Reply to Oakton High School and Chantilly High School

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[quote=confused-mum]OP here - Thank you - this is such a detailed and honest reply and exactly the information I was looking for.

[quote=Anonymous]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.

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