What are the best public high schools in Alexandria? (Arlington: public schools, subsidized)

[itinérant]

Hello. I have a relative who is contemplating moving here. She would come in time for next school year and would be entering the 11th grade. I live in Silver Spring, and my guess is that the best fit for her in MC would be Bethesda Chevy Chase. Although a handful of MC public high schools seem to score higher on the standardized tests (e.g. Whitman and Wooton), BCC has acceptable academics and is more socioeconmically diverse. So, any suggestions? Private is not an option for them due to financial constraints.

[CaliTerp07]

Alexandria City only has one high school--TC Williams.

Fairfax County has many others (many with an Alexandria mailing address).

[The Dissenter]

Originally Posted by itinérant

Hello. I have a relative who is contemplating moving here. She would come in time for next school year and would be entering the 11th grade. I live in Silver Spring, and my guess is that the best fit for her in MC would be Bethesda Chevy Chase. Although a handful of MC public high schools seem to score higher on the standardized tests (e.g. Whitman and Wooton), BCC has acceptable academics and is more socioeconmically diverse. So, any suggestions? Private is not an option for them due to financial constraints.

From my personal experience at TC Williams (11th and 12th grades) and having many friends who have graduated from high schools in both faux (Fairfax County with Alexandria address) and TC Williams I would say they are very equal. They serve populations with low-income students and high immigrant numbers. They have solid educational programs but people like to badmouth them because they are not lily-white and rich enough.

[itinérant]

Thanks for the info. Is there anything else close to Alexandria (i.e. I-295) that has better public high schools?

Edit: It doesn't seem like TC Williams is quite on par with BCC:

Alexandria's T.C. Williams High called poor performer

[FindingZen]

There is indeed only one high school in Alexandria as mentioned. In "South Alexandria" aka the unincorporated Fairfax County section, there are two - West Potomac and Hayfield. (Thanks to pcity for a reminder in another thread about the latter. ) By NOVA standards, these schools may be "fair to middling" but you may already be aware of the general reputation of Fairfax County Public Schools.

[itinérant]

Ok, it is starting to sound like public high schools may not be so hot in that area. Interesting because they are pretty strong in Montgomery County.

[choff5]

Originally Posted by itinérant

Ok, it is starting to sound like public high schools may not be so hot in that area. Interesting because they are pretty strong in Montgomery County.

Remember, you were asking about only one area, Alexandria and its nearby schools. Is the area of Montgomery County you are referring to same same economically as this or is it more like the McLean area of Fairfax or North Arlington? Be sure you are comparing apples to apples.

[JD984]

B-CC is like McLean HS in Fairfax, except that it has more AAs and fewer Asians. It mostly serves affluent parts of Montgomery County and has a very low percentage of ESOL students or students receiving free or subsidized meals.

In terms of diversity and test scores, TC Williams and the high schools in the Alexandria part of Fairfax look more like - and match up pretty well against - many of the schools in the Silver Spring or Gaithersburg areas of Montgomery County.

To supplement Tone509's comments, in addition to West Potomac and Hayfield, Edison and Mount Vernon are also Fairfax County high schools with Alexandria addresses. Edison is north of Hayfield, and Mount Vernon is south of Hayfield and West Potomac.

And, to respond to Alanboy395's comments, you really won't find any "lily white" high schools in Fairfax County. You will find some with low (below 5%) percentages of AA students. It's not the same thing, since the most rapidly growing populations in Fairfax are Asians and Hispanics.

[CaliTerp07]

Lee High school is probably more convenient for commuting purposes than many of the high schools previously mentioned (due to basically sitting on top of the mixing bowl). It's got a Springfield address, and has a similar population to the other schools already mentioned.

[michgc]

How about Marshall High School in Falls Church? That might be somewhat similar to BCC. It has overall good scores and is pretty diverse (as are most schools in
this area).

ETA: Another option might be George Mason High in Falls Church City. It has a good reputation, although the boundaries for it are pretty small - must live in the City of Falls Church. You can also look in Arlington. Yorktown has a great rep.