Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are parents concerned about Kennedy? The journalism track looks interesting from a recent open house, but we don't know anything about the school. Some kids have heard "horror stories" but I don't know what that means. Are these concerns from a long time ago? Or do they still exist?

Given the demographics of DCUM it is possible that everyone's "concerns" stem from the fact that Kennedy is the least white school in the county. I could be wrong though.

Anonymous wrote:Why are parents concerned about Kennedy? The journalism track looks interesting from a recent open house, but we don't know anything about the school. Some kids have heard "horror stories" but I don't know what that means. Are these concerns from a long time ago? Or do they still exist?

Application Programs Open to DCC Students

Biomedical Magnet Program
Communication Arts Program (CAP)
Engineering Magnet Program
Leadership Training Institute (LTI)

Special Programs Open to ALL MCPS Students

Global Ecology House
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (Richard Montgomery HS)
Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science Magnet

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Thanks for insight on DCC high schools. Both dh and I commute to DC and love the communities in the silver Spring neighborhoods. For high schools, is it like DC where students don’t usually get a top lottery choice in DCC schools or is there more room in the programs for all students? I’m nervous my kids would be forced to go to neighborhood school even if that is their last choice.

Sorry, it's very competitive to get into the magnets. If you are nervous you should definitely make a plan to move to a home school you'd be happy with.

I think PP was talking about the consortium lottery. MCPS advertises that most kids get their first or second choices, but most Blair kids choose Blair and that's the biggest school, so I'm not sure how that skews the numbers.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Thanks for insight on DCC high schools. Both dh and I commute to DC and love the communities in the silver Spring neighborhoods. For high schools, is it like DC where students don’t usually get a top lottery choice in DCC schools or is there more room in the programs for all students? I’m nervous my kids would be forced to go to neighborhood school even if that is their last choice.

Sorry, it's very competitive to get into the magnets. If you are nervous you should definitely make a plan to move to a home school you'd be happy with.

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Thanks for insight on DCC high schools. Both dh and I commute to DC and love the communities in the silver Spring neighborhoods. For high schools, is it like DC where students don’t usually get a top lottery choice in DCC schools or is there more room in the programs for all students? I’m nervous my kids would be forced to go to neighborhood school even if that is their last choice.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What are the W's like? Can't say for sure since I'm not there, but they seem to be stress-cookers in general.

I always find this perception perplexing. The W's or at least Wootton and WJ really are not actually pressure cookers. There are a bunch of very smart kids and I think what happens is that these kids are surprised that in high school its no longer super easy for them the way it was in MS or ES. Its safe to be super nerdy here but its also fine to be more well rounded.

Wootton families are very down to earth. Families are range from doctors, military families, tech people, government employees, lawyers for DOJ, NIH researchers, state department, EPA etc. These aren't the high profile people. There is a large international community. People joke that its like the UN because so many countries are represented. The IMF and World Bank recommend the area to folks they are stationing here. There is a good sized Russian, Ukraine, Chinese, Korean, Iranian, African, and Indian community here. My kids also have friends from Central American, South America, Thailand, and other countries. The Jewish community is very active and fun too. Its a different type of diversity as most of Wootton is in the middle SES and doesn't have the extreme wealth of Potomac/Bethesda or the high poverty of other areas.

Sports are popular and very inclusive out here. You don't need to be headed to the pros to get on the teams. Music is popular and Wootton has lots of talented kids. Theater and art are also good and inclusive. The teachers and the community are very into the school. Everyone is still heartbroken that the former principal passed away. The new administration is good and many of the good staff have stayed.

If you decide to move to one of the Ws, I'd recommend Wootton. We have friends at WJ who also describe it as a friendly community. I just don't have much knowledge of Churchill or Whitman but these may also not be the monsters people who don't go there make them out to be.

Ummm no. Most of wootton is not middle SES. It’s mostly upper middle. There are some middle-class areas with condos, apartments and townhomes in Washingtonian and Rockshire, where town houses are only in the $500k to $600k range. Single-family homes in the cluster catchment are generally $700k and up—not middle SES

I never think of people living in a 700k house as the upper middle class but just middle class. It's a silly distinction.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What are the W's like? Can't say for sure since I'm not there, but they seem to be stress-cookers in general.

I always find this perception perplexing. The W's or at least Wootton and WJ really are not actually pressure cookers. There are a bunch of very smart kids and I think what happens is that these kids are surprised that in high school its no longer super easy for them the way it was in MS or ES. Its safe to be super nerdy here but its also fine to be more well rounded.

Wootton families are very down to earth. Families are range from doctors, military families, tech people, government employees, lawyers for DOJ, NIH researchers, state department, EPA etc. These aren't the high profile people. There is a large international community. People joke that its like the UN because so many countries are represented. The IMF and World Bank recommend the area to folks they are stationing here. There is a good sized Russian, Ukraine, Chinese, Korean, Iranian, African, and Indian community here. My kids also have friends from Central American, South America, Thailand, and other countries. The Jewish community is very active and fun too. Its a different type of diversity as most of Wootton is in the middle SES and doesn't have the extreme wealth of Potomac/Bethesda or the high poverty of other areas.

Sports are popular and very inclusive out here. You don't need to be headed to the pros to get on the teams. Music is popular and Wootton has lots of talented kids. Theater and art are also good and inclusive. The teachers and the community are very into the school. Everyone is still heartbroken that the former principal passed away. The new administration is good and many of the good staff have stayed.

If you decide to move to one of the Ws, I'd recommend Wootton. We have friends at WJ who also describe it as a friendly community. I just don't have much knowledge of Churchill or Whitman but these may also not be the monsters people who don't go there make them out to be.

Ummm no. Most of wootton is not middle SES. It’s mostly upper middle. There are some middle-class areas with condos, apartments and townhomes in Washingtonian and Rockshire, where town houses are only in the $500k to $600k range. Single-family homes in the cluster catchment are generally $700k and up—not middle SES

I never think of people living in a 700k house as the upper middle class but just middle class. It's a silly distinction.