What a joke. Of course I know about IB. The thing is that just offering IB does not mean that kids pass the exams or receive a diploma. The people teaching at Kennedy do make a difference. I also wonder how quickly white, UMC people will jump at the chance to send their child to Kennedy where they will be one of less than 5% whites and the program is unproven. |
The program hasn’t started yet. It is a test-in magnet that invites high performers from the region. So the AP scores from Kennedy before they started this program are totally irrelevant. |
It will depend on how many students are willing to travel to Kennedy to try it. Unfortunately it will take 4 years to know what the diploma rate of the center is. That will play a big role in the success/failure. |
| It’s a test in program but we have no idea how selective it is. |
| The sort of families that will go to any length for their children - ie immigrants - will be willing without question. Some established / comfortable familes will as well. All depends on whether or not they are a "work the system" family or a "game the system" family. |
Every established MCPS magnet started under the same circumstances. Someone has to be first! |
yes - and that's why I love the idea of these new programs, but would be happier waiting a bit to see how it shakes out. Great it's there, but maybe not so great to be in the first (or second or third) cohort. CAP is a known quantity and maybe the Kennedy IB will be awesome, but it's an unknown at this point. Commute would also be a factor, I suppose... What's the principal of Kennedy like? That would affect my decision, too... |
RM is half the distance to Churchill than Kennedy. From a commute and busing standpoint, it would make more sense to have RM be a regional center for Wootton and Churchill. |
The building is already 20% over capacity. |
| Did they include the scores of admitted students? I know CAP doesn’t. |
With a county wide magnet that apparently is about to end. It would not make sense for RM to be a regional center for 2 W schools when the point of the regional centers was to spread out high performing kids to low performing schools. |
Yes, considering MCPS's goals, I agree. But do you think this means that RM will be just for in-boundary students? |
I would think so. It would eliminate redoing to regional boundaries after 1 year. It would also help with overcrowding at RM given Crown has no real dates for completion yet. I drove by there the other day and wondering where they will put more portables. I guess they will just take away more student parking? Do they have to have student parking? |
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The points
1. RM is over capacity. It is a stressed/unhealthy physical plant Full Stop. 2. Montgomery County has more kids now that would do well in an IB program than it did before. 3. The appeals and lawsuits over who gets to go to an IB school are getting ridiculous 4. There are several under capacity schools that also have IB accreditation. Making regional programs is a many birds, one stone opportunity. |
| My child is an 8th grader in a DCC middle school. None of her friends had any interest in this program. They were interested in CAP, Wheaton programs, etc. They can get the IB program at Einstein and go to high school with many of their friends. They know that Kennedy is the weakest school in the DCC. |