FYI, my kids are too young, but I work at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, down the street from ERHS. There is a fair bit of cooperation between GSFC and ERHS. There are multiple field trips and programs where kids from ERHS get to chances to participate in special events at GSFC. Also GSFC personnel regularly participate in events at ERHS. There are a number of ERHS kids that have opportunities in programs including summer internships at GSFC. I know that I have seen quite a few ERHS events and tours and activities around Goddard over the years. I have friends whose kids were at ERHS and who had opportunities at NASA.

So if your child has a fair amount of interest in the space program or NASA, it might be worthwhile to think about ERHS. It doesn't mean that (s)he'll necessarily get those opportunities, but there are more opportunities available to those students than at most high schools. Something to consider.

My son graduated last year in that weird beginning of the pandemic way. He loved his experiences there, and is now an engineering student at UMD. I will say that it's not a good fit for kids who are lukewarm about STEM. But if your child is into STEM, it's wonderful. The school also has a huge variety of clubs and extracurricular, and there's a place for just about every kind of kid to fit in.

Anonymous wrote:My daughter graduated last year. She LOVED the program and thrived there. She did have some classes with non S/T kids and definitely played sports with them. It is a very big school but even though she is quite shy she had no trouble finding her people. She got into a handful of good colleges and chose UMD engineering/honors which she is living this year.

Great to learn that your daughter loved it and is doing well in college. Thanks for sharing about her finding friends. That was a concern with such a large school.

My daughter graduated last year. She LOVED the program and thrived there. She did have some classes with non S/T kids and definitely played sports with them. It is a very big school but even though she is quite shy she had no trouble finding her people. She got into a handful of good colleges and chose UMD engineering/honors which she is living this year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s a decent program. You don’t have to be great at math and science, but it helps. It’s a very large school, and a lot of kids from private middle and elementary schools can be scared by it.

Thank you for your reply! DC has always attended smaller schools so that is something to consider. Are the STEM kids mixed in or do they have a separate wing? Do you know about STEM class sizes?

They are pretty separate and my kids have had no classes without the science and tech students.

Anonymous wrote:NP here- just attended open house last night and they said S/T kids take some classes with students in the regular program (English, PE, music, etc), and activities/sports are mixed. I got the impression that the science and math are more S/T kids in the classes. 2500 kids in the school and about 900 are in S/T program.

I have friends with kids there or who have graduated and they spoke highly of the program.

Thank you! This is helpful.

NP here- just attended open house last night and they said S/T kids take some classes with students in the regular program (English, PE, music, etc), and activities/sports are mixed. I got the impression that the science and math are more S/T kids in the classes. 2500 kids in the school and about 900 are in S/T program.

I have friends with kids there or who have graduated and they spoke highly of the program.

Anonymous wrote:It’s a decent program. You don’t have to be great at math and science, but it helps. It’s a very large school, and a lot of kids from private middle and elementary schools can be scared by it.

Thank you for your reply! DC has always attended smaller schools so that is something to consider. Are the STEM kids mixed in or do they have a separate wing? Do you know about STEM class sizes?

It’s a decent program. You don’t have to be great at math and science, but it helps. It’s a very large school, and a lot of kids from private middle and elementary schools can be scared by it.

Does anyone have any recent experience? Trying to determine if it is a good fit. DC has all As at a private middle school, but doesn't love math. Can't decide if we should stay in private.