As the mom of a newly minted teenager, I am SO glad to be living in DC. No driver's license until 18! Kid is already pretty adept at public transportation. Walks or rides bike to most of the places he wants to go. Love our neighborhood -- we can walk to shops/restaurants/coffee houses. Great place to live for older kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because life in the suburbs makes me want to spoon my eyes out.

again selfish parents not thinking of their kids

Why is it selfish of parents to raise their children in an urban area if they don't like the suburbs? My husband and I enjoy city living as do our children. We live in a condo, send our kids to a nurturing and very diverse public school, and we live within walking distance from our local grocery store, pizza place, parks, zoo, place of worship, library, coffe shop, community garden plot, sports fields and hiking creek. My husband bikes to work, and I have a short commute. I'm glad you like VA. Personally, I wouldn't move there. Get over it.

OP, I prefer living in DC and am actually happy with our neighborhood schools. My oldest attends an ivy after going all the way through DCPS. Imagine that.

and in case you missed it, IT has announced the new location

Anonymous wrote:If you want a real city experience that exposes your child to all types, that's why. Otherwise, rich NW is city in name only.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So funny. I grew up in the inner city and don't want that for my child. It's not all that as you may find out, especially in MS and HS. Or you will segregate yourself in the city. All of you city folk, how many low income minorities are you hanging out with?

why in the world is this a requirement of living in a city? Give me a break.

Is the Upper East Side of Manhattan not part of the city? What would you call it? Country?

Anonymous wrote:If you want a real city experience that exposes your child to all types, that's why. Otherwise, rich NW is city in name only.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So funny. I grew up in the inner city and don't want that for my child. It's not all that as you may find out, especially in MS and HS. Or you will segregate yourself in the city. All of you city folk, how many low income minorities are you hanging out with?

why in the world is this a requirement of living in a city? Give me a break.

I think PP is conflating cities with poverty again, which just isn't valid. That's the way it worked out in post-War America for a few decades, but that was really a specific historical circumstance... and one that's no longer completely valid.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So funny. I grew up in the inner city and don't want that for my child. It's not all that as you may find out, especially in MS and HS. Or you will segregate yourself in the city. All of you city folk, how many low income minorities are you hanging out with?

All of DC's urban neighborhoods (as defined by use of space, not as in a 1950s-1980s euphemism for disadvantaged) are by this point largely gentrified.

Columbia Heights would beg to differ.

OK, so Columbia Heights maintains a sizable percentage of lower income residents. It has, nevertheless, seen *dramatic* gentrification.

Living an hour closer to where we work results in 2 hours more quality time (read: not in a car) per day with our kids. Also, neither of us grew up in a suburban utopia. Honestly, on this site, "school rankings" seems to be another way of trying to keep your kids from hanging out from anyone who doesn't have your same lifestyle. I am perfectly okay with my daughter going to preschool with kids whose parents do not speak English and kids whose parents make half what we make in a year. Living in the suburbs doesn't save you from a life of juvenile delinquency and ennui. This board is proof enough of that.

Because I think our charter has a better learning environment than any local suburban school where I could afford, and maybe even some I couldn't afford.

Anonymous wrote:I can't even believe that people consider Arlington the suburbs. Arlington is just on the other side of the river. It's faster to get to Arlington than to many upper NW locations. "Oh, let me live in upper NW so I can go to Lafayette - the most crowded school - just so I can say I live in DC!!!!" We're not talking about Rockville or Potomac or...whatever other cities are past Arlington.

Not everyone in DC, nor everyone on this thread, lives in upper NW. Arlington is, by definition, a suburb. And, the lifestyle is a much more suburban one than I have chosen.

I can't even believe that people consider Arlington the suburbs. Arlington is just on the other side of the river. It's faster to get to Arlington than to many upper NW locations. "Oh, let me live in upper NW so I can go to Lafayette - the most crowded school - just so I can say I live in DC!!!!" We're not talking about Rockville or Potomac or...whatever other cities are past Arlington.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So funny. I grew up in the inner city and don't want that for my child. It's not all that as you may find out, especially in MS and HS. Or you will segregate yourself in the city. All of you city folk, how many low income minorities are you hanging out with?

All of DC's urban neighborhoods (as defined by use of space, not as in a 1950s-1980s euphemism for disadvantaged) are by this point largely gentrified.

Columbia Heights would beg to differ.

Anonymous wrote:Please provide proof that Arlington schools are better than high performing charters or the JKLMM schools. Otherwise, your question is moot.

Just look at the scores!!!!!! You provide proof that JKLMM schools are better because they aren't!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because life in the suburbs makes me want to spoon my eyes out.

again selfish parents not thinking of their kids

I agreed with this sentiment, but I am definitely thinking of my kid. I grew up in the suburbs, and I was bored. My brother was so bored he turned to drugs, as did many of our friends. Do I think that living in the city will, in and of itself, prevent that? No, and I don't need to see any studies to show that my way is the wrong way; instead, I am just going to try something else (i.e., living in an area that is walkable to a ton of cultural activities for kids and teens alike) and try to steer my child differently. That makes me live with my concern better. We all have to do the best that we can for our kids, and I think that this is the best that I can do for mine, at least for the time being. So I will.

If you want a real city experience that exposes your child to all types, that's why. Otherwise, rich NW is city in name only.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So funny. I grew up in the inner city and don't want that for my child. It's not all that as you may find out, especially in MS and HS. Or you will segregate yourself in the city. All of you city folk, how many low income minorities are you hanging out with?

why in the world is this a requirement of living in a city? Give me a break.