could West Potomac become a Marshall in 10 years?

[Anonymous]

We live in Hollin Hall and yes it's wishful thinking but I see so much $$$ development in our area and so many young families moving in...just wondering if our high school is poised to dramatically improve by time our kids have to go there.....

[Anonymous]

No, and Marshall isn't anything to strive for

[Anonymous]

hahahaha. ok i'll bite. OP here so I have no dog in this fight re Marshall but this is our second time house-shopping in this region, first time was 5 years ago, and Marshall's high GS ratings have been steady over this period.

Also, when you consider the higher percentage of FARMS students at Marshall compared to other schools snagging GS 9s, maybe this school is really doing something right? Shouldn't be shocking that McLean and Langley can consistently do well on SOLs etc, but when a school with almost twice the share of FARMS students does so....maybe they deserve more credit.

[Anonymous]

Why doesn't FCPS deal with overcrowding at WestPo by redistricting some areas to under-enrolled MV?

Will be voting against 2019 bond because making WestPo even bigger makes no sense. Get rid of IB at MV so people stop using it as an excuse to pupil place out of the school.

As for Marshall they spend far more time on SOL prep there than at other schools, because they've had two principals in a row who are very focused on ratings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why doesn't FCPS deal with overcrowding at WestPo by redistricting some areas to under-enrolled MV?

Will be voting against 2019 bond because making WestPo even bigger makes no sense. Get rid of IB at MV so people stop using it as an excuse to pupil place out of the school.

As for Marshall they spend far more time on SOL prep there than at other schools, because they've had two principals in a row who are very focused on ratings.

That makes no sense.

[Anonymous]

OP - Don't try talking facts or challenge the preconceived notions of the Mclean/Langley parents on here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why doesn't FCPS deal with overcrowding at WestPo by redistricting some areas to under-enrolled MV?

Will be voting against 2019 bond because making WestPo even bigger makes no sense. Get rid of IB at MV so people stop using it as an excuse to pupil place out of the school.

As for Marshall they spend far more time on SOL prep there than at other schools, because they've had two principals in a row who are very focused on ratings.

That makes no sense.

They want money to build an addition at West Potomac, while there are empty seats at Mount Vernon.

[Anonymous]

Sorry it's the 2017 bond.

[Anonymous]

My DS is at Mt Vernon. He has had a fabulous experience at Mt. Vernon. Dr. Terrell, our principal says he signs every request for transfers that comes across his desk. I agree with him - if you don't want to be at Mt. Vernon, we don't want you either. However, as a taxpayer, I am furious that West Po continues to allow out of bound students in when its "closed." Supposedly, they "closed" four years ago because of overcrowding, but they continue to let students in. Hayfield is also under enrolled and is our next closest AP school. If West Po is closed, why aren't they forcing the students over to Hayfield???? Until they start turning away students, I too, will not be voting for the bond. And I'm telling everyone I know to vote NO for the bond.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - Don't try talking facts or challenge the preconceived notions of the Mclean/Langley parents on here.

Ugh. Had two kids at GCM and one of the few bad things about the school is the inferiority complex vis-a-vis Madison and McLean.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - Don't try talking facts or challenge the preconceived notions of the Mclean/Langley parents on here.

Ugh. Had two kids at GCM and one of the few bad things about the school is the inferiority complex vis-a-vis Madison and McLean.

I've got two kids at GCM and they have no inferiority complex vis Madison and McLean - that's just not our experience. I won't go into the stereotypes of the problems at those other schools, suffice it to say that the sense of Marshall pride is very strong. As an example, my son pointed out that Marshall cheers its athletes - Madison jeers its opponents. That summed up a lot about GCM. It's also a very diverse place, particularly in socio-economic metrics; you have McLean and Great Falls pupil placement to IB kids mixed up with lots of poorer kids. Again, in our experience, that hasn't resulted in any issues. The kids get to see the "excesses" of the "rich" and they consistently assess their friends on loyalty, accomplishments, and character rather than wealth. We're big fans of GCM - it has it's problems (the biggest being difficulties in high grading some teachers) but overall the culture is very positive. Give Pearson and Litz (and their teams) credit for leading this school through a renovation and serious growth while maintaining a generous spirit.

[Anonymous]

Isn't Marshall a wealthy school just like all of the other fcps high schools minus the Lee/Stewart/Mt. Vernon type schools?

This is a very affluent area and almost all of the high schools are overflowing with upper middle class kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - Don't try talking facts or challenge the preconceived notions of the Mclean/Langley parents on here.

Ugh. Had two kids at GCM and one of the few bad things about the school is the inferiority complex vis-a-vis Madison and McLean.

I've got two kids at GCM and they have no inferiority complex vis Madison and McLean - that's just not our experience. I won't go into the stereotypes of the problems at those other schools, suffice it to say that the sense of Marshall pride is very strong. As an example, my son pointed out that Marshall cheers its athletes - Madison jeers its opponents. That summed up a lot about GCM. It's also a very diverse place, particularly in socio-economic metrics; you have McLean and Great Falls pupil placement to IB kids mixed up with lots of poorer kids. Again, in our experience, that hasn't resulted in any issues. The kids get to see the "excesses" of the "rich" and they consistently assess their friends on loyalty, accomplishments, and character rather than wealth. We're big fans of GCM - it has it's problems (the biggest being difficulties in high grading some teachers) but overall the culture is very positive. Give Pearson and Litz (and their teams) credit for leading this school through a renovation and serious growth while maintaining a generous spirit.

Kids are kids - it's more the parents (and your digs at Madison and the "problems" at other schools illustrate the chip on their shoulder that a lot of Marshall parents seem to have). It just gets tiresome to hear. I was told by another parent that, back when the school was smaller in the "Small School Big Heart" days things were more relaxed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Isn't Marshall a wealthy school just like all of the other fcps high schools minus the Lee/Stewart/Mt. Vernon type schools?

This is a very affluent area and almost all of the high schools are overflowing with upper middle class kids.

FARMS Percentages at FCPS High Schools (Virginia DOE stats for October 2016)/# of $1.0 million property sales over past 12 months.

Langley 1.4 (350)
TJHSST 1.8 (n/a)
McLean 8.5 (267)
Madison 9.2 (169)
Robinson 9.2 (30)
West Springfield 10.8 (0)
Woodson 10.9 (17)
Oakton 11.7 (88)
Lake Braddock 13.8 (12)
South County 16.7 (17)
Chantilly 17.1 (6)
Marshall 17.3 (103)
Westfield 22.9 (10)
Fairfax 23.3 (17)
Centreville 24.2 (11)
South Lakes 27.9 (34)
Hayfield 28.3 (0)
Edison 34.4 (0)
Herndon 38.1 (8)
West Potomac 38.6 (32)
Falls Church 49.6 (8)
Mount Vernon 50.5 (12)
Lee 52.6 (0)
Annandale 53.7 (6)
Stuart 59.1 (20)

Langley and TJ are the outliers in terms of almost no poverty; Falls Church, Mount Vernon, Lee, Annandale and Stuart are the five schools with the most poverty. In terms of high-end property sales, however, there are five school districts with the lion's share; Langley, McLean, Madison, Marshall and Oakton. There's also another subset of schools with little poverty, but also few super-expensive neighborhoods, West Springfield being the prime example.

Marshall may roughly be in the middle of FCPS schools in terms of the percentage of lower-income students, but it's now 4 out of 25 in terms of the number of $1.0M-plus property sales. West Potomac won't "become a Marshall in 10 years" unless Route 1 becomes another Tysons, and there's next to no prospect of that happening.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - Don't try talking facts or challenge the preconceived notions of the Mclean/Langley parents on here.

Ugh. Had two kids at GCM and one of the few bad things about the school is the inferiority complex vis-a-vis Madison and McLean.

I've got two kids at GCM and they have no inferiority complex vis Madison and McLean - that's just not our experience. I won't go into the stereotypes of the problems at those other schools, suffice it to say that the sense of Marshall pride is very strong. As an example, my son pointed out that Marshall cheers its athletes - Madison jeers its opponents. That summed up a lot about GCM. It's also a very diverse place, particularly in socio-economic metrics; you have McLean and Great Falls pupil placement to IB kids mixed up with lots of poorer kids. Again, in our experience, that hasn't resulted in any issues. The kids get to see the "excesses" of the "rich" and they consistently assess their friends on loyalty, accomplishments, and character rather than wealth. We're big fans of GCM - it has it's problems (the biggest being difficulties in high grading some teachers) but overall the culture is very positive. Give Pearson and Litz (and their teams) credit for leading this school through a renovation and serious growth while maintaining a generous spirit.

Kids are kids - it's more the parents (and your digs at Madison and the "problems" at other schools illustrate the chip on their shoulder that a lot of Marshall parents seem to have). It just gets tiresome to hear. I was told by another parent that, back when the school was smaller in the "Small School Big Heart" days things were more relaxed.

You gotta wonder how we manage any communications at all. My words "I won't go into the stereotypes..." I purposely made no digs at any school. I suppose on re-reading you could make a case that my son disparaged Madison with his reported remark. Again, I characterize that as GCM pride. I guess we must live in a different world but we have no need to cut others down - for any reason. I hope that's clear!