Why does every thread about Hill schools get so grumpy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can we all please agree to stop calling it the Cluster, now that SH has only a passing acquaintance with Watkins and Peabody? They've undone the principal situation and many other schools feed to SH. Stop pretending that the kids at Peabody are going to be in school only with their peers by middle school.

It won't be only their peers, but it'll be the Brent kids who don't go private/charter and lottery in, and the SWS and Montessori kids who mostly live IB, and the LT kids who stick it out -- at this rate SH is the only half-assed option on the hill and will be for many years to come, so I don't really understand why it matters to you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It isn't just on the Hill. Parents who choose to send their kids to DC public schools rather than private schools or rather than moving to suburbs are very protective and at times defensive of their decision and of the schools, and they also are hyper-sensitive about the public perception of those schools, because to a great extent the quality of a neighborhood public school is a function of whether or not neighborhood families keep choosing to send their kids there.

A lot of parents send their kids to DCPS elementary schools but are thinking they may leave the system for middle school. Then when a few parents pull their kids out into private schools in the 3rd or 4th grade and it starts a mini-panic among those still in the elementary. People want to be assured that they are doing the right thing for their kids.

Haven't really seen kids leaving in 3rd or 4th in Hill schools and hear much the same from parents at other Hill ES. You DO however see an exodus in 5th grade for charters.

Unfortunately, I'm still seeing it. E.g. We had a bunch of kids over for a 3rd grade sleepover the other night, all from the same DCPS school. When I did a head count, I realized that most of them won't be returning for 4th grade. Parents are already moving to the burbs, and elsewhere in the country and the world, or privates because they know our assigned middle school won't work for them, not by a long shot, and wouldn't be satisfied with BASIS or Latin (particularly for HS), even if they could get in.

Our politicians have really let us down and Bowser and Henderson and co. could absolutely care less if they lose these families, all of whom started DCPS in PreK3 or PreK4. Most of these kids' parents have been very involved in the PTA from the get go. When I passed Charles Allen on a sidewalk the other night, it was all I could do to keep from yelling "WHERE IS OUT TEST-IN PROGRAM! WHY DOES WARD 7 GET ONE BUT NOT WARD 6?!" at him.

Hahaha- I thought I was the only one who felt like screaming at Charles Allen when I run into him.

I keep waiting for Alice Deal for All.... But wait that's been proven to be a lie right? thanks bowser.

Fwiw- we live inside the historic district and my husband works in policy. I am a sahm. Lots of my neighbors do work in policy jobs or lobbying. But there are a few World Bank, IMF, and military families too.

I've about had it as well, let's open a middle school charter on the hill! Sure that he'll have NO PROBLEM AT ALL with that

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:nch of kids over for a 3rd grade sleepover the other night, all from the same DCPS school. When I did a head count, I realized that most of them won't be returning for 4th grade. Parents are already moving to the burbs, and elsewhere in the country and the world, or privates because they know our assigned middle school won't work for them, not by a long shot, and wouldn't be satisfied with BASIS or Latin (particularly for HS), even if they could get in.

Our politicians have really let us down and Bowser and Henderson and co. could absolutely care less if they lose these families, all of whom started DCPS in PreK3 or PreK4. Most of these kids' parents have been very involved in the PTA from the get go. When I passed Charles Allen on a sidewalk the other night, it was all I could do to keep from yelling "WHERE IS OUT TEST-IN PROGRAM! WHY DOES WARD 7 GET ONE BUT NOT WARD 6?!" at him.

You'll be lucky to get a language immersion offer as a subtle test-in in masquerade/gimmick. But yes, why not just a simple, serious school as you suggest where kids can learn without major disruptions? The Council throws a lot of money at developers to make projects happen; all they have to do is make quality DCPS schools and the market will handle the rest. But that's too simple.

Can you give an instance where this has happened recently, at least west of the Anacostia?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It isn't just on the Hill. Parents who choose to send their kids to DC public schools rather than private schools or rather than moving to suburbs are very protective and at times defensive of their decision and of the schools, and they also are hyper-sensitive about the public perception of those schools, because to a great extent the quality of a neighborhood public school is a function of whether or not neighborhood families keep choosing to send their kids there.

A lot of parents send their kids to DCPS elementary schools but are thinking they may leave the system for middle school. Then when a few parents pull their kids out into private schools in the 3rd or 4th grade and it starts a mini-panic among those still in the elementary. People want to be assured that they are doing the right thing for their kids.

Haven't really seen kids leaving in 3rd or 4th in Hill schools and hear much the same from parents at other Hill ES. You DO however see an exodus in 5th grade for charters.

Unfortunately, I'm still seeing it. E.g. We had a bunch of kids over for a 3rd grade sleepover the other night, all from the same DCPS school. When I did a head count, I realized that most of them won't be returning for 4th grade. Parents are already moving to the burbs, and elsewhere in the country and the world, or privates because they know our assigned middle school won't work for them, not by a long shot, and wouldn't be satisfied with BASIS or Latin (particularly for HS), even if they could get in.

Our politicians have really let us down and Bowser and Henderson and co. could absolutely care less if they lose these families, all of whom started DCPS in PreK3 or PreK4. Most of these kids' parents have been very involved in the PTA from the get go. When I passed Charles Allen on a sidewalk the other night, it was all I could do to keep from yelling "WHERE IS OUT TEST-IN PROGRAM! WHY DOES WARD 7 GET ONE BUT NOT WARD 6?!" at him.

Hahaha- I thought I was the only one who felt like screaming at Charles Allen when I run into him.

I keep waiting for Alice Deal for All.... But wait that's been proven to be a lie right? thanks bowser.

Fwiw- we live inside the historic district and my husband works in policy. I am a sahm. Lots of my neighbors do work in policy jobs or lobbying. But there are a few World Bank, IMF, and military families too.

The next two Deals are Hardy and McFarland. The Hill is way down the list.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can we all please agree to stop calling it the Cluster, now that SH has only a passing acquaintance with Watkins and Peabody? They've undone the principal situation and many other schools feed to SH. Stop pretending that the kids at Peabody are going to be in school only with their peers by middle school.

What are you smoking? Passing acquaintance? Peabody feeds to Watkins, which feeds to SH. The three share a PTA and fundraising, including the Capitol Hill Classic and Renovator's Tour, not to mention a website (http://www.capitolhillclusterschool.org/) that describes the Cluster as one school with three campuses. So, I'll stop referring to Peabody/Watkins/SH as the Cluster when Peabody/Watkins/SH stops referring to itself as the Cluster. I also find it confounding that PP seems to think there are scores of OOB seats open to kids from Brent and other non-feeders. WTF?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:nch of kids over for a 3rd grade sleepover the other night, all from the same DCPS school. When I did a head count, I realized that most of them won't be returning for 4th grade. Parents are already moving to the burbs, and elsewhere in the country and the world, or privates because they know our assigned middle school won't work for them, not by a long shot, and wouldn't be satisfied with BASIS or Latin (particularly for HS), even if they could get in.

Our politicians have really let us down and Bowser and Henderson and co. could absolutely care less if they lose these families, all of whom started DCPS in PreK3 or PreK4. Most of these kids' parents have been very involved in the PTA from the get go. When I passed Charles Allen on a sidewalk the other night, it was all I could do to keep from yelling "WHERE IS OUT TEST-IN PROGRAM! WHY DOES WARD 7 GET ONE BUT NOT WARD 6?!" at him.

You'll be lucky to get a language immersion offer as a subtle test-in in masquerade/gimmick. But yes, why not just a simple, serious school as you suggest where kids can learn without major disruptions? The Council throws a lot of money at developers to make projects happen; all they have to do is make quality DCPS schools and the market will handle the rest. But that's too simple.

Can you give an instance where this has happened recently, at least west of the Anacostia?

Nationals Park. The planned soccer stadium at Buzzard Point (and the willingness to do a below-market trade of the Reeves Center to get land for it). The streetcar.
Not the council but DCHA spent a ton of money on the redevelopment of Capper/Carrollsburg into Capitol Quarter and surrounding buildings, and to a less-successful extent, redevelopment near Sursum Corda and Park Morton.

But PP misses an important point: it is simpler to give money (or discounts on property, bonds, or TIFs) to developers than it is to improve schools. You say "all they have to do is make quality DCPS schools" like a quality school is something you can buy. Like there's some easy way to fix a situation where the majority of public school kids in the city are poor. You'd have to fix parental education levels, how people parent, the criminal justice system (and crime in general), mental illness and how it's treated, housing conditions (lead causes learning delays; cockroaches contribute to asthma), transportation, disparities in early child care, income inequality, racism, etc. You could make a test-in middle school and maybe help the few kids that got in, but that's not exactly the same thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Nationals Park. The planned soccer stadium at Buzzard Point (and the willingness to do a below-market trade of the Reeves Center to get land for it). The streetcar.
Not the council but DCHA spent a ton of money on the redevelopment of Capper/Carrollsburg into Capitol Quarter and surrounding buildings, and to a less-successful extent, redevelopment near Sursum Corda and Park Morton.

While stadiums and street cars may be designed to stimulate development, they are not direct subsidies to developers, which is what I believe PP was referring to. And of course DCHA had to do something about its aging public housing - if they did not do a Hope VI/New Communities mixed income development, they would have had to spend money to rehab the old units. That is not really a subsidy to developers.

Also I would question whether the sports stadiums are really justified mostly on development. I have followed the soccer debate, and lots of opponents have pointed out there are other, cheaper, ways to stimulate development in Buzzards Point - the response is mostly that soccer is itself a public benefit. Indeed we see DC pols wanting the Skins back, though their presence would likely harm development in Hill East. I don't think developers should be blamed for pols' sports mania.

[Anonymous]

One can always look at abatement analyses at:

http://cfo.dc.gov/page/tax-abatement-analyses

Just see which ones became law.

[Anonymous]

Center Leg Freeway project (no pun intended). SW Waterfront TIF. All the other TIFs all over the city. West End Library. Call Jack Evans' office, they can tell you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It isn't just on the Hill. Parents who choose to send their kids to DC public schools rather than private schools or rather than moving to suburbs are very protective and at times defensive of their decision and of the schools, and they also are hyper-sensitive about the public perception of those schools, because to a great extent the quality of a neighborhood public school is a function of whether or not neighborhood families keep choosing to send their kids there.

A lot of parents send their kids to DCPS elementary schools but are thinking they may leave the system for middle school. Then when a few parents pull their kids out into private schools in the 3rd or 4th grade and it starts a mini-panic among those still in the elementary. People want to be assured that they are doing the right thing for their kids.

Haven't really seen kids leaving in 3rd or 4th in Hill schools and hear much the same from parents at other Hill ES. You DO however see an exodus in 5th grade for charters.

Unfortunately, I'm still seeing it. E.g. We had a bunch of kids over for a 3rd grade sleepover the other night, all from the same DCPS school. When I did a head count, I realized that most of them won't be returning for 4th grade. Parents are already moving to the burbs, and elsewhere in the country and the world, or privates because they know our assigned middle school won't work for them, not by a long shot, and wouldn't be satisfied with BASIS or Latin (particularly for HS), even if they could get in.

Our politicians have really let us down and Bowser and Henderson and co. could absolutely care less if they lose these families, all of whom started DCPS in PreK3 or PreK4. Most of these kids' parents have been very involved in the PTA from the get go. When I passed Charles Allen on a sidewalk the other night, it was all I could do to keep from yelling "WHERE IS OUT TEST-IN PROGRAM! WHY DOES WARD 7 GET ONE BUT NOT WARD 6?!" at him.

How would this work exactly? The number of seats this test-in program school would need to have would be enormous, as every white family on Capitol Hill would demand that their kids get in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It isn't just on the Hill. Parents who choose to send their kids to DC public schools rather than private schools or rather than moving to suburbs are very protective and at times defensive of their decision and of the schools, and they also are hyper-sensitive about the public perception of those schools, because to a great extent the quality of a neighborhood public school is a function of whether or not neighborhood families keep choosing to send their kids there.

A lot of parents send their kids to DCPS elementary schools but are thinking they may leave the system for middle school. Then when a few parents pull their kids out into private schools in the 3rd or 4th grade and it starts a mini-panic among those still in the elementary. People want to be assured that they are doing the right thing for their kids.

Haven't really seen kids leaving in 3rd or 4th in Hill schools and hear much the same from parents at other Hill ES. You DO however see an exodus in 5th grade for charters.

Unfortunately, I'm still seeing it. E.g. We had a bunch of kids over for a 3rd grade sleepover the other night, all from the same DCPS school. When I did a head count, I realized that most of them won't be returning for 4th grade. Parents are already moving to the burbs, and elsewhere in the country and the world, or privates because they know our assigned middle school won't work for them, not by a long shot, and wouldn't be satisfied with BASIS or Latin (particularly for HS), even if they could get in.

Our politicians have really let us down and Bowser and Henderson and co. could absolutely care less if they lose these families, all of whom started DCPS in PreK3 or PreK4. Most of these kids' parents have been very involved in the PTA from the get go. When I passed Charles Allen on a sidewalk the other night, it was all I could do to keep from yelling "WHERE IS OUT TEST-IN PROGRAM! WHY DOES WARD 7 GET ONE BUT NOT WARD 6?!" at him.

How would this work exactly? The number of seats this test-in program school would need to have would be enormous, as every white family on Capitol Hill would demand that their kids get in.

One way to do it would be to design a test which only a child who has a parent who works in politics/legislation could pass. That way, the school would be restricted to only those who are truly part of the "Hill."

[Anonymous]

They wouldn't "demand" anything. Their kids would have to TEST IN.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They wouldn't "demand" anything. Their kids would have to TEST IN.

If you think that people on the Hill wouldn't figure out a way to retake tests, have special accommodations, have a different test given to their special snowflake, etc., I want what you're smoking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can we all please agree to stop calling it the Cluster, now that SH has only a passing acquaintance with Watkins and Peabody? They've undone the principal situation and many other schools feed to SH. Stop pretending that the kids at Peabody are going to be in school only with their peers by middle school.

What are you smoking? Passing acquaintance? Peabody feeds to Watkins, which feeds to SH. The three share a PTA and fundraising, including the Capitol Hill Classic and Renovator's Tour, not to mention a website (http://www.capitolhillclusterschool.org/) that describes the Cluster as one school with three campuses. So, I'll stop referring to Peabody/Watkins/SH as the Cluster when Peabody/Watkins/SH stops referring to itself as the Cluster. I also find it confounding that PP seems to think there are scores of OOB seats open to kids from Brent and other non-feeders. WTF?

The Cluster was put in place to have a straight feed from Peabody to Watkins to SH. Now, multiple schools feed to SH and there will be different principals for Peabody/Watkins and SH. Will there continue to be one website and one PTA? Why? Does Deal co-brand with one specific JKLMM elementary?

Not the PP with the delusion of Brent or any other non-feeder students enrolling OOB in droves, btw.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They wouldn't "demand" anything. Their kids would have to TEST IN.

If you think that people on the Hill wouldn't figure out a way to retake tests, have special accommodations, have a different test given to their special snowflake, etc., I want what you're smoking.

+1. I feel like it would be like what goes on in the AAP Forum for Fairfax schools.