Which school district to move to from DCPS?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I’m a Lafayette parent, seriously considering a move to Bethesda or Arlington. I think the school pyramid we are in is only “adequate” for high school, there’s a lot of chatter about moving us to Wells/Coolidge, and there is no appealing public university in DC.

you don't sound like a real parent.

in-state tutiton cap outside of dc works

bye

there is no “in state tuition cap” for DC residents. You don’t know what you’re talking about.

Are you not familiar with the DCTAG program? It provides up to a $10,000 per year scholarship to close the gap between in-state and out-of-state tuition. And it is not means tested (I mean, it is, but at $1 million).

“Close the gap” is not an “in state tuition cap.” Also, the $10,000 isn’t adjusted for inflation and hasn’t been increased. So assuming your kids are young enough that you’d consider bailing on DCPS and moving elsewhere, the DCTAG program seems less appealing when you are trying to project years into the future.

DC gets off cheap on higher ed. I did some back-of-the-envelope calculations and most states spend way more than 10k per student per year on higher ed. At the very least they could try to start an honors college at UDC ...

Are you including what DC spends on UDC? (I actually think the TAG grants are federally funded.)

TAG is federally funded - which is why it is never a sure thing. Must be authorized and funded each year. It is more likely to be eliminated than increased.

Very smart to move to MD or VA for college purposes. Wish we had.

I go back and forth on the move, but one factor is that I think my Capitol Hill house may be appreciating enough to close the in-state tuition gap compared to what I would get in MD or VA.

[Anonymous]

Thank god

[Anonymous]

We are a former DCPS family (w/experience in both EOTP and WOTP schools) that moved to MCPS (BCC cluster). Both school systems have positives and negatives. For example, the experience at different schools in MCPS is much more even than in DCPS. MCPS still uses busing in some areas to achieve diversity, and they don't allow PTAs to pay for staff like DCPS does. But if you are in a school in DCPS that benefits from having parents give money to the PTA to hire more teachers--then I think MCPS would be a downgrade.

Generally I think MCPS is a lot strong for MS/HS, and there are ES/MS magnet/G&T programs, which DCPS doesn't have (at least that I'm aware of). Happy to answer questions about our experience if people have any.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m just really confused by people who are finally realizing that DCPS is incompetent. They have been like this forever. You have just been in your well run upper NW or Capital Hill bubble school. Everyone has realized this long ago.

No, I'm finally realizing that WTU is a huge problem.

May I ask why you vote Democrat? I was a DCPs teacher and union member (it's automatic). I actually valued them b/cause the whole system (ALSO run by Democrats) was so crazy. The "protection" was needed from an evil/toxic central system. The irony was not lost on me. But why dont you vote Republican or independent? You have now seen firsthand the impact of the Democrat machine on your kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a Lafayette parent, seriously considering a move to Bethesda or Arlington. I think the school pyramid we are in is only “adequate” for high school, there’s a lot of chatter about moving us to Wells/Coolidge, and there is no appealing public university in DC.

Go read the mcps forum. They all hate mcps and are going private or moving too. The APS, ACPS, and FCPS people feel the same way about their districts. And constant rezoning talk in all of them too.

MCPS parent here and have kids miserable with DL. I think DCPS will open before MCPS. Is Loudoun the only public school district in the area open? Any other districts have a date to open?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are a former DCPS family (w/experience in both EOTP and WOTP schools) that moved to MCPS (BCC cluster). Both school systems have positives and negatives. For example, the experience at different schools in MCPS is much more even than in DCPS. MCPS still uses busing in some areas to achieve diversity, and they don't allow PTAs to pay for staff like DCPS does. But if you are in a school in DCPS that benefits from having parents give money to the PTA to hire more teachers--then I think MCPS would be a downgrade.

Generally I think MCPS is a lot strong for MS/HS, and there are ES/MS magnet/G&T programs, which DCPS doesn't have (at least that I'm aware of). Happy to answer questions about our experience if people have any.

Read he threads regarding the magnet application process this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m just really confused by people who are finally realizing that DCPS is incompetent. They have been like this forever. You have just been in your well run upper NW or Capital Hill bubble school. Everyone has realized this long ago.

No, I'm finally realizing that WTU is a huge problem.

May I ask why you vote Democrat? I was a DCPs teacher and union member (it's automatic). I actually valued them b/cause the whole system (ALSO run by Democrats) was so crazy. The "protection" was needed from an evil/toxic central system. The irony was not lost on me. But why dont you vote Republican or independent? You have now seen firsthand the impact of the Democrat machine on your kids.

NP. Because the Republican Party is a far-right party with no sense for the common good? Because they care even less about education than the Democrats who want schools to stay closed and are downright hostile towards expertise? I think it's obvious. I mean, even if Trump had promised to force schools to open, I would never have voted for him or any of his enablers. The closed schools are a huge issue but not the only one.

[Anonymous]

I'm disheartened by the PPs who don't think school will open, even for hybrid, in Fall 2021. I really hope that's not the case.

What a complete disaster and failure to prioritize kids and education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm disheartened by the PPs who don't think school will open, even for hybrid, in Fall 2021. I really hope that's not the case.

What a complete disaster and failure to prioritize kids and education.

I think people are making that up trying to cause an uproar and are trolls. No one I have talked to thinks school buildings will still be closed Fall 2021.

[Anonymous]

OP, I get it. We're at a WOTP DCPS elementary and have had it with WTU running the show due to corrupt politicians who sold our kids for votes (looking at you, Robert White) and clueless parents who claim to support WTU while also clamoring for schools to reopen. It exposed the underbelly of being part of WTU/DCPS that we didn't have to see prior to this.

I looked into this based on similar criteria: 1) Considered only schools districts that reopened 2) Good in state universities.

The answer is Loudon County. VA has great state schools and is better than MD for that. DE is another option if you're not tied to this area. You need to get away from these wealthy liberal areas where parents play political identity charades such as trying to align with teachers while they also have the money to pay for pods, tutors, privates, and nannies. Your best bet is a slightly more purple area with majority MC/ lower end of UMC households as opposed to upper end of UMC/UC to ensure good publics schools that the majority of families rely on to be open.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are a former DCPS family (w/experience in both EOTP and WOTP schools) that moved to MCPS (BCC cluster). Both school systems have positives and negatives. For example, the experience at different schools in MCPS is much more even than in DCPS. MCPS still uses busing in some areas to achieve diversity, and they don't allow PTAs to pay for staff like DCPS does. But if you are in a school in DCPS that benefits from having parents give money to the PTA to hire more teachers--then I think MCPS would be a downgrade.

Generally I think MCPS is a lot strong for MS/HS, and there are ES/MS magnet/G&T programs, which DCPS doesn't have (at least that I'm aware of). Happy to answer questions about our experience if people have any.

Thanks for your insight. Do you have experience with BCC HS yet?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I get it. We're at a WOTP DCPS elementary and have had it with WTU running the show due to corrupt politicians who sold our kids for votes (looking at you, Robert White) and clueless parents who claim to support WTU while also clamoring for schools to reopen. It exposed the underbelly of being part of WTU/DCPS that we didn't have to see prior to this.

I looked into this based on similar criteria: 1) Considered only schools districts that reopened 2) Good in state universities.

The answer is Loudon County. VA has great state schools and is better than MD for that. DE is another option if you're not tied to this area. You need to get away from these wealthy liberal areas where parents play political identity charades such as trying to align with teachers while they also have the money to pay for pods, tutors, privates, and nannies. Your best bet is a slightly more purple area with majority MC/ lower end of UMC households as opposed to upper end of UMC/UC to ensure good publics schools that the majority of families rely on to be open.

Couldn't agree with this more. The parents at our kid's charter school couldn't care less about school reopening because they have the money to spend on an individual solution. It's gross. They purport to speak for the lower-income and POC community at our school when pushing for remaining closed, when in reality they have no idea what those communities want. It's depressing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a former DCPS family (w/experience in both EOTP and WOTP schools) that moved to MCPS (BCC cluster). Both school systems have positives and negatives. For example, the experience at different schools in MCPS is much more even than in DCPS. MCPS still uses busing in some areas to achieve diversity, and they don't allow PTAs to pay for staff like DCPS does. But if you are in a school in DCPS that benefits from having parents give money to the PTA to hire more teachers--then I think MCPS would be a downgrade.

Generally I think MCPS is a lot strong for MS/HS, and there are ES/MS magnet/G&T programs, which DCPS doesn't have (at least that I'm aware of). Happy to answer questions about our experience if people have any.

Thanks for your insight. Do you have experience with BCC HS yet?

We don't, but we have friends with kids there, and they really like it. Kids have the option of doing the IB degree program or the regular program. Most of my friends' kids take a mix of IB and AP classes, depending on what they want in a given subject. (AP is more a survey course; IB delves deep into a topic.)

For me, as someone who lived EOTP in DC and lotteried into a WOTP school out of pure luck, I feel one of the benefits of MCPS is having solid options for all grade levels without having to play the lottery. When we were in DCPS, we felt so lucky to have lotteried into a good school. But because we had to do a cross-city commute each day, we really didn't feel like part of the WOTP school. We were the only family in our neighborhood that went to the WOTP DCPS that our child went to.

In MCPS, most of the kids in our neighborhood go to the local school. (Some go private, and others have lotteried into language immersion MCPS or go to the magnet programs.) I feel like I am much more a part of the community. But people who go to their inbounds DCPS might feel different.

There are definitely things I'm disappointed in MCPS for, particularly during the pandemic, when the metrics they have adopted are so stringent it feels like there is no chance of any in-person school this year. On the other hand, our experience this fall with distance learning has been pretty good on balance. Our teacher is very good and engaged, and our child is learning a lot (with parental support to review material). In the spring, distance learning I would say was a universal disaster for all MCPS families. Basically, no learning going on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A question to parents who are considering moving out of DCPS (and I’m guessing there are tons more of you than there were before the DCPS vs WTU sh..t show and disgusting teachers’ comments on this forum) - what school district would be your top choice and why?

I know none has really opened, but to me, the fact that all schools in the country were going to go hybrid 2 days/week, and DCPS came up with their own “unique” plan speaks volumes to me that the district management is way too inadequate to improve within my kids school age time period.

Wasn't the original DCPS plan to be hybrid for a few days a week? https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/dc-expected-to-announce-hybrid-plan-to-reopen-schools-this-fall/2362908/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm disheartened by the PPs who don't think school will open, even for hybrid, in Fall 2021. I really hope that's not the case.

What a complete disaster and failure to prioritize kids and education.

I think people are making that up trying to cause an uproar and are trolls. No one I have talked to thinks school buildings will still be closed Fall 2021.

That's what I thought too, and then a very good friend expressed real concern about it recently. I was shocked. They are among the parents looking to move outside DC.

I personally think it's really unlikely that DCPS won't reopen for Fall 2021. I also think based on recent noises from both the Mayor's office and rumblings I've heard from teacher friends, that we'll have hybrid or something for Term 3 or Term 4 (I also think it will be a total mess in execution based on a number of factors).

We aren't moving imminently -- we still have a kid entering PK and moving out of DC doesn't solve that problem because then we'll just be paying for PK anyway. But one of us already commutes to Maryland regularly for work and a move in that direction has always been on the table. We love DC and really don't want to leave, but this feels like a transformative year as far as our relationship to DCPS. I've always been a big booster but I find myself feeling so angry towards the whole system these days. Maybe it will dissipate when school reopens, but I feel abandoned as a family. We are not wealthy and really rely on public schools to make our lives work. There have always been problems but nothing like this. My commitment to staying for MS and HS is pretty much gone. We're going to go where our kids will be best served. The end.