McDonogh vs. Howard County public

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is why you try to live within ~20min from the school you want to use. This should be news to nobody.

+1
We lived ~35-40 minutes from school. Absolute nightmare. We moved and are now 10 minutes away. I will never recommend a long commute. There is a point where it becomes increasingly painful for everyone.

Op here, we do like the 5-day boarding option for McDonogh, which is really appealing because of the distance. DS has gone down a boarding school rabbit hole and is interested in other options now, but we're applying for 7th grade and not putting that pressure on him.
I honestly think that one of the Roland Park schools may be a better option for our daughter, but the commute is a huge con.
I'd prefer not to move as our mortgage is almost paid in full.

We looked at the McDonogh boarding option and there were only four kids in it. We didn't consider it.

It declined with Covid and has been expanded to healthy numbers again. Would love to get my own kids into it.

There are 30-40 kids in it, at least,
Maybe more? It also varies by semester. It's a nice program, Especially if you need to be at school
Early or late.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know this is an old thread, but our family is strongly considering McDonogh. Is the commute worth it for middle school? We live in southern HoCo and both DH and I work in HoCo as well. Glenelg Country and Trinity are second and third on our list.

Go with your second or third choice, OP. This commute isn't work it.

What commute? McDonough has busses….

Isn’t your kid’s time spent commuting valuable too? Commute doesn’t just mean how much time the parent spends driving the kid.

Ours used the time to do homework. Was done by the time she got home, she said it worked well for her.

[Anonymous]

Op here again, those who had or have DC's that opted for bus transportation, was your kid in elementary school? It's obviously easier to have both kids at the same school, but a long bus ride for a younger kid just seems stressful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here again, those who had or have DC's that opted for bus transportation, was your kid in elementary school? It's obviously easier to have both kids at the same school, but a long bus ride for a younger kid just seems stressful.

Our commute is about 25 min and the bus ride is 30 min. Our elementary school kids love the bus. They have bus friends and like to socialize after school. The kids are well behaved however we joke it is a party bus. In the morning it is less fun since the kids are half asleep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here again, those who had or have DC's that opted for bus transportation, was your kid in elementary school? It's obviously easier to have both kids at the same school, but a long bus ride for a younger kid just seems stressful.

I have two kids in the lower school that take the bus. We live about 20 minutes away and the bus ride is 20-25 minutes. My kids don’t mind the bus but I don’t know how they would feel about a longer ride. It’s a long day for 4-7 year olds. It would be hard to do any activities on weekdays. Also if your kid does any after school program you have to pick them up.

Lastly there are a lot of requests for parents to come to events in the middle of the day in lower school. You don’t have to go but the kids without parents there do notice. It’s just the culture of the school. I’m always surprised by how many parents are frustrated by these requests when they knew they were sending their kid to school 30-45 minutes away. It also makes it hard to do play dates. This stuff probably matters less in middle and upper school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is why you try to live within ~20min from the school you want to use. This should be news to nobody.

+1
We lived ~35-40 minutes from school. Absolute nightmare. We moved and are now 10 minutes away. I will never recommend a long commute. There is a point where it becomes increasingly painful for everyone.

100%

[Anonymous]

Okay. Makes sense. We and DD don't really have any issues with her current elementary school. Moving her wouldn't be advantageous until middle school. I honestly think we can bear the commute for DS middle school years and switching to boarding for HS(or elsewhere depending on his needs).