Anonymous wrote:1) if a cash offer is on the table I will take it over yours unless you drop all contingencies

2) bid higher than sale price

3) drop all contingencies

Anonymous wrote:

confused-mum wrote:We are looking for some feedback on the positives and negatives between Oakton and Chantilly High Schools, in terms of academics as well as the general school culture. Some specific points we wanted clarity on (we heard this feedback from friends).
1. Oakton High School has a lot of rich affluent crowd of kids and kids from middle class families are looked down upon - Is this true
2. Chantilly High School is academically better because of the Governor's STEM Grant.

Either school is fine. Both are excellent academically. As far as the kids and their attitudes, you will find both good and bad in ANY school in the United States.

Anonymous wrote:Apparently PP did not have kids at Mosby Woods ES -- very diverse, not $$ oriented -- they feed into Oakton HS too! I live close to Oakton HS although we are zoned for another school. I've been to Oakton HS for some of their events. Seems like a diverse group. I've not noticed what PP says. But, then again, I'm not in the part of Oakton to the west that is full of the estates and mansions. I'm in the part of Vienna/Oakton that has lots of modest SFHs and THs -- that feed into OHS. So, that's what I think of when I think of OHS.

OP -- we were looking in the Chantilly zone when we looked for a house. It is a huge school (although that doesn't really distinguish it from OHS). They have really high passrates on the AP tests -- may be the influence of the large Asian population there. Anyway -- I did go to the curriculum night at Rocky Run. It was literally like a stampede. I thought my younger child might get crushed in the mass of people.... and then we were separated out into AAP chat and non-AAP chat --- hey! where did all the crowds go????? Very few people in the "non-AAP" course selection discussion. We wrapped up and peaked into the gymnasium.... That's where the crowds were .... and they were still going strong with the discussion. That give you a picture of what it's like at Rocky Run. I think it is a good school, but it is over run by AAP kids ... and it is known as "little TJ" (at TJHSST). These kids (most of them are Asian) are fighting to get into TJ. If you have an AAP kid, it might be a good thing to be part of that crowd at Rocky Run. If not, I don't know -- your kid may feel like a second class citizen in his/her own school.

Both Oakton HS and CHantilly will provide an excellent education. Chantilly does have the STEM academy -- which looks like a real asset. There are even internships with Lockheed (I think that is the one). Oakton will be undergoing a renovation very soon. It is severely over capacity (but it is slightly smaller than Chantilly in actual numbers -- last I looked).

One thing I didn't like about Oakton was the way the attendance zone was laid out, kids from the western end of the zone would have a difficult time driving to school on some of those very narrow/winding roads ... OR you have to use 66 to get there. That was a deal-breaker for me. 20+ min. to get to the high school on tight curving roads was a NO. If you are looking to be closer to the actual school, then that wouldn't matter.

Anonymous wrote:We lived in the Oakton HS boundaries until my kids were in late ES/MS. We now live in Chantilly.

Yes. Oakton is a more affluent school. I personally did not care for the atmosphere, and we chose to move out of the pyramid from a townhouse to a SFH. The school is academically excellent, but is an atmosphere that places a lot of value on what you wear and what you own. And there is a lot of Queen Bee and Wanna Bee going on. Kids started appearing in 4th grade with new model iPhone. Social status was important. And my kids were very conscious that they were “poor” because they lived in a townhouse. The kids grew up much faster. Playing sports and being like everyone else was much more important.

Chantilly is more diverse and has a lot more first generation immigrants in professional jobs. Also a lot of professional Feds (lawyers, etc) and white people who work in high tech. It is academically an intense environment, and you are in the TJ crazy part of the county. At Carson and RRMS, TJ admissions will always be below the surface, and will drive a lot of parents decision making. And 8th grade especially is dominated by TJ in these schools. Franklin gets to avoid a lot this because they are not a FT Center (they do have a strong LLIV program), so kids who do want TJ usually go to Carson or RRMS.

Chantilly is very well liked by the parents in the area. It is probably a draw in terms of academic strength. Oakton has slightly higher SATs, but any difference is going to be explained by SES. The average kid at Chantilly is “middle class” by DCUM standards— which is to say affluent. Oakton has a significant number of kids who are wealthy/rich. It makes a difference.

Where Chantilly shines is the STEM Academy if you have a kid who is really strong in STEM and wants the robotic, engineering track, Chantilly is your answer. Chantiily’s SOLs are also stronger in STEM than humanities. They have the county championship robotic team, special engineering labs, internship programs etc. if your kid is not hardcore STEM, it’s probably an academic draw.

And full disclosure, I have a kid at TJ and a kid applying. This their choice and they did not prep. But I like Chantilly because the focus is more academic, less social status. Chantilly also seems to have a lot more both parents work/ both parents parent families, while Oakton seemed to have a lot of Dad worked all the time, and momwas SAH and primary caretaker. Being a working mom in that atmosphere can be isolating. You need to pick what works for your family. They are different atmospheres. And a lot of it comes down to the environment that makes you comfortable.