What is the difference bethween Langley and McLean?

[Anonymous]

We live in Chevy Chase and are thinking of moving to McLean. Could somebody please tell me in what ways McLean and Langley differ from each other in terms of students' attitude, academic strength, etc?

My superficial research so far says that Langley is more like Churchill in Potomac (all wealthy students with a sense of entitlement), whereas McLean is more like Whitman in Bethesda (more down-to-earth, more focused on academics, less focused on showing off wealth). Please correct me if I am wrong.

Also, for those in the Langley district west of the beltway (i.e. Spring Hill Elementary), how long does it take for the students to be bussed to high school? Does it complicate your life very much that the high school is so far away?

Thanks in advance.

[Anonymous]

I taught at McLean and have a student in Langley. There is much more a student socio-economic mix at McLean, but still very strong cliques. Academics at both are rigorous. We also live west of the beltway and mornings are really tough with the bus route. We are probably at the lower-end of the socio-economic spectrum at Langley and would be in the middle at McLean. My kids have never felt out-of-place because of this. I guess it is about who they choose as friends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I taught at McLean and have a student in Langley. There is much more a student socio-economic mix at McLean, but still very strong cliques. Academics at both are rigorous. We also live west of the beltway and mornings are really tough with the bus route. We are probably at the lower-end of the socio-economic spectrum at Langley and would be in the middle at McLean. My kids have never felt out-of-place because of this. I guess it is about who they choose as friends.

To put this in "perspective":

To be at the lower end of the spectrum at Langley, your parents own a $850K house in McLean. At McLean, they rent a 2-BR apartment in subsidized or inexpensive housing in Falls Church.

To be in the middle end of the spectrum at Langley, your parents own a $1.2M house in McLean or Great Falls. At McLean, they own a $850K house in McLean, Falls Church or Vienna.

To be at the high end of the spectrum at Langley, your parents own a $3-5M house in McLean or Great Falls. At McLean, they own a $2-2.5M house in McLean.

That's why people say McLean is more diverse, even though most of the kids come from upper-income families.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks, PPs. Is the value of the parents' real estate really such a big topic of conversation among students?

[Anonymous]

well, yes.

[Anonymous]

I think it's safe to say most Langley students are aware that it's the wealthiest school (that is, it has the most rich kids) of any school in the county. I doubt it's a constant topic of conversation.

[Anonymous]

We purposely avoided Langley because we would have been at the low end of the socio-economic scale and worried about how it would impact our kids.

[Anonymous]

I went to an Ivy leage college with two Langley grads and they talked down about people whom they thought were poor or stupic more than anyone else there. A small sampling, but this was my impression. They were smart though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to an Ivy leage college with two Langley grads and they talked down about people whom they thought were poor or stupic more than anyone else there. A small sampling, but this was my impression. They were smart though.

I find that pretty strange, if only because anyone from NoVa boasting about wealth at an Ivy League school is likely to be put in his or her place quickly by someone from NYC or somewhere else with serious money.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure both schools are good. You're asking for parents to give you the gossip scoop on high schooler's attitudes?
If your child is going to do sports, yes, you will need to plan on driving your child to practices and games. Count on that for the distance you live away from the HS. The high schools are large enough that your child will find friends with similar interests and attitudes. Stop stereotyping.

[Anonymous]

Avoid Langley. The principal is easily bullied by the parents to the detriment of the students.

My child asked to be moved out of Langley, despite doing well and having friends. It was about the general climate of the school itself. When I went to disenroll my child, I was told my child was supposed to have gone to each of her teachers to tell them why she was leaving, and that I was lax in not letting her do so. My response was essentially to tell them to go to hell.

[Anonymous]

I have heard the students drive nicer cars than the teachers at Langley. I have also heard that there is a drug problem at Langley.

While academics are important, I would like my child not to be so stressed out from other students with rancid home lives, even if they have oodles of money and an expensive house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in Chevy Chase and are thinking of moving to McLean. Could somebody please tell me in what ways McLean and Langley differ from each other in terms of students' attitude, academic strength, etc?

My superficial research so far says that Langley is more like Churchill in Potomac (all wealthy students with a sense of entitlement), whereas McLean is more like Whitman in Bethesda (more down-to-earth, more focused on academics, less focused on showing off wealth). Please correct me if I am wrong.

Also, for those in the Langley district west of the beltway (i.e. Spring Hill Elementary), how long does it take for the students to be bussed to high school? Does it complicate your life very much that the high school is so far away?

Thanks in advance.

I don't think your stereotrypes of the Bethesda schools are accurate but I would compare Langley to Whitman (both are top scoring non magnet schools in their county, both draw from a high SES area) and McLean to B-CC (a little bit more diversity but still strong academics). We are at one of those 4 and have friends with kids at the other 3 and all like the schools, hard to go wrong at any of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Avoid Langley. The principal is easily bullied by the parents to the detriment of the students.

My child asked to be moved out of Langley, despite doing well and having friends. It was about the general climate of the school itself. When I went to disenroll my child, I was told my child was supposed to have gone to each of her teachers to tell them why she was leaving, and that I was lax in not letting her do so. My response was essentially to tell them to go to hell.

What do you mean by "general climate" and why didn't your child like it?

I've never heard before that a child leaving a public school was supposed to schedule an exit interview with each teacher. I agree that it sounds odd. You don't need their permission.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I taught at McLean and have a student in Langley. There is much more a student socio-economic mix at McLean, but still very strong cliques. Academics at both are rigorous. We also live west of the beltway and mornings are really tough with the bus route. We are probably at the lower-end of the socio-economic spectrum at Langley and would be in the middle at McLean. My kids have never felt out-of-place because of this. I guess it is about who they choose as friends.

To put this in "perspective":

To be at the lower end of the spectrum at Langley, your parents own a $850K house in McLean. At McLean, they rent a 2-BR apartment in subsidized or inexpensive housing in Falls Church.

To be in the middle end of the spectrum at Langley, your parents own a $1.2M house in McLean or Great Falls. At McLean, they own a $850K house in McLean, Falls Church or Vienna.

To be at the high end of the spectrum at Langley, your parents own a $3-5M house in McLean or Great Falls. At McLean, they own a $2-2.5M house in McLean.

That's why people say McLean is more diverse, even though most of the kids come from upper-income families.

Wonderful.