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DC Public and Public Charter Schools
Diversity in DC public schools
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Anonymous
| Oyster is not that diverse from an AA perspective. Mostly white and Hispanic students. |
Anonymous
Because it is the two that I personally know about. They did not go through the OOB process. And I agree with you, more likely than not, there are probably more. |
Anonymous
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On a semi related note:
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/dc/2010/01/dc_continues_to_lose_blacks_ga.html?wpisrc=nl_buzz |
Anonymous
| Been a long time since dd was at Hyde so things may have changed but it once billed itself as the most diverse school in the city. Back then dd's classes were roughly about 40% white, 40% black, and 20% other plus she had classmates from families from all over the world (Belgium, France, Australia, Iran, Ethiopia, Argentina, Italy, Caribbean, Vietnam, Nigeria, China). It's possible more in-boundary families are attending now which would make it less diverse but definitely take a look at it. |
Anonymous
| OP, my daughter goes to Mann and I have friends with children at Janney. These are the two best public elementary schools in NW DC. They are also primaryily inboundary and also NOT very diverse. Diverse public schools in DC are tend to be those on the cusp AND that also have an large OBB population. People in DC refuse to admit it but DC is a fairly segregated city (maybe it historical) the only way that you are going to find a truly diverse school that is also great is to pick a school that get to select their student, which means that you are looking at private schools and charter. Sorry but that is the hard truth about schools in this area. |
Anonymous
Nice attempt to present your opinion as established fact, but in fact many people would say Lafayette or Oyster. Or Hyde or Key (all of which certainly have more attractive neighborhoods!). And then there are the handful of charter schools which are poaching from even the best of DCPS. |
Anonymous
| Lafayette is surprisingly diverse. Check it out. |
Anonymous
| Shepherd is majority AA, easier to get into OOB than some. Relatively high performing. |
Anonymous
| OP, I suggest that you attend the upcoming open house at Eaton. The school is quite diverse, has a very active parent body, and has a substantial number of OOB students (I think about 40%). |
Anonymous
Ironically, having done an awful lot of due diligence beyond touring just about everywhere (DCPS, charter & private), I would agree that Mann is the strongest DCPS elementary school. But I found Mann's parent group really off-putting. Go figure. (I'd say that Janney is a strong school, not on par with Mann, Lafayette or Hyde, but probably in the next tier with Key and possibly Murch. And the parent group at Janney seems lovely.) |
Anonymous
Charter schools do not get to pick their students. Students are admitted only by lottery. I think the most diverse schools in the area are highly sought after charter schools where there are many more applicants than available slots. The applicants come from all racial and economic backgrounds, and the randomness of entrance means the students reflect the applicant pool. Charter schools that I put in this category from personal observation are Capital City and Yu Ying. Schools that I suspect are like this, but I haven't personally done that much research are EL Haynes, Two Rivers, and Elsie Stokes. At Stokes, I suspect the diversity is much higher for the younger grades, after the move to the Brookland location. For the older grades, which were students enrolled mainly from the years at the 16th St location, there is not much economic diversity (meaning the vast majority of the older grade students are free and reduced lunch) and more limited racial diversity (majority hispanic, some AA, few others). |
Anonymous
I've heard second hand that LAMB (Latin American Montessori Bilingual) is also fairly diverse and that their beautiful new location is likely to increase their applicant pool from all demographic groups and all quadrants. It got a real profile boost when Michelle Obama visited there last fall. |
Anonymous
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The OP is looking to enroll her child in K. Given this, the chances of getting a spot at any of the charters mentioned here are slim to none. These schools start at Pre-K and the spots are filled long before K rolls around (although they need to do a new lottery each year for the possible spot that might open).
I would recommend exploring Shepherd as your highest chance of gaining a K spot. |
Anonymous
| Current LAMB parent here -- LAMB is very diverse, no one group is a majority. LAMB only takes pre-school (age 3) and preK (age 4) though. |
Anonymous
OP, good news is since we're in DC it is nearly impossible that a school would have no kids of color. (I'm AA and went to nearly all white good schools up North, so I understand your concern.) But you don't need to trek to upper NW or shell out $30K for a good school at kindergarten level. Have you checked out some of the 90%+ AA charters like KIPP or DC Prep? Doesn't hurt to look. HTH |