Blair Magnet - geographical differences in acceptance rates?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

So, you clearly don't know what you're talking about, and yet you spew your nonsense as if you were an expert. Now, that is shameful.

My kid was in the TPMS local set, then to Blair (also admitted to rmib, cap, both wheaton programs), now at Ivy. So, suck it on the locals-bashing. That whole political connections theory is ridiculous. Most of us have no connections, and many are immigrants. There are many intelligent, vibrant thinkers in the local catchment. Most of them have less outside enrichment (aops, Hopkins cty, Dr. Li etc) than their west county peers. There is no sense that anyone in the program didn't compete or didn't deserve to be there.

Let's correct some of the false premises here (and elsewhere):
Blair magnet has a letter that students can include with admissions. Blair does not set aside seats for locals. Blairchas roughly 100 magnet students per year. Blair also does not admit be test alone. There are many intelligent, intellectually curious kids in this county. We need more magnet spots/programs and less bashing the kids fortunate enough to gain access.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have heard from other parents that kids that come from Whitman/Churchill/ BCC/Wooten are less likely to get into the magnet program than kids from less privileged areas. I’m not sure if this is just rumor or an actual policy meant to help diversity. Just wondering if there had been any public discussions if this by MoCo school administrators. Thanks.

I would say that less likely (if that is accurate) would be because more students from those areas apply than any other areas. Parents who seek out W schools are likely parents who push kids towards magnet programs. So, if lower admission rate is the case (or if it just feels like it), it is likely more related to more competition from the area than from any regional discrimination.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

Every word of this is wrong. Blair does not have any local set-asides. Also, what "official MCPS letter sent to college students?"

It was posted on Blair's website so kids applying to college can include it with their application. It's on official letterhead and is addressed "To College Admissions Officers"

"The student whose application is enclosed is participating in the Science, Mathematics, Computer Science Magnet Program for highly able students at Montgomery Blair High School. Each year after careful screening of over 750 applicants from sixteen of the twenty-five high schools in Montgomery County, about 100 students are accepted for admission into the ninth grade. Our sister program at Poolesville High School accepts about 50 students from the remaining nine high schools in the county."

It's good that there are no "set-asides" in the Magnet Program. It would be quite the scandal if there were and parents would be furious that special treatment is given to Poolesville and Blair.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

So, you clearly don't know what you're talking about, and yet you spew your nonsense as if you were an expert. Now, that is shameful.

My kid was in the TPMS local set, then to Blair (also admitted to rmib, cap, both wheaton programs), now at Ivy. So, suck it on the locals-bashing. That whole political connections theory is ridiculous. Most of us have no connections, and many are immigrants. There are many intelligent, vibrant thinkers in the local catchment. Most of them have less outside enrichment (aops, Hopkins cty, Dr. Li etc) than their west county peers. There is no sense that anyone in the program didn't compete or didn't deserve to be there.

Let's correct some of the false premises here (and elsewhere):
Blair magnet has a letter that students can include with admissions. Blair does not set aside seats for locals. Blairchas roughly 100 magnet students per year. Blair also does not admit be test alone. There are many intelligent, intellectually curious kids in this county. We need more magnet spots/programs and less bashing the kids fortunate enough to gain access.

Yes, there is NO set aside for Blair. The HS magnet program has roughly 400 kids or would if nobody dropped out....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

So, you clearly don't know what you're talking about, and yet you spew your nonsense as if you were an expert. Now, that is shameful.

My kid was in the TPMS local set, then to Blair (also admitted to rmib, cap, both wheaton programs), now at Ivy. So, suck it on the locals-bashing. That whole political connections theory is ridiculous. Most of us have no connections, and many are immigrants. There are many intelligent, vibrant thinkers in the local catchment. Most of them have less outside enrichment (aops, Hopkins cty, Dr. Li etc) than their west county peers. There is no sense that anyone in the program didn't compete or didn't deserve to be there.

Let's correct some of the false premises here (and elsewhere):
Blair magnet has a letter that students can include with admissions. Blair does not set aside seats for locals. Blairchas roughly 100 magnet students per year. Blair also does not admit be test alone. There are many intelligent, intellectually curious kids in this county. We need more magnet spots/programs and less bashing the kids fortunate enough to gain access.

Yes, there is NO set aside for Blair. The HS magnet program has roughly 400 kids or would if nobody dropped out....

RMIB, however, does have a number of seats set aside for in-bounds students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:People, you don't have to argue over bus times for Blair magnet. It is posted on the web:
https://mbhs.edu/newsevents/Announcements/BLAIR%20HS%20-%20757%20-%20MAGNET%20ARR.pdf

Many of the bus routes are not very long, while a few are longer. The longest is 77 minutes.

From an actual Blair magnet parent

My DC attended a magnet as an OOB kid and the bus options are completely inadequate IMO. More than an hour on a bus each way, but the other factor is that the bus stops can still be a considerable distance away…walkable only if the kid is willing to walk a mile through some high-traffic areas. To catch a bus that departs around 6:30 or 6:40 am. It is completely not fine to expect kids to do this. Especially the months of the year when it is dark before 7.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

Every word of this is wrong. Blair does not have any local set-asides. Also, what "official MCPS letter sent to college students?"

It was posted on Blair's website so kids applying to college can include it with their application. It's on official letterhead and is addressed "To College Admissions Officers"

"The student whose application is enclosed is participating in the Science, Mathematics, Computer Science Magnet Program for highly able students at Montgomery Blair High School. Each year after careful screening of over 750 applicants from sixteen of the twenty-five high schools in Montgomery County, about 100 students are accepted for admission into the ninth grade. Our sister program at Poolesville High School accepts about 50 students from the remaining nine high schools in the county."

It's good that there are no "set-asides" in the Magnet Program. It would be quite the scandal if there were and parents would be furious that special treatment is given to Poolesville and Blair.

I hope the guidance counselor sent this letter to my kid’s colleges, because my kid sure didn’t.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

Every word of this is wrong. Blair does not have any local set-asides. Also, what "official MCPS letter sent to college students?"

It was posted on Blair's website so kids applying to college can include it with their application. It's on official letterhead and is addressed "To College Admissions Officers"

"The student whose application is enclosed is participating in the Science, Mathematics, Computer Science Magnet Program for highly able students at Montgomery Blair High School. Each year after careful screening of over 750 applicants from sixteen of the twenty-five high schools in Montgomery County, about 100 students are accepted for admission into the ninth grade. Our sister program at Poolesville High School accepts about 50 students from the remaining nine high schools in the county."

It's good that there are no "set-asides" in the Magnet Program. It would be quite the scandal if there were and parents would be furious that special treatment is given to Poolesville and Blair.

I hope the guidance counselor sent this letter to my kid’s colleges, because my kid sure didn’t.

Yes, it's for the school to send to the colleges along with the transcript. All schools do this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

So, you clearly don't know what you're talking about, and yet you spew your nonsense as if you were an expert. Now, that is shameful.

My kid was in the TPMS local set, then to Blair (also admitted to rmib, cap, both wheaton programs), now at Ivy. So, suck it on the locals-bashing. That whole political connections theory is ridiculous. Most of us have no connections, and many are immigrants. There are many intelligent, vibrant thinkers in the local catchment. Most of them have less outside enrichment (aops, Hopkins cty, Dr. Li etc) than their west county peers. There is no sense that anyone in the program didn't compete or didn't deserve to be there.

Let's correct some of the false premises here (and elsewhere):
Blair magnet has a letter that students can include with admissions. Blair does not set aside seats for locals. Blairchas roughly 100 magnet students per year. Blair also does not admit be test alone. There are many intelligent, intellectually curious kids in this county. We need more magnet spots/programs and less bashing the kids fortunate enough to gain access.

Yes, there is NO set aside for Blair. The HS magnet program has roughly 400 kids or would if nobody dropped out....

RMIB, however, does have a number of seats set aside for in-bounds students.

Of course, they should do this. The seats come from the local school's count, not the program, so there's no negative impact. If they were to do this for Blair, it would probably free up close to 100 seats and expand the program since the many in-boundary students wouldn't count against the 400 total seats. I don't know how many local students are at Blair but at TPMS, Blair has 10X more kids than any other HS listed in the magnet directory.

[Anonymous]

Students from the TPMS magnet are more likely to get in. And TPMS magnet students have a set aside for in-boundary. As a result, a good chunk will live in Takoma Park.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Students from the TPMS magnet are more likely to get in. And TPMS magnet students have a set aside for in-boundary. As a result, a good chunk will live in Takoma Park.

The TPMS magnet directory lists students by their home HS. There's typically a half page for most HS but roughly nine pages of students assigned to Blair. My point is although there is no set aside for the HS magnet in boundary students are well represented.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there are actually 500 students in the magnet program? 400 that competed and 100 that were all local admits? The official MCPS letter sent to college students made it sound as if the 25 local set-asides were the same as the 100 selected from across the County. Wow. Shameful.

Every word of this is wrong. Blair does not have any local set-asides. Also, what "official MCPS letter sent to college students?"

It was posted on Blair's website so kids applying to college can include it with their application. It's on official letterhead and is addressed "To College Admissions Officers"

"The student whose application is enclosed is participating in the Science, Mathematics, Computer Science Magnet Program for highly able students at Montgomery Blair High School. Each year after careful screening of over 750 applicants from sixteen of the twenty-five high schools in Montgomery County, about 100 students are accepted for admission into the ninth grade. Our sister program at Poolesville High School accepts about 50 students from the remaining nine high schools in the county."

It's good that there are no "set-asides" in the Magnet Program. It would be quite the scandal if there were and parents would be furious that special treatment is given to Poolesville and Blair.

I hope the guidance counselor sent this letter to my kid’s colleges, because my kid sure didn’t.

Yes, it's for the school to send to the colleges along with the transcript. All schools do this.

Actually, I don't think it was sent by gcs last year. We got an email with it to add. I'm pretty sure gc only sent transcript which had magnet designation but not letter. My dd added selected content from the letter to the additional info section on the common app.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Students from the TPMS magnet are more likely to get in. And TPMS magnet students have a set aside for in-boundary. As a result, a good chunk will live in Takoma Park.

High achievers are more likely to get in and those are the same that would be the type to do middle school magnet. There are 125 kids per class in TPMS and only 25 are the set aside and the majority of the 100 come from outside. So 4/5s of the kids that continue are likely not from Takoma Park. And that is assuming that the set aside slots were able to compete at the county wide standard and would have been admitted reguardless of being tied to a set aside which hasn't historically been the case.

[Anonymous]

I would think the first round of admissions looks more geographically diverse but the actual students who enroll are more concentrated in the immediate catchment area of Blair and the DCC. It just makes sense because the commute wouldn't be an issue whereas kids coming from other areas would have to think long and hard about whether they are willing to sacrifice that time. Not to mention the local school friendships and activities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Students from the TPMS magnet are more likely to get in. And TPMS magnet students have a set aside for in-boundary. As a result, a good chunk will live in Takoma Park.

Doesn't this suggest that those kids are in fact able to compete on a level playing field? So, even if we assume that they got a little boost back when they were 11 to get into the MS program, by the time they are 14 and competing for a HS spot, they don't need that boost any more. That feels like a massive success story for the local set-aside, as it ensures that talented middle class and working class kids are able to compete with their UMC peers through targeted intervention in 6th - 8th grades.