Anonymous wrote:Lake Braddock is a great school overall. The only real downside is that it’s so big, so your experience can depend a lot on the crowd you end up with. A lot of students are involved in sports, and because of that, I honestly haven’t heard much about drugs or anything like that. Most people tend to stick with their own friend groups.

Academically, the top students are very strong, and the college admissions results were impressive this year. The teachers and counselors are also really supportive.

That said, the size of the school can be a drawback. If you have the option to go to West Springfield High School, it has a pretty similar vibe and might be a better fit for some students since it’s smaller. There are also a lot of families in the area who commute into Washington, D.C. for work.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in the Woodson pyramid and have been happy with middle and high (elementary school was terrible and made me regret moving for FCPS). I definitely wouldn't classify Woodson as progressive but there are a lot of diverse families.

+1. I have been able to find my progressive folks in the Woodson pyramid. I see the same with the kids.

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Anonymous wrote:For similar location proximity to DC as a McLean pyramid but more liberal, I’d look at falls church city. They have their own local school district (not FCPS) and everyone I know who lives there love the community and schools.

Not to mention FCPS is a hot mess....I would go Arlington or maybe Chantilly/south riding in Loudon County. I also have friends who really like the Falls church public schools and that would get you closer to DC.

Anonymous wrote:We are in the Woodson pyramid and have been happy with middle and high (elementary school was terrible and made me regret moving for FCPS). I definitely wouldn't classify Woodson as progressive but there are a lot of diverse families.

Anonymous wrote:We are happy in the Lake Braddock pyramid. I'd try to live in Lake Braddock neighborhood if possible to walk to the middle/high school. That's my biggest regret of our little neighborhood.

It's a great community of middle class government workers, military, teachers, etc. Downside is the school is so big making teams can be challenging. Upside is there are so many kids there are peer groups for everything.

Multiple train stations that go to Crystal City, L'Enfant, or Union Station if you work regular/predictable hours. Otherwise DH's commute downtown is 45-60 minutes driving depending when he leaves.

Anonymous wrote:For similar location proximity to DC as a McLean pyramid but more liberal, I’d look at falls church city. They have their own local school district (not FCPS) and everyone I know who lives there love the community and schools.

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Anonymous wrote:OP here: I’m honestly surprised looking at some of the great schools scores (which I know you have to take with a grain of salt) that so many of these school pyramids seemed to be ranked low, like the ones you mention — Edison, West Potomac, Hayfield, etc. I had heard that Fairfax was such a strong system but it seems like there are a lot of variables. Our budget is up to 1.1 million but from what I see in Arlington that won’t even buy you a tiny house. We are more city people usually so wanted to be closer in to Alexandria or Arlington to be near DC, but it’s sounding like some of the further out neighborhoods make the most sense. I’ll look at some of the other neighborhoods mentioned here and I didn’t consider future redistricting. We have a rising middle schooler and elementary kid so that’s important.

Arlington and Alexandria are really nice. You can't beat the proximity to DC, and if you are into city life generally and want to be close to D.C., I think you should prioritize that.

The last thing you want is to be stuck out in the burbs with a lengthy car commute or a painful public transit commute with buses every half hour or hour to get to where you want to spend the most time. Move close in and enjoy the convenience of being able to get around easily to cute shops, restaurants, theatres etc.

Anonymous wrote:OP here: I’m honestly surprised looking at some of the great schools scores (which I know you have to take with a grain of salt) that so many of these school pyramids seemed to be ranked low, like the ones you mention — Edison, West Potomac, Hayfield, etc. I had heard that Fairfax was such a strong system but it seems like there are a lot of variables. Our budget is up to 1.1 million but from what I see in Arlington that won’t even buy you a tiny house. We are more city people usually so wanted to be closer in to Alexandria or Arlington to be near DC, but it’s sounding like some of the further out neighborhoods make the most sense. I’ll look at some of the other neighborhoods mentioned here and I didn’t consider future redistricting. We have a rising middle schooler and elementary kid so that’s important.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here: I’m honestly surprised looking at some of the great schools scores (which I know you have to take with a grain of salt) that so many of these school pyramids seemed to be ranked low, like the ones you mention — Edison, West Potomac, Hayfield, etc. I had heard that Fairfax was such a strong system but it seems like there are a lot of variables. Our budget is up to 1.1 million but from what I see in Arlington that won’t even buy you a tiny house. We are more city people usually so wanted to be closer in to Alexandria or Arlington to be near DC, but it’s sounding like some of the further out neighborhoods make the most sense. I’ll look at some of the other neighborhoods mentioned here and I didn’t consider future redistricting. We have a rising middle schooler and elementary kid so that’s important.

With all due respect, someone who truly has progressive values does not get hung up on Great Schools scores.

Fair point — that’s why I said I take it with a grain of salt. With no other context or knowledge of the schools, unfortunately it’s one of the few ways that you can do “research” about different schools. I’m not putting down the schools, I’m just surprised that some of these high priced areas, nationally speaking, have schools that are so seemingly challenged.