ludlow-taylor

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Show me the Hill school without annoying people. They seem fairly evenly distributed.

As the parent of a 1st grader IB for SH, I have every expectation people will be stacked up 10 deep to get spots at SH in 5 years. With the new principal and $34m in facilities improvements, I'm thrilled to have a seat waiting for us there. Really want to see EH slingshot forward, too. Maury and Brent and Tyler deserve a good MS option as much as anyone else.

Actually, if you look at this year's OOB lottery, there are already ten applicants for every OOB slot available at SH.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Show me the Hill school without annoying people. They seem fairly evenly distributed.

As the parent of a 1st grader IB for SH, I have every expectation people will be stacked up 10 deep to get spots at SH in 5 years. With the new principal and $34m in facilities improvements, I'm thrilled to have a seat waiting for us there. Really want to see EH slingshot forward, too. Maury and Brent and Tyler deserve a good MS option as much as anyone else.

This was me 7 years ago. We are truly one of the last people left at the Cluster who we started with years ago. The vast majority have "moved" on. Many that are left are moving on for 6th grade -- which is why the SH IB percentage is so low. SH is ok. I don't know if it ever will be great. I just don't think that a new facility is going to be what makes people stay. Personally I think the Clusters should have done a lot more to push for Brent to feed into SH. It would have been a wise move but not all could stomach that. It is great to have a 1st grader but there comes a time, when you see that what is being offered isn't the same as the NW public middle school options. I can't put my finger on it but if you visit Deal and Hardy when you look at SH you will just see that it operates completely differently. That is why people choose to leave.

Back to LT, it would be great if SWS could co-locate there. Won't happen I fear. I have no idea what will happen with SWS. It is such a wonderful program and I worry that it will have a rough road ahead. I just transferred my last child out to head Peabody so we can stick with Watkins. I have kids all over this town in school, there is no way I was going to add another school location onto my drive next year!

The decision for Brent to feed into SH or not really wasn't upbringing.the parents at either school. At Brent we asked for a feed to SH and were given a flat "no way". Dcps in their infinite wisdom wanted Brent as a strong anchor to either Jefferson or Eliot Hine. What did they get? A strong feed from Brent 4th grade straight into Basis.

[Anonymous]

+1

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know how much the waiting list moves at SH?

[Anonymous]

The decision for Brent to feed into SH or not really wasn't upbringing.the parents at either school. At Brent we asked for a feed to SH and were given a flat "no way". Dcps in their infinite wisdom wanted Brent as a strong anchor to either Jefferson or Eliot Hine. What did they get? A strong feed from Brent 4th grade straight into Basis.

With most of the LT middle class families bailing after K, what's the relevance of the SH feed for the IB population? With 5 more years to get through before the feeder pays off, who's going to make it? I only know of a handful of families that sound determined to stay the course to SH.

Sorry, but I'm not clear on why the Brent parents have accepted the injustice of their feeder situation. Because there's no fighting city hall? Because, as I read on another thread, the PTA is divided, with one vocal parent who lives in SW pushing for the Jefferson Academy feeder? Is this parent on her way out? Because Tommy Wells won't help? Anybody talking to the press? And why isn't there room at SH for Brent families when there seems to be plenty of space for Ward 8 kids? Because the Anacostia kids are staying in DCPS Hill schools while the middle class Brent parents tend to bail before 5th (some to Watkins, right?)? Have the Brent parents given up on SH then?

[Anonymous]

The one vocal Jefferson-booster at Brent took his marbles to the Basis playground. I think a large number of Brent parents are watching and hoping to get a word in edgewise now that this guy is moving on.

There are a number of Brent parents in upper grades who are inbounds for the Cluster so they are watching carefully at SH too.

Either way, it's a lottery right now and a Ward 6 student has an equal chance to obtain a spot at SH as a Ward 8 student.

[Anonymous]

Given the impressions of SH that are shared here and obvious if you go there for a visit as being "just ok". Is it any surprise that Brent parents don't hang around until 5th hoping for a lucky lottery number for SH. Nope. They make other plans by 4th. Let me add that this is mostly a brand new situation since Brent students--the 20 of them in 5th grade -- had a semi not official pipeline to Hardy.

Also, as far as injustice, Brent parents worked for two years to try to find an acceptable middle school feeder situation and in the end DCPS came through with the International Baccalaureate program in name only at EH and a re boot at the Jefferson Academy. Neither one so far compelling enough to compete with Basis, Latin, Deal, private or a squeak-by at Hardy or SH. Brent parents fought and tried to work with the city, and are continuing to do that.

[Anonymous]

To round this out, I will add that the parents at Brent, at least in the upper grades, are extremely dedicated to the public school system, their city and to their neighborhood schools. Many have worked like crazy to improve things at Brent since before their kids were in prek 3. It has been very painful and wrenching for most to not continue on through neighborhood schools for middle and high and would have been the ideal. But coming down to the wire many have kids ready to fly academically and the neighborhood middle schools have done nothing to inspire confidence that will happen.

[Anonymous]

I changed the subject line because this conversation has really expanded beyond Ludlow Taylor and as someone who lives on the Hill I find it interesting and the kind of conversation that can't really happen on MoTH. Hope for more to weigh in. Some interesting ideas. I for one like the idea of sharing space at Ludlow Taylor, but would truly worry that it would then result in the some of segregation that occurred in the history of SWS, with SWS being a primarily white program and LT traditional being an all black program.

[Anonymous]

Moth isn't anonymous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[
The decision for Brent to feed into SH or not really wasn't upbringing.the parents at either school. At Brent we asked for a feed to SH and were given a flat "no way". Dcps in their infinite wisdom wanted Brent as a strong anchor to either Jefferson or Eliot Hine. What did they get? A strong feed from Brent 4th grade straight into Basis.

Maybe that's what DCPS wanted to happen -- to filter the Brent kids to BASIS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I for one like the idea of sharing space at Ludlow Taylor, but would truly worry that it would then result in the some of segregation that occurred in the history of SWS, with SWS being a primarily white program and LT traditional being an all black program.

I'm IB at LT, biracial with a couple of graduate degrees, looking for an out after k, and wouldn't mind having primarily white - black programs. What is your worry?

It's the story at Tyler with the regular program and Spanish Immersion and you don't hear many complaints, so most of the parents in both programs must be pretty happy. The Tyler approach is hardly a perfect one, but it is a pragmatic one. Much worse when stressed out middle-class IB parents, pouring their life savings into renovating old houses, end up moving because they lack lottery luck. Much better than middle-class parents avoiding a "neighborhood" school altogether (until v. recently, the situation at both Miner and Payne, now some will at least try their preschools), making it very hard to improve facilities and leadership benefitting all the kids.

It's terrible for a neighborhood with those paying the bulk of the property tax won't touch the IB school, or won't touch it above k. Lesser of the evils, bring on SWS at LT (though I'm among those that can't see it happening).

[Anonymous]

I know there is a lot of talk about bringing SWS to LT, but where would one start to make this discussion something that could actually go somewhere? My DC will be in PS3 at LT this year and I would love to get involved. If its a mute point, so be it, but it sounds worth looking into to me. I am already stressed out about having to move or paying for private in 2 years and that plain sucks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I for one like the idea of sharing space at Ludlow Taylor, but would truly worry that it would then result in the some of segregation that occurred in the history of SWS, with SWS being a primarily white program and LT traditional being an all black program.

I'm IB at LT, biracial with a couple of graduate degrees, looking for an out after k, and wouldn't mind having primarily white - black programs. What is your worry?

It's the story at Tyler with the regular program and Spanish Immersion and you don't hear many complaints, so most of the parents in both programs must be pretty happy. The Tyler approach is hardly a perfect one, but it is a pragmatic one. Much worse when stressed out middle-class IB parents, pouring their life savings into renovating old houses, end up moving because they lack lottery luck. Much better than middle-class parents avoiding a "neighborhood" school altogether (until v. recently, the situation at both Miner and Payne, now some will at least try their preschools), making it very hard to improve facilities and leadership benefitting all the kids.

It's terrible for a neighborhood with those paying the bulk of the property tax won't touch the IB school, or won't touch it above k. Lesser of the evils, bring on SWS at LT (though I'm among those that can't see it happening).

This post is scary on so many levels. Yes, lets return to separate but "equal" and segregation by race! WTF?!?!

[Anonymous]

Re: the Brent "vocal parent" referenced above and in other threads: It should not be overlooked that he gave vast amounts of time and energy to Brent, the PTA and the middle school situation. He had the guts at least to get involved. He was also great at leading meetings. It's easy to cast stones when it's not you up there in front of a hundred of your type A peers who are foaming at the mouth about their property values.

I am a Brent parent and I don't know him very well personally, but I think we should be careful talking about a specific person on these boards.