Oakton HS v/ Woodson HS / Chantilly HS
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Anonymous
I'm not sure about that since the kids that used to attend Rocky Run were still attending Fairfax for high school already. But I suppose it could lead more students to try AAP if they didn't have to travel out to Rocky Run every day, and that could lead to more kids being better prepared for high school. I would just say that whether it's Oakton, Woodson, Chantilly (or Fairfax, Centreville, Robinson, LB, South Lakes, etc.), these are all good, large schools where your child will be able to find their niche if they so choose. I think parents (and realtors) look for every edge they can because they obviously want the best for their kids. But the truth is that if you're the type of family that cares enough to worry about this stuff, your kids will get the same level of education at each of these schools, and will have plenty of peers who match their academic level/interest. |
Anonymous
| Come over to Lake Braddock. Great things on the horizon there. |
Anonymous
Why? They seem to be churning interim principals these days. |
Anonymous
| 24 percent Asian at Fairfax High plus two new Asian city council members in city of Fairfax. OP jump on the bandwagon. Suicides and stress at Woodson isn’t worth it. |
Anonymous
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[quote=Anonymous]24 percent Asian at Fairfax High plus two new Asian city council members in city of Fairfax. OP jump on the bandwagon. Suicides and stress at Woodson isn’t worth it.[/quote]
Ugly, and you know there have been similar issues at FHS. Shame on you. |
Anonymous
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Hi,
I was reading the thread with interest. We moved last year to nova and my child is planning to attend westfield high school. What are your opinion on westfield high? One of my kid's friend told him he might move to Chantilly high.. (they were together in Carson middle) Thank you! |
Anonymous
It's a good school and your child will have every opportunity to succeed there. I would just note that it's a very large school. If your child wants to play sports, it might be a little tougher for that reason. Westfield has also been dominant in several sports like football, basketball, field hockey so it might be tougher to make those teams. Chantilly has higher average test scores, etc. But really, a kid coming from Carson will end up doing just as well at either Chantilly or Westfield. |
Anonymous
| How about Chantilly and Fairfax high? |
Anonymous
Thank you! |
Anonymous
We are zoned for Chantilly and it is excellent. If the top 5 HSs are Langley, McLean, Oakton, Madison and Woodson, then the next 3 are probably Chantilly, Marshall and W. Springfield. Chantilly has had rising test scores every year for a while, and depending onwhat metric you use (NMSFs, vs SAT scores vs GS rating) they are ahead of Oakton, and maybe Madison and/or Woodson. Inevitably, someone will jump in with, but Oakton is better! But that’s a pointless argument. By the numbers, Chantilly is academically on par with Oakton, Madison, Woodson, Marshall and W. Springfield. Practically speaking, it’s a large HS. But, it is divided into sub-schools. It does particularly well in STEM. It has the Governor’s STEM Academy, which adds extra class options. And it has an excellent FRC robotics team (and a really good robotics program/lab/classes), usually wins it’s division in VHSL academics bowl, etc. It has a large Indian/ STEM smart Asian population and academically serious white families. RRMS and Carson feed in, so many of the kids at Chantilly went through strong AAP programs, were TJ finalists and just missed getting into TJ. It is not a wealthy school, like McLean or Langley, but it is solidly DCUM UMC—the land of 2 white collar job professional parents. In many families, both parents are very involved in raising the kids (vs a SAHM and a biglaw partner working 70 hour weeks). There are a lot of parents in tech/CS, a lot of teachers and a lot of feds. Some Indian tech professionals with a SAHM. Many of the parents gravitated there because of the Dulles Tech corridor and/or TJ admissions and/or the Asian community and/or great schools in a location when they can still afford a SFH. Our family is very typical for Chantilly. One girl and one boy. We have one parent in software development, one white collar fed. Both parents telework 50% of the time or more. Both parents are very involved in kids activities. HHI of 330k and a SFH worth about 650-700k. One kid at TJ . One at Chantilly who was a TJ finalist. Chantilly kid plays strings, draws and does robotics. Loves STEM and hates English. Both kids got their first smartphone at the beginning of MS and did not start social media until the beginning of HS— and were right in line with their peers. Their peers’ parents are genuinely nice and down to Earth and I feel like my kids are safe ain their homes. They place a lot of emphasis on family and education. A lot of the kids study hard, stay out of trouble and focus on getting into a good college— with an emphasis on VT, UVA & WM, because a lot of the families are financial aid donut hole. In a school the size of Chantilly, I’m sure there is also drinking, drugs, sex, etc. but my kid and their friends have had no problem steering clear. Chantilly has a strong music program. Strong drama program. My kids and their friends are not really into sports, so IDK how it stacks up. FCPS has no MS sports teams, so I think kids also opt to stay with their rec/travel program. That’s the download on Chantilly. I have heard meh things about Fairfax HS. But, I have no first hand experience, and 5 year old anticdotes aren’t of a lot of value. I do think Fairfax gets some value out of being a part of a Fairfax City. They also have an Academy, but it is a weird mix of Asian languages, dance and social media classes. My impression is that it is less of a resource for serious students than the Chantilly Academy. But I could be wrong. |
Anonymous
| Chantilly is not as sought-after as Oakton, Madison or Woodson. It does seem to have a stronger academic reputation than Centreville or Westfield, two other large schools in western Fairfax. Depending on your child’s interests, Chantilly might be a better choice than Fairfax (or vice versa). |
Anonymous
Chantilly isn’t as wealthy as Oakton or Madison (Woodson is not as wealthy). It has lots of solidly UMC kids, but not a lot wealthy ones. We lived in Oakton ES area for years. Half of the kids go to Oakton and half Madison. We now live in Chantilly. And it is a very different vibe. HHI of 250-300k, and we were “the poors” in Oakton ES. We were also unusual because both parents worked. My kids friends usually had a biglaw type dad and a SAHM. And there were families where our kids did activities together for years, and I never saw dad. At Chantilly there are a lot of families where both parents work, and both parents are involved with the kids. The real estate is much more expensive in Oakton/Madison, because it is closer in. By any objective metric you use, the academics and outcomes at Chantilly are on par with Oakton and Madison. This issues really are what kind of commute can you handle (and this might make your decision for you). And, where will your family fit in? If you are a WOHM, it is just tough to be in the Oakton/Madison area. Lots of socializing happening after school, and of you can’t be there to pick your kid up, they get left out. Lots of play, concerts, PTA meetings and events in the middle of the school day. And again, if you work in DC and the event I’d at 11, you end up having to miss it or take a full day off. DH felt very isolated because he was helped coach and attended kids academic teams, and there were never any other dads. So it was me and him and 7 moms It is nice to be somewhere where we are like the other families, and where the schedules and expectations of parents line up with our reality. But on the flip side, if you are holding down the fort at home while your DH works 6-7 days a week and many evening, you are probably going to feel isolated at Chantilly. |
Anonymous
Well, let's see. SAT scores - Class of 2017 Madison 1240 Chantilly 1226 Oakton 1222 Madison comes out tops & Chantilly bests Oakton for the first time ever, probably. PSAT scores from 2016-17 for Class of 2019: Madison 1114 Oakton 1077 Chantilly 1055 US News College Readiness Index: Madison 73.9 Oakton 70.2 Chantilly 55.4 School Digger: Madison #30 in Virginia Oakton #42 in Virginia Chantilly #51 in Virginia Washington Post Challenge Index: Oakton #171 nationally Madison #211 Chantilly #427 National Merit Semifinalists - Classes of 2016-18 Madison 30 Oakton 20 Chantilly 11 So, now, sorry - Chantilly isn't "on par" with Madison or Oakton yet. By the way, both of those schools have many actively involved dads, so you need to stop parroting the nonsense that they are nowhere to be found in Vienna or Oakton. |
Anonymous
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+1. I dare anyone to attend youth soccer or basketball games on a weekend and claim the fathers are absentee dads.
Some might say they are too involved, but that’s a different thread. ? |
Anonymous
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I have kids in both Oakton and Woodson, plus a family member at Chantilly and have lots to add to this. However, Famous Dave has me blocked because I spoke against child abuse. Too bad.
If you would like to have a real discussion, find me on City Data. |