West Potomac college acceptances

[Anonymous]

WestPo's FARMS rate is 42.32%. That is low compared schools in the Eastern part of the county. So these may have different goals.

[Anonymous]

*high compared to Western part of the county. Don't compare to Langely. Maybe try comparing to Edison which has slightly lower FARMS rate and is in Alexandria.

[Anonymous]

Yes, there is a small cohort each year that applies to and attends Ivies from West Potomac. Larger group that ends up at UVA or W&M, or at VA Tech's engineering program. The school is not at all helpful or encouraging in this process, and the student has to be self motivated to do it. I think it will be hard to tell if your child is a good fit for that type of HS this early on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, there is a small cohort each year that applies to and attends Ivies from West Potomac. Larger group that ends up at UVA or W&M, or at VA Tech's engineering program. The school is not at all helpful or encouraging in this process, and the student has to be self motivated to do it. I think it will be hard to tell if your child is a good fit for that type of HS this early on.

What exactly is it that you think the school should do that it does not do to be helpful or encouraging vis-à-vis the college application process?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I'm deciding whether to send my kids to west Potomac. I want to know if it has students interested in applying to elite schools and whether the school helps them achieve their goal. My public high school did not and I have to believe it was because there was not any demand. I am on the lookout for this.

If this was true, then you would not even be considering West Potomac. The biggest number of students are likely to go to NOVA and then gmu and then other state schools. The school has a cohort of upper middle class students doing AP classes and you will have to encourage your child to take those classes if they can succeed in them or not to make sure they stay with the kids who are focused on academics. College acceptances mean very little to your decision. It's the demographics and your child's own academic work that matter. If your child is doing average work, a better choice is to move to a different area for high school or go private.

Op here: I'm trying to understand where you're coming from. Of course my statement is true. My oldest is in first grade and we are considering moving school districts. We like the area zoned for west Potomac and I want to know if there is a yearly small group of kids applying to elites and whether the school helps them. If there aren't any such kids in that district, we may choose another district.

Well, I guess I am trying to figure out where you are coming from because you don't seem to be very intelligent yourself. Honestly, no school in any of the local counties is going to go out of their way to make sure your special snowflake gets into an Ivy school. Your child is going to have to do that all by themselves.

If you are asking if the school has some kind of connection at the Ivy that they can make sure you kid gets in the answers is almost positively going to be no. And it doesn't matter what is happening today because your kid won't be there for many years. You might get someone who is the schools college counselor who is in their first real job.

West Potomac has a terrible demographic with a very high FARMS and ESL rate. The schools first and foremost goal is to close the achievement gap, make sure those students are graduating, and getting as many as they can into college.

So, the short and easy answer - move now or plan to send your kid to private school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I'm deciding whether to send my kids to west Potomac. I want to know if it has students interested in applying to elite schools and whether the school helps them achieve their goal. My public high school did not and I have to believe it was because there was not any demand. I am on the lookout for this.

If this was true, then you would not even be considering West Potomac. The biggest number of students are likely to go to NOVA and then gmu and then other state schools. The school has a cohort of upper middle class students doing AP classes and you will have to encourage your child to take those classes if they can succeed in them or not to make sure they stay with the kids who are focused on academics. College acceptances mean very little to your decision. It's the demographics and your child's own academic work that matter. If your child is doing average work, a better choice is to move to a different area for high school or go private.

Op here: I'm trying to understand where you're coming from. Of course my statement is true. My oldest is in first grade and we are considering moving school districts. We like the area zoned for west Potomac and I want to know if there is a yearly small group of kids applying to elites and whether the school helps them. If there aren't any such kids in that district, we may choose another district.

Well, I guess I am trying to figure out where you are coming from because you don't seem to be very intelligent yourself. Honestly, no school in any of the local counties is going to go out of their way to make sure your special snowflake gets into an Ivy school. Your child is going to have to do that all by themselves.

If you are asking if the school has some kind of connection at the Ivy that they can make sure you kid gets in the answers is almost positively going to be no. And it doesn't matter what is happening today because your kid won't be there for many years. You might get someone who is the schools college counselor who is in their first real job.

West Potomac has a terrible demographic with a very high FARMS and ESL rate. The schools first and foremost goal is to close the achievement gap, make sure those students are graduating, and getting as many as they can into college.

So, the short and easy answer - move now or plan to send your kid to private school.

You disparage the OP's intelligence and yet you have no problem saying things like West Potomac has "a terrible demographic." Perhaps you need to stop for a moment and realize upon how incredibly offensive that statement is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, there is a small cohort each year that applies to and attends Ivies from West Potomac. Larger group that ends up at UVA or W&M, or at VA Tech's engineering program. The school is not at all helpful or encouraging in this process, and the student has to be self motivated to do it. I think it will be hard to tell if your child is a good fit for that type of HS this early on.

But don't you also think it would be hard to tell if a child is a good fit for those colleges/programs early on?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, there is a small cohort each year that applies to and attends Ivies from West Potomac. Larger group that ends up at UVA or W&M, or at VA Tech's engineering program. The school is not at all helpful or encouraging in this process, and the student has to be self motivated to do it. I think it will be hard to tell if your child is a good fit for that type of HS this early on.

Op here: thank you for this. I really like that area and I'm impressed by the school spirit on display in neighborhoods. I just didn't know about the range of post high school opportunities. Your post is reassuring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:While it is definitely true that highly motivated kids can do well anywhere, I think OP is right that it helps some students to have a cohort of smart, motivated kids around them. DC's best friend is a senior at West Potomac and while smart, is not very organized, and has definitely fallen through the cracks at West Po. College counseling has been particularly bad.

DC is similar in personality and intelligence but goes to a highly-regarded school and takes classes with high achieving kids, many of whom are headed to the ivies. It has made a big difference to have motivated students all around DC. Neither kid will be going to HYP but there are huge differences between their college possibilities and their potential majors (selective university vs. NOVA, engineering or math vs. communications).

What does this mean? Smart kids might choose engineering, math OR communications or something else you would probably consider on par with aspirations for NOVA. It depends where their interests lie. What's really stupid is when a smart kid is pushed by parents into a STEM major when they'd rather do something else. I would never use number of kids wanting to be, say, engineers, as my measure of the value of any high school. When I went to college, half of the kids on my floor in the dorm were engineering majors. Less than 10 percent graduated with that major. Just because something requires being good at math and seems to point to a job that pays well doesn't mean it's a better major than anything else. Depends on the individual.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, no school in any of the local counties is going to go out of their way to make sure your special snowflake gets into an Ivy school. Your child is going to have to do that all by themselves.

If you are asking if the school has some kind of connection at the Ivy that they can make sure you kid gets in the answers is almost positively going to be no. And it doesn't matter what is happening today because your kid won't be there for many years. You might get someone who is the schools college counselor who is in their first real job.

West Potomac has a terrible demographic with a very high FARMS and ESL rate. The schools first and foremost goal is to close the achievement gap, make sure those students are graduating, and getting as many as they can into college.

So, the short and easy answer - move now or plan to send your kid to private school.

Parents should be required to post the above on their refrigerator. This is so true. Counselors at any of the high schools have a couple of hundred kids at least to "advise." And a lot of them are just out of school themselves and setting up triage to make sure the kids who are struggling get priority. If you want your child's hand held, you're going to have to pay for private school or a private counselor.

[Anonymous]

This is one of the most pathetic posts I've ever seen on DCUM. A parent of a first grader asking how many people in high school apply to the Ivy League? Jesus Christ. Get a life.

[Anonymous]

OP, we live in Ft Hunt. We have not decided if we will send our child to West Potomac because he is three. But even when it comes time to make the decision, it will not be based on the number of students who apply to Ivies.

You sound insufferable, and I don't want you as my neighbor. Please look at houses in Fairfax or McLean, or even West Springfield.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I'm deciding whether to send my kids to west Potomac. I want to know if it has students interested in applying to elite schools and whether the school helps them achieve their goal. My public high school did not and I have to believe it was because there was not any demand. I am on the lookout for this.

If this was true, then you would not even be considering West Potomac. The biggest number of students are likely to go to NOVA and then gmu and then other state schools. The school has a cohort of upper middle class students doing AP classes and you will have to encourage your child to take those classes if they can succeed in them or not to make sure they stay with the kids who are focused on academics. College acceptances mean very little to your decision. It's the demographics and your child's own academic work that matter. If your child is doing average work, a better choice is to move to a different area for high school or go private.

Op here: I'm trying to understand where you're coming from. Of course my statement is true. My oldest is in first grade and we are considering moving school districts. We like the area zoned for west Potomac and I want to know if there is a yearly small group of kids applying to elites and whether the school helps them. If there aren't any such kids in that district, we may choose another district.

Well, I guess I am trying to figure out where you are coming from because you don't seem to be very intelligent yourself. Honestly, no school in any of the local counties is going to go out of their way to make sure your special snowflake gets into an Ivy school. Your child is going to have to do that all by themselves.

If you are asking if the school has some kind of connection at the Ivy that they can make sure you kid gets in the answers is almost positively going to be no. And it doesn't matter what is happening today because your kid won't be there for many years. You might get someone who is the schools college counselor who is in their first real job.

West Potomac has a terrible demographic with a very high FARMS and ESL rate. The schools first and foremost goal is to close the achievement gap, make sure those students are graduating, and getting as many as they can into college.

So, the short and easy answer - move now or plan to send your kid to private school.

You disparage the OP's intelligence and yet you have no problem saying things like West Potomac has "a terrible demographic." Perhaps you need to stop for a moment and realize upon how incredibly offensive that statement is.

Offensive how and to who?

Let me guess - you actually believe that I am saying something bad about FARMS and ESL students. Wrong.

The demographic is terrible for those students first and foremost. They would be better off educationally if they were going to schools with much lower rates. It's not a mean thing to say - it's based on research.

And then moving on, you have to wonder about a County that has no problem making sure all lower income residents are pooled into one small pocket of the County. Do you think that is a good policy or not offensive?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I'm deciding whether to send my kids to west Potomac. I want to know if it has students interested in applying to elite schools and whether the school helps them achieve their goal. My public high school did not and I have to believe it was because there was not any demand. I am on the lookout for this.

If this was true, then you would not even be considering West Potomac. The biggest number of students are likely to go to NOVA and then gmu and then other state schools. The school has a cohort of upper middle class students doing AP classes and you will have to encourage your child to take those classes if they can succeed in them or not to make sure they stay with the kids who are focused on academics. College acceptances mean very little to your decision. It's the demographics and your child's own academic work that matter. If your child is doing average work, a better choice is to move to a different area for high school or go private.

Op here: I'm trying to understand where you're coming from. Of course my statement is true. My oldest is in first grade and we are considering moving school districts. We like the area zoned for west Potomac and I want to know if there is a yearly small group of kids applying to elites and whether the school helps them. If there aren't any such kids in that district, we may choose another district.

Well, I guess I am trying to figure out where you are coming from because you don't seem to be very intelligent yourself. Honestly, no school in any of the local counties is going to go out of their way to make sure your special snowflake gets into an Ivy school. Your child is going to have to do that all by themselves.

If you are asking if the school has some kind of connection at the Ivy that they can make sure you kid gets in the answers is almost positively going to be no. And it doesn't matter what is happening today because your kid won't be there for many years. You might get someone who is the schools college counselor who is in their first real job.

West Potomac has a terrible demographic with a very high FARMS and ESL rate. The schools first and foremost goal is to close the achievement gap, make sure those students are graduating, and getting as many as they can into college.

So, the short and easy answer - move now or plan to send your kid to private school.

You disparage the OP's intelligence and yet you have no problem saying things like West Potomac has "a terrible demographic." Perhaps you need to stop for a moment and realize upon how incredibly offensive that statement is.

Offensive how and to who?

Let me guess - you actually believe that I am saying something bad about FARMS and ESL students. Wrong.

The demographic is terrible for those students first and foremost. They would be better off educationally if they were going to schools with much lower rates. It's not a mean thing to say - it's based on research.

And then moving on, you have to wonder about a County that has no problem making sure all lower income residents are pooled into one small pocket of the County. Do you think that is a good policy or not offensive?

If you expressed your views more clearly, they would not give rise to misunderstandings.

And, as a factual matter, it is simply wrong to suggest that all the low-income students are concentrated in one part of the county. Perhaps what bothers you is that there are indeed some parts of the county with few low-income students. If that is the case, you should just state that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I'm deciding whether to send my kids to west Potomac. I want to know if it has students interested in applying to elite schools and whether the school helps them achieve their goal. My public high school did not and I have to believe it was because there was not any demand. I am on the lookout for this.

If this was true, then you would not even be considering West Potomac. The biggest number of students are likely to go to NOVA and then gmu and then other state schools. The school has a cohort of upper middle class students doing AP classes and you will have to encourage your child to take those classes if they can succeed in them or not to make sure they stay with the kids who are focused on academics. College acceptances mean very little to your decision. It's the demographics and your child's own academic work that matter. If your child is doing average work, a better choice is to move to a different area for high school or go private.

Op here: I'm trying to understand where you're coming from. Of course my statement is true. My oldest is in first grade and we are considering moving school districts. We like the area zoned for west Potomac and I want to know if there is a yearly small group of kids applying to elites and whether the school helps them. If there aren't any such kids in that district, we may choose another district.

Well, I guess I am trying to figure out where you are coming from because you don't seem to be very intelligent yourself. Honestly, no school in any of the local counties is going to go out of their way to make sure your special snowflake gets into an Ivy school. Your child is going to have to do that all by themselves.

If you are asking if the school has some kind of connection at the Ivy that they can make sure you kid gets in the answers is almost positively going to be no. And it doesn't matter what is happening today because your kid won't be there for many years. You might get someone who is the schools college counselor who is in their first real job.

West Potomac has a terrible demographic with a very high FARMS and ESL rate. The schools first and foremost goal is to close the achievement gap, make sure those students are graduating, and getting as many as they can into college.

So, the short and easy answer - move now or plan to send your kid to private school.

You disparage the OP's intelligence and yet you have no problem saying things like West Potomac has "a terrible demographic." Perhaps you need to stop for a moment and realize upon how incredibly offensive that statement is.

Offensive how and to who?

Let me guess - you actually believe that I am saying something bad about FARMS and ESL students. Wrong.

The demographic is terrible for those students first and foremost. They would be better off educationally if they were going to schools with much lower rates. It's not a mean thing to say - it's based on research.

And then moving on, you have to wonder about a County that has no problem making sure all lower income residents are pooled into one small pocket of the County. Do you think that is a good policy or not offensive?

If you expressed your views more clearly, they would not give rise to misunderstandings.

And, as a factual matter, it is simply wrong to suggest that all the low-income students are concentrated in one part of the county. Perhaps what bothers you is that there are indeed some parts of the county with few low-income students. If that is the case, you should just state that.

Well I grew up here and for 40 years the Rt. 1 and surrounding area has always had the highest concentration of low income individuals. This is not a secret.