Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 15:02     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
abarem123 wrote:OP here - thanks this is all super helpful. If I'm understanding the replies correctly, it sounds like we will very likely get a PK4 spot *somewhere* within a mile or so of where we would live (on the Hill). It doesn't have to be a PK spot at the IB elementary school - I am just most concerned about odds to get a spot at a school period. I'm hopeful from reading the comments that we'd land a spot somewhere (Miner, Appletree, JO Wilson, Peabody, etc.).

I agree with posters stating that we should move IB for where we'd like to be long-term. Are there any big differences between the elementary schools on the Hill? e.g., why would I want L-T vs. Maury vs. Brent vs. other options? Would the odds for getting my younger child a PK3 spot at L-T (inbound) be better than Maury (inbound)?


L-T's biggest selling points in my mind are departmentalized 3rd through 5th grades (1 teacher for ELA, 1 for math and 1 for social studies (or science) + writing) with a comparative emphasis on writing instruction as a result. It also has fabulous aftercare + clubs (it is home grown, staffed mostly by teachers and so good that the company now does CHML and Van Ness as well, despite being L-T teachers/staff). I am also partial to the zone itself as it's more compact and urban/commercial-adjacent than some of the others. L-T remains pretty diverse for DCPS (basically 50/50 white vs non-white students). Also, if there is any chance you'll stick around to middle school, L-T's feeder middle (Stuart-Hobson) is the solidest of the 3 on the Hill, though Maury's/Payne's is rapidly improving by all accounts. Brent's actually seems to be losing buy-in from Brent.

Also, perhaps relevant to you, L-T has 3 PK3s & 3 PK4s, so the ECE is right-sized to the rest of the school (3 classes in most grades) unlike at Brent or Maury where there are fewer ECE classes/grade than other classes/grade; as a result, it is considerably easier to get into L-T's ECE than Brent's or Maury's. Sibs all get in by PK4 every year and they all got in this year (if they wanted a spot) post-WL movement for PK3.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 15:02     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
Payne seems to have some behavior issues even among the UMC kids there. Not everyone, of course, but we have noticed a trend of the Payne kids in our kids’ Hill activities being fairly hyper and poorly behaved relative to the kids from other Hill schools. But I agree that kids seem to do well academically there. If you filter the CAPE data just for white kids, they perform very well and sometimes better than peer Hill schools
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 14:55     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
abarem123 wrote:Thank you. Living close to classmates is important to us and one of the things we like most about where we live now. We will likely rank Peabody in our PK4 lottery because we ultimately just need a spot for a year, but may prioritize moving to L-T, Maury, Brent, or Payne IB areas as opposed to Watkins/Peabody for that reason. Curious - why is Payne not a "top three" like L-T, Maury and Brent? Is it just historically more socioeconomically diverse and/or test score driven? I'll definitely check out the DC Bold Schools website!


If that's important to you, Payne is a great choice - though one with very, very limited aftercare spots (free via DC, fills up within minutes of opening) and no before care. I've chimed in on this thread before as noting that Payne is on the rise. I live in proximity to it and don't think it gets nearly the love it deserves on this board. I think that will change in coming years as it continues to see its scores go up. Part of what challenged it previously is that it served a homeless shelter accessible to families. This meant a lot of turnover and a lot of resources - rightfully - spent on those kids who needed it most. For those familiar with the name, it was a social worker at Payne who first reported Relisha Rudd missing. It was reportedly a disruptive learning environment for in-bounds kids, plus those demographics meant lower test scores and attendance, and the reputation stuck. Families preferred to lottery out to Watkins and others. Payne no longer fills that role, as I believe it's a women's only shelter at that location now. Additionally, the housing stock (decent sized townhomes with yards, parking, and metro proximity) was still financially accessible for first time buyers the last 5-10 years, making it attractive to UMC families with young kids. There's been a huge buy-in by families to make it a strong public school for IB students. There are also some fantastic teachers who go above and beyond - like the science teacher who comes out with all the toys and gadgets to explore on school fundraiser nights at the local restaurants. There are very sweet pockets of houses off main streets with tons of school-aged kids all IB for Payne. Look up Burke and Bay Streets for a sense of it.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 14:18     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
abarem123 wrote:Thank you. Living close to classmates is important to us and one of the things we like most about where we live now. We will likely rank Peabody in our PK4 lottery because we ultimately just need a spot for a year, but may prioritize moving to L-T, Maury, Brent, or Payne IB areas as opposed to Watkins/Peabody for that reason. Curious - why is Payne not a "top three" like L-T, Maury and Brent? Is it just historically more socioeconomically diverse and/or test score driven? I'll definitely check out the DC Bold Schools website!


To be totally honest, I think on this particular forum, the reason it is not in the 'top three' is because of the reason you guess. Although it will not be forever, it is still a Title 1 school, and has more racial and socio economic diversity than other schools nearby. I can't speak for all of the schools, but I know there is very little teacher turnover at Payne, with some teachers having taught generations of kids from the same family. Until it closed maybe 7-8 years ago, the family homeless shelter was in boundary for the school as well (that shelter was not in good physical shape so it has since been torn down and there are several other smaller/newer family shelters around the city now).
As folks are saying, I don't really think you could go wrong at a lot of the schools mentioned on this thread. Another way to get a sense of the community is to see if you can find them on FB or Instagram.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 14:13     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
abarem123 wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Couple things to respond do in this thread - so in no particular order.

Lots of research to back the test score and socioeconomic statements above - and if you are at a school with little to know at risk population, it is very true that teaching can be substandard, but test scores will still be OK due to external variables. If you want to get into the data of quality teaching that is helping all kids improve, look at resources like https://www.dcboldschools.org/. But since you will only be here a few years in early elementary, this may not be much of an issue/concern anyway.

Second, while Peabody is a 'neighborhood' school, due to a decades old gerrymandered boundary that cuts across the whole Capitol Hill, you could be in bounds and be 1.5 miles away from somebody else who lives in bounds. The other school boundaries are much smaller/regular shaped, so the proximity to classmates is much more noticeable.

Agree to look at which schools are in swing space, and while LT and Maury are both good options, I think Payne's boundary/school community has some significant advantages too. It is a small boundary, near metro/bus access, near bike lanes and a grocery store and walkable to other restaurants/retail, but not too close to any that it impacts parking etc.


Thank you. Living close to classmates is important to us and one of the things we like most about where we live now. We will likely rank Peabody in our PK4 lottery because we ultimately just need a spot for a year, but may prioritize moving to L-T, Maury, Brent, or Payne IB areas as opposed to Watkins/Peabody for that reason. Curious - why is Payne not a "top three" like L-T, Maury and Brent? Is it just historically more socioeconomically diverse and/or test score driven? I'll definitely check out the DC Bold Schools website!


Payne is just a new entrant to the "solid schools" list, so people whose kids have already gone through elementary or whose info is a few years out of date aren't as familiar with it. I feel like it was under the radar until about a year ago but when you look at their test scores and programming, there is a ton to like.

Also Payne got overshadowed by Maury, which is nearby and in the same MS triangle, for years, so I think people buying in Hill East just focused on Maury and didn't notice Payne's steady improvement. Also south of Payne is Chisolm, which is a Spanish immersion DCPS, and that immersion program probably also overshadows Payne because it's a special program. But I really hear only good things about Payne these days.

I also think JO Wilson is on the cusp of being viewed similarly. The issue there is that for years their IB families have been poached by a charter called Two Rivers that used to be very highly regarded but has really fallen out of favor in recent years. JO is currently in a swing space and getting a brand new campus next year, plus it feeds into Stuart-Hobson, which is currently considered the best MS option on the Hill (L-T and Watkins/Peabody also feed into S-H). JO has seen steady improvement in recent years but is in a bit of a holding pattern right now due to the swing space -- I would expect to see a big surge in interest there in the next few years. But since you are moving this year, I'd focus on Maury/Brent/L-T/Payne which are more established as strong programs with good boundary buy in and parent communities.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 14:06     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
abarem123 wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
abarem123 wrote:OP here - thanks this is all super helpful. If I'm understanding the replies correctly, it sounds like we will very likely get a PK4 spot *somewhere* within a mile or so of where we would live (on the Hill). It doesn't have to be a PK spot at the IB elementary school - I am just most concerned about odds to get a spot at a school period. I'm hopeful from reading the comments that we'd land a spot somewhere (Miner, Appletree, JO Wilson, Peabody, etc.).

I agree with posters stating that we should move IB for where we'd like to be long-term. Are there any big differences between the elementary schools on the Hill? e.g., why would I want L-T vs. Maury vs. Brent vs. other options? Would the ohttps://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/show/32.pagedds for getting my younger child a PK3 spot at L-T (inbound) be better than Maury (inbound)?


OP one question to consider is if aftercare is essential for you. For some of these schools, if you get in during the summer, aftercare will already be full at some schools. Others are able to scale up as necessary. If that's a deal breaker, it's worth researching which of your desired schools fall into which of those buckets.


Thank you, very good point. We would need aftercare. How does one go about researching which schools have better aftercare options for a summer move-in/enrollment vs. others?


You can ask about specific programs. I can tell you as someone with experience with the aftercare program at JOW and at L-T, that they work hard to accommodate all students. Sometimes there are waitlists, but they usually figure it out and I've never known anyone at either school get locked out of aftercare and have to go somewhere else.

In my experience, DCPS schools are structured under the assumption that most kids will need aftercare. There may be specific schools where SAHPs or nannies are prevalent enough that the schools have smaller aftercare programs, but that just doesn't seem to be the case on the Hill for the most part. But I can't speak to other schools since my kids haven't attended those.
abarem123
Post 11/18/2025 14:04     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
Thank you. Living close to classmates is important to us and one of the things we like most about where we live now. We will likely rank Peabody in our PK4 lottery because we ultimately just need a spot for a year, but may prioritize moving to L-T, Maury, Brent, or Payne IB areas as opposed to Watkins/Peabody for that reason. Curious - why is Payne not a "top three" like L-T, Maury and Brent? Is it just historically more socioeconomically diverse and/or test score driven? I'll definitely check out the DC Bold Schools website!
abarem123
Post 11/18/2025 13:59     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
Anonymous wrote:
abarem123 wrote:OP here - thanks this is all super helpful. If I'm understanding the replies correctly, it sounds like we will very likely get a PK4 spot *somewhere* within a mile or so of where we would live (on the Hill). It doesn't have to be a PK spot at the IB elementary school - I am just most concerned about odds to get a spot at a school period. I'm hopeful from reading the comments that we'd land a spot somewhere (Miner, Appletree, JO Wilson, Peabody, etc.).

I agree with posters stating that we should move IB for where we'd like to be long-term. Are there any big differences between the elementary schools on the Hill? e.g., why would I want L-T vs. Maury vs. Brent vs. other options? Would the ohttps://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/show/32.pagedds for getting my younger child a PK3 spot at L-T (inbound) be better than Maury (inbound)?


OP one question to consider is if aftercare is essential for you. For some of these schools, if you get in during the summer, aftercare will already be full at some schools. Others are able to scale up as necessary. If that's a deal breaker, it's worth researching which of your desired schools fall into which of those buckets.


Thank you, very good point. We would need aftercare. How does one go about researching which schools have better aftercare options for a summer move-in/enrollment vs. others?
abarem123
Post 11/18/2025 13:57     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
Anonymous wrote:Unrelated to your question really but as a former Hoboken resident, welcome! The street parking is much easier here though can still be a little bit tricky near schools, churches, and commercial areas. The food is a definite downgrade from Hoboken and NYC but still expensive. But Capitol Hill is great and a good bet if you are trying to find a similar feel. It is calmer and sleepier, especially on certain blocks, but still similar. And as another poster said, the family bike culture is amazing.


Thank you! Amazing to find another former Hoboken. Do you live in the Hill too?
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 13:48     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
abarem123 wrote:OP here - thanks this is all super helpful. If I'm understanding the replies correctly, it sounds like we will very likely get a PK4 spot *somewhere* within a mile or so of where we would live (on the Hill). It doesn't have to be a PK spot at the IB elementary school - I am just most concerned about odds to get a spot at a school period. I'm hopeful from reading the comments that we'd land a spot somewhere (Miner, Appletree, JO Wilson, Peabody, etc.).

I agree with posters stating that we should move IB for where we'd like to be long-term. Are there any big differences between the elementary schools on the Hill? e.g., why would I want L-T vs. Maury vs. Brent vs. other options? Would the ohttps://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/show/32.pagedds for getting my younger child a PK3 spot at L-T (inbound) be better than Maury (inbound)?


OP one question to consider is if aftercare is essential for you. For some of these schools, if you get in during the summer, aftercare will already be full at some schools. Others are able to scale up as necessary. If that's a deal breaker, it's worth researching which of your desired schools fall into which of those buckets.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 13:45     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
One thought if you want to have in-bounds as an option is to look for a short-term rental for when you first arrive. Get a 6-month lease starting over the summer locked in before March 1. Then, either you like it and want to stay, or you can move somewhere else. But I believe your kid can attend that elementary school until 5th grade.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 13:42     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
Unrelated to your question really but as a former Hoboken resident, welcome! The street parking is much easier here though can still be a little bit tricky near schools, churches, and commercial areas. The food is a definite downgrade from Hoboken and NYC but still expensive. But Capitol Hill is great and a good bet if you are trying to find a similar feel. It is calmer and sleepier, especially on certain blocks, but still similar. And as another poster said, the family bike culture is amazing.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 13:27     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Your chance of getting into Ludlow over the summer in-boundary off the waitlist is pretty good. That’s because based on this year’s data, all in-boundary kids got an immediate match in the lottery, so once you become in-boundary, if they make any waitlist offer at that point, it will go to you. You have no chance of getting into Maury using this strategy because lots of in-boundary kids get shut out in PK4.

So I would move to L-T boundary and then also rank Peabody, Appletree, Miner. Peabody lets lots of out of boundary kids in for PK4, so you have a decent chance of getting into Peabody even without in-boundary preference. Miner has a nice new PK-only building and lets everyone in for PK4.


Thank you, super helpful! From what I’ve read, L-T is also great for elementary, right? Maybe not as coveted as Maury though? We will probably sign a one or two year lease but would love to start building our school community asap. My younger child would enter PK3 when older one is entering first so thinking about that too.


"Coveted" doesn't always mean best for you. Consider what factors are most important to you and do your research. Socioeconomic and racial demographics vary wildly across elementary schools even just a couple of blocks apart. Test scores too. And since test scores are correlated with demographics, a school with really good test scores and 5% of students "at risk" might actually have worse teaching than the school with pretty good test scores and 25% of students "at risk".

DC Report Card is a good starting place for this sort of stuff. https://schoolreportcard.dc.gov/home


This literally makes no sense and doesn’t reflect this on the school report card


Couple things to respond do in this thread - so in no particular order.

Lots of research to back the test score and socioeconomic statements above - and if you are at a school with little to know at risk population, it is very true that teaching can be substandard, but test scores will still be OK due to external variables. If you want to get into the data of quality teaching that is helping all kids improve, look at resources like https://www.dcboldschools.org/. But since you will only be here a few years in early elementary, this may not be much of an issue/concern anyway.

Second, while Peabody is a 'neighborhood' school, due to a decades old gerrymandered boundary that cuts across the whole Capitol Hill, you could be in bounds and be 1.5 miles away from somebody else who lives in bounds. The other school boundaries are much smaller/regular shaped, so the proximity to classmates is much more noticeable.

Agree to look at which schools are in swing space, and while LT and Maury are both good options, I think Payne's boundary/school community has some significant advantages too. It is a small boundary, near metro/bus access, near bike lanes and a grocery store and walkable to other restaurants/retail, but not too close to any that it impacts parking etc.


As someone who is IB to Peabody/Watkins but has proximity preference to Payne, this is overall a very good take.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 13:10     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Your chance of getting into Ludlow over the summer in-boundary off the waitlist is pretty good. That’s because based on this year’s data, all in-boundary kids got an immediate match in the lottery, so once you become in-boundary, if they make any waitlist offer at that point, it will go to you. You have no chance of getting into Maury using this strategy because lots of in-boundary kids get shut out in PK4.

So I would move to L-T boundary and then also rank Peabody, Appletree, Miner. Peabody lets lots of out of boundary kids in for PK4, so you have a decent chance of getting into Peabody even without in-boundary preference. Miner has a nice new PK-only building and lets everyone in for PK4.


Thank you, super helpful! From what I’ve read, L-T is also great for elementary, right? Maybe not as coveted as Maury though? We will probably sign a one or two year lease but would love to start building our school community asap. My younger child would enter PK3 when older one is entering first so thinking about that too.


"Coveted" doesn't always mean best for you. Consider what factors are most important to you and do your research. Socioeconomic and racial demographics vary wildly across elementary schools even just a couple of blocks apart. Test scores too. And since test scores are correlated with demographics, a school with really good test scores and 5% of students "at risk" might actually have worse teaching than the school with pretty good test scores and 25% of students "at risk".

DC Report Card is a good starting place for this sort of stuff. https://schoolreportcard.dc.gov/home


This literally makes no sense and doesn’t reflect this on the school report card


Couple things to respond do in this thread - so in no particular order.

Lots of research to back the test score and socioeconomic statements above - and if you are at a school with little to know at risk population, it is very true that teaching can be substandard, but test scores will still be OK due to external variables. If you want to get into the data of quality teaching that is helping all kids improve, look at resources like https://www.dcboldschools.org/. But since you will only be here a few years in early elementary, this may not be much of an issue/concern anyway.

Second, while Peabody is a 'neighborhood' school, due to a decades old gerrymandered boundary that cuts across the whole Capitol Hill, you could be in bounds and be 1.5 miles away from somebody else who lives in bounds. The other school boundaries are much smaller/regular shaped, so the proximity to classmates is much more noticeable.

Agree to look at which schools are in swing space, and while LT and Maury are both good options, I think Payne's boundary/school community has some significant advantages too. It is a small boundary, near metro/bus access, near bike lanes and a grocery store and walkable to other restaurants/retail, but not too close to any that it impacts parking etc.
Anonymous
Post 11/18/2025 12:03     Subject: PK4 in the Hill
All of the elementary schools are good. I’d pick based on proximity to what you need. Do you need/want to be closer to Union Station, for example? Would you prefer being closer to eastern market? Price can also vary wildly block by block.

Btw if you are a biker or bike curious, a bike is perhaps the best way to get around the Hill with two kids. There’s a great biking culture and bike accessibility is getting better every year.