Loudoun vs. Fairfax County Schools? (Centreville, Chantilly: neighborhoods, best school, live in)

[emarsh6719]

We are relocating to the area and my husband will be working in Chantilly. I've heard good things about the Loudoun and Fairfax county schools. Is one better than the other or can you really go wrong? Areas we are considering include Chantilly itself, Centreville, Herndon and also Ashburn, South Riding and Stone Ridge. Also looking for good preschools in those areas which could determine where we would live.

[knopfler]

You can't go wrong with any of the areas you mention. Welcome to Northern Virginia!

[normie]

I would avoid Herndon schools. I don't know much about the other neighborhoods you mentioned. You didn't mention Cascades (aka the section of sterling NORTH of Algonkian Pkwy), however if that's of interest to you I personally recommend Lowes Island Elementary School and Potomac Falls High School. They have outstanding records--in fact, I often hear that LI elementary school is the reason people move to a neighborhood.

[novanative75]

You can not really go wrong and I also second the comment by PP to avoid Herndon schools, especially Herndon High School. I lived in South Riding and worked in FCPS, let me know if you have some questions.
Good luck!

[goldenmom7500]

Originally Posted by knopfler

You can't go wrong with any of the areas you mention. Welcome to Northern Virginia!

That was *exactly* what I was going to say!

here are a couple of websites if these will help:

GreatSchools.net (rates schools from 1 to 10 and gives parents an opportunity to comment and give stars, from 1-5; the former are based entirely on standardized tests from what I understand)

Schooldigger.com -- Search and compare elementary, middle, and high schools. (rates schools from 1 to 5 and ranks schools statewide, probably city-wide too - or you can just compare how your different schools did in the statewide rankings lol).

[goldenmom7500]

Originally Posted by normie

I would avoid Herndon schools. I don't know much about the other neighborhoods you mentioned. You didn't mention Cascades (aka the section of sterling NORTH of Algonkian Pkwy), however if that's of interest to you I personally recommend Lowes Island Elementary School and Potomac Falls High School. They have outstanding records--in fact, I often hear that LI elementary school is the reason people move to a neighborhood.

I don't know anything about the schools but this is a great neighborhood ...

[saganista]

Some people tend to automatically downgrade Herndon and its schools because the town has a significant Hispanic population. This became nationally known in August 2005 when radio talk-show host Mark Williams (broadcasting from Sacramento, CA) urged callers to flood the Herndon switchboards with protests over town plans to provide a day-laborer center. Thousands of calls came in. The town had to shut down its published numbers for four days. "[The calls] were vile and resembled hate speech," the Herndon Town Manager said. Williams was sitting in on The David Graham Show that day, as the regular host had been suspended without pay for describing Islam as a 'terrorist organization'. Herndon itself is a lovely town. It has a great deal to offer...

[novanative75]

Originally Posted by saganista

Some people tend to automatically downgrade Herndon and its schools because the town has a significant Hispanic population. This became nationally known in August 2005 when radio talk-show host Mark Williams (broadcasting from Sacramento, CA) urged callers to flood the Herndon switchboards with protests over town plans to provide a day-laborer center. Thousands of calls came in. The town had to shut down its published numbers for four days. "[The calls] were vile and resembled hate speech," the Herndon Town Manager said. Williams was sitting in on The David Graham Show that day, as the regular host had been suspended without pay for describing Islam as a 'terrorist organization'. Herndon itself is a lovely town. It has a great deal to offer...

I have never heard this story that you are telling about the radio talk show however, I grew up in Farifax County and have worked in FCPS for several years, the schools that Herndon has are not the best in the county, these peoplea can do better, it is simply fact. Sure, downtown Herndon has some things to offer but the schools need work. The amount of Hispanics has nothing to do with it.
If I were talking to a friend about moving to the Northern Virginia area and they had kids, I would steer them towards Chantilly, Centreville over Herndon simply because the schools are better.

[saganista]

What do you think accounts for the difference? The schools in Herndon, Chantilly, and Centreville are all run by exactly the same people...

[novanative75]

Originally Posted by saganista

What do you think accounts for the difference? The schools in Herndon, Chantilly, and Centreville are all run by exactly the same people...

Well, of course they are all part of FCPS school district but that does not mean that they all are equally successful. To think one school district could have all high performing schools is crazy. Centreville HS, Chantilly HS, and Westfield HS are all much more preferred academically than Herndon HS or South Lakes HS. If you live in Fairfax County long enough you will know that.

What accounts for the difference is mostly student population and administration. Good schools, bad schools is all a pretty broad spectrum and is also open to peoples' opinions however, my posting that is to allow OP to choose the best school possible, Herndon is not it!