Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

???

DP. Williamsburg used to have a diversity attendance island that was eliminated.

What is a diversity attendance island? How was it eliminated?

Maybe they were moved to Hamm? My kids go to Williamsburg, and there is basically no diversity. Everyone is well off. Many are wealthy.

It was an island of socio-economic and ethnic diversity (including both high end and low income areas) that sent the region of Arlington east of the Clarendon Metro to Yorktown and Williamsburg. To remove the "diversity island" as it was called, the new high school boundaries in 2018 sent the W-L neighborhoods north Lorcom Lane to Yorktown and the new Dorothy Hamm Middle School absorbed the diversity island at the middle school level. The exception is that low income apartment communities south and west of Courthouse (a core part of the former diversity island) were rezoned from Williamsburg to TJ, but they are still strangely bussed to Yorktown, as the comprehensive high school boundary changes proposed for 2021 never happened due to the pandemic. Interestingly the Yorktown zone covers five middle schools: TJ, Kenmore, Hamm, Swanson, Williamsburg.

APS boundaries now prioritize contiguity in drawing boundaries over balancing diversity. So no more diversity islands going forward.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

???

DP. Williamsburg used to have a diversity attendance island that was eliminated.

What is a diversity attendance island? How was it eliminated?

Maybe they were moved to Hamm? My kids go to Williamsburg, and there is basically no diversity. Everyone is well off. Many are wealthy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

???

DP. Williamsburg used to have a diversity attendance island that was eliminated.

What is a diversity attendance island? How was it eliminated?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

so it's both the best and terrible? please explain!

Probably referring to the fact that the kids are the most well off, so will have the highest scores, but also the brattiest?

Anonymous wrote:Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

so it's both the best and terrible? please explain!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

???

DP. Williamsburg used to have a diversity attendance island that was eliminated.

Anonymous wrote:Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

???

Definitely Williamsburg. However, that school is terrible.

Anonymous wrote:Every middle school has families that love it and families that hate it. Every middle school has been great for gifted kids and horrible for them. Every middle school has been great for kids with special needs and horrible for them. All depends on the kids, the teacher, the day of the week the way the wind blows.

This here, especially for those looking to move to APS. FYI when people comment about the various schools, ask or gauge *when* this experience was. Multiple kids in APS and we feel many schools have changed a lot (class composition and sizes, EL cohort, SES status, teachers, admin, and more) over the course of just the last 5-10 years.

Anonymous wrote:We actually liked kenmore - hate W&L.

why do you hate W&L?

We actually liked kenmore - hate W&L.

Every middle school has families that love it and families that hate it. Every middle school has been great for gifted kids and horrible for them. Every middle school has been great for kids with special needs and horrible for them. All depends on the kids, the teacher, the day of the week the way the wind blows.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New here, im worry about my son who will soon go to middle school which is Kenmore. He has autism, does kenmre offer support, inclusion? Please suggestions will help

Kenmore is good with special needs. The majority typically developing population of the school is large minority population. The school does well with diversity both race/SES in that area but also special needs.

Kenmore was a terrible school for
our son with two learning disabilities. Terrible bullying and a non responsive principal who sweeps real problems under the carpet. Do not attend Kenmore if you can avoid it.