Uggh...

Like Mike just commented to me...suddenly, it feels like we have to grow up very, very fast.

Earlier today, we sojourned (Yes, I'm a suburb girl, so this was a sojourn) into downtown Ft. Lauderdale to visit the Magnet Program Showcase for our county. Honestly, we've been looking forward to this. Between Caedyn's outstanding FCAT (state's standard testing, yadda, yadda) scores and consistently high grades, we felt like he would have a list of opportunities here to take advantage of.

The good? Caedyn wants to go into a science/pre-engineering magnet. It's very hands-on, and they have great field trips and projects like building rockets and roller-coasters. They even participate in a LEGO robotics competition which is so totally up his alley. He's not only interested, but over-qualified.

The bad? The school he would be going to.

Now, understand that I hadn't even considered the possibility that the school containing his magnet program of choice might be a problem. I'm naive enough to assume that the school has to exhibit a standard of education and discipline that warrants bussing kids in from outside its attendance boundaries.

When we got home, Steve asked what the verdict was, and when we answered "McNicol", he made comments like "Better get him an M-16". Turns out that this school is not only not in the best of neighborhoods, but it is also not the school (and yeah, I sound like a racist bigot here, but I went to one of these schools, so forgive me for being concerned) that a small-for-his-age white Jewish boy might be safe in.

Can you believe we still have schools like this?

You know, the whole idea of schools that need security guards and gates to keep the immediate community's less-than-wholesome population out is so foreign to me right now. It's not that I didn't think those schools existed, of course. It's just that...well, this is Davie. I live in a little 'burb that is so quiet, 5 police cars show up for a traffic violation cuz that's some excitement. Caedyn's elementary school is just 2 minutes away and surrounded by a community college campus and two other schools (that actually have waiting lists due to their curriculum and accelerated learning programs).

So, we went on the net when we got home to compare the school he would be going to against the school that the magnet program is in. Now, the school system in Florida has been through some changes in the last five years, and one of the changes involves each school receiving a rating based on student test scores in the FCAT. Schools have to maintain an A or B rating, or show improvement over a set amount of time, to continue to receive extra state funding - including the Title I funding that fuels these magnet programs.

The school that Caedyn would be going to - Driftwood - is an 'A' at the moment. McNicol is a 'B'.

And then, there's this little gem we found when we went surfing for more information.

The magnet program at Driftwood? Health and Wellness. Absolutely no interest for Caedyn.

If we lived about a half hour north of here? The science/pre-engineering magnet school is apparently incredible.

So, we either take the opportunity away and he misses out on this great program that involves everything he's got interest in right now and builds toward getting him into the high school magnet where he can be on...wait for it...a robotics team (God, schools have changed since I was a kid!) that competes on a national level, or we go the safe route with the closer school that has a more diverse student population and a lack of need for armed guards.

I just want him safe and happy and successful and to keep him on track accademically. After all the fights we've had to keep him on track at the really great elementary school with a third as many students where he has already had a problem with being teased, I just can't imagine what this is going to be like.

So, between now and the magnet program's Open House, we'll be visiting the schools and taking a tour of McNicol that was offered by the program's coordinator. It feels like our kid's entire future rests on this decision.

Pray for us!