FCPS HS Boundary

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Would you send your child to Justice?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

DP. Sounds like you keep changing the goalposts. FCPS would need to build five new high schools to get down to a 2,000-student average.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Would you send your child to Justice?

DP. What does that have to do with Justice? Justice has 2358 kids but is getting expanded to 2500 seats. Meanwhile, Chantilly has 2983 kids and under 2250 permanent seats.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Would you send your child to Justice?

DP. What does that have to do with Justice? Justice has 2358 kids but is getting expanded to 2500 seats. Meanwhile, Chantilly has 2983 kids and under 2250 permanent seats.

I just wondering how many people who complain about large schools and expansions would choose to send their children to an under enrolled school. People are very quick to complain about expansions and point out excess capacity. Most of those people would never send their own kids to one of the schools with capacity (, but see redistricting as a great solution for other people's kids. Mt Vernon and Herndon currently have the most open seats, does anyone want to send their kid to either?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

There is also research that shows that high schools should have no more than 100 (or 150 max) per grade so that all students and teachers know each other. The only public school that meets that metric is Arlington's HB Woodlawn.

School systems typically build large to fully exploit the economies of scale.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Uh oh. Better put those shovels down at Justice HS and Falls Church HS (and soon Centreville HS). And maybe tear down the recent Madison expansion and just sell the bricks.

Meh. It makes less sense to stop something already in progress. If they had stop, oh well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Exactly! Plus, there are more barriers to getting into clubs and leadership roles (eg, music, sports, NHS, etc).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Would you send your child to Justice?

DP. Sure. What reason is there to not go there?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

DP. Sounds like you keep changing the goalposts. FCPS would need to build five new high schools to get down to a 2,000-student average.

DP. Expanding to 3000 students is insanity. Fill schools to existing capacity until there is a need to build new school to a reasonable sub-2000 student capacity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Uh oh. Better put those shovels down at Justice HS and Falls Church HS (and soon Centreville HS). And maybe tear down the recent Madison expansion and just sell the bricks.

Meh. It makes less sense to stop something already in progress. If they had stop, oh well.

Sure. Wait until after your own school gets renovated and then its time to draw the line, right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Would you send your child to Justice?

DP. What does that have to do with Justice? Justice has 2358 kids but is getting expanded to 2500 seats. Meanwhile, Chantilly has 2983 kids and under 2250 permanent seats.

I just wondering how many people who complain about large schools and expansions would choose to send their children to an under enrolled school. People are very quick to complain about expansions and point out excess capacity. Most of those people would never send their own kids to one of the schools with capacity (, but see redistricting as a great solution for other people's kids. Mt Vernon and Herndon currently have the most open seats, does anyone want to send their kid to either?

100% yes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

DP. Sounds like you keep changing the goalposts. FCPS would need to build five new high schools to get down to a 2,000-student average.

DP. Expanding to 3000 students is insanity. Fill schools to existing capacity until there is a need to build new school to a reasonable sub-2000 student capacity.

There’s an inconsistency in that strategy as you’d be moving kids to larger schools that happen to have space although you’re also claiming smaller schools are so much better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Uh oh. Better put those shovels down at Justice HS and Falls Church HS (and soon Centreville HS). And maybe tear down the recent Madison expansion and just sell the bricks.

Meh. It makes less sense to stop something already in progress. If they had stop, oh well.

Sure. Wait until after your own school gets renovated and then its time to draw the line, right.

I voted against money to expand our school. I would prefer a smaller school. Kids don’t know most of their classmates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Exactly! Plus, there are more barriers to getting into clubs and leadership roles (eg, music, sports, NHS, etc).

Lewis couldn’t even field a baseball team a year ago. So many extra opportunities!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:None of the situations are necessary. If you don’t like your kids bumping elbows with other kids, move. There are less crowded options with plenty of seats inside and outside the county.

Good luck moving for better schools when you're suddenly underwater on your mortgage because FCPS shifted your home to a school with a 30% ESL rate and your property value tanked by 25%.

Oh well. This is what we’ve voted for in our state and county. Suck it up buttercup. You’re probably wealthier than 95% of the country.

DP, but as pointed out before no one campaigned for county or state office saying they were committed to large-scale school boundary revisions in FCPS.

It's not an issue where you can predict someone's views based on party affiliation. The far left would redistrict to balance demographics in the name of equity. The far right would redistrict to minimize future taxes and spending on facilities. And most people who aren't either far left or far right would probably say only change school boundaries when it's absolutely necessary and continue to renovate and expand schools in the ordinary course to meet current needs and anticipate future ones.

No one should be expanding HS around here. They are already too large. Kids don’t even know half their classmates let alone their classmates’ names.

In any case, the SB is too politically driven to give a wit about education. They are all about their next political position and won’t actually do anything on this topic. I wish they’d stop wasting everyone’s time and emotional capital on boundaries.

Some recent expansions to a design capacity of at least 2500 seats include: Herndon (2779), Madison (2503), Oakton (2646), South Lakes (2717), West Potomac (3049), and West Springfield (2505)

Some ongoing and planned expansions include: Falls Church (2500), Justice (2500), and Centreville (3000)

Schools that were built large include: Lake Braddock (3124), Robinson (2752), South County (2500), and Westfield (2823)

So that cat is out of the bag, and they obviously struggle mightily to find acceptable sites for any new high school. Given all that, it's more than a bit late to start claiming no other schools should be expanded, regardless of their circumstances.

BS. There is no need for size equity.

It's not especially important at the ES or MS level, but it's certainly a consideration at the HS level.

Spending to expand some high schools while blowing off others with an even greater need for additional seats would be the epitome of unfair treatment.

You fill until you hit the limit. Then you decide is it better to cozy up or send your kid elsewhere. Move if you have to. Stop with your calls for equity. Stop wasting tax followers on buildings.

^tax dollars

Spending to ensure HS facilities are generally comparable is an investment in kids and communities. There are huge disparities in facilities within FCPS, just as there are among when it comes to student achievement. A School Board that wants a first-class system pays attention to both.

“First class” in what sense? lol

Anyway, all schools should be maintained in good repair, buildings, fields, and hardscaping. They don’t all need to be the same size.

If they were all the same size, that would mean expanding every school to 3000 seats like West Potomac and, soon, Centreville. Clearly that isn't going to happen.

On the other hand, several schools that are overcrowded. yet have closer to 2000 than 3000 seats, should be expanded to keep kids near their homes but get them out of the trailers and modulars.

Expansions are not necessary if there are seats elsewhere in the system.

Expansions are fiscally responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars when the district is doing a full renovation of any high school.

Your statement makes sense for elementary schools, where there is practically one every mile.

But it is completely wrong and misguided when you are talking about high schools, which have expansive boundaries and host thousands of students.

Expand when doing a full gut and you save money and time in the long run. Any tradesperson, structural engineer, accountant or architect can tell you this. Construction 101.

Sure, from a purely logistics perspective. But from an educational view, it is well-researched and understood that high school sizes should be smaller in the <2000 students range. This benefits psychosocial development, safety, and quality of relationships which are all critical for excelling academically.

Exactly! Plus, there are more barriers to getting into clubs and leadership roles (eg, music, sports, NHS, etc).

Lewis couldn’t even field a baseball team a year ago. So many extra opportunities!

You know, MLB has some issues with filling stadiums too. It isn’t quite the draw if was in the old days.