DCPS and the Mayor do often forget that the work for the voters and use the resources of the taxpayers. |
As Mike Tyson says, “everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” Whatever castle that plan is supposed to build doesn’t actually get built until Meyer has been dealt with. |
This. I get it because I attended public meetings with Michelle Ree about the dead-ended Brent middle school proposal and was on the SIT 5 or 6 years back. Still, Allen might yet get behind something more workable than Meyer out of concern that hundreds of Brent parents will now sign the recall petition. |
Some potential silver linings for the neighborhood:
-Many of Brent’s lottery spots go to kids who are zoned for the Cluster, but have proximity preference. This situation could end up being a big boost for Watkins. -The wonderful Hill Preschool used to have waitlists. Now, they barely fill a reduced number of classes. ECE parents have this (and other options) if they really don’t want to send their kids on a bus. |
As a Ward 6 parent who has been through this at another school, just cosigning the posters explaining that no DCPS principal, even the best one, would have been pulled into the decision making process on swing space selection. The comment that DCPS does not consult, they assign, is 100% correct. And you better get used to it because the whole process is that way-- the selection of the architectural firm, scheduling, etc. You will have some ability to weigh in on the process but it's really going to be minimal. To a great degree you will have to suck it up and deal with a lack of power in order to get the main thing you need, which is a new school.
If there was a real viable alternative to Meyer, it would be worth pushing for. But I don't think there is. DCPS will not be colonizing office buildings. They don't "think outside the box." The sooner you get used to this, the better. |
yes and know. the big decisions (like when modernization starts, the size, the footprint, and the swing space location) are all susceptible to political influence. the acutuak design, not so much, unfortunately. |
Avoiding highways, I’m seeing the drive from Brent to Meyer is 18 minutes at 7:45am. Add 10 minutes for a slow bus and that gets you to about 30. But where are the 45-60 minute estimates coming from? |
People may be thinking if what the round trip would be? Agree if the bus leaves before 8 am, the commute is not that bad. I know I would struggle with getting my kid to school that early though. Mine is not an early riser and it can be hard getting to school by 8:15 as it is. For instance, I'm 90% sure she went back to bed after breakfast just now even though she's supposed to be brushing teeth and getting dressed. |
They’ll build in that amount of time to load and unload. |
Have you driven through DC on a Friday versus a Tuesday? Fridays are great. Mondays are bad but not like they used to be. T-Th are like the good ole days of gridlock. |
My suburban bus route was 15-20 minutes max. Are they really not contemplating putting adult minders on the bus? With such young kids that seems very irresponsible. Certainly when I put my kids on the bus for summer camps there are adult supervisors on the bus. In addition to adult supervision, could be fun to train up some 4th and 5th grade bus patrols. Not a replacement for adults with such young kids, but could be a fun thing for the kids. And even with all that, the length of bus ride they’re contemplating here seems absurd. It shouldn’t even be allowed. |
I don’t think the majority of the country sends their elementary students on 40 minute bus rides. Certainly I don’t think that’s the case on the east coast. Maybe somewhere rural I guess. |
I don’t think anyone is trying to attack you personally for what works best for your family. But it’s obviously not good to require this for everyone. My kindergartener doesn’t even wake up naturally until 7:30 or sometimes even later. To be required to get kids that age up so early and interrupt the critical sleep of a good many of them is insanity. |
How is this elitist? That’s a head scratcher. |
Part of me is laughing because I know so many Cap Hill parents who send their kids to summer camps that involve 1 hour one-way bus rides with no problem. |