Anonymous wrote:Well Suzy Q could I feel that I am no longered welcomed. Get over yourself come to the damn school or move the hell-on. One thing darn sure IB does not stand for ignoring blacks. Get with the program and move it forward.

Sally - I live in a neighborhood that is 70% African American. I moved from across the country to raise a family here. My kids are growing up in a radically different environment than I did. Most people I grew up with are a lot more conservative in what they've done with their lives. I don't even have kids old enough to send to Eliot Hine or Eastern, but I'd really like to do it as they get older.

What about you? Are you the minority where you live? Did you choose to live here, or did you end up here by default because you are from here? Are you moving out of your comfort zone and raising kids in an environment totally different than the one you were raised in?

Well Suzy Q could I feel that I am no longered welcomed. Get over yourself come to the damn school or move the hell-on. One thing darn sure IB does not stand for ignoring blacks. Get with the program and move it forward.

Anonymous wrote:Oh! Please stop telling AAs to not be so defensive. Hell! If this was a football game, then you'll need a good defense to win. This rhetoric about all white people don't think this way is true. But all white people who live in the neighborhood of Capitol Hill feel this way. I dare you to say otherwise. C'mon Eastern is in their second year of existence and the percentage of whites at this new school are zilch. Now IB is about to kick-off and all of sudden it is the cat's meow for our white families with children. Well, let the black cats be the purrrfect group to make IB a success. No longer defensive, just being catty. As I said before there's not enough white children to impact a school population in the District.

Bob oh boy, you really know how to make my white family feel welcome at Eastern and Eliot Hine.

Oh! Please stop telling AAs to not be so defensive. Hell! If this was a football game, then you'll need a good defense to win. This rhetoric about all white people don't think this way is true. But all white people who live in the neighborhood of Capitol Hill feel this way. I dare you to say otherwise. C'mon Eastern is in their second year of existence and the percentage of whites at this new school are zilch. Now IB is about to kick-off and all of sudden it is the cat's meow for our white families with children. Well, let the black cats be the purrrfect group to make IB a success. No longer defensive, just being catty. As I said before there's not enough white children to impact a school population in the District.

Anonymous wrote:I think there are a few Brent kids who would go if a bunch of Maury kids go to Eliot Hine. I have a few hesitations - I am worried about safety and about challenge. My kid heard from a kid at Stuart Hobson that it was very strict and not challenging academically. Now this is just one kid's opinion, but will Eliot Hine be able to do any better than Hobson and if so, how many years will it take?

Couple of points:
- Not denying that the two are related, the core question for me is how my child will be doing, not the aggregate scores. IB might be an asset in that it does really well with differentiation. (That's maybe a reason why Deal was so successful in a short period of time.)
- My impression is that EH's safety bugs arose in transition, possibly because IB requires a lot more self-agency of kids, challenging those who aren't used to that type of environment. It takes a lot of community building and peer mediation to get that straightened out. And I hear that hard work is paying off this year.
- If you'd like to connect with parents from other schools who're familiarizing themselves with IB, EH, and Eastern, then seek them out. They're getting together in meetings, on site, and in living rooms around Capitol Hill. If you don't know where to start post to MOTH and I'm sure someone can give you a couple of contacts. If that's not an option, then look around CHPSPO for contacts (http://chpspo.org/)

Anonymous wrote:I think the Maury folks are seriously consider E-H, feeding on to Eastern. The first crop would be for next year, a strong group of kids, but if you're looking for white there would only be 2 or 3. Lots of strong AA kids, however. The next year down would be more whites, etc. on down the line. I doubt there will be much interest in E-H from Brent for a few more years. BASIS and Latin hold too much interest there and E-H is far away for most. Maybe Jefferson will draw a few. Maybe in a few years when the IB program is really up and running.

I saw a lot of Maury people, some Brent, and 2 Tyler (of course there were some people I didn't know, but not many).

Very impressive presentation and sounds like it would be an incredible program if it really happens. I've been around DCPS a LONG time so I have my doubts, but wish the schools and their clearly dedicated and hard working administrators all best luck.

I think there are a few Brent kids who would go if a bunch of Maury kids go to Eliot Hine. I have a few hesitations - I am worried about safety and about challenge. My kid heard from a kid at Stuart Hobson that it was very strict and not challenging academically. Now this is just one kid's opinion, but will Eliot Hine be able to do any better than Hobson and if so, how many years will it take?

I also get that it is offensive to some African American families who say that a quality high school needs white families too. Not all white people feel that way - I don't. I would be very happy with my kids at Banneker. But I urge the Eastern poster to not get defensive about that perspective. Defensiveness is not going to impress anyone or change people's minds.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very impressive presentation and sounds like it would be an incredible program if it really happens. I've been around DCPS a LONG time so I have my doubts, but wish the schools and their clearly dedicated and hard working administrators all best luck.

Is IS happening, no question about that. Teachers have received training, the curriculum is being rolled out. A legitimate question, however, is how far IB will be "fully implemented" within a year or two. Here is my case for why that may not matter all that much: A teacher myself, I know that sheer transition brings tremendous opportunity in terms of effort and energy. Time and again, studies show that teachers and students do best while all lights are on them, so to speak. Also, I think the presenters made a good case that IB, and possibly all teaching, is always work in progress, with a constant investment in furthering the learning community, students and teachers alike. So it'll never be "done", "finished", "fully implemented".

I remember Melissa Kim from Deal saying that the she saw the IB MYP program as important not just because of the actualmcurriculum and methods, but because it gave her staff a common language and common goals and weeded out those teachers who weren't interested in pulling in the same direction.

Really are we saying that a DCPS high school is not worrhy if whites are not in attendance? We will welcome the strong incoming 9th grade class that is majority AA. Now you do know IB is only offered to 11th and 12th graders. So our inaugural IB class will be next year and unfortunately white people you've missed the relaunch. We are doing just fine and dandy. Build it and they will come and quite frankly we did.

Anonymous wrote:Very impressive presentation and sounds like it would be an incredible program if it really happens. I've been around DCPS a LONG time so I have my doubts, but wish the schools and their clearly dedicated and hard working administrators all best luck.

Is IS happening, no question about that. Teachers have received training, the curriculum is being rolled out. A legitimate question, however, is how far IB will be "fully implemented" within a year or two. Here is my case for why that may not matter all that much: A teacher myself, I know that sheer transition brings tremendous opportunity in terms of effort and energy. Time and again, studies show that teachers and students do best while all lights are on them, so to speak. Also, I think the presenters made a good case that IB, and possibly all teaching, is always work in progress, with a constant investment in furthering the learning community, students and teachers alike. So it'll never be "done", "finished", "fully implemented".

I think the Maury folks are seriously consider E-H, feeding on to Eastern. The first crop would be for next year, a strong group of kids, but if you're looking for white there would only be 2 or 3. Lots of strong AA kids, however. The next year down would be more whites, etc. on down the line. I doubt there will be much interest in E-H from Brent for a few more years. BASIS and Latin hold too much interest there and E-H is far away for most. Maybe Jefferson will draw a few. Maybe in a few years when the IB program is really up and running.

I saw a lot of Maury people, some Brent, and 2 Tyler (of course there were some people I didn't know, but not many).

Very impressive presentation and sounds like it would be an incredible program if it really happens. I've been around DCPS a LONG time so I have my doubts, but wish the schools and their clearly dedicated and hard working administrators all best luck.

Anonymous wrote:Eastern is a good school regardless if white people will attend or not. Sheesh!!!

Good perhaps if you're mired in DC universe relativism. There are no great high schools in this country without white students. Banneker can hardly be considered great when its average SATs scores barely clear the national average. If Eastern wants whites (not clear), it needs test-in academic magnets programs fed by G/T MS programs, period. Without such programs, whites will stay away for many years, and perhaps decaces, to come, no telling how many.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eastern is a good school regardless if white people will attend or not. Sheesh!!!

The truth about DC school demographics is that "white" is used as a proxy for "upper middle class:." So, upper middle class parents of all races (yes, very definitely including high-earning AA families) want to see white students in significant numbers in their schools. It's not about the color of their skin, it's about the content of their parents' bank accounts.

On that note I'll mention that several dozen white parents attended the EH-Eastern-Jefferson IB curriculum informational meeting last night, mostly Maury folk. I thought that the three principals and their IB coordinators did a nice job with their presentations. They convinced me that the IB curriculum represents a big step up for these schools at any rate. However, I left unconvinced that any white/high SES kids will enroll at any one school, let alone all three, anytime soon.

Did anybody else go and arrive at the same conclusion? If I had to wager, I'd bet no white kids at any of these schools for another 2-5 years, maybe a small number in 5-10 years. No great shakes as say in my native New England.

Anonymous wrote:Eastern is a good school regardless if white people will attend or not. Sheesh!!!

The truth about DC school demographics is that "white" is used as a proxy for "upper middle class:." So, upper middle class parents of all races (yes, very definitely including high-earning AA families) want to see white students in significant numbers in their schools. It's not about the color of their skin, it's about the content of their parents' bank accounts.

Eastern is a good school regardless if white people will attend or not. Sheesh!!!

Anonymous wrote:Eastern is on the right track to be great with their IB program. The only turn off is that it is NOT diverse enough so the success rate is yet to be determine.

Anonymous wrote:OP, can you explain what you mean? Not sure I am following your line of thinking. Thanks!

It's word salad lady trying, in a backhanded manner, to say that Eastern is a good school and white people should send their kids there.