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Old 01-09-2008, 09:57 AM
 
1 posts, read 4,690 times
Reputation: 10

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Princesspolamolu has a kid who will enter kindergarten next year and is wondering what WHSD is like.

Our family lives in Regent Square too, in the Swissvale corner. My son has attended Edgewood Primary K-3 and I have another son attending K this year. Edgewood Primary has provided them with a fine education and has always seemed to me to be a safe and supportive environment. The only problem we've had is scant recess for the early years. Also, it would really benefit from a more involved parent population - the PTO struggles every year to get enough parents to help out and support their activities.

The next step is Dickson for middle school in 4th grade. I don't yet know what we're going to do for that; I've heard a lot about discipline problems there and apparently it gets worse in junior high. Our family has been on the fence for a while about moving to a better school district. I'm going to research the charter schools and other options for grades 4-8 because we really love Regent Square.

Hope this helps, princessP... I'd welcome more information on the charter school in the area.
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Old 01-13-2008, 11:33 AM
 
2 posts, read 9,318 times
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The problem with WHSD is not race, that is just what makes the news. The desegregation merger between the communities mentioned in the post actually happened 26 years ago now. I actually believe that court order has expired, but the district remains. The economic conditions do exist, but when I first attended a WHSD school, the first year of the merge up until my graduation in 1988, there weren't many race issues. Most seemed to adjust and partially assimilated. Since a lot of the city housing developments were torn down, those residents were given vouchers to move to various suburbs and the suburbs in the WHSD seemed to have appeal. So you now have city people moving into the suburbs and usually they have a different lifestyle. This lifestyle wasn't the same as the WHSD, so of course now race becomes an issue. I have lived in Swissvale since 1983 and around 1997, I finally noticed that I no longer knew my neighbors. I saw a lot of children in the neighborhood, but I didn't know their parents. That is because they did not grow up in my or the surrounding communities and I did not go to school with them. However, the real problem with the school district is not racism, but education. If you want your child to have a decent education without having to compete with the hip kids, clothes, and attitudes, don't send your child to WHSD. If I had it to do again, I would have let my father pay to send my son to a different school as he asked me to many times. But if you choose to keep you child in WHSD, you just have to stay on top of them in regards to their grades and homework. And keep in touch with teachers.
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Old 01-13-2008, 11:57 AM
 
2 posts, read 9,318 times
Reputation: 11
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hopes View Post
Then why was one cyber school orientation filled with parents pulling their children from the Woodland Hills School District? They didn't all just suddenly decide to bail out of there for no reason. They said they were taking their children out becasue of the racial problems. There were parents from all races, not just one.


Hopes, I think some of it may have been true, but I think most just wanted something to say. I know people who have pulled their kids out of WHSD, not because of race, but because their kids couldn't make it academically, wasn't attending school, and yes, had attitude problems and was fighting. But the parents wanted to save face. I also know someone who pulled her daughter from the school, because she had failed and the parents didn't want people to know. I read these posts with the one poster who said her kid was called "whitey". So what should one do, tell the kid to keep on steppin', stand up for yourself, or teach your kid when things get rough, start running? (go to another school) No, I don't want my kid to have to face a hostile situation and I wasn't in that kids situation and maybe other things happened as well?? Or is the other kid known for racist terriosm? And was that the only time the kid was called "whitey" or was the kid called this numerous times by numerous students? I don't think that was a case of racism, more than it was bullying. Not that bullying is any better, but that's a different post.
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Old 02-09-2008, 02:44 PM
 
3 posts, read 12,686 times
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I'm going to revive this topic because I was searching for info about Woodland Hills and came across this thread.

I have one son at Edgewood Primary and one getting ready to start kindergarten in the fall. My older son, J, is in the second grade this year. Up until this year we had an "okay" experience, but this year it's just gone downhill. My son actually had a *major* injury at school and I was not advised to pick him up. His teacher this year is, at best, apathetic-- homework due on Thursday is often still my son's folder on Mondays or Tuesdays of the next week.

Most telling is this... it's an ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. There is no organized recess, no playground, and PE class only twice a week. These are LITTLE KIDS, people, and they need the outlet. My son is in second grade and has not been on a field trip yet. Parents are not invited to school performances or assemblies. There is little community feel to the district. It feels stagnant. School is about getting a great education, but it's also about learning how to function in society. The kids are not offered the opportunities necessary to be social.

We're one of the families that is bailing. We've been applying to private schools for both of our sons, and if we have to make it through the third grade with them, we will, but I'll be damned if I let them go to Dickson.

Racial problems aside (and they do exist), Woodland Hills is not a nurturing environment for children.
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Old 08-21-2008, 10:35 AM
 
1 posts, read 4,466 times
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Default Lets not get to far from the question

Quote:
Originally Posted by princesspolamalu View Post
Does anyone have any information or opinions on the woodland hills school district? I have lived in the city my entire life and have heard of the district but never knew anything about it. My son will be attending kindergarden at the Edgewood Primary School and I have very little information on the school or where he would go from there and so on. Any insight would be helpful.


Ive grown up in the Woodland Hills district and yes there are alot of changes from when I graduated almost 15 years ago. This would have been my daughters first year at the High School but the key words is "would have been". You should be just fine in the primary school, but once you get to Jr. High and High School you might want to rethink the district (you have some time and there might be some drastic changes). When I was looking for a new school for my daughter I found a great websit. You might want to check it and and weight all your options.

[mod]link removed, advertising is not allowed[/mod]

Last edited by Yac; 08-22-2008 at 04:41 AM..
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Old 01-13-2009, 11:40 AM
 
106 posts, read 211,254 times
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Default woodland hills changes?

(you have some time and there might be some drastic changes).

What do you think those drastic changes might be?
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Old 05-17-2009, 04:30 PM
 
1 posts, read 4,070 times
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As a student of the district, I believe that it is not the school's fault that the community is not involved. Instead, it is the fault of you: the parents. Students are given letters to parents on a regular basis, and it is the responsibility of the parent to be involved in their child's education. I am currently a junior at Woodland Hills High School and pride mself on the fact that my school provides me with a rigorous curriculum (with more AP classes than a majority of other schools), an outstanding gifted program, and a plethora of extracurricular activities. However, I am ashamed at all of the lack of support our community provides to this outstanding school. As a resident of Edgewood, I see most of my friends bussed to expensive private schools to receive an education inferior to mine. I am not saying that WHSD is perfect, but it is definitely better than you people make it out to be.
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Old 05-18-2009, 01:07 PM
 
Location: Forest Hills
374 posts, read 1,281,081 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hopes View Post
Those same differences exist in suburban school districts bordering the rivers. Fox Chapel and Shaler both have a wide mix of social econimic backgrounds. Fox Chapel has Sharpsburg and Shaler has Etna, Millvale, Spring Garden, and part of Troy Hill. Heck, Fox Chapel's median family income is $191,378 and Sharpsburg's is $30,500!

However, there are two differences between Fox Chapel and Shaler, and Woodland: 1) The mergers for Fox Chapel and Shaler happened decades ago. There's no longer tension and confict because the districts have assimilated. 2) Fox Chapel and Shaler don't have diversity confusing the real issue of the problem being economic, not racial. What might have taken a decade to neutralize the atmopshere in Fox Chapel and Shaler schools will probably take much longer in Woodland Hills.

Although it seems it would have been wiser to separate the Woodland Hills School District into two separate districts according to income, the reality is that low income children benefit from being integrated into wealthier districts because there is more money available in those districts to provide better quality education and services.

Unfortunately, Woodland Hills will simply have to weather it's storm like every other district has done after a merger. In the meantime, parents will need to search for alternatives.


Dang Hopes you're good. Hopefully these problems will fix it's self or my kids will continue to goto Propel charter.
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Old 05-19-2009, 02:07 AM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
524 posts, read 1,031,152 times
Reputation: 276
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigT101 View Post
As a student of the district, I believe that it is not the school's fault that the community is not involved. Instead, it is the fault of you: the parents. Students are given letters to parents on a regular basis, and it is the responsibility of the parent to be involved in their child's education. I am currently a junior at Woodland Hills High School and pride mself on the fact that my school provides me with a rigorous curriculum (with more AP classes than a majority of other schools), an outstanding gifted program, and a plethora of extracurricular activities. However, I am ashamed at all of the lack of support our community provides to this outstanding school. As a resident of Edgewood, I see most of my friends bussed to expensive private schools to receive an education inferior to mine. I am not saying that WHSD is perfect, but it is definitely better than you people make it out to be.
It's very refreshing to hear an alternate voice, and one who is speaking from experience. Thanks for your input, and don't let this be the last we hear from you!
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Old 03-27-2010, 12:01 AM
 
1 posts, read 3,456 times
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I attended Woodland Hills School District K-12 and yes the district has its problems but every district in the Pittsburgh area does as well. If the stident wants to learn and have a good education they can easily do it here and succeed in life. They will learn more then just the topics in books but abuot life in general. They will make friends with kids from differnt background and families that will further their education.

Some of my best friends were from rough area and some were from good areas. It really doesn't make a difference whre you live, the difference is how you are raised. I would reccommend it to anyone having gone through the district and graduating just 5 years ago.
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