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1. Laurie97
   Member Profile

   My child will be transferring from Lafayette to Thurgood Marshall in the fall. I would love to carpool with another W. Seattle family doing the same, either before school or after (or both). Are there any parents who would be interested?

   Posted 3 months ago #         

2. smokeycretin9
   Member Profile

   Congrats Laurie and to your child. Our daughter will be going to either Marshall or Lowell in the fall as well. We need to make up our minds.

   Posted 3 months ago #         

3. Marmite
   Member Profile

   I hear Thurgood Marshall is a good school, and I am going to put this school down for my son during Open Enrollment.

   Posted 3 months ago #         

4. Marmite
   Member Profile

   Out of interest, why is he being transferred?

   Posted 3 months ago #         

5. smokeycretin9
   Member Profile

   Marshal and Lowell are the Seattle Public Schools A.P.P. (Accelerated Progress Program) Schools.

   http://www.seattleschools.org/modules/cms/pages.phtml?sessionid=5360f4081095c72c5fad01e7710e9580&pageid=230107&sessionid=5360f4081095c72c5fad01e7710e9580

   Posted 3 months ago #         

6. Laurie97
   Member Profile

   Thank you, smokeycretin9 and Marmite. We would rather keep going to school in W. Seattle but have to consider the long-term advantages of the other program.
   smokeycretin9, if you live in W. Sea, doesn't that automatically mean assignment to Marshall (rather than Lowell)? Just curious...

   Posted 3 months ago #         

7. SPSMOM
   Member Profile

   @Laurie97 - how did you find Spectrum to be at Lafayette? Was it all in one classroom per grade or where they pulled out for each subject? Any info would be appreciated.

   Posted 3 months ago #         

8. smokeycretin9
   Member Profile

   Arbor Heights also is a Spectrum School now. It is not as well organised right now, as it is the first year, but it has been moving along.

   As for assignment, I am not sure. I'll look into it.

   Posted 3 months ago #         

9. Laurie97
   Member Profile

   SPSMOM, at Lafayette, there is a separate Spectrum class for each grade. My child tested into Spectrum but has been on the waitlist for two years because there are too many kids for the class. We've been fortunate to have teachers who have gone the extra mile to provide challenges in the regular classes. Our older child went through Spectrum at Lafayette, made several lifelong friends and is now in the honors program in HS. I probably wouldn't take Child 2 out of Lafayette except it makes no sense for us to stay.

   Posted 3 months ago #         

10. momoftwoboys
    Member Profile

    Laurie97: We are considering switching over to Thurgood Marshall next fall for the APP Program. It's my understanding there is bus service?? Are you considering having your child ride the bus? Or am I wrong that there is bus service? Thanks!

    Posted 3 months ago #         

11. carrieann
    Member Profile

    

    We also just received the letter informing us that our daughter had tested as "academically highly gifted" and would be invited to join the APP. It's a bittersweet (mostly sweet, of course) thing, because she loves being at Lafayette, her little brother will be starting there next year, and I was really hoping we could just have her enroll in Spectrum there. But knowing what a huge list there is for that program, I'm not holding my breath at there being a spot available. We're planning to take the tour of Lowell (@Lincoln) in the coming weeks, just to get an idea of what they offer. I appreciate hearing from other parents in similar boats, though, so hope to see this thread remain active.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

12. Mitjhsu
    Member Profile

    My daughter is a 1st grader at Thurgood Marshall. There are 2 buses that take kids from West Seattle to the school. Our stop is at the end of the block from our house.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

13. smokeycretin9
    Member Profile

    Yup, it's Marshall. I am interested in the bus routes and times.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

14. SPSMOM
    Member Profile

    It seems silly to have kids on a waiting list at one school, while the second doesn't have enough students to start classrooms just for Spectrum. Move the waiting list kids over to school #2. Spectrum is Spectrum. Right?

    Posted 3 months ago #         

15. hopey
    Member Profile

    

    This is part of what's wrong with the Spectrum model as currently implemented. Parents choose which Spectrum program they want their kids to be in. Also, different schools have implemented Spectrum differently. Some schools use an ALO model for Spectrum, simply providing Spectrum-identified kids with extra work & support in their existing classroom. Lafayette has a single-classroom model -- all the Spectrum kids grouped together in one classroom.

    Arbor Heights, to the best of my understanding, uses a clustering model -- the kids are in normal classrooms, but are pulled out together as a group for additional challenging work. Some of this is due to the fact that Arbor Heights doesn't have the critical mass (yet) for the single-classroom model. Because the school district doesn't have the ability to force parents to send their kids to the new Spectrum program at Arbor Heights, it may be quite a while before critical mass occurs. But the school is also free to choose whatever model they believe is most appropriate, and may stay with the clustered model.

    However, it's clear from the long waiting list at Lafayette that there is a perceived parental bias that single-classroom is better than clustered.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

16. vs
    Member Profile

    I think there's a lot more going on than a delivery model bias. When my child Spectrum qualified last year, I had high hopes and wanted to be able to commit to the emerging program. I actually prefer a less homogenous peer group for my child and support the concept of cluster grouping. Unfortunately, as soon as I stepped in the building, I had serious concerns about the physical plant, and after talking with a cross section of people (teachers, parents, the then principal) I remained unconvinced that their program would be an improvement over our pretty great general ed neighborhood school for my student. It's convenient for the district and families with access to strong programs to believe that the programs are created equal, but they aren't. There are serious economic/geographic inequalities in advanced learning, and they need to be addressed. We have yet to find the perfect fit, but this year we'll see how APP at Thurgood Marshall stacks up for our student.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

17. hopey
    Member Profile

    

    Folks considering Thurgood Marshall might want to ask around about the bullying issues there. It was a serious problem when APP first moved to the building; I have heard a first-hand account from a friend who pulled her child out of APP there to homeschool instead. But I have no first- or second-hand knowledge of how it has progressed since then.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

18. jissy
    Member Profile

    I was in the "Horizon" program when I was in Middle and high school through SPS -- is APP and/or Spectrum the same thing? Maybe just renamed? Just curious.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

19. Laurie97
    Member Profile

    @Hopey, I think I might have taken a chance with the Arbor Heights Spectrum program except it's just too far away from where I live.
    Mitjhsu, I too am curious about the bus route and times. Is the trip to/from school a long one for your child?
    For those who are interested, there's a school tour on 2/16 morning at Marshall according to the school website.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

20. carrieann
    Member Profile

    

    hopey: I'm glad you touched on the bullying, since that was going to be one of my questions when talking to the two schools (What is your bullying situation/policy/conflict resolution like?).

    I'm also curious about people's thoughts on Lowell @ Lincoln. Seems everyone, above, is talking about Thurgood Marshall, but I know the APP is also offered at Lowell. Is there a reason for choosing one over the other?

    Posted 3 months ago #         

21. hopey
    Member Profile

    

    As far as I can tell, you don't have a choice. If you live north, your child is assigned to Lowell. If you live South (including West Seattle), your child is assigned to Thurgood Marshall. Technically there is a possibility for choice, but considering how overcrowded the Lowell program is, I don't see how they'd have any extra space for "choice" seats.

    From http://www.seattleschools.org/modules/cms/pages.phtml?pageid=230105 :

    Enrollment for the Accelerated Progress Program

    Regional APP sites for the North, Northeast, Northwest, Queen Anne/Magnolia attendance areas are: Lowell, Hamilton, Garfield.

    Regional APP sites for the Central, South, Southeast, West Seattle North, West Seattle South attendance areas are: Thurgood Marshall, Washington, Garfield.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

22. Mitjhsu
    Member Profile

    @Laurie 97: The bus ride for my child is around 30 min. She's one of the last ones on in the morning and the first ones off in the afternoon. The route and times are determined during the late summer after they know what kids are going to the school.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

23. carrieann
    Member Profile

    

    hopey: Thank you for that info! I hadn't even realized/noticed that, and it helps with my dilemma about which school tour to take (since they're on the same day).

    Although now we just received a notice about the new K-5 STEM @ Boren, which also sounds right up our daughter's alley.

    Posted 3 months ago #         

24. smokeycretin9
    Member Profile

    I would love to hear other W.S. parents views on Marshall after the open house and the meeting tonight.

    Our daughter will be in third grade. I would like to get some of the kids together sometime or many times before school starts to help with any fears of a new school.

    thanks.

    Posted 2 months ago #         

25. Laurie97
    Member Profile

    smokeycretin9, how was the meeting last night?

    I went on a tour last week and decided my son (who is also going into third grade) will likely be very happy at this school. He knows he'll be changing schools and has mentioned - more than once - "I hope someone I know is going there." Getting together sounds like a good idea to me, too.

    Posted 2 months ago #         

26. smokeycretin9
    Member Profile

    The meeting was good. It answered a lot of our questions and some we had not thought of.

    Marshall's APP teachers seem to realize the transition for kids to a new school and a harder program takes some extra effort. It sounds like they have a good game plan.

    We didnt make it to the open house on Thurs. She came with us last night to get some sense of what is going on and to see the school.

    Posted 2 months ago #         

27. wsmama71
    Member Profile

    Our daughter joined Thurgood Marshall for 1st grade in the APP program this past fall and it was definitely the right decision for our family. We love the school for many reasons. And, the bus ride is easier than we thought it would be- takes her about 30 minutes to get to school.

    Posted 2 months ago #         

28. marco
    Member Profile

    So around what time does the bus leave WS in the morning? And when does school start at TM?

    Thanks!
    Marco (we'll have our 1st grader in TM/APP this fall)

    Posted 2 months ago #         

29. momoftwoboys
    Member Profile

    wsmama71: we're planning on sending our son to TM in the fall for 2nd grade. We attended the open house and APP Prospective Parent night, but I would LOVE to hear some of the reasons you really like the school.

    Marco: is your child going into 2nd grade in the fall? If so, we should try to get the kids together to meet sometime before school starts.

    Posted 2 months ago #         

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