If you could be in bounds anywhere...

[Anonymous]

We'll be moving back to the area next year, with a child who will be entering kindergarten. We'll be renting, so could in theory live pretty much anywhere, and will make the decision based primarily on school. If you could be in bounds for any DCPS/close-in MoCo school, which one would you choose?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We'll be moving back to the area next year, with a child who will be entering kindergarten. We'll be renting, so could in theory live pretty much anywhere, and will make the decision based primarily on school. If you could be in bounds for any DCPS/close-in MoCo school, which one would you choose?

Charters are changing things so you can rent a larger house in a less expensive zip code and go whereever you get in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We'll be moving back to the area next year, with a child who will be entering kindergarten. We'll be renting, so could in theory live pretty much anywhere, and will make the decision based primarily on school. If you could be in bounds for any DCPS/close-in MoCo school, which one would you choose?

We are in bounds for Murch and are very happy (3 kids there). There is a lot of rental stock in bounds, many apartments and some houses.

[Anonymous]

Wilson or the cluster schools on the Hill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We'll be moving back to the area next year, with a child who will be entering kindergarten. We'll be renting, so could in theory live pretty much anywhere, and will make the decision based primarily on school. If you could be in bounds for any DCPS/close-in MoCo school, which one would you choose?

Charters are changing things so you can rent a larger house in a less expensive zip code and go whereever you get in.

This is incredibly stupid advice. Charters are a crapshoot. Sure, many people get good outcomes and many do not. A charter can be sought even from a good inbounds address, OP clearly puts a priority on the school so is looking for a sure thing, to the extent something like that exists.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We'll be moving back to the area next year, with a child who will be entering kindergarten. We'll be renting, so could in theory live pretty much anywhere, and will make the decision based primarily on school. If you could be in bounds for any DCPS/close-in MoCo school, which one would you choose?

Charters are changing things so you can rent a larger house in a less expensive zip code and go whereever you get in.

This is incredibly stupid advice. Charters are a crapshoot. Sure, many people get good outcomes and many do not. A charter can be sought even from a good inbounds address, OP clearly puts a priority on the school so is looking for a sure thing, to the extent something like that exists.

Yes, it is true that the five or six good NW DCPS schools are a sure thing as are the high real estate prices in the surrounding areas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wilson or the cluster schools on the Hill.

Cluster schools aren't as good as some imagine them to be. Most middle-class families bail on Watkins around 3rd grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wilson or the cluster schools on the Hill.

That's someone who hasn't been in the elementary school game for a while answering...

If you're renting and considering K, then high school (Wilson) does not factor into your decision (you will have moved or bought elsewhere by then). You have the unique opportunity to solely worry about finding the best DC public elementary school for your child. Luckily, elementary schools are generally doing well in this city, none floating to the top as the only best one, and many offer some special methods or models. Charters and out-of-boundary applications can be your back-up should you want options. So you can place your general location ahead of what school to choose, which helps because DC's rental market is difficult.
I'd say post again when you've decided round about where it is you want to live. And then also make a decision about what your child needs in a school. If Capitol Hill should be your destination, as PP assumes, then check out some of the more vibrant schools in that area (Brent, Maury, Tyler). They each have unique offerings, are small enough to immediately connect with friends and neighbors and house some of the most dynamic teachers.

[Anonymous]

A quick reminder for dcps. If you rent and get in as inbounds and move oob, you will need to reapply through the oob lottery

[Anonymous]

Murch if you are concerned about middle and high school too. Brent if you aren't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We'll be moving back to the area next year, with a child who will be entering kindergarten. We'll be renting, so could in theory live pretty much anywhere, and will make the decision based primarily on school. If you could be in bounds for any DCPS/close-in MoCo school, which one would you choose?

Charters are changing things so you can rent a larger house in a less expensive zip code and go whereever you get in.

This is incredibly stupid advice. Charters are a crapshoot. Sure, many people get good outcomes and many do not. A charter can be sought even from a good inbounds address, OP clearly puts a priority on the school so is looking for a sure thing, to the extent something like that exists.

Real estate agents in NW should not worry about the growing success of charter schools in DC. Values around the top NW DCPS schools will be steady, if flat for years to come.

[Anonymous]

Charters are becoming less of a crapshoot. Poorly performing charters actually get shut down a lot more quickly than poorly performing DCPS schools do - and schools like Basis raise the bar. Meanwhile, if someone's worred about property values around the better DCPS schools going down, that doesn't make sense either. Having charter schools pop up that are good doesn't somehow suddenly make the good DCPS schools worse. And meanwhile, not having to worry as much about being IB opens up a lot of new opportunity, which is good for the city in terms of money and investment to improve neighborhoods - that makes charters a good thing for every part of the city.

[Anonymous]

Bancroft for the Spanish plus a good feeder. Bilingualism trumps all for me though.

[Anonymous]

OH this is easy. Rent a 3 bed, 2 bath 2200 square foot apartment at The Willard, just over the DC line in Friendship Hts. The bus for Somerset picks you up at your front door. Montgomery County's top 3 elementary school, urban amenities, metro at your doorstep.

Many international families doing this, fwiw.

(and, yes, I know this is in the DC schools forum but if you go back and read her OP, she specifies DCPS or MoCo. And if I was moving from out of town and could land ANYPLACE for the schools, well, it wouldn't be Watkins or even Murch. Which is my IB, btw)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Charters are becoming less of a crapshoot. Poorly performing charters actually get shut down a lot more quickly than poorly performing DCPS schools do - and schools like Basis raise the bar. Meanwhile, if someone's worred about property values around the better DCPS schools going down, that doesn't make sense either. Having charter schools pop up that are good doesn't somehow suddenly make the good DCPS schools worse. And meanwhile, not having to worry as much about being IB opens up a lot of new opportunity, which is good for the city in terms of money and investment to improve neighborhoods - that makes charters a good thing for every part of the city.

Yes, improving charters help us hold onto our incoming tax base and compete eith Arlington and MoCo.