Future of B-CC Cluster?

[Anonymous]

Can anyone fill me in on what is likely to happen with boundary changes for the B-CC cluster of elementary schools? I ask because we're looking at a house just east of Wisconsin Ave that's currently in the area where kids go to Rosemary Hills for K-2 and then to Bethesda Elementary after that. I've heard that may change, and that kids from that neighborhood may start just going to Bethesda Elementary for all of elementary school. That's much more attractive to us -- not because we see much difference in school quality (both seem like great schools) but because we'd much rather have a school in walking distance (particularly because my wife would be walking to the Bethesda metro stop every morning anyway) than one that's a lengthy bus ride away.

Can anyone give me a prediction of whether they'll change it so that kids from that neighborhood just go to Bethesda Elementary all the way through? That seems like the common-sense solution: the idea of putting a kindergardener on a long bus ride when there's a nearby school just seems ridiculous. But I gather that the decision is controversial. So I'm hoping someone on this board may be able to give us some information.

[Anonymous]

There was an article in the Gazette recently, but the maps didn't make it online, so you might see if you can find a hard copy. I think there are five options and as best I recall under three of them E. Bethesda kids would go to BE from K-5, and under the other two they would go to RHPS and then NCC (although I think under one, they actually would split E Bethesda, with kids north of Chestnut street going to NCC and others going to BE).

I have no good info. but my guess would be they would end up sending them to BE. I will say that we were disappointed when we realized our child would ride the bus to RHPS rather than walk with us to BE, but we have been really pleased with RHPS and in retrospect I am actually glad we ended up there. It's a great neighborhood and I would not let whatever happens with the school boundary stop you from moving in.

[Anonymous]

I am really tired of people using the long bus ride as an excuse about going to RH, it is because you don't want your kids going there because of the Silver Spring kids.

The bus ride is jsut as long as the BE bus ride. The blue bus riders have to wait 10-15 minutes after school for the blue bus to get back to the school and then the travel time it comes to about the same time as the RH bus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am really tired of people using the long bus ride as an excuse about going to RH, it is because you don't want your kids going there because of the Silver Spring kids.

The bus ride is jsut as long as the BE bus ride. The blue bus riders have to wait 10-15 minutes after school for the blue bus to get back to the school and then the travel time it comes to about the same time as the RH bus.

Maybe you should try assuming that people are telling the truth, rather than assuming the worst about their motives and assuming that they're lying to you. Or maybe you should just try reading messages a bit more carefully before shooting your mouth off. Based on the OP's message, it sounds like his wife would walk the kids to school at BE, so he's comparing a walk to a bus ride, not comparing two bus rides.

[Anonymous]

OP here:

To 14:09: Thanks -- that's very helpful information.

To 14:17: While there may some people who are just using the bus ride as an excuse, we're not. We really like the idea of a neighborhood elementary school that we can walk to (and yes, we would plan on walking). Diversity is a very important thing -- I wouldn't want my kids in a school that's all rich white kids -- but being able to walk to school is also really important.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here:

To 14:09: Thanks -- that's very helpful information.

To 14:17: While there may some people who are just using the bus ride as an excuse, we're not. We really like the idea of a neighborhood elementary school that we can walk to (and yes, we would plan on walking). Diversity is a very important thing -- I wouldn't want my kids in a school that's all rich white kids -- but being able to walk to school is also really important.

But BE is all rich white kids. I agree with 14:17, the "long" bus ride is always a great excuse. Please, the bus ride is literally about one mile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But BE is all rich white kids. I agree with 14:17, the "long" bus ride is always a great excuse. Please, the bus ride is literally about one mile.

BE is 60% white. That's pretty far from "all" (for comparison, the US is 72% white, so BE is more racially diverse than the country is).

So, 17:10, are you an uninformed idiot in real life, or do you just play one on the internet?

[Anonymous]

Not to mention that the bus ride is about 4 miles. Personally I will admit I thought before I enrolled that the bus ride would be longer because I thought the bus would pick kids up all the way from E. Bethesda to the school, not make a handful of stops in the neighborhood and then head mostly straight there, but it's possible to provide information about the bus without assuming the worst about everyone. I think your attitude says more about you, PP, than me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But BE is all rich white kids. I agree with 14:17, the "long" bus ride is always a great excuse. Please, the bus ride is literally about one mile.

BE is 60% white. That's pretty far from "all" (for comparison, the US is 72% white, so BE is more racially diverse than the country is).

So, 17:10, are you an uninformed idiot in real life, or do you just play one on the internet?

The FARMS rate is one of the lowest for all elementaries in the county, so by that measure it has very limited SES diversity. It also has a very low ESOL rate. It doesn't seem racially diverse to me at all but maybe some of the white kids are classified as Hispanic.

[Anonymous]

This is very sensitive issue. For the folks who attend the other elementary schools in the cluster - the prospect of changes that make BE relatively less diverse than the other elementary schools in the mini-cluster is troubling. socio-economic and racial diversity is not simple or easy and is difficult to achieve but it is meaningful. If the kids in the mini-cluster do not mix prior to middle-school, the east-west divide already present in the area will only be exacerbated. So, OP - if you like eastern sections of bethesda, just buy the house and accept that the risk that you might remain on a relatively short bus ride to rosemary hills for a few years. Personally, I hope eastern bethesda remains part of the mini-cluster and the east-west divide is not increased.