APS DHMS walk zone nuclear option

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the real reason no one wants to be in WMS is the administration and culture. They should start with fixing that.

This is not reality. Plenty of people are fine moving to WMS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the real reason no one wants to be in WMS is the administration and culture. They should start with fixing that.

How do you fix affluenza?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are those PUs in the Hamm wall zone that are getting switched actually walkable? Do most people actually walk from those areas on a daily basis?

Yes. There is a stream of kids across Lorcam every morning and afternoon. Tons of kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:FWIW, we live in a planning unit that was once zoned for Swanson but was switched to WMS a few years ago. Our older son went to Swanson and it was fine. Our younger son went to WMS and it was fine. Both were bussed, but who really cares whether you take a bus or walk to middle school—it’s middle school and the kids are old enough that it’s nbd (though honestly, it’s not a big deal even for elementary, as our kids would attest).

So you were bused and didn’t mind changing to a different bus? Cool story.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are those PUs in the Hamm wall zone that are getting switched actually walkable? Do most people actually walk from those areas on a daily basis?

Yes. There is a stream of kids across Lorcam every morning and afternoon. Tons of kids.

Lorcom?

You live in Arlington?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are those PUs in the Hamm wall zone that are getting switched actually walkable? Do most people actually walk from those areas on a daily basis?

Yes. There is a stream of kids across Lorcam every morning and afternoon. Tons of kids.

Lorcom?

You live in Arlington?

Yes but my phone’s autocorrect lives in CA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why don’t they just let the Hamm walk zone stay at Hamm and bus everyone else to Williamsburg? Wouldn’t this keep everyone happy?

Yes. And it's consistent with APS diversity goals.

I don’t see how recreating the Rosslyn Island to Williamsburg is fine but moving immersion to Williamsburg is a nonstarter. It’s the exact same issues.

No, it's not. Immersion is a countywide program and you need to get students to Williamsburg from all over the County. Rosslyn island to Williamsburg is just a few buses of kids from the NE quadrant to the NW quadrant. Also, those Rosslyn students would be assigned to WMS; whereas immersion students have to choose to continue in the program and many have a far more convenient default and therefore more likely to opt-out....defeating the purpose (alleviating crowding in south Arlington) of moving the program.

Immersion runs busses all over the county no matter where it’s located. Also, why should we care that immersion students have to choose between an inconvenient special program and a more convenient neighborhood option? It’s optional! We should be prioritizing the default. It’s not like Gunston is convenient for people who live near Rosslyn and Courthouse but according to the map they still attend. Williamsburg is projected to be at 65% in a few years. We could just move immersion there and be done without adding bus runs for walk zone kids or creating islands.

OK. Go ahead with that plan and see how it works. I'll put my money down on "it isn't going to play out the way you think it will."

Yes, we already heard this. “Moving Key will kill the school. Families won’t be willing to travel to a new location.”

And yet. 92% of the students moved to the new location. Of the 49 that didn’t, 20 moved out of the county entirely. If the program is truly strong and valuable, people will follow it.

It’s not just about current families moving to a new location. It’s about needing native Spanish speakers for the model to work moving forward. Been to Williamsburg lately? How do you think that will work out?

For those of you rabid to put a stop to any change, this idea isn’t it.

What you’re saying is that the program isn’t attractive enough for families that already did 6 years of immersion to make an effort to continue. Oddly enough, some of the most vocal immersion supporters pivot immediately to talking about how “tiny” Arlington is when it suits their purposes re:other boundary changes. Pick a lane already.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the real reason no one wants to be in WMS is the administration and culture. They should start with fixing that.

It was a perfectly fine middle school for my kids. I believe it was one of the few in APS that didn’t have major post pandemic behavioral issues reported in ArlNow. We were fortunate for that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the real reason no one wants to be in WMS is the administration and culture. They should start with fixing that.

How do you fix affluenza?

oh it's not just that. you can fix the principal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why don’t they just let the Hamm walk zone stay at Hamm and bus everyone else to Williamsburg? Wouldn’t this keep everyone happy?

Yes. And it's consistent with APS diversity goals.

I don’t see how recreating the Rosslyn Island to Williamsburg is fine but moving immersion to Williamsburg is a nonstarter. It’s the exact same issues.

No, it's not. Immersion is a countywide program and you need to get students to Williamsburg from all over the County. Rosslyn island to Williamsburg is just a few buses of kids from the NE quadrant to the NW quadrant. Also, those Rosslyn students would be assigned to WMS; whereas immersion students have to choose to continue in the program and many have a far more convenient default and therefore more likely to opt-out....defeating the purpose (alleviating crowding in south Arlington) of moving the program.

Immersion runs busses all over the county no matter where it’s located. Also, why should we care that immersion students have to choose between an inconvenient special program and a more convenient neighborhood option? It’s optional! We should be prioritizing the default. It’s not like Gunston is convenient for people who live near Rosslyn and Courthouse but according to the map they still attend. Williamsburg is projected to be at 65% in a few years. We could just move immersion there and be done without adding bus runs for walk zone kids or creating islands.

OK. Go ahead with that plan and see how it works. I'll put my money down on "it isn't going to play out the way you think it will."

Yes, we already heard this. “Moving Key will kill the school. Families won’t be willing to travel to a new location.”

And yet. 92% of the students moved to the new location. Of the 49 that didn’t, 20 moved out of the county entirely. If the program is truly strong and valuable, people will follow it.

It’s not just about current families moving to a new location. It’s about needing native Spanish speakers for the model to work moving forward. Been to Williamsburg lately? How do you think that will work out?

For those of you rabid to put a stop to any change, this idea isn’t it.

What you’re saying is that the program isn’t attractive enough for families that already did 6 years of immersion to make an effort to continue. Oddly enough, some of the most vocal immersion supporters pivot immediately to talking about how “tiny” Arlington is when it suits their purposes re:other boundary changes. Pick a lane already.

That's a good point. Maybe APS should do a survey to see how many families would stick with immersion if it moves to WMS. Without that data, it's really hard to make decisions.

I do see your point. While I had originally thought those saying Gunston cuz it's close to spanish speaking families made sense, now I am not so sure it really matters. There will be a bus and families are more likely not to mind older kids being bused across the county. People do it all the time for HB which isn't in a very central location.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why don’t they just let the Hamm walk zone stay at Hamm and bus everyone else to Williamsburg? Wouldn’t this keep everyone happy?

Yes. And it's consistent with APS diversity goals.

I don’t see how recreating the Rosslyn Island to Williamsburg is fine but moving immersion to Williamsburg is a nonstarter. It’s the exact same issues.

No, it's not. Immersion is a countywide program and you need to get students to Williamsburg from all over the County. Rosslyn island to Williamsburg is just a few buses of kids from the NE quadrant to the NW quadrant. Also, those Rosslyn students would be assigned to WMS; whereas immersion students have to choose to continue in the program and many have a far more convenient default and therefore more likely to opt-out....defeating the purpose (alleviating crowding in south Arlington) of moving the program.

Immersion runs busses all over the county no matter where it’s located. Also, why should we care that immersion students have to choose between an inconvenient special program and a more convenient neighborhood option? It’s optional! We should be prioritizing the default. It’s not like Gunston is convenient for people who live near Rosslyn and Courthouse but according to the map they still attend. Williamsburg is projected to be at 65% in a few years. We could just move immersion there and be done without adding bus runs for walk zone kids or creating islands.

OK. Go ahead with that plan and see how it works. I'll put my money down on "it isn't going to play out the way you think it will."

Yes, we already heard this. “Moving Key will kill the school. Families won’t be willing to travel to a new location.”

And yet. 92% of the students moved to the new location. Of the 49 that didn’t, 20 moved out of the county entirely. If the program is truly strong and valuable, people will follow it.

It’s not just about current families moving to a new location. It’s about needing native Spanish speakers for the model to work moving forward. Been to Williamsburg lately? How do you think that will work out?

For those of you rabid to put a stop to any change, this idea isn’t it.

If Spanish speakers don’t want to enroll their children in Immersion, moving to closer won’t work either. I have heard exactly 0 parents IRL say the reason they don’t want Immersion is location. And even telling them that their children’s outcomes will be better isn’t doing the trick. Maybe they don’t want the program? And it’s a bit patronizing to try to make them want it because it’s for their own good.

Option programs need to go where there is space and that’s that. The rest of the county shouldn’t be shuffled around and disrupted for an OPTIONAL program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FWIW, we live in a planning unit that was once zoned for Swanson but was switched to WMS a few years ago. Our older son went to Swanson and it was fine. Our younger son went to WMS and it was fine. Both were bussed, but who really cares whether you take a bus or walk to middle school—it’s middle school and the kids are old enough that it’s nbd (though honestly, it’s not a big deal even for elementary, as our kids would attest).

So you were bused and didn’t mind changing to a different bus? Cool story.

Not this poster but my kids have gone back and forth between being walkers and being bused. I truly do not get the obsession with walking. In fact, it’s just not big of a deal to ride a bus. In elementary, I preferred my kids being bused.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why don’t they just let the Hamm walk zone stay at Hamm and bus everyone else to Williamsburg? Wouldn’t this keep everyone happy?

Yes. And it's consistent with APS diversity goals.

I don’t see how recreating the Rosslyn Island to Williamsburg is fine but moving immersion to Williamsburg is a nonstarter. It’s the exact same issues.

No, it's not. Immersion is a countywide program and you need to get students to Williamsburg from all over the County. Rosslyn island to Williamsburg is just a few buses of kids from the NE quadrant to the NW quadrant. Also, those Rosslyn students would be assigned to WMS; whereas immersion students have to choose to continue in the program and many have a far more convenient default and therefore more likely to opt-out....defeating the purpose (alleviating crowding in south Arlington) of moving the program.

Immersion runs busses all over the county no matter where it’s located. Also, why should we care that immersion students have to choose between an inconvenient special program and a more convenient neighborhood option? It’s optional! We should be prioritizing the default. It’s not like Gunston is convenient for people who live near Rosslyn and Courthouse but according to the map they still attend. Williamsburg is projected to be at 65% in a few years. We could just move immersion there and be done without adding bus runs for walk zone kids or creating islands.

OK. Go ahead with that plan and see how it works. I'll put my money down on "it isn't going to play out the way you think it will."

Yes, we already heard this. “Moving Key will kill the school. Families won’t be willing to travel to a new location.”

And yet. 92% of the students moved to the new location. Of the 49 that didn’t, 20 moved out of the county entirely. If the program is truly strong and valuable, people will follow it.

It’s not just about current families moving to a new location. It’s about needing native Spanish speakers for the model to work moving forward. Been to Williamsburg lately? How do you think that will work out?

For those of you rabid to put a stop to any change, this idea isn’t it.

If Spanish speakers don’t want to enroll their children in Immersion, moving to closer won’t work either. I have heard exactly 0 parents IRL say the reason they don’t want Immersion is location. And even telling them that their children’s outcomes will be better isn’t doing the trick. Maybe they don’t want the program? And it’s a bit patronizing to try to make them want it because it’s for their own good.

Option programs need to go where there is space and that’s that. The rest of the county shouldn’t be shuffled around and disrupted for an OPTIONAL program.

APS is not going to run option programs in a way in which they are likely to fail because you don’t want your kid to take a bus. You don’t think there’s a whole contingent of people that will surface to speak up against that if APS staff is dumb enough to suggest it?

Some of these arguments are just such a waste of time. It’s like toddlers tantruming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why don’t they just let the Hamm walk zone stay at Hamm and bus everyone else to Williamsburg? Wouldn’t this keep everyone happy?

Yes. And it's consistent with APS diversity goals.

I don’t see how recreating the Rosslyn Island to Williamsburg is fine but moving immersion to Williamsburg is a nonstarter. It’s the exact same issues.

No, it's not. Immersion is a countywide program and you need to get students to Williamsburg from all over the County. Rosslyn island to Williamsburg is just a few buses of kids from the NE quadrant to the NW quadrant. Also, those Rosslyn students would be assigned to WMS; whereas immersion students have to choose to continue in the program and many have a far more convenient default and therefore more likely to opt-out....defeating the purpose (alleviating crowding in south Arlington) of moving the program.

Immersion runs busses all over the county no matter where it’s located. Also, why should we care that immersion students have to choose between an inconvenient special program and a more convenient neighborhood option? It’s optional! We should be prioritizing the default. It’s not like Gunston is convenient for people who live near Rosslyn and Courthouse but according to the map they still attend. Williamsburg is projected to be at 65% in a few years. We could just move immersion there and be done without adding bus runs for walk zone kids or creating islands.

OK. Go ahead with that plan and see how it works. I'll put my money down on "it isn't going to play out the way you think it will."

Yes, we already heard this. “Moving Key will kill the school. Families won’t be willing to travel to a new location.”

And yet. 92% of the students moved to the new location. Of the 49 that didn’t, 20 moved out of the county entirely. If the program is truly strong and valuable, people will follow it.

It’s not just about current families moving to a new location. It’s about needing native Spanish speakers for the model to work moving forward. Been to Williamsburg lately? How do you think that will work out?

For those of you rabid to put a stop to any change, this idea isn’t it.

If Spanish speakers don’t want to enroll their children in Immersion, moving to closer won’t work either. I have heard exactly 0 parents IRL say the reason they don’t want Immersion is location. And even telling them that their children’s outcomes will be better isn’t doing the trick. Maybe they don’t want the program? And it’s a bit patronizing to try to make them want it because it’s for their own good.

Option programs need to go where there is space and that’s that. The rest of the county shouldn’t be shuffled around and disrupted for an OPTIONAL program.

APS is not going to run option programs in a way in which they are likely to fail because you don’t want your kid to take a bus. You don’t think there’s a whole contingent of people that will surface to speak up against that if APS staff is dumb enough to suggest it?

Some of these arguments are just such a waste of time. It’s like toddlers tantruming.

My kids are at Kenmore, and I don’t want a bunch of their neighborhood friends, who are walkers, to be sent away to make space for an optional program when there’s multiple schools to the N that could immediately take this program and not require boundary changes. It’s not a good use of taxpayer funds to put that many more kids on buses to theoretically make a program more of a draw for families who have just said they aren’t interested. FFS

[Anonymous]

My child is at an option school, and I actually agree that the option schools should be the first ones APS considers moving when they need to make changes. The option schools are, by design, not neighborhood schools. Move them if you need to. We would be sad for our school to move but we’d understand.