Anonymous wrote:they just did, the new greenbelt middle opened with this school year. I've heard it's nice.

Nice! What are they doing with the old facility? It's in pretty terrible shape.

This is all I know about the CP middle school - http://www.gazette.net/article/20120615/NEWS/799999453/1029/college-park-cha&template=gazette

Building improvements at Greenbelt MS - http://www.wtop.com/41/2999873/Greenbelt-Middle-is-Prince-Georges-newest-green-school

I am very interested in learning how this year goes for the TAG program at Greenbelt. That's our middle school. DC is currently at a private school so will have to take the TAG test in Feb.

I was also turned off by the initial descriptions of the College Park middle charter school - too much online work and no extracurricular/sports.

I know a happy middle schooler at CMIT Academy charter school in Laurel. The bus picks up/drops off at Greenbelt library.

they just did, the new greenbelt middle opened with this school year. I've heard it's nice.

The facility at Greenbelt Middle school is kind of depressing. I really wish the County would sink some money into renovations of some of these schools.

Greenbelt Middle school just got a TAG program started there.

Either Greenbelt Middle or Hyattsville Middle depending on where in College Park you're located.

What public middle school do College Park kids attend?

basic facts about FCS

http://www.friendscommunityschool.org/pdfs/FCS-Fact-Sheet.pdf

Anonymous wrote:What are the privates near that area? Any options besides Catholic? Yes, online is not the most appealing. There are some amazing online course opportunities out there, for example for homeschoolers, but my objection is that kids today do not need more screen time. Where can I go to tap into the extant info--who are the people to contact? Thx!

Friends Community is in College Park.

http://www.friendscommunityschool.org

An earlier report in the Patch summarized the following from sources regarding the charter proposal: "Curriculum will be designed from research of the University of Maryland College of Education, and college courses will be offered either online, on campus or at the school. The base curriculum comes from Connections Academy, a 2001 company that helps provide non-traditional public education through charter schools and online classes."

Many people seem to switch to the parochial schools for middle school and then it is either Science and Tech at Roosevelt or one of the Catholic high schools. There are a handful of faculty offspring from this area attending the various "big name" privates as well - Cathedral schools, Holton, GDS, all of the Catholic high schools, come to mind as schools that we know kids at who have UMD affiliated parents.

Here's a link to the last "news" I've seen on the charter: http://vpaf.umd.edu/newsletters/spring2012/Spring2012CommunityeNews.pdf

The word on the street with people we know was initial excitement which has turned into skepticism and disappointment at the few proposed details that have been released so far. I know someone who was consulted early in the process who is Education faculty. From the sounds of it, their recommendations were not heeded and things took a very different direction from the lab school model that was being advocated for by faculty members.

My concerns: socialization and community are important aspects of middle school and high school. While I want a rigorous academic environment for my child, I don't want it to come at the expense of having a collaborative learning environment and a school that has a strong sense of community. And also where are they putting the school?

What are the privates near that area? Any options besides Catholic? Yes, online is not the most appealing. There are some amazing online course opportunities out there, for example for homeschoolers, but my objection is that kids today do not need more screen time. Where can I go to tap into the extant info--who are the people to contact? Thx!

It is all very vague right now. Last update was the group they put together to pilot the school had submitted the charter application with an eye towards a Fall 2013 date of opening. The interviews people have given about it so far seem to indicate that they are looking at a heavy emphasis on either online learning or flipped classroom model. They've been talking about co-curricular opportunities at the university as well, but again, hopelessly vague. As PG residents who are university affiliates, I'm pretty sure we are exactly the people the school is meant to target, but personally I'm not finding an online model particularly appealing. I have heard nothing about a proposed site for the school. I would be surprised if it is up and running by 2013. That being said, we LOVE our neighborhood. College Park, University Park, Hyattsville, Berwyn Heights, Greenbelt - all have their own neighborhood vibe and all have positives and in many cases would be far cheaper than comparable homes in MoCo. In our case we've gone private though, as have many of the faculty members who have decided to live near work.

What's the word on the street. Someone told me something about online learning as part of the plan. Anybody know what the format is that is being planned? Where will the new school be? I was just visiting there and thought it was so pretty, less expensive, walkable to various things including the university, etc. I am used to college towns/university communities so I found the area appealing. So I am curious what the situation is with the new middle school...Where can I get some info about the schools? Also, is there a website where I can get school info the way MCPS makes that info available? I am clueless as I live in MoCo at the moment. TIA.