Eaton Thrown Under the Bus

[Anonymous]

The most straightforward approach is to continue to offer Eaton Deal or Hardy and perhaps expand the dual choice to other Ward 3 schools. That competition would put the impetus on Hardy to improve quickly, to attract additional high SES kids and relieve some pressure on Deal. In time, more parents may choose Hardy if it adds new, rigorous curricular offerings and enhances its athletic facilities. Another selling point may be its smaller size. If the naysayers say that no one will choose Hardy over Deal, then that raises another point, doesn't it? How is it fair to force students and their families to accept a school that is considered inferior to what they have today?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The most straightforward approach is to continue to offer Eaton Deal or Hardy and perhaps expand the dual choice to other Ward 3 schools. That competition would put the impetus on Hardy to improve quickly, to attract additional high SES kids and relieve some pressure on Deal. In time, more parents may choose Hardy if it adds new, rigorous curricular offerings and enhances its athletic facilities. Another selling point may be its smaller size. If the naysayers say that no one will choose Hardy over Deal, then that raises another point, doesn't it? How is it fair to force students and their families to accept a school that is considered inferior to what they have today?

No dog in this race. However, I would like to point out that no one forces public educational options on anyone. Parents can choose to attend the school they are zoned for, apply to a charter, go private or home school. Taxpayers can advocate for what they perceive is the best option, but in the end --in this country at least-- no one choice is "forced" upon us. I will contend that if they narrow the viable options it may feel like we're being forced, but I believe manipulation is a better word for what is being attempted here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:0 kids from the past 2 5th grades at Mann went to hardy.

-Mann parent

2 kids from Key went to Hardy last year.

There honestly are a large number of parents from the Key district who would consider the Hardy-Wilson path as Hardy is on the upswing, but will not consider it if the path is, say, improving-Hardy-Cardozo.

As a Key parent, we bought on a wish that Hardy would continue on it's improving trajectory - but do feel for the Eaton parents who had their assumed pathway changed on them & they are now in the boat that Key/Mann/Hyde & Stoddert have been in for a long time. (Understanding this is a different discussion than talking about #Eastof16thStreet issues vs. #Westof16thStreet issues).

Just FYI - the old Hardy school always seems like a nice solution, but until DCPS figures out a better solution for their special education care - taking away the contract from the Lab School, including their lease to the facilities - would basically bankrupt the entire system. I personally don't get the 'no way Ellington can be moved' even with the 'powerhouse' of PCCafritz and the decision to renovate - given all the other unrest that's going on with boundaries and so forth (the kids there use the Jelleff Field (now often called the Ellington Field)).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:0 kids from the past 2 5th grades at Mann went to hardy.

-Mann parent

2 kids from Key went to Hardy last year.

There honestly are a large number of parents from the Key district who would consider the Hardy-Wilson path as Hardy is on the upswing, but will not consider it if the path is, say, improving-Hardy-Cardozo.

As a Key parent, we bought on a wish that Hardy would continue on it's improving trajectory - but do feel for the Eaton parents who had their assumed pathway changed on them & they are now in the boat that Key/Mann/Hyde & Stoddert have been in for a long time. (Understanding this is a different discussion than talking about #Eastof16thStreet issues vs. #Westof16thStreet issues).

Just FYI - the old Hardy school always seems like a nice solution, but until DCPS figures out a better solution for their special education care - taking away the contract from the Lab School, including their lease to the facilities - would basically bankrupt the entire system. I personally don't get the 'no way Ellington can be moved' even with the 'powerhouse' of PCCafritz and the decision to renovate - given all the other unrest that's going on with boundaries and so forth (the kids there use the Jelleff Field (now often called the Ellington Field)).

Also called the "Maret home field" because of the semi-exclusive arrangement that Maret school worked out with the Parks & Rec department several years ago to help finance renovations.

Where does Hardy play? Is their only facility the mini-field behind the school, which seems to have been shoehorned in so that space could be maintained for the Georgetown flea market?

By the way, I'd be skeptical of Peggy Cafritz's supposed "power." When she was head of the DC school board, she couldn't even get Ellington painted.

[Anonymous]

Only TWO kids from Key went to Hardy last year? -- why so few?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Only TWO kids from Key went to Hardy last year? -- why so few?

Don't trust the Hardy-bashers on this forum.

There are reasons to be skeptical of Hardy. But there is a poster here who keeps touting that no one goes to Hardy. They used to say "No Mann student has attended Hardy in the last five years." I replied, with certainty, that my next door neighbor currently attends Hardy, so that, literally, cannot be true. Her brother attended too. S/he has now retracted to "no Mann students in the last two years." This may be true, but there is plenty of reason to doubt it given earlier bombastic, but false, claims. I'm equally skeptical of Key claims, though note they may well be true.

Nonetheless, Hardy will have significantly higher IB enrollment this year. And probably each year from here on out.

[Anonymous]

It's not really Hardy-bashing to say there's so few kids from a lot of the feeder schools with very few students that attend - it's just facts. The IB enrollment at the school was 13% last year - just a fact.

But a fact that could change - many IB parents with kids currently in the feeder elementaries have expressed interest in going there in the future - hoping it will get closer to on-par performance-wise with Deal. Will be interesting to see what the IB enrollment will be this fall with the push that Principal Pride and the community have made - and then also if Hardy keeps its feeder rights to Wilson.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only TWO kids from Key went to Hardy last year? -- why so few?

Don't trust the Hardy-bashers on this forum.

There are reasons to be skeptical of Hardy. But there is a poster here who keeps touting that no one goes to Hardy. They used to say "No Mann student has attended Hardy in the last five years." I replied, with certainty, that my next door neighbor currently attends Hardy, so that, literally, cannot be true. Her brother attended too. S/he has now retracted to "no Mann students in the last two years." This may be true, but there is plenty of reason to doubt it given earlier bombastic, but false, claims. I'm equally skeptical of Key claims, though note they may well be true.

Nonetheless, Hardy will have significantly higher IB enrollment this year. And probably each year from here on out.

Deny all you want, but only 2 kids from key went to hardy last year. One is not returning for 7th. And no kids from Mann went.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not really Hardy-bashing to say there's so few kids from a lot of the feeder schools with very few students that attend - it's just facts. The IB enrollment at the school was 13% last year - just a fact.

But a fact that could change - many IB parents with kids currently in the feeder elementaries have expressed interest in going there in the future - hoping it will get closer to on-par performance-wise with Deal. Will be interesting to see what the IB enrollment will be this fall with the push that Principal Pride and the community have made - and then also if Hardy keeps its feeder rights to Wilson.

So don't force elementary schools to Hardy, give them the choice. The healthy competition with Deal with make Hardy better. DC taxi cabs were pretty mediocre until Uber came along, and now some cab companies have upped their game. As Hardy ups its game, it will attract more inbound families. Force students there over Deal, and more of them will peel off early from DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only TWO kids from Key went to Hardy last year? -- why so few?

Don't trust the Hardy-bashers on this forum.

There are reasons to be skeptical of Hardy. But there is a poster here who keeps touting that no one goes to Hardy. They used to say "No Mann student has attended Hardy in the last five years." I replied, with certainty, that my next door neighbor currently attends Hardy, so that, literally, cannot be true. Her brother attended too. S/he has now retracted to "no Mann students in the last two years." This may be true, but there is plenty of reason to doubt it given earlier bombastic, but false, claims. I'm equally skeptical of Key claims, though note they may well be true.

Nonetheless, Hardy will have significantly higher IB enrollment this year. And probably each year from here on out.

Deny all you want, but only 2 kids from key went to hardy last year. One is not returning for 7th. And no kids from Mann went.

I am a parent of a Key 2013 fifth grader and can confirm that only 2 classmates went on to Hardy and one is leaving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:0 kids from the past 2 5th grades at Mann went to hardy.

-Mann parent

2 kids from Key went to Hardy last year.

This is true.

There honestly are a large number of parents from the Key district who would consider the Hardy-Wilson path as Hardy is on the upswing, but will not consider it if the path is, say, improving-Hardy-Cardozo.

As a Key parent, we bought on a wish that Hardy would continue on it's improving trajectory - but do feel for the Eaton parents who had their assumed pathway changed on them & they are now in the boat that Key/Mann/Hyde & Stoddert have been in for a long time. (Understanding this is a different discussion than talking about #Eastof16thStreet issues vs. #Westof16thStreet issues).

Just FYI - the old Hardy school always seems like a nice solution, but until DCPS figures out a better solution for their special education care - taking away the contract from the Lab School, including their lease to the facilities - would basically bankrupt the entire system.

The lease of the old Hardy School is not related to Lab's contract with DCPS. The lease was not even granted by the city, Lab purchased it from the bankruptcy court when the previous tenant, Rock Creek International School, went bankrupt.

Lab currently has around 75 students at the Hardy site. According to their application for a lease extension "almost 21%" of their students came from DCPS. The overwhelming majority of their students come from Maryland and Virginia. "Almost 21%" of 75 is 12 students, the special ed system may be struggling but I don't think 12 students either way is going to "bankrupt the entire system."

I personally don't get the 'no way Ellington can be moved' even with the 'powerhouse' of PCCafritz and the decision to renovate - given all the other unrest that's going on with boundaries and so forth (the kids there use the Jelleff Field (now often called the Ellington Field)).

The Jelleff field is different from the Ellington field. The Ellington Field is on Reservoir Road, the Jelleff field is on S Street at Wisconsin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Also called the "Maret home field" because of the semi-exclusive arrangement that Maret school worked out with the Parks & Rec department several years ago to help finance renovations.

Where does Hardy play? Is their only facility the mini-field behind the school, which seems to have been shoehorned in so that space could be maintained for the Georgetown flea market?

To clarify, the Ellington Field is on Reservoir one block west of Ellington and the Jelleff field is on S at Wisconsin. It's literally across the street from Hardy, but as far as I can tell Hardy doesn't use it at all, it's used by the British School during the day and Maret after school. I know Maret gets dibs because they paid for the field but I don't get why Hardy doesn't use it for PE.