Magnet Schools in Wake County - still a good option? (house, neighborhoods)

[spbudmom]

We have a rising Kindergartner now, and are considering magnet options in Wake County. Are magnets still a good option? Does anyone have any specific feedback on Joyner, Douglas or Wiley? Are these hard to get into (I have checked and we are located in a high performing node)?

Being that magnets are much further away than our base school, I want to make sure that magnet schools have strong specials above and beyond a regular public school that make it worth the long drive.

Any feedback would be very helpful!! The magnet selection period is coming up, so I'm trying to gather all of the information that I can.

Thank you!

[shellsd]

Our base school was horrid but I LOVE my magnet!!!! The academics are much better plus I really love the electives he gets to pick. We just did our selections for 3rd and 4th quarter and he picked robotics, photography, art in animation, chess, woodworking, web design, crafts, and team sports. He is in 4th grade. We're at Hunter. This is our third year and so far every teacher has been exceptional. YMMV

[savingmore1]

Most Magnet are good But do your home work we were at one for two years not great it was high class size and some teacher burn out (we did kg-1st push, push ) but it was still a better place than our base ,We just happen to heard about Charter School last year (TMSA) we are very happy great teacher,new building,wonderful understand caring teacher, many extras that we never had option at the magnet, Class size is 20 per class and only 2 class per level so we are like a big family, we are kg-7 this year and add a grade each year. Do not know where you are but as in every thing look and talk to lot of parents , Good luck

[Starglow]

My son was in magnet schools from K-12. You have to apply to get in, but once you're in the program you can stay in unless you choose to opt out the following year for traditional base school. Since he was in the magnet program the entire time I have nothing to really compare to the base schools. It's best to research the magnet schools you are interested in and attend the open house tours which will help you make a final decision. We were happy with the magnet school program, but like any school they are not perfect and face some of the same issues as traditional schools.

Be aware that some magnet schools have express busing, meaning you have to transport your child either directly to the school yourself or to a central designated bus stop location near your home. The magnet buses may not necessarily pick up inside the neighborhoods like traditional school buses do except for maybe the lower grade levels. But for the high school level they definitely use express busing. Go to the WCPSS website to see where the magnet school bus stops are in your area which may factor into your decision unless you plan to provide your own student transportation.

Good luck....!

[aggie_diva]

My son went to Wiley last year for 5th grade and is at Ligon this year, so that's what I'm going to speak to. For 2nd-4th, we were in a non-magnet elementary school and in private school somewhere else for K-1. Wiley offered LOTS of electives and programs that our previous WCPSS elementary school didn't. Extra programs (like Odyssey of the Mind) at our nonmagnet school occurred as "led and staffed by parents" programs. At Wiley, those same programs are led and supported by teachers and although they exist as before/afterschool programs, the kids can get excused time from class for practices, etc. -- which can really make a difference in the final product. Wiley and other magnets can also offer band (which I don't know of in any nonmagnet elementary schools). The language experience was not really great for us. The little amount of time they spend on it means the kids get exposure to the language but most can't really speak it unless supplemented. I speak Spanish and kids who had been in the program for years can't converse with you.

I think our son would have done just as well staying at our nonmagnet/base elementary school though. In the early years, I think the electives are less important for most kids than getting a strong foundation in the basics. If your child is gifted/highly interested in the arts, then that would be a good reason to seek a magnet that offers more opportunities/diversity in that area. Our particular nonmagnet school seemed to do a better job in teaching core (they seemed to spend more time at it) and in supporting AG students in the basics than Wiley did (where there was a fount of things to be interested in but less focus on core, if that makes any sense). Some base schools have very weak AG programs or ability to differentiate, so that could also be a factor in deciding on base or magnet.

Wiley is also very racially diverse but there is a clear demarcation between magnet and base kids from the wealthy neighborhoods around the school and the poorer (mostly black and some Hispanic) children bussed in.

It seems to me that you would need to think about what your child needs and wants to stay interested/get the best experience from a school and decide from there.

NOTE: We applied to Wiley during the transition of WCPSS schools with the thought that we wanted him to go to a magnet for MS/HS where I think the availability of electives and extra programming really make a difference. We liked our base, but we live in a node where we generally would have little chance of getting into the magnet program and thought that things might open up then -- they did. There were 15 new 5th graders out of 90 kids in 5th grade last year.

[spbudmom]

Thank you so much for your feedback....seems as though I have some thinking to do based on the information provided! I have heard that some people are happy with their magnet experiences and some are not (aggie_diva, related to what you said about not focuses on core areas as much). I agree that in the younger years the basics are very important, but I think some exposure to other things are good too. It may all just depend on the school. It seems best to get into the magnet program early, or else it is a lot harder in MS/HS.

[BoBromhal]

every year after kindergarten, I feel pretty certain your odds go down.

[shellsd]

Originally Posted by spbudmom

Thank you so much for your feedback....seems as though I have some thinking to do based on the information provided! I have heard that some people are happy with their magnet experiences and some are not (aggie_diva, related to what you said about not focuses on core areas as much). I agree that in the younger years the basics are very important, but I think some exposure to other things are good too. It may all just depend on the school. It seems best to get into the magnet program early, or else it is a lot harder in MS/HS.

This strongly depends on your base and your magnet. My son switched from our base to Hunter in second grade and was significantly behind. Hunter is a GT/AG school though so that may play into it. I have no issue with core at all. Our base was really bad IMO.

[NC Forester]

Originally Posted by shellsd

This strongly depends on your base and your magnet. My son switched from our base to Hunter in second grade and was significantly behind. Hunter is a GT/AG school though so that may play into it. I have no issue with core at all. Our base was really bad IMO.

Agree with Shellsd. Our 3rd year at Hunter and we love it so far. Lots of electives which helps them to explore different things and grown interest in a variety of subjects early on.

[ceili723]

I have a Wiley grad and a fourth grader at the school. We chose Wiley for the language education. My kids have done as well as I can expect with their language (remember, it's a class, not immersion education) which they intend to keep taking all the way through high school (a trip to Europe/year abroad will probably be necessary at that point!) I love Wiley because it's such a close community, and unlike the schools in my area, it can't grow via the use of "temporary" trailers due to COR zoning restrictions.

I have heard amazing things about Hunter too. It's a larger school, and the neighborhood isn't as nice as Wiley's, but there's a lot of electives and extracurriculars, and the parents seem to LOVE it. It was never an option for us, based on WCPSS node system. That said, my kids have both received AG services at Wiley (which may be better at Hunter) and have many electives to choose from.

Good luck!