L OCAL LIVING
District
17 DC
CLASS STRUGGLE
H-B can’t live down its good reputation
My annual rankings of high schools were mentioned at a town meeting of the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program recently. Some students said they didn’t like the great reputation I was giving their school. Woodlawn, an Arlington
County public school, is one of the few survivors of the Alternative Schools Movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Its founders wanted to rescue schools from inhibiting rules and conventions. There are no bells. Students call teachers by their first names. They create their own courses and can take two scheduled at the same hour. There are no counselors because teachers do that. Most issues, including hiring and scheduling, are decided by vote of the staff members and students.
Despite the many free and
easy ’60s values, the test- stressed 21st century has affected the small sixth- through-12th-grade campus. Many parents and students like the emphasis on projects and independent study so much that H-B has become highly sought after, with a Hollywood buzz. The
producers of the 2004 disaster film “The Day After Tomorrow” turned actors Jake Gyllenhaal and Emmy Rossum into H-B students. Admission to the school is by lottery. But so many affluent families apply that the percentage of low-income students is half the county average. The ambitious students of H-B embrace the Advanced Placement program. That has endangered the vision some students have for the school. They don’t like the fact that it is No. 1 on my annual Challenge Index ranking of all public high schools in the region, based on AP, International Baccalaureate and Cambridge test participation rates. Nationally, H-B ranked 28th last year. To some students, that means more applications from people who want a top-ranked high school and don’t care about H-B’s traditions of student power and intellectual curiosity. So, at the school’s Sept. 30 town meeting, a group of
JAY MATHEWS
students moved to “stop reporting AP-testing statistics to sources such as The Washington Post.” Why? “Parents will sometimes send kids to HBW due to the test scores and experience a culture clash,” the proponents argued, according to the minutes. “This list has hijacked our image.” Some at the meeting did not
support the motion: “Colleges know us and love us [due] to the fact that simply being an HBW student was enough to swing a decision to let them in. If we fail to report our scores it is as if we are hiding part of what we do.” There were also arguments in favor: “HBW is about creating a creative individual and that is not represented by a number.” H-B is not the only great school that would prefer not to be high on a ranked list. A counselor at a California school trying to stay off my national list told me some staffers were uncomfortable with the families from overseas moving into the district just because of the high school’s rank. Others resisted the very idea of ranking. Nonetheless, at the H-B town meeting the motion to report test scores publicly failed. The school will have to live with popular admiration. Schools often define themselves, without any planning or promotion, based on how eagerly students and teachers apply themselves to learning and teaching. Given our worries about the general state of U.S. education, being known as a place where kids study hard is not the worst thing that can happen.
ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM 6
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struggle. fox continued on 22
animal watch
These were among cases handled by the Washington Humane Society. The society operates its shelter at 7319 Georgia Ave. NW and the District’s at 1201 New York Ave. NE. For information or assistance, 24 hours a day, call 202-723-5730 or visit www.
washhumane.org.
I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Dog shooting investigated
CAPITAL AVE. NE, 1900 block, Oct. 12. The body of a brown brindle-and-white pit bull, which was buried in a shallow grave, was unearthed by Humane Society officers behind an apartment building. It is believed to be that of a dog that was shot over the weekend. The Humane Society is seeking community assistance to solve this case and asks anyone with information to call 202-723-5730, Ext. 134. Callers’ identities will be kept confidential upon request.
I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Terrier gets stuck on roof
33RD ST. NE, 100 block, Oct. 12. Responding to a call about a terrier that had escaped from its home through a window and gotten stuck after walking from roof to roof, animal control officers climbed up a ladder to rescue the dog. The owner was not home, and there was no contact information on the dog’s microchip. A notice was left for the owner to pick up the dog at the New York Avenue shelter.
ADOPT A PET
Marina, 1, was given up because her owner moved and could not take her. She was made available for adoption at the Washington Humane Society Shelter.
The D.C. Animal Shelter, 1201 New York Ave. NE, and the Washington Humane Society Shelter, 7319 Georgia Ave. NW, offer animals for adoption. The D.C. shelter has viewing and adoption hours from noon to 8 p.m. weekdays except Wednesdays and noon to 5 p.m. weekends. Hours at the society’s shelter are noon to 7 p.m. daily. Pictures of other available animals can be seen at
www.washhumane.org. For information, call the D.C. shelter, 202-576-6013, or the society’s shelter, 202-723-5730.
WASHINGTON HUMANE SOCIETY
I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Dogs fight in an alley 33RD ST. NE, 100 block, Oct. 11. Responding to a report, animal control and Humane Society officers found a stray dog and one of two dogs that had escaped from their yard and gotten into a fight in an alley. Two of the dogs had minor injuries. The stray was taken to the shelter, where it was treated and evaluated. The other two dogs were returned to their owner.
I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Pit bull’s burns investigated
BENNING RD. NE, 2500 block, Oct. 12. A Humane Society officer investigated a call about a pit bull with burns to its testicles. The
officer met with the owner, who agreed to have the society take the dog to a veterinarian. Second-degree burns were diagnosed. The dog was recovering at an animal hospital, and the case is under investigation.
I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Dog’s removal is halted
FIRST ST. SE., 4100 block. Oct. 12. As part of an ongoing investigation about a pit bull being chained outdoors without shelter and water, a Humane Society officer was in the process of removing the dog when the owner arrived. The officer
animals continued on 22 ANIMAL DOCTOR
Perpetual puppy won’t stop screaming
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THE WASHINGTON POST • THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2010
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