ACHS - Another Murdered Student

[Anonymous]

Last year three young men who attended ACHS were murdered. This past Wednesday another young man who attended ACHS was murdered. This is sad, alarming, and not something I ever! anticipated to occur in Alexandria. These families have lost children, and school is not an escape for these children.

I think this is most reflective of the deteriorating City, but it should be impetus to someone in ACPS that they must reorient the ship. ACHS is an urban, violent school and the safety survey with the recently published results are disturbing.

"Incidents involving staff are still infrequent, with around 80% of all student, staff, and parent respondents rarely or never witnessing bullying or harassment from staff (85%) or physical altercations between students and staff (81%), compared to 57% who rarely or never see bullying or harassment from students and 48% who rarely or never witness physical altercations between students."

"Other problem behaviors are less common, as 83% rarely or never witness students bringing weapons to campus, and around two-thirds rarely or never see student use of drugs or alcohol or vandalism of school property." SO, 17% have seen a weapon on campus! Further in the study, 41% of students have seen drug or alcohol use at school.

The focus groups key findings are also profoundly disturbing, "Students cite fights as the primary element undermining their safety while at school; however, they also express substantial discomfort with drug sales and use in bathrooms."

Everyone deserves SO much better.

[Anonymous]

I am sick of people saying deteriorating city and the like. I grew up here and the neighborhoods where people complain about crime and they paid whatever price for new builds used to be no go areas. North old town, near Braddock metro, etc. The crimes there were atrocious. The city is vastly improved yet people go one next door and whine incessantly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am sick of people saying deteriorating city and the like. I grew up here and the neighborhoods where people complain about crime and they paid whatever price for new builds used to be no go areas. North old town, near Braddock metro, etc. The crimes there were atrocious. The city is vastly improved yet people go one next door and whine incessantly.

Murders of 17 year old boys is not "whining."

It is different crime - organized criminal gangs infiltrating our schools. A beheaded body was dumped at The Pit 4 years ago. A raid by the federal government a few months ago led to 6 MS-13 "king pin" arrests in the City. The City leadership refuses to acknowledge this reality, that is why it is deteriorating. In the years you harken back to, people were not sweeping it under the rug.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am sick of people saying deteriorating city and the like. I grew up here and the neighborhoods where people complain about crime and they paid whatever price for new builds used to be no go areas. North old town, near Braddock metro, etc. The crimes there were atrocious. The city is vastly improved yet people go one next door and whine incessantly.

Can you expand on the past atrocious crimes? What makes them more atrocious than the most recent murders of four ACHS students, MH rape? Or the documented gang murder at the Beverly Hills park the PP cites? What makes the recent crimes less of a problem than the past "atrocious" crimes?

I don't think that just because things used to be worse people shouldn't demand better. What's wrong with finding today's atrocious crimes in the city and in the schools unacceptable? Why is discussing it "whining"? It seems like you think gentrification is the answer to our current crime problems, is that correct?

[Anonymous]

Par for the course these days. Notice the PTAC is silent on this? They don't care so long as it's brown kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Par for the course these days. Notice the PTAC is silent on this? They don't care so long as it's brown kids.

I wonder what level of violence in schools is acceptable to PTAC, the PTAs and the Alexandria establishment. So far...it's pretty high.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sick of people saying deteriorating city and the like. I grew up here and the neighborhoods where people complain about crime and they paid whatever price for new builds used to be no go areas. North old town, near Braddock metro, etc. The crimes there were atrocious. The city is vastly improved yet people go one next door and whine incessantly.

Murders of 17 year old boys is not "whining."

It is different crime - organized criminal gangs infiltrating our schools. A beheaded body was dumped at The Pit 4 years ago. A raid by the federal government a few months ago led to 6 MS-13 "king pin" arrests in the City. The City leadership refuses to acknowledge this reality, that is why it is deteriorating. In the years you harken back to, people were not sweeping it under the rug.

Yes, this is a horrible time and I’m very sorry for the families and the victims, but Alexandria is not deteriorating. Anyone who is from here is not surprised by this news. The city government is no worse or better than it has been for the past 40 years. Haven’t you heard “Yale or Jail” about ACHS grads? People have been saying that since I was I high school in the ‘90s.

[Anonymous]

Last year three young men who attended ACHS were murdered. This past Wednesday another young man who attended ACHS was murdered.

Yes, it is terrible. However, unfortunately, I strongly feel that the only reason this gets the attention is does on DCUM is that there are a fair number of rich white kids (I think in the near 30 percent range, a little less?) at the school. I am guessing that the Mott Haven Academy and Urban Assembly School for Wildlife Preservation in the Bronx are not raising the same level of concern in NYC circles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sick of people saying deteriorating city and the like. I grew up here and the neighborhoods where people complain about crime and they paid whatever price for new builds used to be no go areas. North old town, near Braddock metro, etc. The crimes there were atrocious. The city is vastly improved yet people go one next door and whine incessantly.

Murders of 17 year old boys is not "whining."

It is different crime - organized criminal gangs infiltrating our schools. A beheaded body was dumped at The Pit 4 years ago. A raid by the federal government a few months ago led to 6 MS-13 "king pin" arrests in the City. The City leadership refuses to acknowledge this reality, that is why it is deteriorating. In the years you harken back to, people were not sweeping it under the rug.

Yes, this is a horrible time and I’m very sorry for the families and the victims, but Alexandria is not deteriorating. Anyone who is from here is not surprised by this news. The city government is no worse or better than it has been for the past 40 years. Haven’t you heard “Yale or Jail” about ACHS grads? People have been saying that since I was I high school in the ‘90s.

How many students were murdered and raped in a single year when you were at the then TC Williams? How many gang raids and murders?

[Anonymous]

Has there been something definitive that he was a student at ACHS or anything about the circumstances of the crime? I haven’t seen anything since the stories where they ruled it to be a homicide.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Par for the course these days. Notice the PTAC is silent on this? They don't care so long as it's brown kids.

What on earth do you expect PTAC to do regarding an active homicide investigation that the local police department is handling? Your concerns are misplaced on a group of parents who cannot possibly prevent or address this type of violence (likely a targeted incident).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has there been something definitive that he was a student at ACHS or anything about the circumstances of the crime? I haven’t seen anything since the stories where they ruled it to be a homicide.

I’ve only seen statements that the 17 year-old as a City resident. Not clear yet that he was a student at ACHS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Par for the course these days. Notice the PTAC is silent on this? They don't care so long as it's brown kids.

What on earth do you expect PTAC to do regarding an active homicide investigation that the local police department is handling? Your concerns are misplaced on a group of parents who cannot possibly prevent or address this type of violence (likely a targeted incident).

Not the PP but since PTAC portrays itself as concerned with safety they could make a statement/discuss actual safety issues in the schools. Although I'm not critical of them for staying silent about this murder because it didn't happen on school grounds or didn't spill out of a school into Bradlee the way it does when school is in session. But they absolutely should address the violence in the schools. They choose not to.

The fact that as a group they never said a word about the Minnie Howard fights and Minnie Howard rape is callous though. It's just like their refusal to offer any constructive criticism to ACPS when the schools were shut down. It's what frustrates parents and makes PTAC and the clique that runs it and has been running it for years such a joke.

[Anonymous]

What on earth do you expect PTAC to do regarding an active homicide investigation that the local police department is handling? Your concerns are misplaced on a group of parents who cannot possibly prevent or address this type of violence (likely a targeted incident).


Not the PP but since PTAC portrays itself as concerned with safety they could make a statement/discuss actual safety issues in the schools. Although I'm not critical of them for staying silent about this murder because it didn't happen on school grounds or didn't spill out of a school into Bradlee the way it does when school is in session. But they absolutely should address the violence in the schools. They choose not to.

The fact that as a group they never said a word about the Minnie Howard fights and Minnie Howard rape is callous though. It's just like their refusal to offer any constructive criticism to ACPS when the schools were shut down. It's what frustrates parents and makes PTAC and the clique that runs it and has been running it for years such a joke.

Agreed that they are not a great organization. But is it common for PTAs to do much about violence in the schools? The reason that I ask is that there was a fair amount of violence in my much younger sister's school in Chicago, and my mom says she cannot recall the PTA doing much. So that makes me wonder if this is typical awfulness, or ACPS specific awfulness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What on earth do you expect PTAC to do regarding an active homicide investigation that the local police department is handling? Your concerns are misplaced on a group of parents who cannot possibly prevent or address this type of violence (likely a targeted incident).


Not the PP but since PTAC portrays itself as concerned with safety they could make a statement/discuss actual safety issues in the schools. Although I'm not critical of them for staying silent about this murder because it didn't happen on school grounds or didn't spill out of a school into Bradlee the way it does when school is in session. But they absolutely should address the violence in the schools. They choose not to.

The fact that as a group they never said a word about the Minnie Howard fights and Minnie Howard rape is callous though. It's just like their refusal to offer any constructive criticism to ACPS when the schools were shut down. It's what frustrates parents and makes PTAC and the clique that runs it and has been running it for years such a joke.

Agreed that they are not a great organization. But is it common for PTAs to do much about violence in the schools? The reason that I ask is that there was a fair amount of violence in my much younger sister's school in Chicago, and my mom says she cannot recall the PTA doing much. So that makes me wonder if this is typical awfulness, or ACPS specific awfulness.

I don't think there is much that they could "do" other than apply pressure to ACPS which should be part of their role as an organization. Which would be very helpful to get these issues addressed.

PTAC has inserted itself into the safety conversation so it does make it legitimate for people to criticize them for not making a statement on the rape and the fights and the assaults and the stabbing/murder at Bradlee.