Reston? Need quick advice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your kid will go to school with kids of all races and SES backgrounds. This is a good thing because it teaches them tolerance, compassion, gratitude and gives them a more realistic perspective of the world.

Oh Lord this is stupid and wrong.

And I have no doubt at all that like most white liberals, you do not practice this yourself. Oh my word no, nothing but a lily-white school will do for your little darlings! Because of the education and extra-curriculars, of course.

[Anonymous]

Lots of folks stuck Obama/Biden bumperstickers and then talked on and on about "school pyramids." It's a form of the typical not in my background, etc. Now back to the topic: Reston is indeed more interesting than a lot of places around here. But the Town Center transformed it--take that thing away and it would be hollow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Believe me Marshall is still a ghetto, the real estate is going good because of proximity to mclean and metro.. Nothing related to Schools.

In 2013 you could get a newly built house for 800k. you wont get a 15 years townhouse for that price in mclean..

It is related to the schools. Look at Marshall's ratings on national publications and ratings websites. Not that that necessarily means anything because ratings are based on SOL's, which aren't a high standard to begin with. Bottom line is that perception has a lot to do with it and perception is not always reality.

Also, I challenge you to show me a new house that one could get in the Marshall zone for only $800K! You're out of touch with the real estate market. I could easily show you a sub 800K townhouse in McLean, but what point are you trying to make with that anyway?

Nobody other than a ninny would have called Marshall "ghetto" in 2007. The SAT scores there in 2008 were higher than at Madison. That hasn't happened again, but it's certainly a decent school. So is South Lakes. Both are IB. They are different in that Marshall grew steadily within its existing boundaries, whereas South Lakes parents asked for more kids from high-income neighborhoods to get moved to the school, and FCPS obliged.

The parents didn't ask for it. Go look at FCPS records to get your facts straight. A lot of this thread makes it seem like Reston is a low-income area. Only about 20-30% is low/moderate income. There is a huge middle and upper middle class contingent in Reston.

Parents in Reston zoned for South Lakes absolutely pushed Stu Gibson back in 2007-08 to get FCPS to redistrict neighborhoods that they hand-picked out of Madison, Oakton and Westfield to South Lakes to increase the enrollment and improve the test scores. He lived in Reston and was more than happy to push it through, even though parents correctly warned that it would lead to overcrowding at South Lakes.

If you think that was unnecessary, due to the middle and upper middle-class contingent in Reston, your argument is with other Reston parents and Stu Gibson, not me. Go back and watch the School Board sessions and you'll see. The concern at the time wasn't that Reston as a whole was a low-income area, but that the trends at SLHS were negative (declining enrollment and test scores, with an increasing percentage of low-income students). That situation might have reversed itself naturally in a few years, as some of the empty-nesters moved out, but the Reston parents pushing for the boundary change didn't want to wait and see. They wanted, and got, an infusion of kids from other middle and upper-class neighborhoods to shore up the place.

And, again, I'm not saying it was a bad idea, but it does temper the notion that Reston is this perfectly designed place where the demographics are just right and everyone is always delighted with the schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If it were me, I would not buy a house zoned for those schools. There are better schools in Reston.

What better schools? Forest edge is up there with the top elems in Reston (there aren't many poor ones). I thought the only other middle/high pyramid in Reston is Herndon Middle/Herndon High, unless I'm missing something. There might be a sliver of homes feeding elsewhere, but I'm not sure. It seems like Herndon middle and high are about the same rep-wise as Hughes/south lakes.

There are elementary schools in Reston that feed into Langley High.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If it were me, I would not buy a house zoned for those schools. There are better schools in Reston.

What better schools? Forest edge is up there with the top elems in Reston (there aren't many poor ones). I thought the only other middle/high pyramid in Reston is Herndon Middle/Herndon High, unless I'm missing something. There might be a sliver of homes feeding elsewhere, but I'm not sure. It seems like Herndon middle and high are about the same rep-wise as Hughes/south lakes.

There are elementary schools in Reston that feed into Langley High.

What else besides a small part of Forestville?

The flip side is it's a hike from Reston to Langley. Some folks might prefer to send their kids to schools closer to home and/or the student mix at South Lakes or Herndon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Believe me Marshall is still a ghetto, the real estate is going good because of proximity to mclean and metro.. Nothing related to Schools.

In 2013 you could get a newly built house for 800k. you wont get a 15 years townhouse for that price in mclean..

It is related to the schools. Look at Marshall's ratings on national publications and ratings websites. Not that that necessarily means anything because ratings are based on SOL's, which aren't a high standard to begin with. Bottom line is that perception has a lot to do with it and perception is not always reality.

Also, I challenge you to show me a new house that one could get in the Marshall zone for only $800K! You're out of touch with the real estate market. I could easily show you a sub 800K townhouse in McLean, but what point are you trying to make with that anyway?

Nobody other than a ninny would have called Marshall "ghetto" in 2007. The SAT scores there in 2008 were higher than at Madison. That hasn't happened again, but it's certainly a decent school. So is South Lakes. Both are IB. They are different in that Marshall grew steadily within its existing boundaries, whereas South Lakes parents asked for more kids from high-income neighborhoods to get moved to the school, and FCPS obliged.

The parents didn't ask for it. Go look at FCPS records to get your facts straight. A lot of this thread makes it seem like Reston is a low-income area. Only about 20-30% is low/moderate income. There is a huge middle and upper middle class contingent in Reston.
Parents in Reston zoned for South Lakes absolutely pushed Stu Gibson back in 2007-08 to get FCPS to redistrict neighborhoods that they hand-picked out of Madison, Oakton and Westfield to South Lakes to increase the enrollment and improve the test scores. He lived in Reston and was more than happy to push it through, even though parents correctly warned that it would lead to overcrowding at South Lakes.

If you think that was unnecessary, due to the middle and upper middle-class contingent in Reston, your argument is with other Reston parents and Stu Gibson, not me. Go back and watch the School Board sessions and you'll see. The concern at the time wasn't that Reston as a whole was a low-income area, but that the trends at SLHS were negative (declining enrollment and test scores, with an increasing percentage of low-income students). That situation might have reversed itself naturally in a few years, as some of the empty-nesters moved out, but the Reston parents pushing for the boundary change didn't want to wait and see. They wanted, and got, an infusion of kids from other middle and upper-class neighborhoods to shore up the place.

And, again, I'm not saying it was a bad idea, but it does temper the notion that Reston is this perfectly designed place where the demographics are just right and everyone is always delighted with the schools.

We're now in Sunrise Valley/Hughes/ South Lakes. We are in the crowd rezoned in for the politics of it.

IMHO:

Sunrise Valley is great. No concerns at all.
Hughes is bad. Look at the crime statistics and test scores.
South Lakes is certainly not as good as Marshall/Oakton but it is much better than it's reputation. The county has poured a ton of money into it. It's a huge school with top notch facilities. Lot's of sub-groups, more good than bad. IB might work for some but we would strongly prefer AP. Too bad we don't get a choice.

Our neighborhood is considered Vienna. We're in the "Reston small tax district" but not in the Reston HOA. The rezoning was bad for us, we chose not to live in Reston and then it came and absorbed us. It's a very communal region, if that's good for you, cool....

We're a mixed race family, the diversity arguments are a little comical for us. The people who worry about race get confused by those of us that don't fit in one of their boxes. But we're kind of entertained by that....

[Anonymous]

We're now in Sunrise Valley/Hughes/ South Lakes. We are in the crowd rezoned in for the politics of it.

IMHO:

Sunrise Valley is great. No concerns at all.
Hughes is bad. Look at the crime statistics and test scores.
South Lakes is certainly not as good as Marshall/Oakton but it is much better than it's reputation. The county has poured a ton of money into it. It's a huge school with top notch facilities. Lot's of sub-groups, more good than bad. IB might work for some but we would strongly prefer AP. Too bad we don't get a choice.

Our neighborhood is considered Vienna. We're in the "Reston small tax district" but not in the Reston HOA. The rezoning was bad for us, we chose not to live in Reston and then it came and absorbed us. It's a very communal region, if that's good for you, cool....

We're a mixed race family, the diversity arguments are a little comical for us. The people who worry about race get confused by those of us that don't fit in one of their boxes. But we're kind of entertained by that....



Will you please elaborate more on why Hughes is bad? I've heard the same thing, but just general comments like that and it scares me for my up and coming middle schoolers. Great Schools gives it an 8, which is pretty good, right? I just don't get the disconnect between scores and reality sometimes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lots of folks stuck Obama/Biden bumperstickers and then talked on and on about "school pyramids." It's a form of the typical not in my background, etc. Now back to the topic: Reston is indeed more interesting than a lot of places around here. But the Town Center transformed it--take that thing away and it would be hollow.

Shows how much you know about Reston. You're forgetting about Lake Anne plaza, North Village Center, South Lakes Center, Silver Line Metro town center (which is going to blow the RTC out of the water), Lifetime Fitness, YMCA, RCC, Centerstage, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Home Depot center, the future Fairfax County recreation center at Baron Cameron Park, library, hospital, medical offices, government center, Target, W&OD, nearby Herndon's ethnic food places, etc... Reston offers so much more than any other community, much more than just the town center.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lots of folks stuck Obama/Biden bumperstickers and then talked on and on about "school pyramids." It's a form of the typical not in my background, etc. Now back to the topic: Reston is indeed more interesting than a lot of places around here. But the Town Center transformed it--take that thing away and it would be hollow.

Shows how much you know about Reston. You're forgetting about Lake Anne plaza, North Village Center, South Lakes Center, Silver Line Metro town center (which is going to blow the RTC out of the water), Lifetime Fitness, YMCA, RCC, Centerstage, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Home Depot center, the future Fairfax County recreation center at Baron Cameron Park, library, hospital, medical offices, government center, Target, W&OD, nearby Herndon's ethnic food places, etc... Reston offers so much more than any other community, much more than just the town center.

Well, the main thing is that it's still way out there, and many people would consider the HOA a nuisance.

Lake Anne Plaza doesn't have much going on. Some people won't go there at all now for fear of crime and loitering. Some of the other shopping areas are generic suburban retail. You can find Whole Foods and Trader Joe's, and rec centers, all over the region.

I think it's nice, but not nearly as special as you try to make it sound. It's almost like you're trying to convince yourself it's something more than it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Well, the main thing is that it's still way out there, and many people would consider the HOA a nuisance.

Lake Anne Plaza doesn't have much going on. Some people won't go there at all now for fear of crime and loitering. Some of the other shopping areas are generic suburban retail. You can find Whole Foods and Trader Joe's, and rec centers, all over the region.

I think it's nice, but not nearly as special as you try to make it sound. It's almost like you're trying to convince yourself it's something more than it is.

Obviously you don't live here, so you don't know what you're talking about. The OP asked for advice from people who actually have first hand experience with Reston. Next...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Hughes is bad. Look at the crime statistics and test scores.



I have a rising middle schooler going to Hughes, and I don't agree that it's bad. I have many neighbors and friends with kids that are attending Hughes or who have recently attended (and progressed to high school), and I have not heard one single report that has given me concerns about safety, culture, or student experiences. Yes, Hughes had a bad reputation several years ago -- maybe a decade ago at this point -- but I don't see any indicators that the school has major issues today.

[Anonymous]

"You can find Whole Foods and Trader Joe's, and rec centers, all over the region."



True, you can find many of the things the previous poster listed elsewhere, but not all within one community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Obviously you don't live here, so you don't know what you're talking about. The OP asked for advice from people who actually have first hand experience with Reston. Next...

You are silly. If you stopped trying to pass off this candy-coated version of living in Reston, people might take you seriously.

[Anonymous]

I don't live in Forest Edge area-or Reston. I have friends who live there and they love it. They do not have young kids so I cannot speak to the school issue.

[Anonymous]

We've lived in Reston for about 5 years at the town center. Our DD goes to Lake Anne elementary school, and we love it. Don't know too much about Forest Edge, but some of the kids from our school go there for the AAP program and I've only heard good things about it. We used to live in Arlington before kids. We loved it there, too, and even though there are a lot of similarities between the two places, Reston is better in a way because everything is more accessible and convenient, and better for kids IMHO. If you work in DC, it might not be as great as Arlington, but my hubby says the new Silver Line is great. He always gets a seat because it's the first stop (for now), and he can just relax for the ride.