I’d never move to the Deep South or out west looking for good public schools. Maybe Utah and Colorado would be ok but that’s about it. This area is great if you have a really advanced/driven/mature student who really wants to go far above and beyond a standard HS curriculum. If you have an average or above average or even “good/great” student, it’s probably better in a good district in the Midwest. My cousins have 4th and 1st graders in a top district near Columbus, Ohio (Dublin, for those familiar with the area, it’s about 75% white and 20% Asian) and their general education is seemingly equal to our AAP and is really great. High property taxes and higher sales tax though, although I don’t think it applies on most groceries. Property taxes are even higher near Cleveland, but again, there are some really good districts in the wealthy suburbs. But I’d pick VA’s public colleges and universities over Ohio’s so that is another consideration.

I have worked and lived in FC for 30 years. I have no idea what OP is talking about, unless they are MAGA and don't like being in a county run by educated people. The BOS in Fairfax is actually pretty and has, for the most part, protected the county against the kind of bad development we see elsewhere. Check out Prince William County, where everyone now lives next to a giant data center, for example.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Another poster. We were a west springfield family. Live in Texas now.

The sports down here are great. I will say it is nice to have a pool at school instead of having the kids swim at Audrey Moore. The swimmers and divers aren't as great -- the DC area swim coaching is better. Football and basketball are great too.

Academics are very weak. My kids all cleared into advanced math and coursework and like the PP they were not remarkable AAP students. They are at the top of their classes without much effort, which is nice because they train a ton. UT Austin isn't promised, but we have the money to send them out of state back east. There are very few AP classes and the language classes are just Spanish and French (one kid wanted to do German and that was a no-go, which was a bummer since he was in immersion).

The property taxes in Texas are AWFUL. I cannot overstate how much I hate the property taxes. They are very, very high. Public services are very weak. There's no Audrey Moore, we pay for a swim/tennis/golf club. We pay way more than we did in Virginia when you combine income tax and property tax/car tax. The utilities are also incredibly expensive and we have reliability (Power) issues I never had in Springfield.

The houses are nicer, we have a pool and I work but not a crazy job (mostly to pay taxes and save for out of state college) because DH makes good money. But all in, the grass isn't greener. It's just different.

If your kids are really at the top of their classes, isn't UT guaranteed?

Top 6% have guaranteed admission to UT. Some of these schools are massive(4000-5000 kids), so that's a lot of kids jostling for the top spot.

Also your preferred major is not guaranteed.

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in small town NJ. Both of my parents served on the school board. It’s really a different system when you have 1600 students total across all schools. The board is more nimble, and the schools naturally offer smaller class sizes and the education is akin to private. But the politics are worse because every year the town votes on the school budget as a separate line item. Taxes in NJ are high because small towns of 10,000 people are paying for full infrastructure. You’re paying for police, DPW, town government, schools, library, fields, supporting your fully volunteer fire department and ambulance, etc. There is no economy of scale and there is little to no industry to offset the burden homeowners bear. So your $750,000 home here in Fairfax pays $8,000 in property taxes, that same value house in a town in Bergen County pays $30,000 (although their tax assessments lock in for 10 years so it’s not as volatile). That bespoke experience comes with a high price tag.

Bespoke always costs more. It's all a matter if you can afford it and if you think it's worth the expense.

I don’t believe you. If anything, I’m sure it’s gotten easier.


Huh? You really think it has gotten easier for recent graduates to get high-paying jobs with a B average?

Absolutely! ESPECIALLY if they are boys.

Have you seen what is going on with boys in Education (and specifically College) lately? A solid B average and they are gonna be just fine.

I grew up in small town NJ. Both of my parents served on the school board. It’s really a different system when you have 1600 students total across all schools. The board is more nimble, and the schools naturally offer smaller class sizes and the education is akin to private. But the politics are worse because every year the town votes on the school budget as a separate line item. Taxes in NJ are high because small towns of 10,000 people are paying for full infrastructure. You’re paying for police, DPW, town government, schools, library, fields, supporting your fully volunteer fire department and ambulance, etc. There is no economy of scale and there is little to no industry to offset the burden homeowners bear. So your $750,000 home here in Fairfax pays $8,000 in property taxes, that same value house in a town in Bergen County pays $30,000 (although their tax assessments lock in for 10 years so it’s not as volatile). That bespoke experience comes with a high price tag.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Another poster. We were a west springfield family. Live in Texas now.

The sports down here are great. I will say it is nice to have a pool at school instead of having the kids swim at Audrey Moore. The swimmers and divers aren't as great -- the DC area swim coaching is better. Football and basketball are great too.

Academics are very weak. My kids all cleared into advanced math and coursework and like the PP they were not remarkable AAP students. They are at the top of their classes without much effort, which is nice because they train a ton. UT Austin isn't promised, but we have the money to send them out of state back east. There are very few AP classes and the language classes are just Spanish and French (one kid wanted to do German and that was a no-go, which was a bummer since he was in immersion).

The property taxes in Texas are AWFUL. I cannot overstate how much I hate the property taxes. They are very, very high. Public services are very weak. There's no Audrey Moore, we pay for a swim/tennis/golf club. We pay way more than we did in Virginia when you combine income tax and property tax/car tax. The utilities are also incredibly expensive and we have reliability (Power) issues I never had in Springfield.

The houses are nicer, we have a pool and I work but not a crazy job (mostly to pay taxes and save for out of state college) because DH makes good money. But all in, the grass isn't greener. It's just different.

If your kids are really at the top of their classes, isn't UT guaranteed?

Top 6% have guaranteed admission to UT. Some of these schools are massive(4000-5000 kids), so that's a lot of kids jostling for the top spot.

Anonymous wrote:Another poster. We were a west springfield family. Live in Texas now.

The sports down here are great. I will say it is nice to have a pool at school instead of having the kids swim at Audrey Moore. The swimmers and divers aren't as great -- the DC area swim coaching is better. Football and basketball are great too.

Academics are very weak. My kids all cleared into advanced math and coursework and like the PP they were not remarkable AAP students. They are at the top of their classes without much effort, which is nice because they train a ton. UT Austin isn't promised, but we have the money to send them out of state back east. There are very few AP classes and the language classes are just Spanish and French (one kid wanted to do German and that was a no-go, which was a bummer since he was in immersion).

The property taxes in Texas are AWFUL. I cannot overstate how much I hate the property taxes. They are very, very high. Public services are very weak. There's no Audrey Moore, we pay for a swim/tennis/golf club. We pay way more than we did in Virginia when you combine income tax and property tax/car tax. The utilities are also incredibly expensive and we have reliability (Power) issues I never had in Springfield.

The houses are nicer, we have a pool and I work but not a crazy job (mostly to pay taxes and save for out of state college) because DH makes good money. But all in, the grass isn't greener. It's just different.

If your kids are really at the top of their classes, isn't UT guaranteed?

We went to private. Best move we could’ve ever made

A dear friend of mine moved her family to Arizona to get away from the pressure cooker here and from FCPS bureaucracy. (She is a teacher.) She regretted it nearly instantly. Even in a supposedly great area just outside of Phoenix, the schools are soooooo bad.

I think this depends on your priorities and what you want for your children. Many DC area schools are pressure cookers where seemingly everyone has high expectations in terms of grades, test scores, and college admission.

I think many if not most kids would be happier and less stressed in many, many other school systems around the country. However, expectations for grades, test scores, and college admission are very different elsewhere. Here, if your child’s SAT score is below 1250, they are a failure and you are a failure as a parent. In many other school systems, such a SAT score is outstanding and getting into any college beyond community college is considered highly successful.

We moved from MoCo to a Dallas suburb for a three years before moving to NOVA. There was less focus and less pressure on academics than MD/NOVA, more pressure around sports participation, and people were much more focused on superficial things like your ethnic background, appearance, house, and car. Being distinguished academically wasn’t important to most parents. There were parents who valued academics above all else, but it felt like this was around 10% of the parents as compared to the 70-80% here. Academics played much less of a role in a child’s network of friends and in social circles. Social circles were dictated in large party by money (or appearance of money) not education.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Schools out in rural areas have a lot of drugs and teen pregnancy. Plus the standards are lower, so less chance of going to college.

Counter point: rural schools generally have less gangs. And if you are motivated it’s easier to get into a good college from a rural school than Fairfax.

But you will be less prepared for the rigors of the good college that you got into.

Gentleman’s B+ from a good school will get you pretty far in life.

Not anymore. Well, unless you have gentleman's connections...

I don’t believe you. If anything, I’m sure it’s gotten easier.

Huh? You really think it has gotten easier for recent graduates to get high-paying jobs with a B average?