Churchill students

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes when I see what people write about Potomac, I wonder if they have ever been here or just watch tv about rich people. It is not Beverly Hills. There are women who run around in designer things with hair done and mess up their faces but it is not the great majority of people. You would consider us rich but besides living here we don't live as described. We exercise on the canal with no make up. We go to local places to eat like Gregorios Pizza or Renatos. Yes we have nice cars but our kids share an older SUV. It certainly depends on your group but my daughter has some friends who are pretty fancy and some who are totally regular. All the parents get along. We are friendly but not regular friends but we are in contact when there are events and I could count on any of them in an emergency. There is a large contingent of people who won't indulge any of that Real Housewives showboating and bickering nonsense.

Churchill has a fantastic PTA president who is deeply committed to social justice and a huge volunteer contingent in every part of the school. Yes there are kids who drink and do drugs but there are a lot of kids who do not. Is it the best school? No, as others have said, good and bad teachers. I am not thrilled about the new Principal, but the important part is that my daughter likes her school and most of her teachers. I don't have to go there, she does.

Overall I have found Potomac to be one of the most lovely, supportive and community minded places I have ever lived. Just because people are rich does not mean they are jerks. I am friends with some of the uber rich here and guess what, they throw great parties! The cool ones amongst them don't care if you have been to Zermatt or not - the uncool ones do and they would be jerks too if they weren't rich. I have seen this community pull together to support so many families in so many different ways in times of need. It is a real place filled with real people. Also you might see Ted Koppel in the Giant once in awhile.

Okay Polly Anna

Why is liking my community being a Polly Anna? It has its problems like anywhere else but it really is nice here sorry if that is disappointing to you.

[Anonymous]

It's people outside the community putting it down. The same people who say we put them down (but we don't). One of the very frustrating things about dcum...

[Anonymous]

We live near CHS. Most families drive Toyota and Honda Cars or minivans. People stretched to buy a house there so no money for fancy vocations or high-end stores. Our kids And their friends wear clothes from gap or old navy. Kids do sports, play instruments, or volunteering. Classes are Challenging but not too difficult.
Typical High school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live near CHS. Most families drive Toyota and Honda Cars or minivans. People stretched to buy a house there so no money for fancy vocations or high-end stores. Our kids And their friends wear clothes from gap or old navy. Kids do sports, play instruments, or volunteering. Classes are Challenging but not too difficult.
Typical High school.

+1 I don’t get people’s griping. The average hhi in Moco is almost double the national average, so of course houses are going to be more expensive than in other places.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes when I see what people write about Potomac, I wonder if they have ever been here or just watch tv about rich people. It is not Beverly Hills. There are women who run around in designer things with hair done and mess up their faces but it is not the great majority of people. You would consider us rich but besides living here we don't live as described. We exercise on the canal with no make up. We go to local places to eat like Gregorios Pizza or Renatos. Yes we have nice cars but our kids share an older SUV. It certainly depends on your group but my daughter has some friends who are pretty fancy and some who are totally regular. All the parents get along. We are friendly but not regular friends but we are in contact when there are events and I could count on any of them in an emergency. There is a large contingent of people who won't indulge any of that Real Housewives showboating and bickering nonsense.

Churchill has a fantastic PTA president who is deeply committed to social justice and a huge volunteer contingent in every part of the school. Yes there are kids who drink and do drugs but there are a lot of kids who do not. Is it the best school? No, as others have said, good and bad teachers. I am not thrilled about the new Principal, but the important part is that my daughter likes her school and most of her teachers. I don't have to go there, she does.

Overall I have found Potomac to be one of the most lovely, supportive and community minded places I have ever lived. Just because people are rich does not mean they are jerks. I am friends with some of the uber rich here and guess what, they throw great parties! The cool ones amongst them don't care if you have been to Zermatt or not - the uncool ones do and they would be jerks too if they weren't rich. I have seen this community pull together to support so many families in so many different ways in times of need. It is a real place filled with real people. Also you might see Ted Koppel in the Giant once in awhile.

+1 Love the PTSA President. She works hard for the school, the parents, and the kids. But, I do wish they selected a different principal when the previous one retired. My kids have enjoyed the school, had some really great teachers and made some good friends. But, they really need someone with better leadership and management skills, especially to weed out some of those teachers who really, really need to go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can't do this now, but go drive by the student parking lot when full class is in session. You will see what your future looks like.

For the most part it is a hand me down car from Mom or Dad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are two Churchill high school students in my cul de sac alone. Really great kids - I hope my own kids (currently non school aged) grown up to be similar. Most houses in my neighborhood are in the 700s-800s so I would not say people are wealthy.

OP ... you kids will go to school with kids that think living in a $800K house is not wealthy... just so you know.

It’s all relative, especially in this area. I live in a neighborhood with $500K houses. Where I am from, that is considered expensive. several of my neighbors are recent immigrants, some of them undocumented (renters).

Lots of people in this area spend an inordinate amount of money on housing leaving them with less disposable income.

$500K is insanely expensive. Anyone living in a $800K house is extremely wealthy and its kinda sad that their parents don't teach them as such as they may not be able to afford the same lifestyle when they are adults.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are a few pockets of wealth in Churchill, but it's not like the private schools. Churchill is still a public school.

Most of the people in Churchill are upper middle class.

That's people who make between $100k and $350k.

https://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/family-finance/articles/where-do-i-fall-in-the-american-economic-class-system

They can afford some nice things, but if you saw them walking around a mall you wouldn't tell the difference.

The kids for the most part still work hard, but like any high school there's going to be a range.

You don't have to worry about your kids being surrounded by Paris Hilton types.

$350K is not upper middle class and a family making $100K is not buying a million dollar house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are two Churchill high school students in my cul de sac alone. Really great kids - I hope my own kids (currently non school aged) grown up to be similar. Most houses in my neighborhood are in the 700s-800s so I would not say people are wealthy.

OP ... you kids will go to school with kids that think living in a $800K house is not wealthy... just so you know.

It’s all relative, especially in this area. I live in a neighborhood with $500K houses. Where I am from, that is considered expensive. several of my neighbors are recent immigrants, some of them undocumented (renters).

Lots of people in this area spend an inordinate amount of money on housing leaving them with less disposable income.

$500K is insanely expensive. Anyone living in a $800K house is extremely wealthy and its kinda sad that their parents don't teach them as such as they may not be able to afford the same lifestyle when they are adults.

How’s the weather in the Omaha exurbs? Did that storm pass through yet?

[Anonymous]

What’s wrong eith the churchill leadership

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the input from those who have first-hand experience. I should have known that this had the potential to devolve into ugly commentary about what constitutes wealth, but those without experience relevant to my question - can you take it elsewhere?!

We're early in our search and just trying to figure out where to focus. Looking for bigger lot (~1+ acre) and about $1-1.3m budget, which is why that area is appealing. Commutable to DC but only need to go in about 1-2x week.

I agree with OP. If you don't have kids at Churchill or ever had kids at Churchill, you should keep your uninformed opinions to themselves. My youngest one graduated from Churchill last spring. Yes, there are many entitled kids, but there are also many kids that are not. Take a drive around the neighborhoods surrounding Churchill. I would hardly call that Beverly Hills. Yes, those houses cost more than the exactly same house in other parts of the county, but that's because of two things: location not horrendously far from DC and the reputation of the school. Period.

We live in one of the less affluent neighborhoods (I know that is all relative) and my neighbors have generally been very down to earth people with two incomes and not jetting off on multiple luxury vacations each year. We certainly don't do that either.

In terms of teachers, there are excellent teachers and there are very poor teachers at Churchill who need to find another career and not wait out their time and inflict their less than stellar teaching skills on students until they can collect their pension from MCPS. A lot of what makes a "highly regarded school" is parental involvement and the importance parents put on education. Sorry, but that's just the truth and it doesn't matter if you live in Potomac, Silver Spring or Wheaton.

In terms of the new principal, she may not be perfect, but she is a breath of fresh air compared to the last one who was significantly overdue for retirement. My kids used to laugh that she would stand in the Bulldog lobby in the morning trying to "pretend" she knew the students, but couldn't name any of them (well maybe a handful). By the time she retired, she was completely disconnected from the student body. I also felt that her ineffectiveness allowed teachers to have little accountability for their actions.

Someone earlier dug up an article about an incident that happened like 10 years ago. Seriously, it has no bearing on the school environment today.

Are there schools with more diversity both economically and racially in MCPS? Of course there are, but don't write off Churchill because people who know nothing about the school or the community except their preconceived notions or a few encounters with people. There is a group for everyone. Did I hang out with the pretentious "wannabe" rich people? Nope, but I found plenty of other people and so did my kids.

Last thing, I grew up in Silver Spring and went all the way through MCPS so I'm no transplant to the area.

+1 Dr. Benz wa so far out of it when she retired. She stayed 10 year s too long and a ot of things happened on her watch. Churchill, like any school for students is that you get out what you put into it,
There are lots of opportunities for arts, science and many other activities. There are great teachers who are and some not so great teachers. As the PP said, this is a very involved parent comittiee. Back to school night is really crowded. Parents show up for lots of events especially concerts and arts performances. There are your typical over involved parents. It is a large school and it can be hard to find a place you belong. Being a student who can self advocate and connect with teachers helps. We did private for another child and both got good educations. The Churchill grad is doing really well as a sophmore in a small liberal arts school. Academically having no issues at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are a few pockets of wealth in Churchill, but it's not like the private schools. Churchill is still a public school.

Most of the people in Churchill are upper middle class.

That's people who make between $100k and $350k.

https://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/family-finance/articles/where-do-i-fall-in-the-american-economic-class-system

They can afford some nice things, but if you saw them walking around a mall you wouldn't tell the difference.

The kids for the most part still work hard, but like any high school there's going to be a range.

You don't have to worry about your kids being surrounded by Paris Hilton types.

$350K is not upper middle class and a family making $100K is not buying a million dollar house.

The median household income in Montgomery County is about $106,000. And Montgomery County is still one of the wealthiest counties in the US. So yeah, $350,000 is upper middle class by any standards.

One of the hazards of living in Potomac is that it's easier to persuade yourself that a household income of $350,000 is just normal regular working folks, vs. upper middle class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can't do this now, but go drive by the student parking lot when full class is in session. You will see what your future looks like.

For the most part it is a hand me down car from Mom or Dad.

I guess that's how you distinguish between the rich and the merely quite affluent. The rich give their teenagers fancy new cars; the merely quite affluent give their teenagers a fancy hand-me-down car from Mom or Dad.

[Anonymous]

Our family calls the new Principal Barbie. She plays favorites with staff, likes to be surrounded by the popular crowd, and cares to much about sports instead of academics, and doesn't do a thing about the drugs being sold in her school on her watch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our family calls the new Principal Barbie. She plays favorites with staff, likes to be surrounded by the popular crowd, and cares to much about sports instead of academics, and doesn't do a thing about the drugs being sold in her school on her watch.

That's actually kind of sexist.