Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would move to FCPS. You have more options and although they have issues, not as many as APS or FCCPS. FCCPS is too small and the communication is poor.

Can you say more about the poor communication issue?

The district likes to send very long emails that do not tell important information. For example, they may change the start and end times of the high school next year to make both later. You would only know if you watch the school board meetings. All of the long emails did not a give warning about this. FCCPS sends a lot of surveys but not a mention of this and it’s such an important decision that affects so many students and families.

do you not get Morning Announcements or the weekly school newsletters or the PTA newsletters? All three highlighted the approved school calendars (which are now being approved two years at a time) within the week after the school board voted on the calendar.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:11th and 12th grade at W-L is top notch. Really impressive teachers in the IB area. AP and DE have good options as well. Even though it’s big, my kids (9th and 11th) tell me all the time how lucky they feel to be going there. Join the Facebook group and ask a bunch of questions if you do stay with it.

This is great to hear, thank you! So students can take a mix of IB, AP, and DE courses?

Yes. NP - my DD is a senior at WL and DS is now in college. It's a nice group of kids, very welcoming IME, and accustomed to kids coming and going because of foreign service/military/etc. in the area.
Both my kids took IB and AP and a couple DE classes during their time there.

DD does find it kind of intense and competitive and is hoping for a bit more relaxed college experience but I think you are going to get that pretty much any school in the area when your kid is in the group taking a bunch of AP/IB classes.

+1 Agree. New kids have been welcomed and thrived from what Ive seen. Between the IB, AP, DE classes, activities/clubs and sports your kid should have no trouble fitting in. Best of luck!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would move to FCPS. You have more options and although they have issues, not as many as APS or FCCPS. FCCPS is too small and the communication is poor.

Can you say more about the poor communication issue?

The district likes to send very long emails that do not tell important information. For example, they may change the start and end times of the high school next year to make both later. You would only know if you watch the school board meetings. All of the long emails did not a give warning about this. FCCPS sends a lot of surveys but not a mention of this and it’s such an important decision that affects so many students and families.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meridian would be a good fit. Though it is true that it is small, we get a lot of students here from state department families fir one or two year blocks, especially as an IB school. Your teen wouldn’t be out of place.

Meridian doesn't have AP classes? Does that mean every student is eligible to do the IB diploma, or are there certain prerequisites?

Meridian does have AP classes, but not many. Here's the class list for next year - https://sites.google.com/fccps.org/mhspos/home?authuser=0

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:11th and 12th grade at W-L is top notch. Really impressive teachers in the IB area. AP and DE have good options as well. Even though it’s big, my kids (9th and 11th) tell me all the time how lucky they feel to be going there. Join the Facebook group and ask a bunch of questions if you do stay with it.

This is great to hear, thank you! So students can take a mix of IB, AP, and DE courses?

Yes. NP - my DD is a senior at WL and DS is now in college. It's a nice group of kids, very welcoming IME, and accustomed to kids coming and going because of foreign service/military/etc. in the area.
Both my kids took IB and AP and a couple DE classes during their time there.

DD does find it kind of intense and competitive and is hoping for a bit more relaxed college experience but I think you are going to get that pretty much any school in the area when your kid is in the group taking a bunch of AP/IB classes.

Adding... my son started at W-L in 10th grade and had quickly made a good group of friends. They have one daily homeroom/study period and that's where he most quickly got to know people and started those friendships.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:11th and 12th grade at W-L is top notch. Really impressive teachers in the IB area. AP and DE have good options as well. Even though it’s big, my kids (9th and 11th) tell me all the time how lucky they feel to be going there. Join the Facebook group and ask a bunch of questions if you do stay with it.

This is great to hear, thank you! So students can take a mix of IB, AP, and DE courses?

Yes. NP - my DD is a senior at WL and DS is now in college. It's a nice group of kids, very welcoming IME, and accustomed to kids coming and going because of foreign service/military/etc. in the area.
Both my kids took IB and AP and a couple DE classes during their time there.

DD does find it kind of intense and competitive and is hoping for a bit more relaxed college experience but I think you are going to get that pretty much any school in the area when your kid is in the group taking a bunch of AP/IB classes.

Anonymous wrote:I would move to FCPS. You have more options and although they have issues, not as many as APS or FCCPS. FCCPS is too small and the communication is poor.

Can you say more about the poor communication issue?

Anonymous wrote:11th and 12th grade at W-L is top notch. Really impressive teachers in the IB area. AP and DE have good options as well. Even though it’s big, my kids (9th and 11th) tell me all the time how lucky they feel to be going there. Join the Facebook group and ask a bunch of questions if you do stay with it.

This is great to hear, thank you! So students can take a mix of IB, AP, and DE courses?

Anonymous wrote:Meridian would be a good fit. Though it is true that it is small, we get a lot of students here from state department families fir one or two year blocks, especially as an IB school. Your teen wouldn’t be out of place.

Meridian doesn't have AP classes? Does that mean every student is eligible to do the IB diploma, or are there certain prerequisites?

I would move to FCPS. You have more options and although they have issues, not as many as APS or FCCPS. FCCPS is too small and the communication is poor.

11th and 12th grade at W-L is top notch. Really impressive teachers in the IB area. AP and DE have good options as well. Even though it’s big, my kids (9th and 11th) tell me all the time how lucky they feel to be going there. Join the Facebook group and ask a bunch of questions if you do stay with it.

Meridian would be a good fit. Though it is true that it is small, we get a lot of students here from state department families fir one or two year blocks, especially as an IB school. Your teen wouldn’t be out of place.

Happy medium would be Marshall in Falls Church (FFX). Same IB program as Meridian and W-L, but not as large as W-L is getting and less cloistered than Meridian.

FCCPS’s Meridian HS is small, but as others have mentioned on this forum it can feel a bit cloistered as the majority of kids grew up together since elementary school. It may be harder for a new kid to find their niche. That is just a generalization based on past threads on this forum. W-L due to its large size offers many more options for fitting in and finding a friend group. The new W-L annex building helps break down the size of the school and gives the school a college campus like setting.

Regarding academics, W-L offers in-bounds students full AP and IB programs. Meridian only offers IB.

Both Meridian and W-L are highly regarded by their communities, so in general, the educational opportunities should be comparable. In that sense you can’t go wrong with either. (Both schools have new state of the art facilities.)

We will likely move back from overseas for kid's 11th and 12th grade in a couple years. Own a place in Arlington zoned for WL, but worried hearing about how large the school is getting and don't want kid to feel lost and overwhelmed. Would it be better to rent in FCCPS since that high school is smaller? Any comparisons? Hoping to find somewhere kid can fit in and find a place coming in as an outsider for the last couple years of high school.