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NEC

Blake is highly desirable in the NCC. It’s in demand for in-bounds kids and a top choice for those who hope to lottery in. My niece did not get into Blake but it was her first choice. Several great programs, good community feel, and kids we know who’ve gone over the years go into college successfully.

My son is a sophomore at Blake High School and we love it! The school is quite small - fewer than 1700 students, I think - and there are quite a few teachers who have been there for a very long time. The teachers seem dedicated and involved. Although it is labeled as sort of an arts/music school, that doesn't seem to be a huge focus. The music program is very strong and there are more course options in art/music/dance than most other high schools, this doesn't detract from other programs. Our son is quite focused on STEM and is finding the programs offered there to be excellent. We like that it is sort of off the beaten path and has a community feel to it. While it's true that students from a variety of neighborhoods attend there, these places are not so far apart that you feel disconnected with the community. The principal, Mr. Sinclair, is fantastic. I cannot remember an event we've attended where he hasn't been present. At football games, the students run around the field with flags picturing his face, indicating how popular he is with students. Our son has also been involved in a sport at Blake, which has been a lot of fun, too. He has connected well with fellow players, and we have met a very nice group of parents. I highly recommend the school - I consider it to be a hidden gem in MCPS.

We have seen neighborhood kids go to Blake and do well. Off in college now but they seem to have their heads screwed on just right.

Anonymous wrote:We are considering sending our child to Blake for HS in the next few years and we have some questions.

We like that it is diverse. We like that there seems to be a decent sized cohort of high achieving and motivated kids. We also like that it is much smaller than lot of MCPS high schools.

We are somewhat concerned that the boundary is very chunked up, meaning it may not have much of a community. We have also heard a lot of in-bounds families choose private after MS but do not know if this is true.

Does anyone with recent Blake experience have encouraging words or cautionary tales?

That is definitely not true

We are considering sending our child to Blake for HS in the next few years and we have some questions.

We like that it is diverse. We like that there seems to be a decent sized cohort of high achieving and motivated kids. We also like that it is much smaller than lot of MCPS high schools.

We are somewhat concerned that the boundary is very chunked up, meaning it may not have much of a community. We have also heard a lot of in-bounds families choose private after MS but do not know if this is true.

Does anyone with recent Blake experience have encouraging words or cautionary tales?