Reply to Tell me about Bel Pre Elementary

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]For what it's worth, in the late 80's/ early 90's I went to Bel-Pre, Strathmore, Col. E Brooke Lee MS for 6th and then Argyle MS for 7th (because Lee split when MCPS opened Argyle in an existing building).  We lived in a townhouse in Longmeade.  I'm African American and enjoyed the diversity those schools provided back then.  I was never, ever on FARMS and was at the top of my class academically.  It was nice to see other minority faces in the classroom.  I even had black teachers (yes, actually teaching IN the classroom...not cleaning it).  Some people are threatened by this.  Just being honest.  My family built a single family home in Olney so I moved over to Farquire for 8th grade.  Many, many more white people and still very country at the time (108 was a single lane road and Roy Rogers was where the Fletcher's BP gas station is today).  I became the black polka dot on a white canvas in most of my classes at Farquire and eventually Sherwood. Thankfully, I found a group of smart black girls who could relate to my struggle/isolation feelings and we are till very close today.  I joined the Pom squad at Sherwood, sang solos and danced in Rock n Roll Revival and made lasting friendships with ALL kinds of people along the way. It was the time of my life!

My point is that you have to decide what you value in your child's education.  I excelled in elementary and middle school and didn't realize that they weren't top notch places to be (compared to Betheda schools) until I grew up.  I was supposed to go to Kennedy but my parents wanted to build a house.  One of my fiends from Argyle who went onto Kennedy was accepted to Harvard.  Not due to affirmative action but due to her academic excellence. After school play dates are important but that wouldn't make or break my decision.  With your support, I believe your child can and will be successfully wherever they are.[/quote]

OP here. Thank you so much for sharing your perspective! I am actually the same as you (grew up out of state though) but was the only brown girl in a majority white area and I would like my kids to grow up with a bit more diversity :)  It is reassuring to me that you were able to excel and enjoy your time at Bel Pre, I am hoping for the same with my kids and I think it's possible for kids to succeed in any school as long as they have a good support system and lots of parental guidance.

I had thought about moving to Olney actually...it appeals to me in that it seems very neighborly and nice, but then I wonder if the people living there would be neighborly and nice towards myself and my family (we are not Christian and not white and I have often found this combination is off-putting to some people).

And about the playdates/activities, I don't know, I am having a hard time finding activities for my kids in my area because everything seems to be in Bethesda/Potomac/Rockville or in NOVA and I am so sick of driving. It seems like there is a huge void in our area, everything is 20-30 mins away! Sorry for whining, just had to get it out there :) [/quote]

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