We moved from the Cluster to Brent a couple years back, with three children (ages 3-7). We didn't like Watkins for 1st grade very well and were concerned by what we heard about lack of challenge for advanced students in the upper grades.

After moving, we listened to many Cluster parents we vaguely know, clearly people frustrated with Watkins, take pot shots at "lily white" Brent. We still hear this sort of thing around the Hill.

Anonymous wrote:just ignore the holier than thou pains

there's no shortage of jealousy of brent on cap hill for its demographics and ample pta resources

That's what you take from this? believe me, there is NO jealousy for brent due to its "demographics" (and wtf with the naked racism there) among the other high-performing Hill schools.

Anonymous wrote:Get over yourselves with your high-minded nitpicking about which views and educational experiences in the neighborhood are racist and which aren't.

Hello - both Brent and LT were failing schools just 10 or 15 years ago.

And they aren't failing anymore in part because white non-racist parents decided to send their kids there and invest in improving the school. (Also to the extent "fail" means "majority black" I may disagree with you, but I don't know the histories of L-T and Brent.)

Actually, LT's in-boundary percentage was rising steadily between around 2008 and 2011. Along came gentrifier-hostile Principal Cobbs, who stayed 7 long years (and did well in building a competent staff), and the percentage dropped. After Cobbs left in 2013, the skies cleared. Brent has really only been good in the upper grades for the last several years.

Anonymous wrote:Get over yourselves with your high-minded nitpicking about which views and educational experiences in the neighborhood are racist and which aren't.

Hello - both Brent and LT were failing schools just 10 or 15 years ago.

Brent was good 10 years ago - or at least better than most Hill elementaries. LT has only turned the corner in the last 5 years.

just ignore the holier than thou pains

there's no shortage of jealousy of brent on cap hill for its demographics and ample pta resources

Get over yourselves with your high-minded nitpicking about which views and educational experiences in the neighborhood are racist and which aren't.

Hello - both Brent and LT were failing schools just 10 or 15 years ago.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I wouldn’t even remotely claim that L-T is a “more desirable” school than Brent for the preferences of an average UMC white family. That said, if I had an AA kid? I would absolutely prefer L-T for a host of reasons.

I'd gladly pick L-T over Brent depending on commute and house price. The days of Brent-or-bust on the Hill are long gone. Which is fine, great even! Brent is still a great school. It's stupid and racist to decide your elementary school based on race.

What? It’s not racist to consider race when picking a school. L-T has done a great job at closing the racial achievement gap and has many AA kids. Brent has not and does not. Those things matter to me as the parent of a white child, but would tip the scales for me as the parent of an AA child. Why is that racist?

agree - it’s not racist for you. It is racist to talk about “white UMC families” who reject L-T based on race

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I wouldn’t even remotely claim that L-T is a “more desirable” school than Brent for the preferences of an average UMC white family. That said, if I had an AA kid? I would absolutely prefer L-T for a host of reasons.

I'd gladly pick L-T over Brent depending on commute and house price. The days of Brent-or-bust on the Hill are long gone. Which is fine, great even! Brent is still a great school. It's stupid and racist to decide your elementary school based on race.

I guess I don't know anyone who sends their kid to LT? All these LT boosters who don't even have kids there . . . not very convincing! Brent, on the other hand, has been GREAT for my now 4th grader!

Brent being great for your child does not rule out L-T being great too. You must not get out much if you’ve never met a Hill family with kids there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I wouldn’t even remotely claim that L-T is a “more desirable” school than Brent for the preferences of an average UMC white family. That said, if I had an AA kid? I would absolutely prefer L-T for a host of reasons.

I'd gladly pick L-T over Brent depending on commute and house price. The days of Brent-or-bust on the Hill are long gone. Which is fine, great even! Brent is still a great school. It's stupid and racist to decide your elementary school based on race.

What? It’s not racist to consider race when picking a school. L-T has done a great job at closing the racial achievement gap and has many AA kids. Brent has not and does not. Those things matter to me as the parent of a white child, but would tip the scales for me as the parent of an AA child. Why is that racist?

Ridiculous post. If you aren't AA, you don't know what would tip the scales for you. Maybe the 400K+ the Brent PTA raises to get extra teachers in classrooms past K, playground monitors, after-school tutoring etc. would be what tips the scales.

Even if you think PP is wrong (which I don’t see how you can say — plenty of parents would rather have their kids, whatever their race, be one of many rather than one of a few), what they’re saying isn’t racist. That was your original claim. Are you someone who thinks affirmative action is racist? Because, if not, you clearly understand that considering race doesn’t equate to racism.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I wouldn’t even remotely claim that L-T is a “more desirable” school than Brent for the preferences of an average UMC white family. That said, if I had an AA kid? I would absolutely prefer L-T for a host of reasons.

I'd gladly pick L-T over Brent depending on commute and house price. The days of Brent-or-bust on the Hill are long gone. Which is fine, great even! Brent is still a great school. It's stupid and racist to decide your elementary school based on race.

What? It’s not racist to consider race when picking a school. L-T has done a great job at closing the racial achievement gap and has many AA kids. Brent has not and does not. Those things matter to me as the parent of a white child, but would tip the scales for me as the parent of an AA child. Why is that racist?

Ridiculous post. If you aren't AA, you don't know what would tip the scales for you. Maybe the 400K+ the Brent PTA raises to get extra teachers in classrooms past K, playground monitors, after-school tutoring etc. would be what tips the scales.

You're painting with too broad a brush, PP. Brent has so few poor kids left (around 5% FARMs/At-Risk this year, around two dozen kids) that the data collection people aren't seeing nearly enough low SES PARCC scores from Brent to have a representative sample. Most of these kids are the children of parents who grew up in the evil Ellen Wilson project on I St. that came down in the late 90s, then were rehoused in mixed-income townhouses on the site. These are families that have struggled with multi-generational poverty. By contrast, LT's at-risk population is more diverse. Most of the AA kids are Brent are now the children of professionals and successful entrepreneurs, same as for those of other races. The principal of 18 months isn't too blame for PARCC scores from any quarter.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I wouldn’t even remotely claim that L-T is a “more desirable” school than Brent for the preferences of an average UMC white family. That said, if I had an AA kid? I would absolutely prefer L-T for a host of reasons.

I'd gladly pick L-T over Brent depending on commute and house price. The days of Brent-or-bust on the Hill are long gone. Which is fine, great even! Brent is still a great school. It's stupid and racist to decide your elementary school based on race.

What? It’s not racist to consider race when picking a school. L-T has done a great job at closing the racial achievement gap and has many AA kids. Brent has not and does not. Those things matter to me as the parent of a white child, but would tip the scales for me as the parent of an AA child. Why is that racist?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I wouldn’t even remotely claim that L-T is a “more desirable” school than Brent for the preferences of an average UMC white family. That said, if I had an AA kid? I would absolutely prefer L-T for a host of reasons.

I'd gladly pick L-T over Brent depending on commute and house price. The days of Brent-or-bust on the Hill are long gone. Which is fine, great even! Brent is still a great school. It's stupid and racist to decide your elementary school based on race.

I guess I don't know anyone who sends their kid to LT? All these LT boosters who don't even have kids there . . . not very convincing! Brent, on the other hand, has been GREAT for my now 4th grader!

FWIW my kids are in lower grades at Brent and we know *lots* of families with kids at L-T, all of whom are very happy. So I think a lot has changed in a few years’ time. We are very happy with Brent but would not hesitate to send our kids to L-t if we lived IB or if we lotteried into LT for ECE but had not gotten into Brent.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I wouldn’t even remotely claim that L-T is a “more desirable” school than Brent for the preferences of an average UMC white family. That said, if I had an AA kid? I would absolutely prefer L-T for a host of reasons.

I'd gladly pick L-T over Brent depending on commute and house price. The days of Brent-or-bust on the Hill are long gone. Which is fine, great even! Brent is still a great school. It's stupid and racist to decide your elementary school based on race.

I guess I don't know anyone who sends their kid to LT? All these LT boosters who don't even have kids there . . . not very convincing! Brent, on the other hand, has been GREAT for my now 4th grader!