African American parents - which schools in MoCo?

[Anonymous]

I’m black and have one kid at Burtonsville Elementary and one at Blake High School. They’re not highly regarded if you go by DCUM standards, but they’re both great schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m black and have one kid at Burtonsville Elementary and one at Blake High School. They’re not highly regarded if you go by DCUM standards, but they’re both great schools.

I am a Burtonsville parent too. Have had great teachers so far and I really like the school.

[Anonymous]

my kids went to Blake and Paint branch. yes, there were some kids that had behavioral issues but there were many kids that were motivated and did the best they could coming from homes that would fail under dcum standards. my daughter's best friend is now going to Princeton and another friend is going to Duke. my daughter is in her 2nd year at Boston U and doing great. My son is at Vanderbilt and is doing exceptionally well. All of his friends are attending colleges. Both of these schools have higher populations of AA. my kids are white and although they did experience some racism, they ignored it and eventually it stopped. All this to say is dont rule out eastern county schools based on what you read here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
This is purely anecdotal, but after having spent years in MCPS, and talking to my friends and acquaintances who all have their kids in different MCPS schools than my kids, I have found an interesting thing: it seems to me that AA children have a better experience as minorities in wealthier schools than as the plurality in more average schools. This is because the area is progressive and wealthy/prominent progressives have a stake in at least appearing to defend minorities - and to be honest, most are perfectly sincere in that belief! You can take advantage of that.

Allow me to explain: Whitman HS in Bethesda, the whitest, wealthiest and most high-scoring high school in MCPS, dealt with racist issues last year, the most egregious of which was the case of a white student who was caught with a photo of herself in blackface with the n-word. There was an uproar, and AA parents at the school immediately worked with the administration to engage the community in race conversations. I went to one presentation, and the AA parent and Principal who spoke were both very impressive in their delivery and choice of plans going forward. I felt their voices were heard. MCPS has a team dedicated to facilitating such discussions, but I forget their name. They were also present at the meeting.

On the other hand, most students at the diverse Sligo MS in Silver Spring feel the need to group themselves according to skin color, and my friend's daughter felt excluded from her white friends' group because she was not white. Race is such a constant factor there that the administration doesn't even get involved. I'm not sure that a blackface photo would generate the amount of angst and public debate that it triggered at Whitman. It just seems to be a fact of life there.

I may be viewing this completely wrong, of course. Perhaps your children would prefer to not stand out as one of the very few AA students. I understand that.

In addition, MCPS schools are not created equal in the sense that they do not control the class atmosphere and whether students are more academically motivated or not. This depends entirely on the neighborhood, and not to put too fine a point on it, on the wealth/education of the parents, since these families will be able to emphasize college readiness and support it with tutors or whatever is needed. Education begins at home, so there is no reason that a child cannot be successful in a lower-income school, however they will have to expend some energy in avoiding students who are not college-bound. Wheaton and some Silver Spring schools have gang issues. There are drugs everywhere, of course. But wealthier high schools will have more students who have the means to succeed despite temptations, than the other high schools, and children always benefit from being part of a strong cohort. I am talking about high schools, because ultimately you are choosing a school pyramid and investing in a neighborhood, even if your children are very young.

I also agree with this. Even more so for BCC cluster. If you want to see it in action, attend a sporting event there. Very little race sorting, most kids are part of diverse friend groups, and I think kids and teachers go out of their way to be inclusive. Granted, BCC is more diverse than Whitman, but it's a very solid, inclusive student body.

[Anonymous]

My advice as a non-white person would be to choose a school where the student population does well across all races. It may very well be a high SES school.
Then choose a school where they have an outlet for their ec interest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:my kids went to Blake and Paint branch. yes, there were some kids that had behavioral issues but there were many kids that were motivated and did the best they could coming from homes that would fail under dcum standards. my daughter's best friend is now going to Princeton and another friend is going to Duke. my daughter is in her 2nd year at Boston U and doing great. My son is at Vanderbilt and is doing exceptionally well. All of his friends are attending colleges. Both of these schools have higher populations of AA. my kids are white and although they did experience some racism, they ignored it and eventually it stopped. All this to say is dont rule out eastern county schools based on what you read here.

It really helps illustrate how the same kids can do similarly (well) at any MCPS school. The only differences are small demographic ones that impact averages. Whether one school has an extra section of AP English and another an extra section of remedial math doesn't really impact individual outcomes.

[Anonymous]

I'd pick any W. Not because they're all that but because they're in dire need of more diversity.

[Anonymous]

Don't get drawn into the race debate and baiting. MoCo is pretty diverse. Even the very White schools have students of other races. If other minorities can thrive, so can AA. Look for the school which are high SES. They get more experienced and higher paid teachers, even though the class sizes are larger.

Poorer schools get more teachers (para-educators) and smaller class sizes, but they also get inexperienced teachers who are not highly paid. The addition of para-educators in the classrooms do not add anything to the academic attainment in the class room. Most of the para-educators are poorly educated and do not know any pedagogy.

Higher SES schools may have many more after-school EC classes paid for by the generosity of the PTA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd pick any W. Not because they're all that but because they're in dire need of more diversity.

Why should AA parents do any favors for W schools, when it may not be in their child's best interest?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Depending on your commute, the RM cluster could be great for you. You’ll get a far better house than you could in Bethesda/Chevy Chase/Potomac, there’s great diversity by race and wealth, and the school got high marks educationally. It’s also centrally located, and if you live within the city limits, has a nice community vibe. We pay some extra tax but get our own police, etc. And in some parts you can walk to Metro/Town Square and are right by 270.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:BCC or Walter Johnson Pyramid has strong, involved black families and students.

+1
These will be the two schools that I will recommend. Academics are strong and they are both diverse. I will caution sending an AA boy to any of the low performing high schools in Montgomery County because of the negative social influences at those particular schools. Leaving DC for Montgomery County only to attend a MCPS that is on the same level or in some cases worst than a DCPS will be a waste of money IMO.

However, as a UMC black parent I will choose private in this area. The public schools just do not fare well for many high achieving AA students. The public schools in the DC area have too many pitfalls. If you have the money, then go private instead. If not, then BCC and Walter Johnson will suffice.

Now that is a waste of money.
AA in MCPS score higher in AP tests than anywhere in the nation.

Where can I find this info??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This is purely anecdotal, but after having spent years in MCPS, and talking to my friends and acquaintances who all have their kids in different MCPS schools than my kids, I have found an interesting thing: it seems to me that AA children have a better experience as minorities in wealthier schools than as the plurality in more average schools. This is because the area is progressive and wealthy/prominent progressives have a stake in at least appearing to defend minorities - and to be honest, most are perfectly sincere in that belief! You can take advantage of that.

Allow me to explain: Whitman HS in Bethesda, the whitest, wealthiest and most high-scoring high school in MCPS, dealt with racist issues last year, the most egregious of which was the case of a white student who was caught with a photo of herself in blackface with the n-word. There was an uproar, and AA parents at the school immediately worked with the administration to engage the community in race conversations. I went to one presentation, and the AA parent and Principal who spoke were both very impressive in their delivery and choice of plans going forward. I felt their voices were heard. MCPS has a team dedicated to facilitating such discussions, but I forget their name. They were also present at the meeting.

On the other hand, most students at the diverse Sligo MS in Silver Spring feel the need to group themselves according to skin color, and my friend's daughter felt excluded from her white friends' group because she was not white. Race is such a constant factor there that the administration doesn't even get involved. I'm not sure that a blackface photo would generate the amount of angst and public debate that it triggered at Whitman. It just seems to be a fact of life there.

I may be viewing this completely wrong, of course. Perhaps your children would prefer to not stand out as one of the very few AA students. I understand that.

In addition, MCPS schools are not created equal in the sense that they do not control the class atmosphere and whether students are more academically motivated or not. This depends entirely on the neighborhood, and not to put too fine a point on it, on the wealth/education of the parents, since these families will be able to emphasize college readiness and support it with tutors or whatever is needed. Education begins at home, so there is no reason that a child cannot be successful in a lower-income school, however they will have to expend some energy in avoiding students who are not college-bound. Wheaton and some Silver Spring schools have gang issues. There are drugs everywhere, of course. But wealthier high schools will have more students who have the means to succeed despite temptations, than the other high schools, and children always benefit from being part of a strong cohort. I am talking about high schools, because ultimately you are choosing a school pyramid and investing in a neighborhood, even if your children are very young.

I actually would agree with this. I’m not White (but not AA) and have personally had the experience of being at a totally White school and then later at a very diverse school. This would absolutely be my experience.

OP, MCPS is very diverse in general. Find the community and neighborhood that feels most comfortable to you and go from there.

I am AA, and I would partially agree too. My kids are in a diverse school, but they socialize with the kids from similar SES. They do not have AA friends from school(luckily we have a large family and friends network in the area). I am not sure how being in a diverse school is impacting them. Additionally, unfortunately, my kids' interaction with AA kids has mostly been negative(kid with behavioral issues and young single mother who is struggling to help).

However, I do not have any experience with the less diverse school, so I cannot say that my kids would have better experiences there.

I have an older friend whose AA son went to one of the wealthier schools, and she said his experience was horrible. She said private school would be the only way to go for AA boys.

[Anonymous]

Have you considered Wilson HS, OP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't get drawn into the race debate and baiting. MoCo is pretty diverse. Even the very White schools have students of other races. If other minorities can thrive, so can AA. Look for the school which are high SES. They get more experienced and higher paid teachers, even though the class sizes are larger.

Poorer schools get more teachers (para-educators) and smaller class sizes, but they also get inexperienced teachers who are not highly paid. The addition of para-educators in the classrooms do not add anything to the academic attainment in the class room. Most of the para-educators are poorly educated and do not know any pedagogy.

Higher SES schools may have many more after-school EC classes paid for by the generosity of the PTA.
This is BS. I am the Burtonsville parent. All 3 of my kids teachers have been at the school for a really long time and havea lot of teaching experience. There is very little turnover.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you considered Wilson HS, OP?

Many MC/UMC AA families in DC do not consider Wilson due to concerns about peer influences, etc.--this has been discussed in the DC forum. Most people I know sent their kids to private/parochial, or application schools. I do think that will change over the next few years, given the cost of privates.

We are AA, live in DC and are inbound for Wilson, so we may consider it when the time comes, along with Walls, etc. (not for many years). I'd be more hesitant if I had a son, though.