Can we spreadload FRL% across APS? Arlington / Education Newbie here

[Anonymous]

Explain it to me like I'm 5 and know nothing about APS, districting, education theory, etc. Why can't we set a standard FRL % at every school to guarantee the same education experience across Arlington? I'm new to this but Arlington is kinda small - why can't this happen for the good of everyone? Is it because the idea of bussing kids around has a history? I'm sure there's a way to do it equitably.

I read everyone being up in arms about school redistricting in Arlington and it just seems like this is the answer. Why have schools 70 to 80%FRL and others like 15%? Sure, north Arlington blah blah blah paid higher costs, but honestly south Arlington will probably catch up in costs because it's closer to Amazon and the airport. It's already getting pretty expensive and will one day will catch up. Why not catch up the schools ahead of time?

[Anonymous]

The biggest issue is that wealth isn’t well distributed (geographically) across the county right now.

And, for elementary, most parents want a nearby school. Might get more support for busing for MS/HS though.

[Anonymous]

The practical issues is bussing given how concentrated wealth and poverty are in certain areas. To balance FARMs rates, you would pretty much have to destroy the concept of walk zones. Bussing kids who could walk to a school a few blocks away is exceedingly unpopular for a bunch of reasons. Some valid, some not.

[Anonymous]

People want neighborhood schools and want to go to school with neighbors. For a lot of reasons. Ease of transportation and travel, social, community building.

From the district and County perspective, bussing kids all over is challenging. You need more buses ($), more drivers ($), more bus storage (which is a problem in the County), and it has real traffic implications.

[Anonymous]

Because Arlington is committed to affordable housing but will only build it in S Arlington where land is cheapest and people don't fight it.

Because we won't bus.

Because poverty in Arlington is all about geography.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for the feedback. I still think not studying this is so short sighted. At least throw some analytical data behind it, do some polls of different populations, put together a cost benefit analysis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the feedback. I still think not studying this is so short sighted. At least throw some analytical data behind it, do some polls of different populations, put together a cost benefit analysis.

Are you in public policy or work for a non-profit. Your insights into how to fix Arlington school FARMS distribution is very insightful. I assume you live in So Arlington in a high FARMS school, see the problem first hand, which inspires your solution?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the feedback. I still think not studying this is so short sighted. At least throw some analytical data behind it, do some polls of different populations, put together a cost benefit analysis.

All of this has been hashed out ad nauseum in previous boundary adjustment periods.

[Anonymous]

Because it takes a long time to get from Drew/Randolph/Carlin Springs to Discovery/Jamestown/Taylor, especially during rush hour. There is no appetite from parents on either end of the spectrum to mix it up, even without looking at the difficulty of planning and staffing bus routes. There's no opportunity to just shift the edges at the schools in the middle because those are already well balanced.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Explain it to me like I'm 5 and know nothing about APS, districting, education theory, etc. Why can't we set a standard FRL % at every school to guarantee the same education experience across Arlington? I'm new to this but Arlington is kinda small - why can't this happen for the good of everyone? Is it because the idea of bussing kids around has a history? I'm sure there's a way to do it equitably.

Gonna have to be more explicit about the bolded, and in the interim, remember that whenever you think you're a genius who has figured out something easy and obvious that no one else has, you're wrong. Remember that when you wonder why APS doesn't rent office space for schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the feedback. I still think not studying this is so short sighted. At least throw some analytical data behind it, do some polls of different populations, put together a cost benefit analysis.

Wow. you ARE new to Arlington.
The dead horse has been beaten repeatedly. The bottom line is: Arlington County as a whole does not care about socioeconomic integration. People do not want all schools the same. County Board (responsible for housing and transportation and zoning policies) points fingers to School Board in charge of schools. School Board points fingers at County Board blaming housing patterns and policies while refusing to entertain ranked-choice admission policies or anything increasing bus transportation costs and threatening the re-electability of members.

But I'd love to have a new wave of energetic advocates give it a go; so please pick up the mantel and carry on! Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Explain it to me like I'm 5 and know nothing about APS, districting, education theory, etc. Why can't we set a standard FRL % at every school to guarantee the same education experience across Arlington? I'm new to this but Arlington is kinda small - why can't this happen for the good of everyone? Is it because the idea of bussing kids around has a history? I'm sure there's a way to do it equitably.

Gonna have to be more explicit about the bolded, and in the interim, remember that whenever you think you're a genius who has figured out something easy and obvious that no one else has, you're wrong. Remember that when you wonder why APS doesn't rent office space for schools.

I have a 25 year old t shirt with this cartoon on it. I only sleep in it, but maybe I should start wearing it to school board meetings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the feedback. I still think not studying this is so short sighted. At least throw some analytical data behind it, do some polls of different populations, put together a cost benefit analysis.

Wow. you ARE new to Arlington.
The dead horse has been beaten repeatedly. The bottom line is: Arlington County as a whole does not care about socioeconomic integration. People do not want all schools the same. County Board (responsible for housing and transportation and zoning policies) points fingers to School Board in charge of schools. School Board points fingers at County Board blaming housing patterns and policies while refusing to entertain ranked-choice admission policies or anything increasing bus transportation costs and threatening the re-electability of members.

But I'd love to have a new wave of energetic advocates give it a go; so please pick up the mantel and carry on! Good luck.

This, with the finger pointing between the county board and school board, is spot on. And the Arlington County Democrats control both boards and that won’t change as long as school board candidates (which are supposed to be nonpartisan) are endorsed by political parties. Every time you vote Democrat/status quo, you are voting for these policies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the feedback. I still think not studying this is so short sighted. At least throw some analytical data behind it, do some polls of different populations, put together a cost benefit analysis.

Another +1 that this has been done, repeatedly. Surveys have overwhelmingly shown, especially at the elementary level, that the vast majority of parents of all races and SES levels value neighborhood schools over diversity. Studies have been done, analysis is there. Transportation costs are high, and almost no one is in favor of what it would entail to make it happen.

County policy, both decades ago and even now as they approve more and more AH, concentrates poverty. The only way for APS to overcome that is essentially via a lottery system, since you can't draw boundaries that balance across the system. This idea has been floated many times over the last 15yrs and is shot down every single time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the feedback. I still think not studying this is so short sighted. At least throw some analytical data behind it, do some polls of different populations, put together a cost benefit analysis.

Wow. you ARE new to Arlington.
The dead horse has been beaten repeatedly. The bottom line is: Arlington County as a whole does not care about socioeconomic integration. People do not want all schools the same. County Board (responsible for housing and transportation and zoning policies) points fingers to School Board in charge of schools. School Board points fingers at County Board blaming housing patterns and policies while refusing to entertain ranked-choice admission policies or anything increasing bus transportation costs and threatening the re-electability of members.

But I'd love to have a new wave of energetic advocates give it a go; so please pick up the mantel and carry on! Good luck.

This, with the finger pointing between the county board and school board, is spot on. And the Arlington County Democrats control both boards and that won’t change as long as school board candidates (which are supposed to be nonpartisan) are endorsed by political parties. Every time you vote Democrat/status quo, you are voting for these policies.

Are you saying at republicans favor school busing to achieve integration? OP is trying to solve a problem that no one wants solved. Do you think South Arlington families want their kids spending 45 minutes on a bus each way to go to schools across the county where they will have zero sense of community? Which is more likely- that a family in River Crest puts their kid on a bus headed to South Arlington every morning in the name of equality or that they pull the kid and send them to private?