Is there a way to get my son into a school other than our assigned ES?

[Anonymous]

You need to find a different rental at a preferred school or go private. Every school has bullying.

[Anonymous]

The COSA form gets denied for even legitimate reasons. I submitted it so that I wouldn’t have kids in 2 different middle schools at the same time (we were caught in the cross hairs of redistricting a few years back). I was denied on my first try.

So no, it’s not just simply filling out a form and switching. You need to move to the area where you want your children to attend school.

[Anonymous]

What’s wrong with going to a school with a lot of ESL students? That’s prejudiced to list that as a negative. I am a white native English speaker but I went to an elementary school with a lot of ESL students and loved it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here: I read them on several different sites. Mostly an issue with bullying, the school being largely ESL Learners, among other things. I realize schools will be distance for some time but I am trying to figure out how to navigate this. We are moving from San Diego, have to rent for a year (very slim
Pickings in the rental market) so we would have to switch him to a new school in a year anyway, considering we aren’t going to buy where we are renting. We know nothing about the area, and the move is already stressful enough.

If you're not happy with the school there, have you considered renting a townhouse in another neighborhood? There are many options available with rents similar to the house rentals in the Weller Rd area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are moving from CA where it is relatively easy to get your child into a school in a different neighborhood. I don’t love what I have read about our assigned school and want to look into other options. Is there a such thing as getting him into the school near my job, for transportation reasons? Thank you!

Speaking as though school were a normal setting and COVID was not an issue... Every elementary school has before and after care, so transportation should not be an issue. Needing care and being able to afford it are issues that most families deal with, so not a unique hardship that would be considered for a COSA. Honestly, this is something you should have considered before you purchased the house, if it was that important to you. You could also look at private.

They are renting for a year if you read the thread.

She posted about renting 3 minutes before this posted. When I started this response, that information was not present. Still, although the point is moot, if it matters enough to want to switch schools, it's something that should have been considered before buying a home OR signing a lease. Moving is stressful, and the rental market is low, but schools are important.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What’s wrong with going to a school with a lot of ESL students? That’s prejudiced to list that as a negative. I am a white native English speaker but I went to an elementary school with a lot of ESL students and loved it

My white monolingual kids go to a school with about 45% ESOL students. It's fine. The vast majority of kids all speak English well enough to communicate with friends, and the kids that are new to the country are great exposure for my kids. They've learned about different customs and perspectives, and even some Spanish and Chinese. The hardest thing, I would say, is birthday parties and playdates, in which there has been some difference in culture. But we get to know other families in the park and in the neighborhood. I can't speak for Weller Road Elem, but I love the school my kids attend, and they do too. I don't think you have much of a chance at getting a COSA, so I would focus on learning to like (or at least live with) the assignment. It's only a year, after all, and they won't start in person anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are moving from CA where it is relatively easy to get your child into a school in a different neighborhood. I don’t love what I have read about our assigned school and want to look into other options. Is there a such thing as getting him into the school near my job, for transportation reasons? Thank you!

Did you read those things on DCUM?

LOL!

[Anonymous]

Your choices are to rent in a different school zone or send your child to private. Weller Road is considered a title 1 school. I’m theory lots of people would like to pay the housing prices in this area and send their child to a different school. The county will not allow that.

Alternatively you could see the good in in Weller Road in that it has smaller classes as a title 1 School. In MCPS, the curriculum is the same across the county. During 3rd grade, an assessment is given to each child in the county. If it is determined that academically the child does not have a matching peer group at a school, the child can be recommended to be placed in a center for enriched studies. The only entry point is is 4th grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here: I read them on several different sites. Mostly an issue with bullying, the school being largely ESL Learners, among other things. I realize schools will be distance for some time but I am trying to figure out how to navigate this. We are moving from San Diego, have to rent for a year (very slim
Pickings in the rental market) so we would have to switch him to a new school in a year anyway, considering we aren’t going to buy where we are renting. We know nothing about the area, and the move is already stressful enough.

My child goes to the middle school next door to Weller Road (which Weller Road feeds into) and loves it. If you are only staying in the school for 1 year anyway, it doesn't seem like a big deal. Just send your child to Weller Road for 1 year - they will be fine, they will learn about multiculturalism, they will get the same MCPS curriculum as every other school in the county. And it may even make them more likely to be eligible for a CES in 4th grade because of the cohort. Or rent somewhere else if it really bothers you. There are lots of rentals available in Montgomery County - pickings are definitely not slim.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Through legal means, no.

This is simply not true. You can request a different school if you meet established criteria.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Through legal means, no.

This is simply not true. You can request a different school if you meet established criteria.

Correct, but "I read on the internet that the school is majority Black/brown" is not one of the established criteria.

I mean, can you imagine the OP trying to fill out the COSA form and having that reviewed by the (majority Black) central office folks?

[Anonymous]

I’m familiar with Weller Road.

It’s 83% Hispanic, 7% Black, and less than 5% white. It’s not a diverse school; it’s a school where nearly the entire student body and staff speak Spanish. I can’t think of another school like it.

How do I know it? I grew up nearby and still cut through the neighborhood when visiting my parents.

And—here’s the kicker—my neighbor’s Latina nanny lives in that school district and uses her employer’s (my neighbor’s) address to send her kids to school in our area. Why? Her words: “Because I don’t want my kids going to a Spanish school. I want them to be around other kids.”

I’m curious where you’re renting, OP? Have you researched the local area at all?

BTW, it’s literally the COVID hot spot: 20906.

If you have questions, I’m happy to answer.

[Anonymous]

Are you sure you can't find a different rental? The houses in that area are tiny and old. Look for homes close to where you will be working or somewhere near good commuter routes. COSA is not easy to get, even with "transportation" as an excuse.

Listen, being around hispanics should not be an issue, but the school really is not diverse.

[Anonymous]

OP any ES school you attend in MD is going to be a 200% improvement on any public ES in the whole of CA.

I know, my kids attended in the top Santa Monica / Malibu district schools for early ES and we moved here for 3rd grade.

Its a whole universe away from that over here. Not least because the taxes spent per kid in the schools are approximately $20,000 instead of just $5k like in CA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m familiar with Weller Road.

It’s 83% Hispanic, 7% Black, and less than 5% white. It’s not a diverse school; it’s a school where nearly the entire student body and staff speak Spanish. I can’t think of another school like it.

How do I know it? I grew up nearby and still cut through the neighborhood when visiting my parents.

And—here’s the kicker—my neighbor’s Latina nanny lives in that school district and uses her employer’s (my neighbor’s) address to send her kids to school in our area. Why? Her words: “Because I don’t want my kids going to a Spanish school. I want them to be around other kids.”

I’m curious where you’re renting, OP? Have you researched the local area at all?

BTW, it’s literally the COVID hot spot: 20906.

If you have questions, I’m happy to answer.

Lol, "I grew up nearby" now means you know a school really well? Let me tell you all about Woodfield ES. I attended there 35 years ago. There's a really mean kindergarten teacher that tells at kids who won't go to sleep during naptime. Did you even actually go to Weller Road?

20906 had the most cases of COVID in Maryland early on. Its also the most populous zip code in Maryland. The rate of COVID wasn't any higher than most places--I think we all know that higher density areas are going to have more cases.

I find it sad, but predictable, that your neighbor's nanny (wow, there's a close connection to you--I'm sure you had many deep conversations with her about this and why she doesn't send them to WRES) doesnt want her kids attending a majority Hispanic school. I see similar thoughts in some of my Hispanic family members. They believe that the "white schools" get more because they know that most people hate Hispanic people like them. And since Hispanic parents are so focused on education--many risked life and limb to get their kids to this country for the purpose of education--they're trying to put them where they believe is "the best" education. Which society tells them is white.