My massive dilemma about school pyramids - low income vs. more affluent? HELP ME!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were strongly considering a house in the Woodson district until I started talking with acquaintances who'd had kids there. Time and again I heard stories of high stress, cut-throat competitiveness and bullying. We decided to look elsewhere.

Same here, PP. We opted for a house in another high school boundary.

Is this true for all the elementary schools that feed into Woodson? We go to Olde Creek, and I see none of this. Families are so friendly, and the environment isn't cut throat. I'm wondering if something changes in middle and high school, or if other feeder schools (such as Mantua, Canterbury Woods, etc) are high-stress even in elementary school.

And do current Woodson parents feel this way? I thought the school had been making a lot f effort to improve on this front, although I don't know if they've been successful or not.

It's a parent/community issue. It's not the school. Best thing would be redrawn boundaries. The community needs a shake up.

I have posted this before, but I'll say it again: as a parent from another high schools who's been to just about every HS over the years, I can say unequivocally that the Woodson parents were as welcoming to visiting teams as any around and their teams' sense of sportsmanship was excellent. It always seems unfair to me when people take shots at that school.

Well gosh, you have so much insight to a school because parents with shared interests weren't rude. Cool story bro.

Well, it's far less insight than someone who actually had a child there would have, and possibly more than someone who heard from a friend of a friend of a friend that the atmosphere there is "toxic." But nice way to prove you're an asshole.

There's an asshole on this thread all right. Isn't it your turn for spaghetti night for your budding little Pele and their team. Maybe keep your opinions on the sidelines?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were strongly considering a house in the Woodson district until I started talking with acquaintances who'd had kids there. Time and again I heard stories of high stress, cut-throat competitiveness and bullying. We decided to look elsewhere.

Same here, PP. We opted for a house in another high school boundary.

Is this true for all the elementary schools that feed into Woodson? We go to Olde Creek, and I see none of this. Families are so friendly, and the environment isn't cut throat. I'm wondering if something changes in middle and high school, or if other feeder schools (such as Mantua, Canterbury Woods, etc) are high-stress even in elementary school.

And do current Woodson parents feel this way? I thought the school had been making a lot f effort to improve on this front, although I don't know if they've been successful or not.

It's a parent/community issue. It's not the school. Best thing would be redrawn boundaries. The community needs a shake up.

I have posted this before, but I'll say it again: as a parent from another high schools who's been to just about every HS over the years, I can say unequivocally that the Woodson parents were as welcoming to visiting teams as any around and their teams' sense of sportsmanship was excellent. It always seems unfair to me when people take shots at that school.

Well gosh, you have so much insight to a school because parents with shared interests weren't rude. Cool story bro.

Well, it's far less insight than someone who actually had a child there would have, and possibly more than someone who heard from a friend of a friend of a friend that the atmosphere there is "toxic." But nice way to prove you're an asshole.

There's an asshole on this thread all right. Isn't it your turn for spaghetti night for your budding little Pele and their team. Maybe keep your opinions on the sidelines?

Yep, double down on being an asshole, that'll show 'em.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were strongly considering a house in the Woodson district until I started talking with acquaintances who'd had kids there. Time and again I heard stories of high stress, cut-throat competitiveness and bullying. We decided to look elsewhere.

Same here, PP. We opted for a house in another high school boundary.

Is this true for all the elementary schools that feed into Woodson? We go to Olde Creek, and I see none of this. Families are so friendly, and the environment isn't cut throat. I'm wondering if something changes in middle and high school, or if other feeder schools (such as Mantua, Canterbury Woods, etc) are high-stress even in elementary school.

And do current Woodson parents feel this way? I thought the school had been making a lot f effort to improve on this front, although I don't know if they've been successful or not.

It's a parent/community issue. It's not the school. Best thing would be redrawn boundaries. The community needs a shake up.

I have posted this before, but I'll say it again: as a parent from another high schools who's been to just about every HS over the years, I can say unequivocally that the Woodson parents were as welcoming to visiting teams as any around and their teams' sense of sportsmanship was excellent. It always seems unfair to me when people take shots at that school.

Well gosh, you have so much insight to a school because parents with shared interests weren't rude. Cool story bro.

Well, it's far less insight than someone who actually had a child there would have, and possibly more than someone who heard from a friend of a friend of a friend that the atmosphere there is "toxic." But nice way to prove you're an asshole.

There's an asshole on this thread all right. Isn't it your turn for spaghetti night for your budding little Pele and their team. Maybe keep your opinions on the sidelines?

Yep, double down on being an asshole, that'll show 'em.

I'm not the one calling names... not a good look.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FOR YEARS now my family been struggling with a major issue. Do we stay in our current house in a fairly low-income school pyramid or move just a mile away to a more affluent pyramid with a "great" reputation? Seriously, I have been questioning this for YEARS and cannot make a decision -- but there are other issues at play as well. I just want to get feedback from people, please only respond if you have good intentions and don't make nasty remarks!

I have 3 kids, oldest will be in kindergarten in 2016-2017 (so we have a year to decide). We are in a decent neighborhood in the Camelot/Luther Jackson/Falls Church HS pyramid. If we move to my father's neighborhood just a few miles away, we are in Wakefield Forest/Frost/Woodson pyramid. We can afford to do this, although moving requires we sell our home first, live with my dad for awhile while we wait for the right house to come on the market.

Anyway, our motivators for moving would be the following:
1. better schools (supposedly)
2. Closer to my ailing dad who I will have to care for
3. A nicer neighborhood with a more community feel (lots of social events, nice HOA, pool)

Anyway, I hear different things about the schools. Some tell me the lower income schools (like Luther Jackson/Falls Church) receive more resources, money, smaller classes, and that my child will have a better chance of "standing out" because not every kid is trying to be Captain of the football team and in honor society and in a million clubs. Basically, there are not as many over-achievers. Downside is that the parents are not as involved because many are working 2 or 3 jobs and have little to NO time to be involved with their kids' lives at school. The kids my kids would be friends with may come from poverty.... and some may come from unconventional home situations like many families living in one apartment. There will be much more diversity, but Falls Church HS is very small, for example - maybe only 1000 kids? But the school has not been renovated mostly bc the parents don't push for it, because they aren't involved.

On the other hand, if we move, We would send our kids to Wakefield Forest (which I love), but then to Frost in Woodson which seems to be filled with overachievers and high-income kids. The competition seems to be intense, class sizes are larger, less diversity, but is considered one of the finest schools in the area. My kids may not have the chance to "stand out" because most the kids are being cheered on my motivated parents. That being said, my kids would be hanging out with kids from more affluent backgrounds with more involved parents. Woodson also has seen suicides recently and is a HUGE school. Seems like a child could easily get lost there.

Two other issues -- if we move to Woodson district, my kids could walk to Wakefield Forest instead of bussing it. I would be close to my ailing dad, making it easier for me to care for him (along with 3 kids), and we would live in a slightly nicer neighborhood -- houses a little nicer, more parks, pool, etc.

Mostly, I would like opinions about the school situation. What is your opinion on a low-income pyramid vs. affluent pyramid?

My child is "affluent," attending a "less affluent" high school with an enormously diverse student body, and stands out, and not in a good way. It is making our whole family miserable.

Can you elaborate? How does your child stand out, and what are the consequences? We are zoned for a school that is less affluent

[Anonymous]

I thought this Reddit thread about Woodson was pretty instructive. Lots of students and former students posting.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nova/comments/1z0qy2/suicides_at_wt_woodson_high_school/#bottom-comments

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The FCPS school board needs to evaluate school boundaries on an established schedule to ensure that boundaries don't become entrenched. Areas change, new housing and roads are built, and demographic shifts occur. Over time, boundaries that once made sense no longer do. I can think of a great example in Springfield.

I'm not quite sure I understand this. FCPS devotes a lot of attention to monitoring enrollments and studying the need for potential boundary changes. What is wrong with "entrenched" boundaries as long as appropriate use is made of each school's capacity? I suppose they could just periodically change the boundaries to shake things up, but boundary changes, when proposed, typically provoke more outcry than just about anything besides the family life

education policy.

The Board mainly looks at capacity when considering boundary changes, but that policy is all wrong and not a good use of $ resources. Why is the county spending big bucks to renovate and add capacity at West Springfield when Lee has excess capacity? More higher income areas need to be zoned for Lee or the few higher SES families that are zoned for that school will leave - making a bad situation even worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The FCPS school board needs to evaluate school boundaries on an established schedule to ensure that boundaries don't become entrenched. Areas change, new housing and roads are built, and demographic shifts occur. Over time, boundaries that once made sense no longer do. I can think of a great example in Springfield.

I'm not quite sure I understand this. FCPS devotes a lot of attention to monitoring enrollments and studying the need for potential boundary changes. What is wrong with "entrenched" boundaries as long as appropriate use is made of each school's capacity? I suppose they could just periodically change the boundaries to shake things up, but boundary changes, when proposed, typically provoke more outcry than just about anything besides the family life

education policy.

The Board mainly looks at capacity when considering boundary changes, but that policy is all wrong and not a good use of $ resources. Why is the county spending big bucks to renovate and add capacity at West Springfield when Lee has excess capacity? More higher income areas need to be zoned for Lee or the few higher SES families that are zoned for that school will leave - making a bad situation even worse.

I don't disagree with that, although some families now zoned for WS would either pupil-place back to WS for AP or go private if redistricted to Lee. If you want to shore up Lee, you have to make it harder to transfer out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's all about the types of housing that the land use committees and the county supervisors approve. Put all the lower-cost housing in the Alexandria part of FCPS and voila!... the "bad" schools are entrenched in those areas. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure it out. Mix the types of housing and you get schools with middle of the road (i.e. "average" ... gasp!!) test scores. Keep out all the poor or even middle income housing and you suddenly have great schools (i.e. Langley????).

The rich are better at keeping their neighborhoods free of the less wealthy, thereby keeping their schools higher-scoring.

It's a little late now to fuss about schools having bad boundaries. Should have thought about that before putting all kinds of low slung apartments on Rt. 1. What can be done now? Bus kids over to McLean??? Hardly. Build some garden apartments in Great Falls?? Not likely. So, we have schools that are stuck b/c the housing in that pyramid is not going to change (especially now that Ffx is pretty much built out).

TRUTH!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: 3. A nicer neighborhood with a more community feel (lots of social events, nice HOA, pool)

That's reason enough to move..... School's are a bennie.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought this Reddit thread about Woodson was pretty instructive. Lots of students and former students posting.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nova/comments/1z0qy2/suicides_at_wt_woodson_high_school/#bottom-comments

This is awful. Is this specific to Woodson?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought this Reddit thread about Woodson was pretty instructive. Lots of students and former students posting.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nova/comments/1z0qy2/suicides_at_wt_woodson_high_school/#bottom-comments

This is awful. Is this specific to Woodson?

I think this was centered on Woodson but with students from other high schoolers chiming in, too.

The CDC work was centered on a small number of schools, including Woodson.

http://wjla.com/news/health/feds-fairfax-county-look-into-northern-virginia-suicides-following-3-deaths-since-september-109169

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought this Reddit thread about Woodson was pretty instructive. Lots of students and former students posting.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nova/comments/1z0qy2/suicides_at_wt_woodson_high_school/#bottom-comments

This is awful. Is this specific to Woodson?

Mostly, yes.

Honestly, this is not the kind of school I'd uproot my family for. Clearly test scores don't tell the whole story.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought this Reddit thread about Woodson was pretty instructive. Lots of students and former students posting.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nova/comments/1z0qy2/suicides_at_wt_woodson_high_school/#bottom-comments

This is awful. Is this specific to Woodson?

Mostly, yes.

Honestly, this is not the kind of school I'd uproot my family for. Clearly test scores don't tell the whole story.

Pp again. I asked because I'm scouting the region, and both the Marshall HS and falls Church city pyramids are on my list. Do they have similar issues?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought this Reddit thread about Woodson was pretty instructive. Lots of students and former students posting.

https://www.reddit.com/r/nova/comments/1z0qy2/suicides_at_wt_woodson_high_school/#bottom-comments

This is awful. Is this specific to Woodson?

Mostly, yes.

Honestly, this is not the kind of school I'd uproot my family for. Clearly test scores don't tell the whole story.

this scares the crap out of me