I know families who did time at Hearst before they cleared the sibling waitlist at a preferred school. The families were OOB but not originally from Janney - did you shun them as well?

Anonymous wrote:Seriously, don't be selfish OP. Don't take a spot at a school for just one year, everyone will know you are planning to leave. I would never do this.

Oh, for goodness' sakes. Anyone who wants a seat IB is guaranteed one for K. If OP takes a PK seat at Hearst/etc. and then frees up that seat the following year, an IB family can still claim it, and stay there through fifth grade, as OP intends to do at Janney. People make it seem like lotterying into a PK seat (IB or OOB) is a privilege reserved for families who can and will commit to stay all the way through MS. Guys? It's public school. You go where you live, and if you can't, then you go where there's room. If your IB school doesn't have room for you right away, there shouldn't be a penalty at either end when you leave an OOB school to return IB once that school can accommodate you.

Anonymous wrote:Seriously, don't be selfish OP. Don't take a spot at a school for just one year, everyone will know you are planning to leave. I would never do this.

PS- if you are at hearst, these pissed off parents may be people you see all the time in the neighborhood.

Seriously, don't be selfish OP. Don't take a spot at a school for just one year, everyone will know you are planning to leave. I would never do this.

OP, people are being a bit hard on you, and I know you're not in a school yet so you don't have much perspective on this. But let me try to explain it to you (and others contemplating this).

Hearst is a small school. There will be 38-40 kids total in PK next year. About half will be IB kids (due to tiny boundaries and other reasons). That leaves around 20 spots for OOB kids. One thing we love about Hearst is that kids from all over the city come to our school and really become part of the community. We are a tight-knit and active group.

With many of the surrounding schools (Janney, Murch, Stoddert) filling their PK4, every year we get families from those schools. Often, these families don't really engage in the school, don't attend the PTA meetings, don't participate in activities, etc. And if they take up 10 spots, that's 25% of the class. And they all leave after PK4.

To build a strong school community we need engagement and commitment from the families. Obviously people move, things happen, and kids leave each year. But it is tough to have a quarter of the new class every year basically just being placeholders.

Anyway, just thought I'd try to share an insider's perspective.

Anonymous wrote:OP, just keep your kid where they are for another year rather than making two moves. Your kid and your kid's class is the basis for the next 6 years of school, including friends and community events - to move for K would be very disruptive to your kid. (In the unlikely event you get a spot.)

Agree. I would apply I Janney and pay for private if I didn't get in.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:so glad my charter is a commute and thus safe from you. I would never dream of doing anything other private preschool in your position.

Huh?? What do you know of my position??

Is it an unwritten rule that people only apply to their in-bound school and don't select backups???

When I was IB for Eaton and had a PK3 I didn't play the lottery but went private till pk4. What schools need are a stable student/parent body, not people looking for a free ride for a year before committing to tehir neighbrohood school.

AppleTree Columbia Heights is a school that focuses only on PreS / PreK. They are focused on realy education. The do not NEED a stable student / parent body.

OP, this is really a good idea. For no other reason than you actually have a shot at a spot.

Anonymous wrote:We were in a similar position, IB Janney - no sibling preference. We did not like the place we where at for PreK. It was lovely for a 2s and 3s program but the 4 YO program was horrible and no matter what we needed to move our child.

I would consider Mann (I know an OOB family that was #4 on the waitlist last year), Key, Hearst and Apple Tree Columbia Heights as a back-up.

There are lots of people who move their child after a year or two and were planning on doing it all along so ignore the voices of people saying don't take a spot unless you are going to commit to the school for the next 7 years. They will fill your spot and more on.

Sure, ignore the rational reaction of people trying to build a strong community in their school, and be selfish. That's cool too.

OP-- DC is one of the only places in the country where PK4 is free. Deal with it. Pay for a private. Or if money is really an issue (you know, for someone who lives IB for Janney ), then apply for Appletree. They go through most of the wait list every year so you have a great chance of getting in there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:so glad my charter is a commute and thus safe from you. I would never dream of doing anything other private preschool in your position.

Huh?? What do you know of my position??

Is it an unwritten rule that people only apply to their in-bound school and don't select backups???

When I was IB for Eaton and had a PK3 I didn't play the lottery but went private till pk4. What schools need are a stable student/parent body, not people looking for a free ride for a year before committing to tehir neighbrohood school.

AppleTree Columbia Heights is a school that focuses only on PreS / PreK. They are focused on realy education. The do not NEED a stable student / parent body.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:so glad my charter is a commute and thus safe from you. I would never dream of doing anything other private preschool in your position.

Huh?? What do you know of my position??

Is it an unwritten rule that people only apply to their in-bound school and don't select backups???

When I was IB for Eaton and had a PK3 I didn't play the lottery but went private till pk4. What schools need are a stable student/parent body, not people looking for a free ride for a year before committing to tehir neighbrohood school.

Anonymous wrote:OP here -- As background, we are just at the beginning of this process. We are in a private 3 yo preschool now but are hoping to get into Janney for PK 4 through the rest of elementary school. Just took a major pay cut this year, so obviously it would be ideal if we get into Janney. If not, since its an open lottery, it seemed reasonable to start researching other nearby schools to put down as numbers 2, 3, etc.

I do understand many NW schools are oversubscribed, but I have not yet looked into our chances of getting into other nearby schools as an oob family.

Op - I was in your position 2 years ago. My list was 1) Janney 2) Hearst 3) Eaton - I got a spot at Hearst. It was obvious on the Hearst tour that they would prefer families like ours (who would leave for Janney come K) weren't that welcome, and I do understand why. That said, as one PP wrote, you are of course able to apply. Study the results from the last few years and make educated picks. In the end it is all luck - but some schools you at least have a chance.

I have a friend whose daughter did a PK4 year at Appletree in Columbia Heights and they were really happy with it.

Good luck.

We were in a similar position, IB Janney - no sibling preference. We did not like the place we where at for PreK. It was lovely for a 2s and 3s program but the 4 YO program was horrible and no matter what we needed to move our child.

I would consider Mann (I know an OOB family that was #4 on the waitlist last year), Key, Hearst and Apple Tree Columbia Heights as a back-up.

There are lots of people who move their child after a year or two and were planning on doing it all along so ignore the voices of people saying don't take a spot unless you are going to commit to the school for the next 7 years. They will fill your spot and more on.

Anonymous wrote:There close to 400 applications for Hearst, so not super likely there. Isn't Janney getting an addition for more classroom space, so maybe more PK4 classes will open?

Thanks -- I did hear something about this a long while ago, but had forgotten. Thanks for the reminder -- will look into that.

Anonymous wrote:There close to 400 applications for Hearst, so not super likely there. Isn't Janney getting an addition for more classroom space, so maybe more PK4 classes will open?

They need the space for K and older kids in boundary.

Anonymous wrote:so glad my charter is a commute and thus safe from you. I would never dream of doing anything other private preschool in your position.

Huh?? What do you know of my position??

Is it an unwritten rule that people only apply to their in-bound school and don't select backups???