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Does anyone have recent experience with Washburn High School in south Minneapolis as a parent, student, or teacher in the past few years? I've heard that it didn't used to be great, but it is improving. How does it compare to South HS and Southwest HS in Minneapolis? Would you send your kids there?
Historically it's a very good school, it's arguably the most affluent school in Mpls, but it took a hit back in the 1990's when open enrollment happened because it got over run with low income minorities that lowered test scores & caused most of the local affluent residents to choose Mpls SW over Washburn & that's how it stayed for some years. A few years back they literally swapped out every teacher in the school & started over & the results have been much better since that time. I've met a couple alumni who are now PTA members and they are aggressively righting the ship & the only way it gets back on track is by concerned, neighborhood families sending their kids there once again. I believe there have been some initiatives to curb the insanity that is open-enrollment as well? I would not hesitate to send my kids to Washburn.
I have a lot of friends who graduated from Washburn in the early/mid 00s. They are all good kids and have decent jobs now, so it prepared them for life.
However, South and Southwest are thought of as better schools around the metro.
I'm not sure which school of the 3 actually has better test scores, but I would guess Southwest.
I finally took my child out of MPS after 10th grade for a small charter school. Wished I did it sooner. He is so much happier and less stressed.
The MPS is terrible. I do NOT trust administration. The conditions are terrible. It is so mismanged, and the kids are the last things they think about. Sad, but true. MPS is a political nightmare. They are not accountable to anyone but the narcissistic members of the school board. They skew everything to their agenda.
I so much more, as a parent, trust this little independent school, who wears its heart on their sleeve, and has little money. I had been deceived many times by MPS (Mpls in general is). And the kids are stressed.
I finally took my child out of MPS after 10th grade for a small charter school. Wished I did it sooner. He is so much happier and less stressed.
The MPS is terrible. I do NOT trust administration. The conditions are terrible. It is so mismanged, and the kids are the last things they think about. Sad, but true. MPS is a political nightmare. They are not accountable to anyone but the narcissistic members of the school board. They skew everything to their agenda.
I so much more, as a parent, trust this little independent school, who wears its heart on their sleeve, and has little money. I had been deceived many times by MPS (Mpls in general is). And the kids are stressed.
I wish that I could disagree, but I think that the MPS board is influenced by so many political factors, that their decisions are often made at the expense of the students. Until they return to the stability of a neighborhood based school system, the uncertainty alone will drive many parents away. That said, I think that the board has made some courageous decisions, and the clean sweep of Washburn was one of them. That school definitely seems to be on the right track.
I finally took my child out of MPS after 10th grade for a small charter school. Wished I did it sooner. He is so much happier and less stressed.
The MPS is terrible. I do NOT trust administration. The conditions are terrible. It is so mismanged, and the kids are the last things they think about. Sad, but true. MPS is a political nightmare. They are not accountable to anyone but the narcissistic members of the school board. They skew everything to their agenda.
I so much more, as a parent, trust this little independent school, who wears its heart on their sleeve, and has little money. I had been deceived many times by MPS (Mpls in general is). And the kids are stressed.
Washburn has really taken off in recent years; in the not-so-distant past many Washburn area parents sent their kids to South or Southwest, but that has really started to change. I think South and Southwest still probably enjoy the better name recognition, but I've heard only good things in recent years. My son is still far from high school, but from what I've heard, yes, I would certainly at least consider sending him there if he was that age. The neighborhoods zoned for Washburn have been very supportive. An Annunciation parent (K-8 private school near Washburn) told me recently that in more and more families there are also choosing to go with Washburn, rather than continuing with private or trying for Southwest or South. In any case, Washburn seems to have a lot going for it these days, including district, neighborhood, and family support.
FYI, they're also talking of making a new middle school at Ramsey; Burroughs and Lyndale Elementary School (both with very good reputations these days) would feed into that middle school, and, I assume, from there into Washburn. That should also further cement Washburn as a viable contender as a serious academic option for that part of SW/S Minneapolis, and return to it some of the neighborhood feel that I think it lost in the past when so many in the neighborhood opted out. I was zoned for Washburn back in the '90s, but never even considered attending; it was just not seen as a real option for more academically-oriented kids. It wasn't even on the radar. It's been great to see times are finally changing!
My daughter went to school there her freshman and sophomore years (2011-12 and 2012-13) and my son is presently a freshman there (2015-16). My daughter transferred from the school only because she wanted more specialized education so she attended and graduated from the MPS magnet school known as Perpich Center For Arts Education--studying music. (She now attends University of Minnesota- Duluth majoring in Music Education and Theatre.) I, for one, as a parent am very grateful for the variety of magnet schools offered by MPS. How many cities nationwide can say they have a such a variety? I don't have comment about "trusting" the MPS school system or the school board other than…be a wise consumer. We're all intelligent people here or we wouldn't be on this forum discussing a public school. Don't point fingers. Don't make excuses. Do your research and make the proper choice for your own individual student. What works for one child may simply be a disaster for another and has nothing to do with the distribution of money toward the school. (In example: my son is on an IEP [Individualized Education Program] for his ADD. I am grateful such a thing exists within MPS and I feel the teachers and admin. have been accommodating to his needs.) I try to keep things in perspective; my parents taught in public schools for 58 years (combined - both high school level) and the success of a school district/school has many, many layers. (Did I say "many"?) There are MANY reasons schools fail or succeed but like the students' success themselves, it is directly related to the involvement of the parent(s)/guardian(s).
I have witnessed Washburn change significantly over the years (many of my neighbors' children attended there to mixed reviews 8+ years ago) and it has continued to change and evolve during the 4 years' difference of my children attending. I agree with the other post here that they recruited or changed over teachers in the last 8 years or so. My personal experience has been in the music/drama department. They recruited a teacher (from Southwest) who brought back musicals to the school for the first time in 17 years! (2010-11) Now in 2015 this program is amazing!
Academically Washburn was in the news (2011-12) saying that the education and testing was "dumbed down" to allow for students from all backgrounds do better and therefore improve the overall academic standings among MPS High Schools. I would agree! Especially the freshman curriculum of (2011-12). My daughter is not an outstanding student yet she managed to maintain a 4.0 while attending Washburn. Even SHE felt things were too easy! (She graduate PCAE with a more realistic 3.67) It seems as though the whistle was blown in the media back then and today's freshmen (my son) are duly challenged.
Another incident that unfortunately happened in 2012-13 that played out in front of NATIONAL tv was when 4 students (known to be trouble-makers) hung a medium (colored) skin toned baby doll over the banister of a stairwell and started all sorts of nastiness. Accusations of racisim and pointing fingers at the administration for the incident occurred. Let me categorically tell you, only ONE of the four kids involved was a white child and they just happened to be the daughter of a Washburn school teacher/coach. So the race of the children involved never became part of the picture--it should have. The doll used was the only doll "available" in the whole damn school and came from the props room in the drama department which the kids broke in to! If the doll had been white OR black the derelict kids would have hung the baby doll anyway, just as they did the medium-skin toned (politically correct) doll, because it was "there" and it was a "funny" thing to do. My daughter knew each kid personally and said that each one was a major screw off and had done other things around school. And why were the 4 students skipping class together, anyway? (Water runs to the lowest level…) There truly was no premeditation to make a racist statement. The kids were being KIDS and holding true to their well-known reputation. No one brought that to the media for discussion, they just started pointing the finger at admin, ending up replacing the principal who was integral to turning the school AROUND! Many people AND THE SCHOOL paid the price because of these kids' actions.
But let's focus now on the thing that is making Washburn the up and coming high school that it is…
The parental and neighborhood support for Washburn in exceptional. My theory on this is that we are the first "wave" (in a long time) of kids/parents who attended their neighborhood schools (in my case Hale and Field) all the way through to our neighborhood high school, Washburn. There was no "jumping ship" for a "better" school. We all made the investment in our neighborhood schools and we've worked together since our kids were kindergartners. You have recognized parent/guardian leaders and those who are known as awesome committee members. The parents (in general) are well-educated (and therefore want that for their own kids to be) and the household income is likely above the median range. There's 9 years of "togetherness" before our kids hit the 4 more years of high school. We work well together and share the same values/pride in our neighborhood. My daughter's class (2015) was about 3 years in to the team leading the charge to make things better in our neighborhood schools.
I would venture to say that the success of Washburn is the community support. Recently a student of Washburn died (suicide after a long struggle with depression) and there were over 600 people there, I swear! All supporting the parents who were active in the schools and comforting the 3 sisters who were all graduates of Washburn. The memorials were directed to the Arts Council at Washburn--that says something! I came away from the service that day recalling how lucky I am to have purchased a home (27 years ago when I knew nothing!) in a neighborhood that has turned out to be so special. In the obituary of the student they referred to how much the student "loved the safety of this beautiful city with the small town feel".
In closing and in reference to the "standing" of SW, S and Washburn I would say "presumably" Washburn is in second place. Superseded by SW by overall grade point averages. Southwest is commonly referred to as "Edina North", meaning it is primarily "white bread" and affluent so if that's what you're looking for…? (Facilities wise, they have a pool and the other 2 schools don't. Washburn has an outstanding new football field.) It is very hard to get in to SW if you don't live in the surrounding neighborhood. (Located at 3414 W. 47th Street) It simply fills up due to the age of its demographics. While SW, Washburn and South are available for choice of high school (according to MPS), getting in to Washburn or South is much more doable as you go east of Washburn Ave South. In other words, if you live east of Washburn Ave So--good luck getting in. "Reputation"-wise, Washburn is ranking higher than South at present. But as I've stated before that can be turned around and that is subjective. It's more about the seasoned International Baccleureate programs offered at Southwest and Washburn that makes them different from South. There are specialized programs that make each school desirable and unique--what interests and motivates your student? Again, do your research and do what's best for your student. One final comment would be that when my daughter attended Washburn the student body was roughly 900'ish. Now the student body numbers 1550+ and is clearly not "white bread". It appears to be a nice mix of races. Personally speaking diversity has always been important to me. I like to believe those numbers represent a growth because of something that's being done right at Washburn. (I believe enrollment at South is declining.) I wanted my kids exposed to different races and cultures. The "real world" that awaits them is clearly not all white and WASP-y. I truly feel Washburn is a GREAT choice of high school in South Minneapolis!
thank you very much for this! my daughter is currently at SW but i'm looking to purchase a house and wondered what Washburn was like. thanks so much!
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