MV has been a hot mess since the beginning. It only was able to retain its sought after status a few years longer than CMI (and maybe Shining Stars) because it’s immersion and DCI feeder kept upper middle class families there a bit longer past their expiration date and they didn’t see the same flight as CMI in the same time period. Pandemic exacerbated the issues and made it impossible for upper middle class families to continue to ignore the long-stemming issues despite having a feed to a halfway decent middle school. Not to even mention the continued day time shootings at P street. At some point, families have to consider “at what cost” scenarios. Sure, 8th St may be in a “safer” area but the cancer that remains with MV admin and teachers still impacts 8th St.

As a former parent from a “HRCS” and current DCPS, the fact of the matter is there are only a handful of charters that are better schools than most neighborhood DCPS schools. IMHO, you’re talking about Latin, Basis, Two Rivers, KIPP, DCB (maybe Inspired Teaching, DC Prep, LAMB, Stokes). I’m sure I’ve missed a few but MV does not belong even on the “maybe” list IMO. Immersion DCPS > MV.

Anonymous wrote:Well, what are your options?

OP here. We can try the lottery -- looking at Lee Brookland, ITS, Stokes Brookland. Also considering Catholic schools. Moving to MD or VA is also on the table, as neither parent has a daily commute anymore.

Anonymous wrote:P agree or ocho?

Ocho

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What the actual heck is going on in MV?

Seriously. The original post was as vague as a DCPS central office email.

I don't know anymore than I said! There is a lot of teacher attrition. The school is blaming COVID and insufficient support like coaching. That is obviously not the whole story but I don't know what is.

Really at this point I just want a school where the kids and teachers are happy to be there and plan to stay.

DCI has also had teacher turnover this year.

We left in the middle of last school year for another immersion charter, so I don't have any insights into any developments over the last 8-9 months. But, yeah, they had weak administrators and communication before the pandemic and they did seem stretched by the expansion. Distance learning in Spring of 2020 was chaotic, at best. It got better in the Fall, but still not very good. We found the teachers to be very hit-or-miss; some were phenomenal (our two favorites have since left) and some were terrible (well meaning, but not skilled). When we had a chance to move to another HRCS that feeds to DCI, we took it.

I posted this on another thread, but will repeat it here. I think the pandemic exacerbated the previous issues until they hit crisis level. Weak administration, poor communication, inexperienced teachers with lower qualifications. Remember it was so bad for the teachers previously that they unionized the first charter in the District. Then they expanded too big and quickly, against the will of the parent community. Then the pandemic hit. All of those previous issues plus the behavioral issues of kids post-pandemic, teacher burnout, and learning loss. Then the MV8 principal quit right before the start of the school year leaving the teachers to start the year totally demoralized on day one. So teachers started quitting and things started spiraling. But the root of the problem existed before the pandemic and the administration had zero interest in acknowledging or fixing it then (hence the unionization). But as we’ve seen at CMI and SSMA, it’s next to impossible to get a bad administration out of a school, so you have to decide if you can deal with it or not.

I'll add that I see a ton of families leaving this year, and that's going to further disrupt the school community next year. I don't know anyone that didn't see MV as a good enough school to try out while continuing to lottery for a better immersion. Now the trade offs are shifting for families that don't REALLY care about Spanish or are skeptical about their DCI odds and are open to DCPS schools. Some upper elementary families will stick it out for DCI, but I think the rose colored glasses will come off for families that were open minded about the new campus growing pains and are now realizing it's much more than just growing pains.

It does seem somewhat intense. I was at the playground the other day and could hear a MV mom yelling about MV from 50 feet away.

I know of two families personally at our DCPS that came from MV, and I'm sure there are more. Also know at least three others that left for other schools this year. Notably, those families spoke very optimistically about the school until they announced they had gotten an offer somewhere. I think there are a lot of families that are only a few years from middle school and don't want to uproot their kid from their friends, but don't know if they can stick it out any longer. So if you're staying for your child's friends and the parent community, I'd take what folks say with a big grain of salt and wouldn't count on those friends being there next year, sadly.

What ended up happening with the parent demand letter? A friend that's still there told me about it, but TBH those efforts don't seem to ever go anywhere in other charters.

Anonymous wrote:What the actual heck is going on in MV?

So intriguing, I've heard people talk about MV on the playground but would love to know more.

Also, you can always come back to your IB school. At
we have had families return to our nearby DCPS after trying MV. You will be welcome!

Anonymous wrote:What the actual heck is going on in MV?

Seriously. The original post was as vague as a DCPS central office email.

What the actual heck is going on in MV?

Anonymous wrote:What are your plans for next year? I'm extremely torn. I love the Spanish, the parents, my kid's friends. However the teacher turnover and the administration's inability to cede any power to teachers or talk openly about the disagreements is a very serious concern. I can't decide whether to stick it out and hope or try something new. I'm also wondering how many of my kid's classmates will be leaving.

Assume (for the moment) things are going to get worse, and fill out your lottery list accordingly. Then, in April, look and see whether things have actually gotten worse (or failed to improve) and what your options are. "Trying something new" is sort of meaningless until you know what options you have.

Anonymous wrote:P agree or ocho?

P street I meant!

P agree or ocho?

Well, what are your options?

What are your plans for next year? I'm extremely torn. I love the Spanish, the parents, my kid's friends. However the teacher turnover and the administration's inability to cede any power to teachers or talk openly about the disagreements is a very serious concern. I can't decide whether to stick it out and hope or try something new. I'm also wondering how many of my kid's classmates will be leaving.