Kensington vs. Rockville Public Schools

[jlbr]

We are moving to Maryland from out of state next month. So far we are casting a broad net as to neighborhoods, the main restriction being a humane commute to Chevy Chase for my DH. Our DS is starting kindergarten next fall. Any tips about a great Kindergarten program at a MoCo school?
Our housing budget can go as high as 800k.

[Anonymous]

Kensington is a MUCH more humane commute to Chevy Chase than Rockville. And with a budget of $800K, depending on your must-haves in a home, you can get into parts of Bethesda or Chevy Chase itself which will be closer than either of those.

[jlbr]

15:18, even on the train? My DH rode the Red Line from Rockville and loved it. The Metro tickets are pricey though. Any info on Rockville elementary schools?

[Anonymous]

School boundaries in Montgomery county are not the same as city boundaries. So different neighborhoods of Kensington and Rockville are part of different school clusters. There are good schools in both places, but you may want to do further research on specific schools and neighborhoods.

[Anonymous]

There is a section of Rockville that has a Potomac zipcode (20854) - this is the area surrounding Hadley's Park (aka Falls Rd. Park) and the area between Wootton Parkway and Montrose Road near Falls Rd. The housing stock in that area falls more or less within your parameters and the schools in that area area generally pretty good.

[Anonymous]

That's nowhere near the Metro, though.

[Anonymous]

We're in Rockville - in 20850 about a 5 minute drive from Rockville Metro. We're in the Richard Montgomery cluster and have been generally pleased with the schools (right now, we have one in elementary, one in middle, and one in high).

We also looked in Kensington when we were buying and really loved it, too. We only looked at houses in the Walter Johnson cluster, which does constrain your choices somewhat.

I think you could be happy in either location, depending on the individual neighborhood you picked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a section of Rockville that has a Potomac zipcode (20854) - this is the area surrounding Hadley's Park (aka Falls Rd. Park) and the area between Wootton Parkway and Montrose Road near Falls Rd. The housing stock in that area falls more or less within your parameters and the schools in that area area generally pretty good.

We live there and my husband drives 10 minutes to White Flint Metro. We are at Ritchie Park and although I think the teachers are generally pretty good the administration is impossible to deal with if there is a problem.

[Anonymous]

I would start at the house. Once you find a house you like, then you can look at the neighborhood schools. I recommend staying near the Metro rather than moving west of the 270. Rockville and Kensington are both nice cities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:School boundaries in Montgomery county are not the same as city boundaries. So different neighborhoods of Kensington and Rockville are part of different school clusters. There are good schools in both places, but you may want to do further research on specific schools and neighborhoods.

This is correct. Check out Walter Johnson high school cluster. It serves parts of Bethesda, Kensington and Rockville.

[Anonymous]

The Montrose neighborhood is a 10-minute walk from Twinbrook metro and has many nice houses. It is zoned to Farmland Elementary which is a good school.

[Anonymous]

Kensington is known for a good community and people love the school. Bethesda Elem might also be a good choice as that area is walkable to metro.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't do CC: the elem there is not a warm and fuzzy place. You don't see your neighbors or kids running around in CC.

[Anonymous]

Kensington is right next to Chevy Chase.

[Anonymous]

jlbr wrote:15:18, even on the train? My DH rode the Red Line from Rockville and loved it. The Metro tickets are pricey though. Any info on Rockville elementary schools?

If he becomes a regular metro commuter, chances are he will begin to loathe it.