Vienna VA - Feedback Please on MS and HS Options

[AbbyNTuck]

We are moving to Vienna VA this fall/winter from out of state. We have kids in MS and HS. Would appreciate feedback on MS and HS options -- esp Kilmer MS, Thoreau MS, Madison HS, but open to other school ideas too. It seems like driving to private schools would be pretty far (distance and traffic time), so most likely public schools. Also do they have open-enrollment there or must you attend the school you are in-bounds for?

[Anonymous]

You must attend the school you are zoned for unless your child wants a special program that is offered at another school (i.e. a certain foreign language or IB/AP if not offered at your school).

The only negative I can say about a Kilmer/Madison zoned home is that we were in a situation last year of buying a house with a rising 7th grader. I refused any home zoned for Kilmer MS and then Madison b/c only a tiny portion of the Kilmer kids go on to Madison. I didn't want my 7th grader to make a few friends in middle school only to likely lose them and have to start from scratch in HS. So, to the extent we looked in Vienna, I looked for Thoreau/Madison b/c the vast majority of Thoreau continues on to Madison.

We did buy in Vienna and we have been happy with Thoreau. It is kind of like the land of milk-n-honey. Lots of parent support/involvement/volunteering. Very active PTA. Seems like a safe place when I've been there -- no fighting or bad behavior in the lunch room that I've noticed. Just a normal MS. The administration is very organized and has lots of communication.

Madison -- well, last year it was the 3rd best high school in VA (according to US News).

[Anonymous]

Parts of Vienna near Wolf Trap (the performing arts center, not the elementary school) are zoned for Longfellow MS/McLean HS or Cooper MS/Langley HS, both excellent as well. McLean is quite similar to Madison, though with less emphasis on sports and more emphasis on student publications and performing arts.

Not really a lot of private schools in Vienna - closest is probably Flint Hill in Oakton.

[Anonymous]

If you purchase within the Town limits that automatically puts you into Thoreau/Madison. Thoreau was just complete renovated so it is basically a brand new school with all the associated state-of-the-art classroom technology. Madison is not only strong in the classroom, but also in extracurriculars such as band, orchestra, choir, theater and a wide range of athletics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you purchase within the Town limits that automatically puts you into Thoreau/Madison. Thoreau was just complete renovated so it is basically a brand new school with all the associated state-of-the-art classroom technology. Madison is not only strong in the classroom, but also in extracurriculars such as band, orchestra, choir, theater and a wide range of athletics.

Not so - part of the Town is zoned for Kilmer/Madison.

[Anonymous]

My kids are still in elementary school, but all the parents of middle schoolers seem very happy with Thoreau. I know several who sent their kid to Thoreau rather than to AAP at Jackson.

Madison gets more mixed reviews. Seems to have kind of a jock-y culture. We may consider Marshall IB if it's not a good fit for our kids.

We do have one in private, but that's because the public school could not effectively accommodate DC's special needs. I don't recommend it - between cost and commute, it's awful, and I wish we didn't have to do it.

[AbbyNTuck]

Thank you all for your feedback so far-- very helpful.

[Anonymous]

We live near Wolftrap and are zoned for Kilmer - Madison. We loved the neighborhood and didn't know about the split when we purchased the house. I'm not worried about it. The kids in the neighborhood are all close and who knows who they will be friends with in a few years anyway. We have heard people zoned for Marshall talk about possibly pupil placing later for AP and vice versa for IB. It's impossible to predict where all of their friends will end up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live near Wolftrap and are zoned for Kilmer - Madison. We loved the neighborhood and didn't know about the split when we purchased the house. I'm not worried about it. The kids in the neighborhood are all close and who knows who they will be friends with in a few years anyway. We have heard people zoned for Marshall talk about possibly pupil placing later for AP and vice versa for IB. It's impossible to predict where all of their friends will end up.

The analysis isn't the same if your kids attend elementary school in the area before going to Kilmer and then Madison. If your child has 60+ kids they know from elementary school, then most of those same kids will be continuing on to Madison after Kilmer. Not a social problem.

If your child is new to the area going into Kilmer, and then is part of the 10% that goes on to Madison, there is a very real likelihood that your child will know no one or almost no one going over to Madison. That's the difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Wolftrap and are zoned for Kilmer - Madison. We loved the neighborhood and didn't know about the split when we purchased the house. I'm not worried about it. The kids in the neighborhood are all close and who knows who they will be friends with in a few years anyway. We have heard people zoned for Marshall talk about possibly pupil placing later for AP and vice versa for IB. It's impossible to predict where all of their friends will end up.

The analysis isn't the same if your kids attend elementary school in the area before going to Kilmer and then Madison. If your child has 60+ kids they know from elementary school, then most of those same kids will be continuing on to Madison after Kilmer. Not a social problem.

If your child is new to the area going into Kilmer, and then is part of the 10% that goes on to Madison, there is a very real likelihood that your child will know no one or almost no one going over to Madison. That's the difference.

Easy to solve split feeder problem if the Kilmer boundaries became the Marshall boundaries and the Thoreau boundaries became the Madison boundaries. But then some Town kids might have to go to Marshall (gasp).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Wolftrap and are zoned for Kilmer - Madison. We loved the neighborhood and didn't know about the split when we purchased the house. I'm not worried about it. The kids in the neighborhood are all close and who knows who they will be friends with in a few years anyway. We have heard people zoned for Marshall talk about possibly pupil placing later for AP and vice versa for IB. It's impossible to predict where all of their friends will end up.

The analysis isn't the same if your kids attend elementary school in the area before going to Kilmer and then Madison. If your child has 60+ kids they know from elementary school, then most of those same kids will be continuing on to Madison after Kilmer. Not a social problem.

If your child is new to the area going into Kilmer, and then is part of the 10% that goes on to Madison, there is a very real likelihood that your child will know no one or almost no one going over to Madison. That's the difference.

Good point. I didn't think of that and it makes perfect sense.

[Anonymous]

We were at Wolftrap/Kilmer/Marshall and it seemed like a lot of kids from our area pupil place to Madison, even though most of Kilmer goes to Marshall. AP, sports and band were the main reasons. Marshall is doing better at sports now, mostly because GCM moved down to a less competitive district than Madison.

[Anonymous]

Not *less competitive* just with similar size schools. Marshall was one of the smallest in Liberty District before they were moved to Capitol. Madison, on the other hand, beginning this fall is in Concorde w/ Oakton, Cville, Chantilly and Westfield.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not *less competitive* just with similar size schools. Marshall was one of the smallest in Liberty District before they were moved to Capitol. Madison, on the other hand, beginning this fall is in Concorde w/ Oakton, Cville, Chantilly and Westfield.

The district with the smaller schools was decidedly less competitive, both because most of the schools in that district were smaller but also because they had more students who have after-school jobs and fewer students who play sports (Stuart, Lee, Falls Church, Edison, Wakefield).

The placements are getting shuffled around again soon, and Marshall will have to play tougher competition again, at least in the regional competition.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live near Wolftrap and are zoned for Kilmer - Madison. We loved the neighborhood and didn't know about the split when we purchased the house. I'm not worried about it. The kids in the neighborhood are all close and who knows who they will be friends with in a few years anyway. We have heard people zoned for Marshall talk about possibly pupil placing later for AP and vice versa for IB. It's impossible to predict where all of their friends will end up.

The analysis isn't the same if your kids attend elementary school in the area before going to Kilmer and then Madison. If your child has 60+ kids they know from elementary school, then most of those same kids will be continuing on to Madison after Kilmer. Not a social problem.

If your child is new to the area going into Kilmer, and then is part of the 10% that goes on to Madison, there is a very real likelihood that your child will know no one or almost no one going over to Madison. That's the difference.

Easy to solve split feeder problem if the Kilmer boundaries became the Marshall boundaries and the Thoreau boundaries became the Madison boundaries. But then some Town kids might have to go to Marshall (gasp).

Kilmer and Thoreau are very close to one another. Just as easy to move all of the kids in Dunn Loring to Kilmer and they are closer to Marshall. there are no Madison bound kids that are close to Marshall.