Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Loretta, I wish you all the best, and I think it sounds like you've thought this through. I don't know anything about the area, but if your kids are close and your commute is short, you can help at the school. I think I would still recommend renting first to check out the area and the school situation though. Doing so might be more expensive (ironically, if you were renting something expensive it would be cheaper than buying), but it will let you check out the options. You don't want to be locked into something you can't get out of.

Yes, exactly, this is what we will do. Considerations about crime hit us. Already scanning the rental market. Most of the previous posters helped a lot. I am so grateful this forum exists.

Also keep in mind that even though rent can be more expensive than a mortgage, there are so many additional costs associated with owning a home-- taxes, insurance, home maintenance, repairs. I'm sure you've thought this through but it was definitely a shock to our system when we went from renting to buying.

Don't take some quick responses on this thread as negative. I think people who have BTDT don't want you to make a huge financial commitment to a house without considering your options.

I have had kids at a 70%+ FARMS rate school and now they are in one that hovers right around 50%. The issue is not will your children learn. Of course they will.

With such a high FARMS rate it is possible that your child could not have even a single high performing peer in their classroom (this happened to my kid at the 70+% elementary school). You have to be more vigilant about friendships and playdates. You will also likely have very little in common with almost all other parents. It is hard to make friends in the school community, not because other parents aren't nice people, you just won't have much in common to want to form real friendships.

If you do decide to buy, I would be very smart about it. Make sure it is a property you could turn over in 5 years and not lose money or be prepared to rent it out.

The housing market in this city is tough. $225,000 in most areas of the country would not put you inbound for failing schools. Good luck. You will figure out what is best for your family.

I substitute teacher and have been at Nalle but not KM. I would send my kids to Nalle (especially early grades), but probably not KM. My friend's son had a terrible experience in the autism program at KM (although part of that is that DCPS doesn't do well with intellectually average autistic kids).

Anonymous wrote:Loretta, I wish you all the best, and I think it sounds like you've thought this through. I don't know anything about the area, but if your kids are close and your commute is short, you can help at the school. I think I would still recommend renting first to check out the area and the school situation though. Doing so might be more expensive (ironically, if you were renting something expensive it would be cheaper than buying), but it will let you check out the options. You don't want to be locked into something you can't get out of.

Yes, exactly, this is what we will do. Considerations about crime hit us. Already scanning the rental market. Most of the previous posters helped a lot. I am so grateful this forum exists.

Loretta, I wish you all the best, and I think it sounds like you've thought this through. I don't know anything about the area, but if your kids are close and your commute is short, you can help at the school. I think I would still recommend renting first to check out the area and the school situation though. Doing so might be more expensive (ironically, if you were renting something expensive it would be cheaper than buying), but it will let you check out the options. You don't want to be locked into something you can't get out of.

Anonymous wrote:You do know that the Principal of the Year came out of Kelly Miller and since promoted to Dunbar HS. The current Principal is a jewel and the 8th graders went on to the many prestigious application high-schools. Flowers do grow in muddy water.

Time will tell. We will see this time next year.

You do know that the Principal of the Year came out of Kelly Miller and since promoted to Dunbar HS. The current Principal is a jewel and the 8th graders went on to the many prestigious application high-schools. Flowers do grow in muddy water.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you are nuts to buy based on liking the MS principal when your youngest is only 4.

+1 I would bet a million dollars (well, if I had a million dollars) that she won't be there when your kid gets there. Unfortunately that's just the reality in DCPS.

And I'd bet another million (if I, too, had a million dollars) that OP will be long gone by the time her kid enters middle school.

And the school will have had 10 principals.

Anonymous wrote:I have taught after-school classes at Kelly Miller. Granted it was over 10 years ago but it was WILD. Some kids were great. When I could get a core group of dedicated students we were in business. Most of the time it was a madhouse. Kids running the halls. Terrible behavior. Lack of accountability from adults. This is not the kind of place I would ever dream of sending my child. The best teacher I knew who taught there full time back then is no longer there. I know the commutes stink but it really can be safer/better in the burbs. We are now in Silver Spring. I thought I'd stay in DC too. I wanted to metro. Didn't happen.

Not the same as it was 10 years ago.

Anonymous wrote:KM is educating 8% of its student body at or above grade level, compared to 0-1% in other schools with similar demographics.

This means that the school is giving better chances in life to some 50 kids.

You probably live in the comfort of your NW neighborhood and have no idea of what the OP is talking about.

... not to mention the fact that KM just turned over a Principal of the Year for a recent graduate of the Patterson Fellows Program. I am curious to know what the test scores will look like in the coming years as a result.