Anonymous
Post 01/23/2022 00:00     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Kensington is a probably your best choice if you live in a neighborhood that feeds into the Bethesda-Chevy Chase or Walter Johnson HS clusters. Check the boundary maps at the MCPS website to get an idea of where to look.

Those neighborhoods can be expensive, so as a second bet you can either look at Rockville feeding into Richard Montgomery HS or Silver Spring feeding into Montgomery Blair HS. Both also good schools.

All schools in Montgomery County are diverse. Some are more diverse than others.


Boundary maps around Kensington are going to be redrawn in a few years when a new HS opens. I would focus on being in a neighborhood you like as school assignments are not set in stone.

Most likely WJ students would go to Woodward. I understand that some Einstein neighborhoods want to go to Woodward too but I guess that depends on the politics. Kensington doesn’t have the same clout that it used to.


That is the reason Woodward is being reopened, to relieve overcrowding at WJ and the DCC schools, mainly Einstein and Wheaton. It's not about any neighborhood "wanting to go to Woodward."

That’s not the reason. You have been posting this same nonsense for a long time.


It literally is the reason:

"Reopening of Woodward High School is required to address the urgent space needs at Walter Johnson High School and the Downcounty Consortium high schools."

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/facilities/construction/project/woodwardhs.aspx

Yes, it was a clear effort at disinformation. But for what reason? I can't figure that one out, unless it's just a regular or pro troll.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 23:13     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Wheaton HS has two regional magnet programs and is in a new building. Very diverse.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 20:32     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Moving to the dC Area this summer and will settling in somewhere in Montgomery County. Inwilm have a high schooler and middle schooler and Interested in Silver Spring, Kensington, Olney, Rockville areas . I know you have to take great schools.org with a grain of salt, but it’s important to have my kids in a diverse school where they can get a good educations. Any thought or advice would be appreciated.


If you want to be convenient to DC, I recommend areas of Silver Spring 20910, 20902 and 20901. Sligo and Silver Spring International middle schools are well-liked.


Also Takoma Park MS, which serves parts of Silver Spring too, and is in-bounds for Montgomery Blair HS.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 12:55     Subject: Re:Montgomery country schools
Great Schools ratings are pretty much a load of bull and based on wealth. We had a horrendous experience with a school rated 9, and a fantastic experience in a school rated 3. (Or 4, can't remember.)

The RMIB program has regional offshoots and some schools, like Einstein and BCC, also offer non-application-based versions.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 12:35     Subject: Re:Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:A lot will depend on your budget and your commute.


+1 I am not sure how others are replying without more info.

+1 Or what type of student you have - high achiever? Athletic? Interested in arts? Mediocre?


All MCPS schools have all of those types of students.

Say what you want, but not all MCPS schools are equal. I don't live in a W cluster.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 12:00     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Hidden in the fine print of development meetings is the shift from Woodward addressing overcrowding in the Down County Consortium with boundary shifts, in addition to BCC, Whitman and principally Johnson, to addressing a pretty small portion of DCC overcrowding by making DCC-bounded kids eligible for whatever magnet program gets installed at Woodward (a high school under construction less than a mile north of Johnson for the benefit of the OP). The plan for the bulk of overcrowding in the DCC ended up being the Northwood expansion and the overly-optimistic change in enrollment assumptions (decreases made dubious by following Covid-related shifts to private as though publuc-going populations wont rebound post-pandemic).

As far as the recs for a particular high school go, some have the best of their reputation based on application programs (STEM, arts, IB, etc.) into which catchment-area kids are not guaranteed placement (though certain might have a few catchment-reserved slots), and are open to all or a large portion of the county.

The system and county are too big and with too many options/localities offering too broad a variety for generalizations to work well. OP's best bet for applicable advice is to lay out a lot more about their situation -- work location, housing budget, educational aims, etc. Otherwise, it'll be too much sqabbling from the usual societal/political viewpoints that endlessly get debated here.


Would you care to provide a link to the "fine print of development meetings"?


As easily as one could provide a link to fine print where they say exactly what boundary changes are being evaluated. They don't publish these, but if you've been to enough of the work group sessions over the years and then watch the subsequent BOE meetings, where they gloss over it in a "these aren't the droids you're looking for" manner so that casual watchers don't get it and BOE members aren't forced to ask questions, even if they do, then you can piece the puzzle together easily enough.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 11:55     Subject: Re:Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:A lot will depend on your budget and your commute.


+1 I am not sure how others are replying without more info.

+1 Or what type of student you have - high achiever? Athletic? Interested in arts? Mediocre?


All MCPS schools have all of those types of students.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 11:53     Subject: Montgomery country schools
OP -- also remember that Silver Spring spans a huge area, from that right around "Downtown" SS up past Wheaton to the north and all the way to Burtonsville in the northeast. That contains lots of different neighborhoods/living conditions/commutes/school pyramids/price points/etc. Far more than any other named part of the county. Just know what part you're looking at if it's part of your search.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 11:53     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:Hidden in the fine print of development meetings is the shift from Woodward addressing overcrowding in the Down County Consortium with boundary shifts, in addition to BCC, Whitman and principally Johnson, to addressing a pretty small portion of DCC overcrowding by making DCC-bounded kids eligible for whatever magnet program gets installed at Woodward (a high school under construction less than a mile north of Johnson for the benefit of the OP). The plan for the bulk of overcrowding in the DCC ended up being the Northwood expansion and the overly-optimistic change in enrollment assumptions (decreases made dubious by following Covid-related shifts to private as though publuc-going populations wont rebound post-pandemic).

As far as the recs for a particular high school go, some have the best of their reputation based on application programs (STEM, arts, IB, etc.) into which catchment-area kids are not guaranteed placement (though certain might have a few catchment-reserved slots), and are open to all or a large portion of the county.

The system and county are too big and with too many options/localities offering too broad a variety for generalizations to work well. OP's best bet for applicable advice is to lay out a lot more about their situation -- work location, housing budget, educational aims, etc. Otherwise, it'll be too much sqabbling from the usual societal/political viewpoints that endlessly get debated here.


Would you care to provide a link to the "fine print of development meetings"?
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 11:47     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Hidden in the fine print of development meetings is the shift from Woodward addressing overcrowding in the Down County Consortium with boundary shifts, in addition to BCC, Whitman and principally Johnson, to addressing a pretty small portion of DCC overcrowding by making DCC-bounded kids eligible for whatever magnet program gets installed at Woodward (a high school under construction less than a mile north of Johnson for the benefit of the OP). The plan for the bulk of overcrowding in the DCC ended up being the Northwood expansion and the overly-optimistic change in enrollment assumptions (decreases made dubious by following Covid-related shifts to private as though publuc-going populations wont rebound post-pandemic).

As far as the recs for a particular high school go, some have the best of their reputation based on application programs (STEM, arts, IB, etc.) into which catchment-area kids are not guaranteed placement (though certain might have a few catchment-reserved slots), and are open to all or a large portion of the county.

The system and county are too big and with too many options/localities offering too broad a variety for generalizations to work well. OP's best bet for applicable advice is to lay out a lot more about their situation -- work location, housing budget, educational aims, etc. Otherwise, it'll be too much sqabbling from the usual societal/political viewpoints that endlessly get debated here.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 10:02     Subject: Re:Montgomery country schools
Schools are a consideration. But I’d also consider your kids’ interests - what kind of activities do you plan for them and how will you make that happen. That also makes a difference when picking schools - are you looking for technology focused, or one with goof arts and literature focus? And then there is your commute. How do you plan to get to work and what amount of time are you willing to commit.
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 09:29     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Moving to the dC Area this summer and will settling in somewhere in Montgomery County. Inwilm have a high schooler and middle schooler and Interested in Silver Spring, Kensington, Olney, Rockville areas . I know you have to take great schools.org with a grain of salt, but it’s important to have my kids in a diverse school where they can get a good educations. Any thought or advice would be appreciated.

Silver spring. Done
You're welcome

? are there not other diverse schools in this county that can provide a good education, like RM and the IB program?
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 09:27     Subject: Re:Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:A lot will depend on your budget and your commute.


+1 I am not sure how others are replying without more info.

+1 Or what type of student you have - high achiever? Athletic? Interested in arts? Mediocre?
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 09:07     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:Moving to the dC Area this summer and will settling in somewhere in Montgomery County. Inwilm have a high schooler and middle schooler and Interested in Silver Spring, Kensington, Olney, Rockville areas . I know you have to take great schools.org with a grain of salt, but it’s important to have my kids in a diverse school where they can get a good educations. Any thought or advice would be appreciated.

Silver spring. Done
You're welcome
Anonymous
Post 01/22/2022 08:47     Subject: Montgomery country schools
Anonymous wrote:Don't choose a home or neighborhood in DC based on schools. The housing market and commuting are way too monstrous for that. Decide where you can live ($$$ and commute time) and try to find a house there.

So you are recommending West Hayattsville?