Thought you could get rid of us? Think again. We’re back and better than ever. For those unfamiliar (freshmen), we’re here to provide you with the inside scoop on all the high schools in the DMV. And this year we’re starting off with not a bang per se but more of a light tap: Washington Latin Charter School.
Despite what you may think, everyone there was speaking english. We were just as shocked as you are.
When we touched down during the school’s lunch period there were no metal detectors to greet us nor any students roaming the hallways. We quickly learned that instead of eating lunch in the cafeteria or at Bandit Taco, high schoolers are not only forced to stay on campus but commonly remain in classrooms.
Most students fill their week eating lunch with a different club everyday. If they’re not clubbing, they attend mandatory class lunches with their homeroom or math class because the school year isn’t long enough to teach senior math classes??? We must note that this would never fly at Jackson-Reed as day after day desperate students scramble through the atrium to escape to Tenleytown as fast as possible.
In addition to Latin students lacking off-campus lunch, they are also deprived of off-campus free periods. As a mediocre replacement, students get study halls.
One thing that distinguishes Latin is their community. Every teacher and administrator we met while touring was happy to answer questions and made an effort to introduce themselves. As our friend showed us around, she knew almost everyone we passed and every staff member waved hello. We can’t say the same for the students, as we couldn’t help but notice the startling amount of NPCs roaming the halls.
In terms of classes, it seems Latin lacks variety in the AP department. This is not to say there isn’t rigor, but we were shocked that there were many APs missing from Latin’s course catalog that seem quintessential to JR. Not even APUSH.
Another thing that Latin lacks is student style. Unfortunately for them, they have a semi-strict uniform of blue polos and khaki slacks. As students move up the food chain in grade, the uniform gets more lenient, but never goes away.
This brings us to our next point, the grade variety in the building. Because Latin’s grade sizes are in the 75-100 range, they fit their middle (5-8) and high school in one building. So yes, we were walking around in the presence of 5th graders. The overall feel of Latin was that of a middle school. The classroom setups and cubby-style lockers mixed with the array of students that were under 4’5” gave a jarring impression that was hard to shake.
