Help - can I possibly relocate children entering Junior/freshman high school years?

[Anonymous]

My husband has a job offer in D.C. and we are debating commuting/relocating. Seems like our choices are Georgetown plus private school (expensive/won't get in?) or Fairfax County or Montgomery County public school (are we too late for magnet/IB programs?) It seems almost impossible/unfair to relocate my older son from his very prestigious selective public high school and dump him in a new public high school where he may not be allowed to participate in the higher level programs. I am so overwhelmed. Can anyone narrow the field for me? Where should I focus? I would rather move than have my poor husband stuck in a furnished condo all week!

[Anonymous]

Look at Arlington, too. Yorktown is fantastic and better than some Fairfax county schools. Not sure why you think your kids won't be able to participate in higher level programs in public. Normally, if they test in, they get in. Both my sister and I moved in high school and it was not such a big deal. Focus on the fun new things in DC.

[Anonymous]

People move all the time and kids adjust. Fairfax, Arlington, and Montgomery Counties all have strong public schools - not sure what the deadline is for the various magnets but plenty of high-quality "neighborhood" schools as well.

[Anonymous]

Arlington's IB program is at Washington & Lee. They have a lot of rules, but you have time to enquire. I know a child who moved for 11th grade and is taking the elite classes - it can be done.

Fairfax County is very, very large - as is Montgomery county. You will have to call specific schools and discuss with them.

[Anonymous]

Let me offer a personal story in hopes that it puts one check in the positive side of the ledger. My family moved when I started high school and it was the best experience ever. I liked my old school, but LOVED my new one. I was apprehensive, of course, but it turned out that the new school had teachers who seemed way more enthusiastic/interested in what was going on, better sports programs, and because it was bigger just had more going on in general. It didn't take me long to integrate, and at that time I wasn't the most gregarious of kids. There were so many clubs and opportunities to join different things that I was able to find other kids with interests similar to mine pretty quickly. Kids are pretty resilient in general and it'll all be fine. Just don't limit your school/neighborhood search to one or two areas -- as PPs said, there are many options out there and if you can swing it you should come to the area and drive around, talk to people, and so forth. The other thing is to find yourself a good real estate agent who really knows the area, including the schools.

[Anonymous]

Consider Whitman in Bethesda. It is a great school but does not have magnet programs so you don't have to worry about not having started there in 9th grade. Lots of AP classes. High achieving kids.

[Anonymous]

Thank you all for the advice (please keep it coming). We told our kids last night. The older one is fine but said it's because he had seen hardship come to his friends (cancer, divorce, sudden heart death) and had been waiting for something to strike us. The younger one curled up in a chair and tried to hide his devastation behind his small dog! Its tough when you were born into a house and neighborhood and thought it would be there forever. Thanks for the advice to get out there and talk to individual schools. If anyone has nice things to say about Langley (in Mclean) please post. It seems well rated but the online reviews complain of cliques and rich kids.

[Anonymous]

My parents moved me from PA where I had spent my entire life to Massachusetts in my junior year. It was heaven to be the new girl in high school. The only thing you have to be cautious about with a high schooler is that the groups that are most open to the new kids tend to be the kids that are on the fringe (divorces, recent moves, etc). Better to make sure that your children are immediately put into sports, theatre, whatever their interest, than have them float around and make their own friends from chance acquaintances.

Fairfax County is huge, but also very transient with many high achievers. You will have no problem with your boys finding sports and creative outlets there. AP classes are tough, but even in the middle of the year you will able to get them in. Keeping them in is your responsibility as the curriculum is very competitive.

[Anonymous]

I sympathize with your predicament. I second the idea of Whitman. Or, depending on what grade your kid is, I think they could enter the BCC IB program in 11th grade (although please call there to check, I don't want to steer you wrong). Both BCC and Whitman are very well-regarded, have good exmissions, and place very high on Newsweek's rankings (one can debate the usefulness of the Newsweek rankings, but it's a place to start).

The two big Montgomery County magnets (both at Montgomery Blair HS, one for science/math and the other for communication arts) both start in ninth grade, with an application process starting in the 8th grade, so these are probably not possibilities.

I'm sure there are public possibiltities in Virginia, but I'm not as familiar with them.