Kids in my neighborhood calling local schools "scary"

[Anonymous]

Very interesting thread. You can't import into Thoreau, Madison, or Kilmer. The import is always "closed" The schools are full. Parents can import to Marshall and do so for the IB program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went there 15 years ago I just remember some new friends I made had alot less than my family. I lived in a nice home w/ pool and lots of luxuries and people always wanted to come over. I loved it (teachers were great and I made honor roll) but than again I was there for only one year until I transferred to a terrible school Hayfield aka Gayfield. I lived in Fairfax Station where it wasn't until they opened South County i realized all the kids were hiding in private schools. If your kids are all going to the school I wouldnt worry too much.

I probably knew you! I went to Luther Jackson and Falls Church and have posted on other threads my support for the schools. I didn't love Luther but that was more due to it being full of 12 and 13 year old kids rather than the academics. In fact most of the kids I knew and was friends with ended up going to Thomas Jefferson for HS. I loved Falls Church since it was a small school with some great teachers. Since it was one of the smaller high schools I was able to play on sports teams (and actually play) when I wouldn't have made the team at a larger, more competitive school like McLean. I also took 5 AP classes my senior year, and about 4 in the previous years so I don't feel the academics were lacking. Yes, it was more diverse both ethnically and socioeconomically than Langley or McLean. I viewed that both now and then as a plus. We live in a big world full of all types, I don't want my kids to only be surround by people just like them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Very interesting thread. You can't import into Thoreau, Madison, or Kilmer. The import is always "closed" The schools are full. Parents can import to Marshall and do so for the IB program.

Regardless of what the "capacity dashboard" on the FCPS web site suggests, there are plenty of students transferring into Madison every year, primarily from South Lakes and Marshall, which are both IB schools. In the case of South Lakes, far more students transfer out of South Lakes into Madison than transfer out of Madison into South Lakes. In the case of Marshall, it's about an equal exchange of students in each direction every year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went there 15 years ago I just remember some new friends I made had alot less than my family. I lived in a nice home w/ pool and lots of luxuries and people always wanted to come over. I loved it (teachers were great and I made honor roll) but than again I was there for only one year until I transferred to a terrible school Hayfield aka Gayfield. I lived in Fairfax Station where it wasn't until they opened South County i realized all the kids were hiding in private schools. If your kids are all going to the school I wouldnt worry too much.

I probably knew you! I went to Luther Jackson and Falls Church and have posted on other threads my support for the schools. I didn't love Luther but that was more due to it being full of 12 and 13 year old kids rather than the academics. In fact most of the kids I knew and was friends with ended up going to Thomas Jefferson for HS. I loved Falls Church since it was a small school with some great teachers. Since it was one of the smaller high schools I was able to play on sports teams (and actually play) when I wouldn't have made the team at a larger, more competitive school like McLean. I also took 5 AP classes my senior year, and about 4 in the previous years so I don't feel the academics were lacking. Yes, it was more diverse both ethnically and socioeconomically than Langley or McLean. I viewed that both now and then as a plus. We live in a big world full of all types, I don't want my kids to only be surround by people just like them.

It would be hard for a kid to be at McLean now and be surrounded by people "just like them." The school is about 5% AA, over 10% Hispanic, and over 20% Asian; the "white" students include substantial numbers of students from the Middle East and Europe; and roughly 10% of the kids get FARMS.

I know you are trying to disabuse people of false assumptions about FCHS, but you don't need to stereotype McLean to get there.

[Anonymous]

Consider volunteering at the schools to gauge hall culture and teaching quality.

[Anonymous]

It would be hard for a kid to be at McLean now and be surrounded by people "just like them." The school is about 5% AA, over 10% Hispanic, and over 20% Asian; the "white" students include substantial numbers of students from the Middle East and Europe; and roughly 10% of the kids get FARMS.

I know you are trying to disabuse people of false assumptions about FCHS, but you don't need to stereotype McLean to get there.

Well said!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a child at Luther Jackson. I heard the rumors before we decided (we could have used Thoreau instead), and they appear to have no basis in current reality. Really. I see and hear zero evidence of anything people were afraid of.

The only possible explanation I can think of is that perhaps the school used to be rougher and is taking a while to shed its reputation. But I do think the reputation is being perpetuated by people who, as PP said, haven't set a foot inside the doors.

I don't know if it had a bad reputation to shed. Falls Church had less low income students decade ago than today, and to some people that would imply that the school is "rougher" today. With the Mosaic and the other developments in Merrifield the neighborhood is looking better and more upscale. My guess is that Falls Church HS's reputation will improve with the neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went there 15 years ago I just remember some new friends I made had alot less than my family. I lived in a nice home w/ pool and lots of luxuries and people always wanted to come over. I loved it (teachers were great and I made honor roll) but than again I was there for only one year until I transferred to a terrible school Hayfield aka Gayfield. I lived in Fairfax Station where it wasn't until they opened South County i realized all the kids were hiding in private schools. If your kids are all going to the school I wouldnt worry too much.

I probably knew you! I went to Luther Jackson and Falls Church and have posted on other threads my support for the schools. I didn't love Luther but that was more due to it being full of 12 and 13 year old kids rather than the academics. In fact most of the kids I knew and was friends with ended up going to Thomas Jefferson for HS. I loved Falls Church since it was a small school with some great teachers. Since it was one of the smaller high schools I was able to play on sports teams (and actually play) when I wouldn't have made the team at a larger, more competitive school like McLean. I also took 5 AP classes my senior year, and about 4 in the previous years so I don't feel the academics were lacking. Yes, it was more diverse both ethnically and socioeconomically than Langley or McLean. I viewed that both now and then as a plus. We live in a big world full of all types, I don't want my kids to only be surround by people just like them.

I'm another person who attended public MS and HS in McLean 12-16 years ago (damn!)

For what its worth, I never hear anything good or bad about Falls Church HS. I've never known anyone who went there. I do meet people who attended other local schools however.

My guess is that the area has gentrified a lot since we went to school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
For what its worth, I never hear anything good or bad about Falls Church HS. I've never known anyone who went there. I do meet people who attended other local schools however.

My guess is that the area has gentrified a lot since we went to school.

Not really. It may happen eventually, since the Falls Church district is so close to DC, but the Falls Church HS district consists largely of middle-class neighborhoods with a high percentage of Hispanic and Asian immigrants. Apart from the Mosaic District, which doesn't have much housing yet, there's not much about that area that says "gentrification."

It would be nice if FCPS could find a way to accelerate the renovation of FCHS, which I don't think is currently scheduled until something like 2024. The building isn't in good shape, and people there seem to feel under siege. The representative on the School Board from the Mason District almost always lives in the Stuart HS district (most recently, Kaye Kory and then Sandy Evans) and a lot of kids from Falls Church transfer to Marshall for the IB program. My own guess is that transfers to Marshall from Falls Church will only increase when Marshall's renovation is finished in a few years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
It would be hard for a kid to be at McLean now and be surrounded by people "just like them." The school is about 5% AA, over 10% Hispanic, and over 20% Asian; the "white" students include substantial numbers of students from the Middle East and Europe; and roughly 10% of the kids get FARMS.

I know you are trying to disabuse people of false assumptions about FCHS, but you don't need to stereotype McLean to get there.

Well said!!![/quote

FCHS pp, as I said I wasn't just talking about ethnicity but also socio-economically. The area that feeds into FCHS has both houses above 750k as well as government subsidized housing. I realize this isn't unique to ffx county schools but I see over and over again on this site the schools that greater diversity disparaged as being bad schools. I am sorry, but it has made me a little defensive.

[Anonymous]

I will admit we lived in one of the neighborhoods that fed into Luther and FCHS and this was part of the reason(I'd say less than 50%) of why we moved. We needed a bigger house, commutes could have been better etc. Decided to move before the kids started school. Our children would have been the minority in the elementary school they were slotted for. I hate this as a reason as I believe in raising our children with an appreciation for well rounded diversity. I believe now we are in a better place there is a big mix of cultures and backgrounds. At the time we left our neighborhood most neighbors had the same feelings and were either planning on moving or sending there kids to private schools. I believe Luther has improved in MANY ways since then! I don't know much about FCHS.