Norwood v. Lowell MS

[Anonymous]

Did you move in Middle school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not our experience- sorry.

Ok.

[Anonymous]

We have 2 kids graduated from Norwood in recent years. Both had very good experience there although they are very different type of students. Nice and caring teachers, friendly and welcoming parents community, very strong leadership team. Mr. Gould is the best head of school. Both DCs went to a private school in DC. Maybe the pace of learning at Norwood and DC schools are different, both DCs struggled a little at the first semester at HS, but thrilled to get strong academically later. If I have to say cons of Norwood, I would say the school is a little short of expertise and resources to support learning difference kids. Overall I would definitely recommend Norwood.

[Anonymous]

We had a great time at Lowell MS. Very small and personal approach to the kids, and scaffolded independence as they mature. We had a very positive experience with the high school admissions process with the school. Both the head of school and MS head were very involved and engaged in our child's profile, and multiple teachers available to support the application process including writing essays, etc. Kids who did well in MS, had good extracurriculars, and a sober understanding of the admissions landscape did very well in the application process. Several kids did not do well, but I would not attribute that to the school. We are happy with Lowell MS and so is our kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We had a great time at Lowell MS. Very small and personal approach to the kids, and scaffolded independence as they mature. We had a very positive experience with the high school admissions process with the school. Both the head of school and MS head were very involved and engaged in our child's profile, and multiple teachers available to support the application process including writing essays, etc. Kids who did well in MS, had good extracurriculars, and a sober understanding of the admissions landscape did very well in the application process. Several kids did not do well, but I would not attribute that to the school. We are happy with Lowell MS and so is our kid.

* I mean teaching kids about effective essay writing, how to interview, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have 2 kids graduated from Norwood in recent years. Both had very good experience there although they are very different type of students. Nice and caring teachers, friendly and welcoming parents community, very strong leadership team. Mr. Gould is the best head of school. Both DCs went to a private school in DC. Maybe the pace of learning at Norwood and DC schools are different, both DCs struggled a little at the first semester at HS, but thrilled to get strong academically later. If I have to say cons of Norwood, I would say the school is a little short of expertise and resources to support learning difference kids. Overall I would definitely recommend Norwood.

My kid has learning differences and Norwood has been terrific about supporting her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only "incident" I know of with Norwood and bullying happened 3 years ago. Those kids who were in 8th would be in 11th now. It was a different (and useless) Head of Middle School at the time.

We have 2 kids in middle right now there. Yes, there have been some typical middle school issues but they jump all over it if you bring it to their attention. We had a situation with a student bullying one of our kids for a few weeks and BAM. That was locked down so fast it made my head spin. They handled it amazingly well.

The current head of Middle School and Assistant Head are absolutely not going to let even a side-eye happen on their watch.

I have a kid in that grade and have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only "incident" I know of with Norwood and bullying happened 3 years ago. Those kids who were in 8th would be in 11th now. It was a different (and useless) Head of Middle School at the time.

We have 2 kids in middle right now there. Yes, there have been some typical middle school issues but they jump all over it if you bring it to their attention. We had a situation with a student bullying one of our kids for a few weeks and BAM. That was locked down so fast it made my head spin. They handled it amazingly well.

The current head of Middle School and Assistant Head are absolutely not going to let even a side-eye happen on their watch.

I have a kid in that grade and have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about.

With 50-60 kids per grade at Norwood, it's entirely possible your child wasn't involved. But it was a huge deal for them to manage. I know it was group-chat and cell phone related. But apparently was excessively out of control. It could have been a group of 5-7 kids though, not the whole grade.

[Anonymous]

Have had two kids at Norwood (one now in 11th grade at a "top 3" DC private school, the other in 8th grade), and we have been incredibly happy. Both kids are at the top of the class for academics and have been very happy, and there are plenty of opportunities to excel in extra activities like robotics, model UN, etc., at the school. The bullying that occurs with ALL middle schools I have found to be handled quickly and compassionately by the dean of students and other admin. As for the sports environment, there is a wide range at Norwood, and the very athletic kids tend to play on club teams so don't get worked up about whether their Norwood team is winning every game, plus every team in non-cut and has everyone play in games. And there are fun options like an outdoor activity (think hiking, rock climbing, ice skating, shelter building) instead of a sports team as well. I am so happy both kids went to Norwood as have found it a very supportive environment.

[Anonymous]

Norwood was great for us up until 5th grade. The academics just were not challenging enough for my son. We loved the extra-curriculars, though and most of the teachers there were good. However, we left Norwood in 6th grade to go to Bullis and the difference in the rigor of the academics was huge. My son is now in 10th grade and a happy, healthy, motivated boy with a great supportive peer group. So glad we made the change when we did!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We had our son at Norwood for two years and then pulled him out because he just was not challenged in the classroom. Too many of his classmates needed support for impulsive control and had language based learning needs. We were told to try to supplement outside of the class. We left and started at another independent school and are so glad that we did. I'd skip Norwood.

That was our experience as well. Too many behavioral issues. One student continually has to be kicked out of class. He should just be asked to leave the school, but they refuse. The head of the middle school does try to address these issues. But keep in mind that most of the students from Norwood go to Bullis after. Including the students who are disruptive and impulsive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only "incident" I know of with Norwood and bullying happened 3 years ago. Those kids who were in 8th would be in 11th now. It was a different (and useless) Head of Middle School at the time.

We have 2 kids in middle right now there. Yes, there have been some typical middle school issues but they jump all over it if you bring it to their attention. We had a situation with a student bullying one of our kids for a few weeks and BAM. That was locked down so fast it made my head spin. They handled it amazingly well.

The current head of Middle School and Assistant Head are absolutely not going to let even a side-eye happen on their watch.

That is great that this was your experience. Our experience is that they put my kid's bully on their promotional materials. And another child with severe behavioral issues. It's perplexing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have 2 kids graduated from Norwood in recent years. Both had very good experience there although they are very different type of students. Nice and caring teachers, friendly and welcoming parents community, very strong leadership team. Mr. Gould is the best head of school. Both DCs went to a private school in DC. Maybe the pace of learning at Norwood and DC schools are different, both DCs struggled a little at the first semester at HS, but thrilled to get strong academically later. If I have to say cons of Norwood, I would say the school is a little short of expertise and resources to support learning difference kids. Overall I would definitely recommend Norwood.

My kid has learning differences and Norwood has been terrific about supporting her.

Same. The Head of Student Support in the middle school is top notch.

[Anonymous]

My child is dyslexic and was really struggling in the public school system to keep up academically and socially. Norwood has been wonderful about giving her the support that she needs - esp. for her language-based learning needs. She is still 2 grades below grade level, but she is making progress.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't recommend Lowell right now, or at least until they clean their administrative house. They have a lot of things to sort out in that department. Drama aside, their MS academics also leave a lot to be desired. There is some solid teaching happening there, but potential is limited by an administration that can't seem to get out of its own way.

Can you say more?

Admin is just super nasty, especially to teachers behind closed doors and to parents who raise issues. They're also not good educators. They seem to be concerned first and foremost with shutting down any sort of discourse that could be perceived as a challenge, which has a chilling effect on all aspects of the school's culture. Many, many talented teachers and great families have left over the past six or seven years as a result. One administrator is currently embroiled in controversy over his/her treatment of a thirteen year-old sexual assault victim when she reported what a fellow classmate had done to her. She has become an advocate for sexual assault victims and posted about her experiences at the school. One such post went viral on Instagram, which is why the school had to take their faculty and board lists off their website and disable comments on their social media accounts. The school is also reckoning with a very serious string of bullying incidents in one grade. Questions have arisen about why problematic students were admitted in the first place, and why the school didn't take more action once they had been advised about serious harm being done. Seems the board can't or won't do anything about these situations so they continues to fester. Not a good place.

Totally disagree with this. Love Lowell, find the administration open-minded and easy to work with. The incidents this poster is referring to are all years old and there has been a lot of soul-searching and renewal. I had a child graduate MS last year and I have another there presently, and I am super-grateful for the school and its community.