DC Public Schools

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you to those providing meaningful responses. This is very helpful. If we apply for a charter how likely is a spot?

Depends on the charter and how old your kids are. At the most coveted schools -- Yu Ying, for example -- very, very low. The priority is siblings of current students first, which can sometimes leave only a handful of spots thereafter.

How old are your kids, OP? Many schools have PS3 (so they start at age 3) which means that's the main entry year. Some start at PK4 (4 year olds). Some will tell you it may be actually easier to get a spot at a non-entry year, like 1st grade, because there are fewer applicants.

Note: You will need to lottery into PS3 and PK4 at ALL schools -- even the IB schools.

Here's how you apply
http://www.myschooldc.org/

This site will give you some info on DCPS schools -- look how long the waitlists are at some schools and not at others. Can give you a chance of odds.

http://dcps.dc.gov/DCPS/Learn+About+Schools/Lottery+and+Admissions:+Apply+to+Our+Schools/Lottery/Round+Two+Results

Sorry, here's the link.

[Anonymous]

Personally given your budget I would look in North Cleveland Park, Van Ness, Tenleytown, AU Park, etc. (So in bounds for Murch, Janney, Hearst, maybe Lafayette but it's farther from the metro). You would be able to find something in your budget in those areas (and walking distance the metro) and, at least in my opinion, they offer the most certainty from elementary up through high school.

Yes, other schools seem promising and you could play your luck in the lottery but in those areas (especially North Cleveland Park/Van Ness/Tenleytown) you can get a house < 0.5 miles from the metro and be at a great school. I personally am just very risk averse and so would opt for a neighborhood where I would have pretty high confidence in the schools all the way through, if I could afford it (which it sounds like you can). (ANd I would be willing to perhaps get a smaller, less fancy house in those areas. But again, that's just me; clearly others make other choices and are also quite happy with them!).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, no attitude here just want know how to gather info. I hate the burbs and of European decent so we really don't understand US public school systems at all.

Stoddert elementary has a lot of Europeans -- many of them from Eastern European embassies.
It also has a wonderful after school and summer school programmes.
The overall atmosphere is wonderful. Children and parents are treated respectfully and most teachers are great.


It's a bit far from the metro but there are lots of buses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Personally given your budget I would look in North Cleveland Park, Van Ness, Tenleytown, AU Park, etc. (So in bounds for Murch, Janney, Hearst, maybe Lafayette but it's farther from the metro). You would be able to find something in your budget in those areas (and walking distance the metro) and, at least in my opinion, they offer the most certainty from elementary up through high school.

Yes, other schools seem promising and you could play your luck in the lottery but in those areas (especially North Cleveland Park/Van Ness/Tenleytown) you can get a house < 0.5 miles from the metro and be at a great school. I personally am just very risk averse and so would opt for a neighborhood where I would have pretty high confidence in the schools all the way through, if I could afford it (which it sounds like you can). (ANd I would be willing to perhaps get a smaller, less fancy house in those areas. But again, that's just me; clearly others make other choices and are also quite happy with them!).

This is what I would do if I had your budget. I'm also a risk-adverse person. You want an elementary school that feeds into Deal Middle School (although Hardy seems poised to be just as well-regarded as Deal in 10 years, but that's not guaranteed). As it is, we're going to be playing the charter/OOB DCPS lottery for our rising PK3'er. The sought after charter schools have tough odds of getting in, and there are numerous less-well regarded charter schools with better odds of getting in. Also keep in mind that if your kid gets into a charter, it will probably give you a longer overall commute than if you were sending them to a neighborhood school in a neighborhood further from where you work.

Myschooldc.org is a good place to start.

[Anonymous]

I would advise you to be more open-minded about riding the bus. I actually find it easier to ride the bus than the metro with my toddler, just because of all the faregates and escalators and such. Nobody's trying to push a long commute on you, but if you would open your mind to a short bus ride, it would really open up a lot of real estate to you. If you could accept, say, .75 mile from the metro with a good bus line, you would be in much better shape.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would advise you to be more open-minded about riding the bus. I actually find it easier to ride the bus than the metro with my toddler, just because of all the faregates and escalators and such. Nobody's trying to push a long commute on you, but if you would open your mind to a short bus ride, it would really open up a lot of real estate to you. If you could accept, say, .75 mile from the metro with a good bus line, you would be in much better shape.

I assumed she's talking about the metro for her commute to work...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes we are clueless- I am not pretending I know anything about this system!! And thank you again to all those people who are responding with USEFUL comments.

I highly recommend you call the Chancellor's Response Team (202-478-5738). They are DCPS specific, so won't elaborate on charters, but will be very helpful in explaining the system and the area to you, just tell them you are new to the city and in need of clarity. Call during business hours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Personally given your budget I would look in North Cleveland Park, Van Ness, Tenleytown, AU Park, etc. (So in bounds for Murch, Janney, Hearst, maybe Lafayette but it's farther from the metro). You would be able to find something in your budget in those areas (and walking distance the metro) and, at least in my opinion, they offer the most certainty from elementary up through high school.

Yes, other schools seem promising and you could play your luck in the lottery but in those areas (especially North Cleveland Park/Van Ness/Tenleytown) you can get a house < 0.5 miles from the metro and be at a great school. I personally am just very risk averse and so would opt for a neighborhood where I would have pretty high confidence in the schools all the way through, if I could afford it (which it sounds like you can). (ANd I would be willing to perhaps get a smaller, less fancy house in those areas. But again, that's just me; clearly others make other choices and are also quite happy with them!).

This is what I would do if I had your budget. I'm also a risk-adverse person. You want an elementary school that feeds into Deal Middle School (although Hardy seems poised to be just as well-regarded as Deal in 10 years, but that's not guaranteed). As it is, we're going to be playing the charter/OOB DCPS lottery for our rising PK3'er. The sought after charter schools have tough odds of getting in, and there are numerous less-well regarded charter schools with better odds of getting in. Also keep in mind that if your kid gets into a charter, it will probably give you a longer overall commute than if you were sending them to a neighborhood school in a neighborhood further from where you work.

Myschooldc.org is a good place to start.

The hard part about these neighborhoods is that they're basically suburbs. If you want to be in an "urban" neighborhood, you have to roll the dice on a charter (odds are exceedingly low of getting into something I would consider "good.") If you want a spot at a decent elementary, you have to live in a neighborhood that, while technically DC, doesn't have any urban flavor.

[Anonymous]

If you really want to avoid suburbs, consider living IB for Seaton in Shaw. You can be on the Green line, close to downtown, and afford a nice place. The school is definitely on the rise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Personally given your budget I would look in North Cleveland Park, Van Ness, Tenleytown, AU Park, etc. (So in bounds for Murch, Janney, Hearst, maybe Lafayette but it's farther from the metro). You would be able to find something in your budget in those areas (and walking distance the metro) and, at least in my opinion, they offer the most certainty from elementary up through high school.

Yes, other schools seem promising and you could play your luck in the lottery but in those areas (especially North Cleveland Park/Van Ness/Tenleytown) you can get a house < 0.5 miles from the metro and be at a great school. I personally am just very risk averse and so would opt for a neighborhood where I would have pretty high confidence in the schools all the way through, if I could afford it (which it sounds like you can). (ANd I would be willing to perhaps get a smaller, less fancy house in those areas. But again, that's just me; clearly others make other choices and are also quite happy with them!).

This is what I would do if I had your budget. I'm also a risk-adverse person. You want an elementary school that feeds into Deal Middle School (although Hardy seems poised to be just as well-regarded as Deal in 10 years, but that's not guaranteed). As it is, we're going to be playing the charter/OOB DCPS lottery for our rising PK3'er. The sought after charter schools have tough odds of getting in, and there are numerous less-well regarded charter schools with better odds of getting in. Also keep in mind that if your kid gets into a charter, it will probably give you a longer overall commute than if you were sending them to a neighborhood school in a neighborhood further from where you work.

Myschooldc.org is a good place to start.

The hard part about these neighborhoods is that they're basically suburbs. If you want to be in an "urban" neighborhood, you have to roll the dice on a charter (odds are exceedingly low of getting into something I would consider "good.") If you want a spot at a decent elementary, you have to live in a neighborhood that, while technically DC, doesn't have any urban flavor.

Well, whether something is "urban" is partially a matter of taste. I would recommend spending some time walking around whatever neighborhoods you're considering and see what you think. Columbia Heights and Cleveland Park etc. are very, very different. And yes, many Northwest DC neighborhoods are more like Bethsda and Arlington than urban-urban. I like Shaw better than Columbia Heights if that's what the OP is looking for. Still, if I had a million to spend on a house, I would go for an established school rather than a hip neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Yes! We love Seaton too. It is close to metro.

[Anonymous]

I would look at Brent Elementary on the Hill and maybe Maury.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would look at Brent Elementary on the Hill and maybe Maury.

Maury is fantastic, but has a very small boundary area. Very tight market.

[Anonymous]

If you want edgy and urban and close I'd shoot for Ross (Dupont/Logan Circle) if rich urban is more your speed Georgetown, if you want more diversity look near Logan Circle/Columbia Heights. There is a section of Kalorama Triangle that's really more Adams Morgan and you could send your kids to Oyster, a desirable bilingual Spanish school. We moved from that area to Petworth (15 min. walk to Green Line which is btw underground so open even on snowy days) and found a good home at Barnard but ended up schlepping our kids to a school with higher test scores in the JKLMM area a few years later (not one of those but a school that had some room for out of boundary students.)
You can NOT count on getting into ANY charter except ones you probably wouldn't want to send your kid to i.e. no waitlist. You might get lucky but you have to have a backup plan.

[Anonymous]

OP, since you have a baby, you have a little time. Testing is done on 3rd graders, so a school can have a great program and involved parents through the current year's 3rd grade, without it showing up in the test scores. Therefore, in gentrifying neighborhoods, I really urge you to look beyond test scores and investigate the lower grades and what the parents are doing.

A school like Seaton, for example, will probably have a big jump in scores and therefore in reputation and desirability, when the current cohort of yuppie tots hits 3rd grade. Keep an open mind and do your own research-- you will have to, if you want a nice place close to downtown.