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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Folks who buy houses and disregard publicly available school data -- and are then angry or shocked by their lack of 'options' as middle school approaches get no sympathy from me.

[/quote]
If only things were that simple.

When we bought in-boundary for the Cluster a decade ago, the data on SH seemed promising for this expectant mother.

But then, whoops...

SWS and Logan suddenly got their own buildings and left.
Maury and Brent attracted more high SES families than Watkins.
Watkins' planned renovation took many years longer than expected.
A bunch of charters sprang up (mainly language immersion programs, but also BASIS and ITS) that creamed off a big chunk of the supposedly Watkins and SH bound families.
[b]SH added Ludlow and JO Wilson as feeders. Neither has attracted many high SES families to the upper grades.  
[/b]
We're not asking for sympathy, but you might want to think twice before judging us for changing our minds about the Cluster.

Signed
Parent somewhat surprised and very disappointed that SH is still only around one quarter IB a decade on.
[/quote]

Please look at [i]actual data[/i] and then get back to me.

If you look at publicly available data the # of kids peeling off by 5th is a problem most pronounced at...Brent.  Maurey is also high on that list. You know what isn't? Ludlow. Also pretty low on that list is Watkins and JO. So the issue here is that Brent and Maurey families leave because they don't feel they have a path. Now that's a fair observation and concern. But what amuses me to no end is how those families conflate their lack of path with SH and its feeders' trajectories. The data doesn't lie. If you dig further into the data you will see median home prices in the SH feeder schools catchment areas have skyrocketed in the last 10 years. And the data for schools just doesn't track with your world view.

My point is....

1, You haven't "seen it all before". The demographic, enrollment and financial trends simply have not been previously seen in DC or on the Hill.  Just because you and your next door neighbor keep having the same conversation doesn't make it so. Data doesn't lie. 
2. You are either lying to yourself of willfully ignorant when you say things like "LT hasn't improved". % of economically disadvantaged is down. Scores are way up (at Brent levels in some cases). The 5th grade enrollment is about the same as 1st. Data doesn't lie.
3. Your reference to ITS and Basis is sad and funny. Just because you and your neighbor "know" they are better school doesn't make it so. ITS's scores lag behind LT's. In fact their scores are pretty marginal, especially when adjusted for the demographic in attendance. If you look at publicly available data on where those families live you will see that SH catchment isn't a large driver. And Basis seems to be blowing through their waitlist (compared to Latin, the other "HRCS" that begins in 5th). It is a very specific educational model that isn't for everyone, so the idea that it can replace SH or any DCPS is funny. So yet again the data doesn't match your "knowledge".   Now if you prioritize white and high SES over educational outcomes then I guess you are correct. But I remain confused by those of you that cite data when it suits your needs, and when it doesn't you talk about "culture" and "feel". Data doesn't lie. 
4. There is no "Cluster"!!! SH is a MS...period. LT, JO and Watkins feed in. This idea that somehow Watkins is the true feeder and LT and JO (combined enrollment 868) are interlopers is just confusing. And the frequent references to SWS and Logan being part of the cluster (or "suddenly getting their own buildings) illustrates your dated view of educational systems on the Hill. 
5. You don't have to go to SH or any school. But rest assured, the fact that you and your neighbor are not attending is a loss that SH and other SH feeders can well afford to absorb.
[/quote]

Actual data shows that Brent and Maury have much higher levels of neighborhood buy in - their IB percentages are much higher. Watkins, LT and JO are not neighborhood schools. People leave before they even get to SH. So you have elementary schools that are not serving the neighborhood and a middle school that isn’t either. If the Hill elementary schools fed into one middle school, Watkins, JO and LT would all benefit, because parents would see a long term path for their kids.

[b]You’re kidding yourself if you think schools do not benefit from having families with resources attend them[/b]. [/quote]

You people are exhausting. No one said schools don't benefot from having resources. What has been said a million times in this thread and others is that Brent families aren't the only ones with resources. Your post illustrates your god complex; without you SH can't succeed.

Do you see the difference? [/quote]

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