Anyone wait listed for Sela?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP's complaints should be taken with a grain of salt, as several of these issues apply to a LOT of charter schools:

Anonymous wrote:
1. Low demand for Hebrew compared to Spanish, French, or Mandarin.
2. Inconvenient location--not very close to a metro or to that many families
3. They didn't offer PK3 for the past few years, so families often started school someplace else and didn't want to switch
4. No apparent feeder pattern--not like schools that feed to DCI or Wilson, or offer their own middle/high schools.
5. Turnover among teachers and administrators

2) It's actually really convenient to Petworth for those driving. I can't dispute the public transit issue - though parents have previously worked to get a shuttle set up.
4) With the exception of the language charters and Haynes & Cap City, no charters have a feeder path. (This includes well regarded schools like IT, CMI, etc)
5) I think every school can make this complaint at some level.

You think every school can make a complaint about turnover among administrators? Teachers, yes, applies to 90% of all DC public schools (DCPS and charters). But Admins? Other than Sela, Shining Stars, and maybe a couple others, what schools have had regular turnover of Admins among DC's roughly 200 public schools?

not sure why you say public schools when Sela is a charter, but Basis has had 3 HOS in 3 years and numerous changes in administrators, and I think most agree that the change from last year to this year was a step in the wrong direction, but the school is still strong. Sounds like Sela's changes in administration, by contrast, were in the right direction

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to poof be gone. So tired of their bullshit.

Why is SELA struggling so hard? We were thrilled to learn about their opening, and I've had them on my list each year -- but far down due to commute issues.

I'm surprised that there's so little enthusiasm for them, though I confess I'm a relative newcomer to DCUrbanMom, so maybe I missed some epic thread or something.

Still, I'm rooting for them!

They should never have been approved for a bilingual Hebrew school, same as the lady attempting to drum up support for a Japanese immersion school. It is not an in demand language and except for certain families unlikely to be learned out of school, it's fine pre-K learning phrases but for serious learning of content classes in higher grades in hebrew and English - No Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP's complaints should be taken with a grain of salt, as several of these issues apply to a LOT of charter schools:

Anonymous wrote:
1. Low demand for Hebrew compared to Spanish, French, or Mandarin.
2. Inconvenient location--not very close to a metro or to that many families
3. They didn't offer PK3 for the past few years, so families often started school someplace else and didn't want to switch
4. No apparent feeder pattern--not like schools that feed to DCI or Wilson, or offer their own middle/high schools.
5. Turnover among teachers and administrators

2) It's actually really convenient to Petworth for those driving. I can't dispute the public transit issue - though parents have previously worked to get a shuttle set up.
4) With the exception of the language charters and Haynes & Cap City, no charters have a feeder path. (This includes well regarded schools like IT, CMI, etc)
5) I think every school can make this complaint at some level.

You think every school can make a complaint about turnover among administrators? Teachers, yes, applies to 90% of all DC public schools (DCPS and charters). But Admins? Other than Sela, Shining Stars, and maybe a couple others, what schools have had regular turnover of Admins among DC's roughly 200 public schools?

not sure why you say public schools when Sela is a charter, but Basis has had 3 HOS in 3 years and numerous changes in administrators, and I think most agree that the change from last year to this year was a step in the wrong direction, but the school is still strong. Sounds like Sela's changes in administration, by contrast, were in the right direction

Read the post I was responding to - it said "every school". But even with your answer, BASIS just brings your total to 3 schools. 3 out of like 78 charters or something. Still hardly making a case for a majority of charters going through regular Admin changes like Sela or SSMA.

[Anonymous]

Hello Troll.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hello Troll.

Troll because the PP quoted someone's post back to them and answered a question? And by the way, that PP is right, no one can make a case for an abundance of HOS or Principal turnover in DC's charters beyond a handful. Geez, with Sela supporters why are so many hostile to truthful statements that are not delivered in a negative way? We considered Sela and our reasons for not ranking it higher are about more than just the school, but you need to know this trend of jumping on people who are doing nothing more than engaging in the conversation and making points turns a lot of people off, including some of us who don't post but definitely read. Look at the "views" on these threads. Your defensiveness and people yelling "negative vitriol" are a major major turn off.

[Anonymous]

I feel like people who pick Sela for their kids must be very smart and involved parents who want their kid to learn new and challenging things. Hebrew is a whole new alphabet and even a new culture for some! Not a Sela parent but I definitely considered it!

[Anonymous]

It will join the DC international school -- same for Chinese, Spanish, French -- do a google search, that's how I found out what happens to all these kids in immersion elementary programs...

[Anonymous]

Also, I heard that there are communities for these kids to practice -- I met some kids at the Latin school (yep, they speak a dead language!) and there is some sort of community so they actually speak it aloud).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It will join the DC international school -- same for Chinese, Spanish, French -- do a google search, that's how I found out what happens to all these kids in immersion elementary programs...

It WILL NOT join DCI. The DCI Admin has made it very clear at multiple open house that whoever perpetuates these misconceptions from SELA is being irresponsible. They only language they are considering adding is Arabic as a new/elective class language (and no, not Japanese!)

[Anonymous]

Do these schools have sliding-fee aftercare?

[Anonymous]

NP here. I think what Sela is doing is exciting and thoughtful. We are sending our child there next year. It's upsetting to see so many people in this forum trying to verbally tear this charter down. Live and let live people (unless you have darker motives at play?)

[Anonymous]

Um...is anyone waitlisted for Sela?

[Anonymous]

If they are not having 3rd grade next year, what's going to happen to the current 2nd graders?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If they are not having 3rd grade next year, what's going to happen to the current 2nd graders?

Hopefully the school infomed them before the lottery. There is always their IB school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they are not having 3rd grade next year, what's going to happen to the current 2nd graders?

Hopefully the school infomed them before the lottery. There is always their IB school.

That is not cool at all. Bad, bad management.