current experience at New Hampshire Estates Elementary, anyone?

[Anonymous]

Hi, we heard some negative stuff about NHE but did a tour and saw just positive stuff. The principal and teachers seem super dedicated, the kids seem calm, happy, engaged, learning. Being Title I they seem to have extra resources like reading specialists, counselors etc + a health center. What gives? Thanks so much!

OP school tours do not tell you much. Most people expect DCC schools to be war zones so they are pleasantly surprised when they don't see the SWAT team taking down snack time. Low expectations can lead to a false sense of positivity from the tour. Just something to be aware about when making your decision.

In order to find first hand experiences can you post on Silver Spring email list and give your email? People do not want to say honest or negative things in public forums. They don't want to get on the bad side of MCPS or the local cheer leaders. They don't want to suppress real estate values so some will say the schools are OK in public and then when with friends go on and on about bad the quality is at the school. If you can find someone from the email list that is willing to talk with you privately you'll get more information. Ask the hard questions and try to figure out how much time the person spends in school. Talk to people who left and find out why. No one wants who tries public really is dying to pay for private school. If they switched there had to be a good reason.

You can also look on the school site and see if it lists the email for any PTA members for the school. While these may be the more positive, cheer leader types for the school they also will have spent some time in the school and understand the issues more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi, I am the OP. I was hoping for some actual experiences, not presumptions based on ethnicity or socioeconomic status or historical data. Thanks.

I posted earlier that I taught there until 5 years ago. As I said, the vast majority of students there face many hardships and challenges, and the educated staff is skilled at working with those issues and providing support. That said, if your child is monolingual with a high literacy background, full health insurance, adequate nutrition, food security, their own bedroom, and consistent housing, he or she may not have many, if any, social peers at NHE.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hi, I am the OP. I was hoping for some actual experiences, not presumptions based on ethnicity or socioeconomic status or historical data. Thanks.

I posted earlier that I taught there until 5 years ago. As I said, the vast majority of students there face many hardships and challenges, and the educated staff is skilled at working with those issues and providing support. That said, if your child is monolingual with a high literacy background, full health insurance, adequate nutrition, food security, their own bedroom, and consistent housing, he or she may not have many, if any, social peers at NHE.

This is what I have heard as well. A child who went to pre-school with my child (admittedly, this was a while ago as the kids are now 12) went there for K but then moved since he didn't have any social peers at the school. His parent also commented that school meetings were conducted entirely in Spanish. The parent said the teachers were great, but the lack of social peers was a huge issue.

[Anonymous]

I buddy’s mom was a teacher there and she would just cry some nights when you kids should discribe their living conditions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Hi, we heard some negative stuff about NHE but did a tour and saw just positive stuff. The principal and teachers seem super dedicated, the kids seem calm, happy, engaged, learning. Being Title I they seem to have extra resources like reading specialists, counselors etc + a health center. What gives? Thanks so much!

OP school tours do not tell you much. Most people expect DCC schools to be war zones so they are pleasantly surprised when they don't see the SWAT team taking down snack time. Low expectations can lead to a false sense of positivity from the tour. Just something to be aware about when making your decision.

In order to find first hand experiences can you post on Silver Spring email list and give your email? People do not want to say honest or negative things in public forums. They don't want to get on the bad side of MCPS or the local cheer leaders. They don't want to suppress real estate values so some will say the schools are OK in public and then when with friends go on and on about bad the quality is at the school. If you can find someone from the email list that is willing to talk with you privately you'll get more information. Ask the hard questions and try to figure out how much time the person spends in school. Talk to people who left and find out why. No one wants who tries public really is dying to pay for private school. If they switched there had to be a good reason.

You can also look on the school site and see if it lists the email for any PTA members for the school. While these may be the more positive, cheer leader types for the school they also will have spent some time in the school and understand the issues more.

This is hands down the most ridiculous post I've ever read on DCUM.

OP, I think you've got a one nut repeatedly posting negative things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is probably nobody on DCUM with kids at NHE. Therefore, all they know if what's been on the news. You won't find objective and/or first hand opinions here.

I am not sure I understand why there would not be anybody on DCUM at this school?

Because it is almost exclusively very poor Latinos and blacks. Many, many recent immigrants without papers. It is at the epicenter of the poorest and roughest part of MoCo

I live in the sfh in the area and I would hardly describe it as a rough neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Hi, we heard some negative stuff about NHE but did a tour and saw just positive stuff. The principal and teachers seem super dedicated, the kids seem calm, happy, engaged, learning. Being Title I they seem to have extra resources like reading specialists, counselors etc + a health center. What gives? Thanks so much!

OP school tours do not tell you much. Most people expect DCC schools to be war zones so they are pleasantly surprised when they don't see the SWAT team taking down snack time. Low expectations can lead to a false sense of positivity from the tour. Just something to be aware about when making your decision.

In order to find first hand experiences can you post on Silver Spring email list and give your email? People do not want to say honest or negative things in public forums. They don't want to get on the bad side of MCPS or the local cheer leaders. They don't want to suppress real estate values so some will say the schools are OK in public and then when with friends go on and on about bad the quality is at the school. If you can find someone from the email list that is willing to talk with you privately you'll get more information. Ask the hard questions and try to figure out how much time the person spends in school. Talk to people who left and find out why. No one wants who tries public really is dying to pay for private school. If they switched there had to be a good reason.

You can also look on the school site and see if it lists the email for any PTA members for the school. While these may be the more positive, cheer leader types for the school they also will have spent some time in the school and understand the issues more.

People are not shy about saying bad things on DCUM, it's anonymous so people can be as nasty and bigotted as they want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is probably nobody on DCUM with kids at NHE. Therefore, all they know if what's been on the news. You won't find objective and/or first hand opinions here.

I am not sure I understand why there would not be anybody on DCUM at this school?

Because it is almost exclusively very poor Latinos and blacks. Many, many recent immigrants without papers. It is at the epicenter of the poorest and roughest part of MoCo

I live in the sfh in the area and I would hardly describe it as a rough neighborhood.

The school has very odd boundaries. It includes a couple of very nice neighborhoods that are actually closer to Highland View, Sligo Creek and Montgomery Knolls than they are to NHE. But most parents in those more affluent neighborhoods send their kids to private, parochial or get COSAs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is probably nobody on DCUM with kids at NHE. Therefore, all they know if what's been on the news. You won't find objective and/or first hand opinions here.

I am not sure I understand why there would not be anybody on DCUM at this school?

Because it is almost exclusively very poor Latinos and blacks. Many, many recent immigrants without papers. It is at the epicenter of the poorest and roughest part of MoCo

I live in the sfh in the area and I would hardly describe it as a rough neighborhood.

The school has very odd boundaries. It includes a couple of very nice neighborhoods that are actually closer to Highland View, Sligo Creek and Montgomery Knolls than they are to NHE. But most parents in those more affluent neighborhoods send their kids to private, parochial or get COSAs.

I grew up around there one elementary over and I can’t remember any middle class kids who went there let along a white kid. It is a tough area and the low income housing around it like Quebec terrace are hot beds of gang activity, drugs and prostitution. Are there some good people there, of course. Are there cute homes not too far away, sure. That said it is widely considered the worst elementary school in MoCo.