Hearst

[Anonymous]

Except that Hearst boundaries are not overflowing with capacity. The school fills with IB first and then OOB. This smacks of something other than concern with boundaries. If there are not enough IB students to fill Hearst what do you suggest the school do? Stay empty and face the possibility of having to close because of a lack of funding?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Enough already....we have room for two new 4th graders -excellent and welcome! Is it possible when somebody said they heard the principal say blah, blah, blah that that the situation was different then? We have room, we may need the budget, whatever - but the conspiracy theory stuff is tiresome.

All of you release the wl complainers please go back to some other thread.

No one begrudges the individual students, but if you are a parent waiting on the sidelines and hoping that it becomes more of an IB school, I think this could be relevant.

I really don't understand why people hope that Hearst becomes more of an IB school. What difference does it make? It is not like OOB students displace IB students since IB students have preference. Hearst has historically had low IB enrollment and, as far as I understand, the majority are OOB parents who have been instrumental in making Hearst a place the previously uninterested IB parents now want to attend. Hearst appears to have a great school community, with a number of OOB folks living relatively close to the school and making it a warm place to be. So why the hope that it becomes more IB?

Signed,

Prospective OOB Ward 4 parent who hopes to get in off the WL!

I totally understand the desire to increase the number of IB families at any school, and I support it.

But the growing animosity toward OOB students--yes, it's there--really is a concern for this Ward 4 parent. There's been a lot of great (but understated) promotion of Hearst and it looked like a nice alternative to our IB school, which is not my first choice for education only because it's dual language. We were also drawn to the small and diverse (!) community of families, but I honestly wouldn't want to take a chance that my kid would be perceived as unwanted or academically challenged just because we don't live in the neighborhood. It's about a 10 minute drive for us and I don't think Rock Creek Park would or should make much of a difference in ability to fit in and achieve.

I'm also impressed that the principal is attentive and responsive. I think IB families may be doing her and the school a disservice with so much focus on OOB numbers and the implication that she's making specific promises about it to IB families. Keep your focus on what makes the school great and try not to make that the impression of a gated community.

If you support it, then understand, it is because IB families would like to increase the number of families in the adjacent boundaries attending the school. I think you can understand that, it does not mean anything specific to your child.

[Anonymous]

^^Okay, so you are okay with OOB students, you just want OOB students from certain boundaries?

[Anonymous]

So what is an "adjacent boundary"? Does that only include Lafayette and Eaton? Or does that also include Powell, my IB school? I live seven minutes from Hearst, by the way, so is that good enough? Or is the fact that I have to cross a park problematic?

[Anonymous]

The point is that the boundaries should be changed, not about what neighborhood you live in or where you are coming from.

The boundaries are outdated. That is the point.

[Anonymous]

^^Your point does not support the central argument that is being contested: That there is a hope that Hearst should become filled with IB families.

How does the point that boundaries should be changed and are outdated support this central argument?

[Anonymous]

Any chance of getting in off of the WL with a number in high 20s for K?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Enough already....we have room for two new 4th graders -excellent and welcome! Is it possible when somebody said they heard the principal say blah, blah, blah that that the situation was different then? We have room, we may need the budget, whatever - but the conspiracy theory stuff is tiresome.

All of you release the wl complainers please go back to some other thread.

No one begrudges the individual students, but if you are a parent waiting on the sidelines and hoping that it becomes more of an IB school, I think this could be relevant.

I really don't understand why people hope that Hearst becomes more of an IB school. What difference does it make? It is not like OOB students displace IB students since IB students have preference. Hearst has historically had low IB enrollment and, as far as I understand, the majority are OOB parents who have been instrumental in making Hearst a place the previously uninterested IB parents now want to attend. Hearst appears to have a great school community, with a number of OOB folks living relatively close to the school and making it a warm place to be. So why the hope that it becomes more IB?

Signed,

Prospective OOB Ward 4 parent who hopes to get in off the WL!

How about because two neighboring school districts are overflowing with capacity and the boundaries haven't been redrawn in decades, for starters? You can move IB if you would like! Or apply to charter schools.

Janney is apparently over capacity again with just in bounds enrollment. Eaton, to Hearst's south, still has a majority OOB enrollment despite steady increase in local student population in recent years. This suggests that some adjustment of the boundary with Janney would make sense, but not necessarily with Eaton.

OOB enrollment can be a good thing -- utilizes spare capacity, provides choice and opportunity, often adds socio-economic diversity, etc. But based on my experience, there can be issues: the need to drive kids constantly across town when other city agencies are promoting walkability and a less use of cars; more difficult for parents who live far from the school to be as involved, less community support for by-passed, inferior local schools, etc. The point is not to stop OOB enrollment, but to question whether schools should be built to a capacity to meet a primarily neighborhood school need or expanded in contemplation of serving a much larger area and population.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Enough already....we have room for two new 4th graders -excellent and welcome! Is it possible when somebody said they heard the principal say blah, blah, blah that that the situation was different then? We have room, we may need the budget, whatever - but the conspiracy theory stuff is tiresome.

All of you release the wl complainers please go back to some other thread.

No one begrudges the individual students, but if you are a parent waiting on the sidelines and hoping that it becomes more of an IB school, I think this could be relevant.

I really don't understand why people hope that Hearst becomes more of an IB school. What difference does it make? It is not like OOB students displace IB students since IB students have preference. Hearst has historically had low IB enrollment and, as far as I understand, the majority are OOB parents who have been instrumental in making Hearst a place the previously uninterested IB parents now want to attend. Hearst appears to have a great school community, with a number of OOB folks living relatively close to the school and making it a warm place to be. So why the hope that it becomes more IB?

Signed,

Prospective OOB Ward 4 parent who hopes to get in off the WL!

How about because two neighboring school districts are overflowing with capacity and the boundaries haven't been redrawn in decades, for starters? You can move IB if you would like! Or apply to charter schools.

Janney is apparently over capacity again with just in bounds enrollment. Eaton, to Hearst's south, still has a majority OOB enrollment despite steady increase in local student population in recent years. This suggests that some adjustment of the boundary with Janney would make sense, but not necessarily with Eaton.

OOB enrollment can be a good thing -- utilizes spare capacity, provides choice and opportunity, often adds socio-economic diversity, etc. But based on my experience, there can be issues: the need to drive kids constantly across town when other city agencies are promoting walkability and a less use of cars; more difficult for parents who live far from the school to be as involved, less community support for by-passed, inferior local schools, etc. The point is not to stop OOB enrollment, but to question whether schools should be built to a capacity to meet a primarily neighborhood school need or expanded in contemplation of serving a much larger area and population.

Murch and Janney are both adjacent boundaries and very overcrowded with increasing population projections.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Enough already....we have room for two new 4th graders -excellent and welcome! Is it possible when somebody said they heard the principal say blah, blah, blah that that the situation was different then? We have room, we may need the budget, whatever - but the conspiracy theory stuff is tiresome.

All of you release the wl complainers please go back to some other thread.

No one begrudges the individual students, but if you are a parent waiting on the sidelines and hoping that it becomes more of an IB school, I think this could be relevant.

I really don't understand why people hope that Hearst becomes more of an IB school. What difference does it make? It is not like OOB students displace IB students since IB students have preference. Hearst has historically had low IB enrollment and, as far as I understand, the majority are OOB parents who have been instrumental in making Hearst a place the previously uninterested IB parents now want to attend. Hearst appears to have a great school community, with a number of OOB folks living relatively close to the school and making it a warm place to be. So why the hope that it becomes more IB?

Signed,

Prospective OOB Ward 4 parent who hopes to get in off the WL!

I totally understand the desire to increase the number of IB families at any school, and I support it.

But the growing animosity toward OOB students--yes, it's there--really is a concern for this Ward 4 parent. There's been a lot of great (but understated) promotion of Hearst and it looked like a nice alternative to our IB school, which is not my first choice for education only because it's dual language. We were also drawn to the small and diverse (!) community of families, but I honestly wouldn't want to take a chance that my kid would be perceived as unwanted or academically challenged just because we don't live in the neighborhood. It's about a 10 minute drive for us and I don't think Rock Creek Park would or should make much of a difference in ability to fit in and achieve.

I'm also impressed that the principal is attentive and responsive. I think IB families may be doing her and the school a disservice with so much focus on OOB numbers and the implication that she's making specific promises about it to IB families. Keep your focus on what makes the school great and try not to make that the impression of a gated community.

If you support it, then understand, it is because IB families would like to increase the number of families in the adjacent boundaries attending the school. I think you can understand that, it does not mean anything specific to your child.

Why not just promote all the great things about the school--without all the talk of limiting OOB? It leaves the impression that IB families can be convinced only if OOB families are kept out.

Which is not a good impression.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Enough already....we have room for two new 4th graders -excellent and welcome! Is it possible when somebody said they heard the principal say blah, blah, blah that that the situation was different then? We have room, we may need the budget, whatever - but the conspiracy theory stuff is tiresome.

All of you release the wl complainers please go back to some other thread.

No one begrudges the individual students, but if you are a parent waiting on the sidelines and hoping that it becomes more of an IB school, I think this could be relevant.

I really don't understand why people hope that Hearst becomes more of an IB school. What difference does it make? It is not like OOB students displace IB students since IB students have preference. Hearst has historically had low IB enrollment and, as far as I understand, the majority are OOB parents who have been instrumental in making Hearst a place the previously uninterested IB parents now want to attend. Hearst appears to have a great school community, with a number of OOB folks living relatively close to the school and making it a warm place to be. So why the hope that it becomes more IB?

Signed,

Prospective OOB Ward 4 parent who hopes to get in off the WL!

How about because two neighboring school districts are overflowing with capacity and the boundaries haven't been redrawn in decades, for starters? You can move IB if you would like! Or apply to charter schools.

Janney is apparently over capacity again with just in bounds enrollment. Eaton, to Hearst's south, still has a majority OOB enrollment despite steady increase in local student population in recent years. This suggests that some adjustment of the boundary with Janney would make sense, but not necessarily with Eaton.

OOB enrollment can be a good thing -- utilizes spare capacity, provides choice and opportunity, often adds socio-economic diversity, etc. But based on my experience, there can be issues: the need to drive kids constantly across town when other city agencies are promoting walkability and a less use of cars; more difficult for parents who live far from the school to be as involved, less community support for by-passed, inferior local schools, etc. The point is not to stop OOB enrollment, but to question whether schools should be built to a capacity to meet a primarily neighborhood school need or expanded in contemplation of serving a much larger area and population.

My problem is all the assumptions with OOB. I live in Crestwood, which is seven minutes away from Hearst by car. It is by no means "across town." DH, who does not drive, plans on biking our kid if we get in. A number of my neighbors have children at Hearst and have had children attend Hearst for decades. When I visited the school, one of the moms who lead our Open House tour was a Ward 4 parent and said there were many from Ward 4. Hearst is majority OOB and has one of the most active parent associations of all the schools WOTP--because of OOB parent involvement. So what is your experience based on, because what I have seen contradicts what you have experienced. I bet you are not even a Hearst parent.

[Anonymous]

I for one love the diversity of Hearst! My child has friends from all over the city, knows kids with two moms, two dads, embassy kids, working parents, stay at home parents - we have it all! But probably the best thing about the school is the great active parents who really care about their kids and our school.

[Anonymous]

Another Hearst parent here. I can only speak for myself and other parents I know, but I don't feel any real tension between IB and OOB at the school. Both "groups" (which is a little funny because it is not like we walk around with label attached to us) are very invested in the school and contribute a lot to the community. Both IB and OOB kids are doing well and getting a great education. And as some other posters noted, many OOB families are actually pretty close to school (Mount Pleasant, Crestwood, etc.).

As an IB parent, I don't really care whether my child's classmates are IB or OOB. I only care that they are willing to participate in the school community. I think what the principal has articulated (my interpretation) is that sometimes we get new children at upper grades who are behind grade level and that costs all of us resources that could be devoted to more students (and can hurt our test scores). That is just not an issue at the lower grades (heck in my own child's class I see several very strong kids coming in from OOB) and she is not putting any restraints on taking OOB children (other than the lottery). The earlier 4th grade posters said that their children are on grade level (again my interpretation) and that is great. But we'd welcome you either way.

As to the small class sizes, I think folks need to give the principal a break. Again my interpretation, but she was saying that she would try to not take in additional student at the upper grades, but rather have a little larger class at 2nd grade and maybe let the numbers run off a bit. Maybe she spoke in too strong a terms or folks heard her that way, but taking a couple of Grade 4 students or whatever in my mind doesn't necessarily violate the spirit of what she said.

I would also point out that Hearst is not in danger of having its class sizes blow up too large. A Janney or Murch is full of IB kids and has to take everyone. Hearst with its large OOB population only has to take IB kids. So maybe the school is off some year, take in too many kids off the waitlist, and some kids show up in September, and the numbers tick up a bit (from experience we often have folks move before September too, so it can go either way), but it has much more control over class sizes. And overall one thing I really appreciate is that the whole school is small, not just individual class sizes. Dr. B knew our child's name from the first day of school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Enough already....we have room for two new 4th graders -excellent and welcome! Is it possible when somebody said they heard the principal say blah, blah, blah that that the situation was different then? We have room, we may need the budget, whatever - but the conspiracy theory stuff is tiresome.

All of you release the wl complainers please go back to some other thread.

No one begrudges the individual students, but if you are a parent waiting on the sidelines and hoping that it becomes more of an IB school, I think this could be relevant.

I really don't understand why people hope that Hearst becomes more of an IB school. What difference does it make? It is not like OOB students displace IB students since IB students have preference. Hearst has historically had low IB enrollment and, as far as I understand, the majority are OOB parents who have been instrumental in making Hearst a place the previously uninterested IB parents now want to attend. Hearst appears to have a great school community, with a number of OOB folks living relatively close to the school and making it a warm place to be. So why the hope that it becomes more IB?

Signed,

Prospective OOB Ward 4 parent who hopes to get in off the WL!

How about because two neighboring school districts are overflowing with capacity and the boundaries haven't been redrawn in decades, for starters? You can move IB if you would like! Or apply to charter schools.

Janney is apparently over capacity again with just in bounds enrollment. Eaton, to Hearst's south, still has a majority OOB enrollment despite steady increase in local student population in recent years. This suggests that some adjustment of the boundary with Janney would make sense, but not necessarily with Eaton.

OOB enrollment can be a good thing -- utilizes spare capacity, provides choice and opportunity, often adds socio-economic diversity, etc. But based on my experience, there can be issues: the need to drive kids constantly across town when other city agencies are promoting walkability and a less use of cars; more difficult for parents who live far from the school to be as involved, less community support for by-passed, inferior local schools, etc. The point is not to stop OOB enrollment, but to question whether schools should be built to a capacity to meet a primarily neighborhood school need or expanded in contemplation of serving a much larger area and population.

My problem is all the assumptions with OOB. I live in Crestwood, which is seven minutes away from Hearst by car. It is by no means "across town." DH, who does not drive, plans on biking our kid if we get in. A number of my neighbors have children at Hearst and have had children attend Hearst for decades. When I visited the school, one of the moms who lead our Open House tour was a Ward 4 parent and said there were many from Ward 4. Hearst is majority OOB and has one of the most active parent associations of all the schools WOTP--because of OOB parent involvement. So what is your experience based on, because what I have seen contradicts what you have experienced. I bet you are not even a Hearst parent.

Wait? You are outraged at a potential IB parent expressing concern about the preparedness of OOB students. But you yourself refuse to send your kids to school with your neighborhood kids. How are you any different at the end of the day? OP is just saying out loud what you know to be true, but are afraid or unwilling to say.

[Anonymous]

^^ well put.