferson under Vera White to a different sort of Jefferson Middle School, and then JMS to Jefferson Academy. When Vera White was in charge, Jefferson was basically an application school--kids had to submit grades and essays and teacher recommendations. It attracted some really smart kids from around the district (one of whom now works for Charles Allen). She ran a tight ship and kicked out kids who didn't behave in a way that really isn't possible in DCPS at this point. After Vera White left, Deal and to a lesser extent Hardy became desirable for OOB kids. Then Deal filled up with IB, the Wilson boundary shrunk, there were fewer spots at Hardy, BASIS and Latin and Two Rivers and other charters showed up, and Capitol Hill (and lots of other neighborhoods) gentrified. Jefferson Academy is trying an IB model (which makes sense given the IB program at Eastern) but it's not accredited yet and many kids show up years behind. The school does a good job raising them up, and seems willing to try hard with the kids who are coming in on grade level, but there aren't enough of them to really see how things will be long-term. But if Van Ness can be successful and have another cohort of kids who have JA as their IB MS, if Amidon and Tyler can hold on to some of their on-grade-level kids through the testing grades (and ideally have more of them), and if some kids from Brent start to think about it, things could change over the next 5-10 years. Of course, there's a renovation planned for the middle of that, and the swing space could be a deterrent for some families. Although if they put it somewhere on Capitol Hill, it would really test the statement of many Brent and Tyler families that "oh, I would totally send my kiddo to JA but it's just so far away and there's no good way to get there" (note: JA is 3 blocks from the L'Enfant Plaza metro).

[Anonymous]

Jefferson had a gifted program?! Why the heck was that thrown out? And why won't DCPS install gifted programs elsewhere? This seems part of the puzzle why capable kids don't want to go to these schools. (and of course in DC "gifted" would merely mean "performing above grade level")

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The housing going up will not be attractive to families with 12 year olds. And the people who go public for elementary will do what most of Ward 6 does - lottery to charters, go private/parochial or move. It may turn but it will take a very long time.

This.

DCPS has officially ceded middle schools to the charter community. There are now more public school students in middle school charters than middle school DCPS.

Interestingly, there are now also more PreK students in charters than DCPS. The vote of NO CONFIDENCE in DCPS is getting louder and clearer.

(So why do we have to waste hundreds of millions on sinkholes like Roosevelt and Coolidge?)

Because DCPS enrollment goes back up (compared to charters) for 9th.

It doesn't at Coolidge. That's almost $200 million for maybe 50 graduating seniors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:With all of the new housing construction going up in Southwest, and with Van Ness and Brent feeding into Jefferson, how likely will it be that Jefferson Middle School will be an attractive Middle School option for Middle and Upper-Middle class families in the next few years?

OP, I take it your kids are still young but if not, you actually don't need to wait. If you take a closer look at Jefferson, you'll see that Jefferson could be an excellent option, certainly compared to Stuart-Hobson and in some ways also ahead of Hardy. Sure, in absolute terms, the test scores aren't impressive (though better than you may think) but that's a matter of who comes in, and from what school. Jefferson draws from a huge range of feeder schools (at the open house I went to I think I heard something like two dozen different ones), some very good, some not so good. Add to that a segment of students who may not have a lot of support outside of school. Now, if you look at the year-to-year growth in test scores (what the school system likes to call the "value added"), you'll see that Jefferson works wonders with kids significantly behind, especially in math. Imagine what the school could do with kids who are ahead instead. (We for one are taking the gamble to find out.) You can also find proof in that potential by looking at students Jefferson places into test-in high schools.

Forgive me for being a bit of a cheerleader here (wouldn't mind a few more kids to join by DC's class...). Jefferson is holding one last open house this Wednesday, June 7, 6-7 pm. I know there is a waitlist but imagine it will move still.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With all of the new housing construction going up in Southwest, and with Van Ness and Brent feeding into Jefferson, how likely will it be that Jefferson Middle School will be an attractive Middle School option for Middle and Upper-Middle class families in the next few years?

OP, I take it your kids are still young but if not, you actually don't need to wait. If you take a closer look at Jefferson, you'll see that Jefferson could be an excellent option, certainly compared to Stuart-Hobson and in some ways also ahead of Hardy. Sure, in absolute terms, the test scores aren't impressive (though better than you may think) but that's a matter of who comes in, and from what school. Jefferson draws from a huge range of feeder schools (at the open house I went to I think I heard something like two dozen different ones), some very good, some not so good. Add to that a segment of students who may not have a lot of support outside of school. Now, if you look at the year-to-year growth in test scores (what the school system likes to call the "value added"), you'll see that Jefferson works wonders with kids significantly behind, especially in math. Imagine what the school could do with kids who are ahead instead. (We for one are taking the gamble to find out.) You can also find proof in that potential by looking at students Jefferson places into test-in high schools.

Forgive me for being a bit of a cheerleader here (wouldn't mind a few more kids to join by DC's class...). Jefferson is holding one last open house this Wednesday, June 7, 6-7 pm. I know there is a waitlist but imagine it will move still.

Good luck to you and your DC, PP! I wish you success.

--Van Ness PK3 mom

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The housing going up will not be attractive to families with 12 year olds. And the people who go public for elementary will do what most of Ward 6 does - lottery to charters, go private/parochial or move. It may turn but it will take a very long time.

This.

DCPS has officially ceded middle schools to the charter community. There are now more public school students in middle school charters than middle school DCPS.

Interestingly, there are now also more PreK students in charters than DCPS. The vote of NO CONFIDENCE in DCPS is getting louder and clearer.

(So why do we have to waste hundreds of millions on sinkholes like Roosevelt and Coolidge?)

If only DCPS would add more PK capacity in locations where the demand is there, this would flip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With all of the new housing construction going up in Southwest, and with Van Ness and Brent feeding into Jefferson, how likely will it be that Jefferson Middle School will be an attractive Middle School option for Middle and Upper-Middle class families in the next few years?

OP, I take it your kids are still young but if not, you actually don't need to wait. If you take a closer look at Jefferson, you'll see that Jefferson could be an excellent option, certainly compared to Stuart-Hobson and in some ways also ahead of Hardy. Sure, in absolute terms, the test scores aren't impressive (though better than you may think) but that's a matter of who comes in, and from what school. Jefferson draws from a huge range of feeder schools (at the open house I went to I think I heard something like two dozen different ones), some very good, some not so good. Add to that a segment of students who may not have a lot of support outside of school. Now, if you look at the year-to-year growth in test scores (what the school system likes to call the "value added"), you'll see that Jefferson works wonders with kids significantly behind, especially in math. Imagine what the school could do with kids who are ahead instead. (We for one are taking the gamble to find out.) You can also find proof in that potential by looking at students Jefferson places into test-in high schools.

Forgive me for being a bit of a cheerleader here (wouldn't mind a few more kids to join by DC's class...). Jefferson is holding one last open house this Wednesday, June 7, 6-7 pm. I know there is a waitlist but imagine it will move still.

Is the kool-aid refreshing? How many Brent kids will be attending Jefferson next year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The housing going up will not be attractive to families with 12 year olds. And the people who go public for elementary will do what most of Ward 6 does - lottery to charters, go private/parochial or move. It may turn but it will take a very long time.

This.

DCPS has officially ceded middle schools to the charter community. There are now more public school students in middle school charters than middle school DCPS.

Interestingly, there are now also more PreK students in charters than DCPS. The vote of NO CONFIDENCE in DCPS is getting louder and clearer.

(So why do we have to waste hundreds of millions on sinkholes like Roosevelt and Coolidge?)

If only DCPS would add more PK capacity in locations where the demand is there, this would flip.

DCPS is not interested in flipping.

Until you understand that the lowest performing kids (which are the almost 40% of DCPS that can't even read at grade level) are the priority of the system, you will continue to be disappointed in DCPS.

DCPS does not care about children who can perform at or above grade level. They are not getting hammered about those children. Stop thinking that those children matter to DCPS as anything other than tools in the classroom to improve the performance of the low-performing kids.

[Anonymous]

NP. You're right PP, but a new mayor could indeed change this calculus. If either Racine or Gray displaces Bowser, either might be persuaded to demand that DCPS offers honors classes at middle schools like Jefferson that are 2/3 empty where in-boundary percentages are low but feeder elementary schools are thriving (Jefferson Academy's building can accommodate three times as many students as it serves). This fix is obvious and gentrifiers vote. In that case, the sky would be the limit at JA. I don't expect a new mayor to be elected, or to demand this, but I wouldn't rule it out either. The Old Guard of the Dem machine in this city remembers the Jefferson honors program. A mayor of that ilk might be more amenable to moving to recreate it as a school within a school program than we think. Antwan Wilson is already making changes up the DCPS chain. The ground is being laid for greater change. In the meantime, I'm with the PPs who see more Brent families heading to Hardy than to JA.

[Anonymous]

Gray already had a chance as Mayor to make a difference in the schools. No legacy there.

Honestly the politicians who've made a difference are: Barry (in a negative way), Anthony Williams (began the turnaround of the city), Fenty, and Catania.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. You're right PP, but a new mayor could indeed change this calculus. If either Racine or Gray displaces Bowser, either might be persuaded to demand that DCPS offers honors classes at middle schools like Jefferson that are 2/3 empty where in-boundary percentages are low but feeder elementary schools are thriving (Jefferson Academy's building can accommodate three times as many students as it serves). This fix is obvious and gentrifiers vote. In that case, the sky would be the limit at JA. I don't expect a new mayor to be elected, or to demand this, but I wouldn't rule it out either. The Old Guard of the Dem machine in this city remembers the Jefferson honors program. A mayor of that ilk might be more amenable to moving to recreate it as a school within a school program than we think. Antwan Wilson is already making changes up the DCPS chain. The ground is being laid for greater change. In the meantime, I'm with the PPs who see more Brent families heading to Hardy than to JA.

There are simply not enough gentrifiers to make a significant difference to someone running city-wide (city-wide council is different because you can vote for more than one candidate). And not all gentrifiers prioritize schools when voting.