MCPS Redisricting - offshoot from open enrollment/busing thread

[Anonymous]

I live down the street from the site. From what I hear it should open for the 2015-2016 school year but they haven't broken ground yet although there are trailers there.

[quote=Anonymous

Last year, Clarksburg Damascus Middle School #2 construction was supposed to start in June of this year. I don't know what the status is of that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP - this is *exactly* what I am referring to. It makes no sense to me why they don't take this area and redistrict to somewhere closer where it's under capacity. And obviously, there's no classism or racism about this since, as you noted, that is an expensive area, more so than some Wootton neighborhoods.

They are currently building a 5th elementary school in the RM cluster, so the ES level overcrowding is already being dealt with. Similarly, JW MS has an addition being built. The JH Science Center property development will also add housing in this general area over time, which might be allocated to Wootton. Due to all of the foregoing, I doubt Fallsgrove will be redistricted, though the neighborhood is in fact closer to Lakewood, Frost & Wootton.

We just bought into the cluster. Where can I get the info on the 5th school and what neighborhoods will it serve?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that no one has yet mentioned Middle School #2 for BCC. Where on earth is the wave of current elementary kids in the cluster going to go for Middle School? We heard that Westland is already over capacity and no room for more portables. And no signs of construction of Middle School #2.

My daughter is in 4th and this is slated to be open when she enters 8th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP - this is *exactly* what I am referring to. It makes no sense to me why they don't take this area and redistrict to somewhere closer where it's under capacity. And obviously, there's no classism or racism about this since, as you noted, that is an expensive area, more so than some Wootton neighborhoods.

They are currently building a 5th elementary school in the RM cluster, so the ES level overcrowding is already being dealt with. Similarly, JW MS has an addition being built. The JH Science Center property development will also add housing in this general area over time, which might be allocated to Wootton. Due to all of the foregoing, I doubt Fallsgrove will be redistricted, though the neighborhood is in fact closer to Lakewood, Frost & Wootton.

We just bought into the cluster. Where can I get the info on the 5th school and what neighborhoods will it serve?

Well, you can start here http://gis.mcpsmd.org/cipmasterpdfs/CIP15CH4_MontgomeryR.pdf Unfortunately, it doesn't say what neighborhoods it will serve. I think because no one really knows yet. And contrary to pp, they are not currently building the 5th elementary school. Funds have not yet been approved.

[Anonymous]

I heard that they are not building the 5th ES in the RM cluster. They are likely redoing another school in the WC cluster, likely Potomac ES. Hope this isn't true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I heard that they are not building the 5th ES in the RM cluster. They are likely redoing another school in the WC cluster, likely Potomac ES. Hope this isn't true.

Hope so. too. Potomac Elementary is overcrowded but not nearly as bad as most elementary schools in the Richard Montgomery cluster. http://gis.mcpsmd.org/cipmasterpdfs/CIP15CH4_Churchill.pdf

Though looking at the link above, they may be doing Wayside, which was delayed a year (according to this) and scheduled for completion in 2017, the same year as the 5th elementary school. Would be a shame if they chose to build a new school at Wayside instead of the 5th elementary. Wayside, while it has never had a renovation since it opened, has enrollment below capacity and projected to for the foreseeable future (again according to the document linked to above). Of course, they may be doing both, depending on funding. If that does not come through, I wonder where they'll prioritize?

[Anonymous]

They should not sink one dollar into Wayside or Potomac until the entire RM cluster receives the 5th ES and the addition to JW, and every other cluster in this county is addressed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They should not sink one dollar into Wayside or Potomac until the entire RM cluster receives the 5th ES and the addition to JW, and every other cluster in this county is addressed.

agreed, but I don't think this is going to happen. I think that's why some people (or one) keeps stating that there is a conspiracy or something. I think it would just be cheaper and faster to redistrict than build a 5th ES. I don't know why the Board or MCPS doesn't look at this as an alternative.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They should not sink one dollar into Wayside or Potomac until the entire RM cluster receives the 5th ES and the addition to JW, and every other cluster in this county is addressed.

agreed, but I don't think this is going to happen. I think that's why some people (or one) keeps stating that there is a conspiracy or something. I think it would just be cheaper and faster to redistrict than build a 5th ES. I don't know why the Board or MCPS doesn't look at this as an alternative.

Agree that redistricting should be looked at as an option but considering the extent of the overcrowding, I think a combination of the 5th elementary school plus redistricting would be in order. The Richard Montgomery cluster elementary schools will be redistricted to fill the new school and relieve the other schools. I don't think anyone has a handle on how many students from each school will be pulled to go to the new school. And it's not clear that this will fully address the overcrowding. So probably a combination of the new school and redistricting into other clusters would be a reasonable solution.

[Anonymous]

One easy solution is to move the Chinese Immersion Program out of College Gardens to a school with more room. All the kids are bussed anyways. They would move as a group with their teachers so there woud be less social issues than a general redistricting of the school. Also, there was a big birth drop in 2008 with the economic uncertainty. Those kids are now entering K. By the time they built the new school, they may not need it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One easy solution is to move the Chinese Immersion Program out of College Gardens to a school with more room. All the kids are bussed anyways. They would move as a group with their teachers so there woud be less social issues than a general redistricting of the school. Also, there was a big birth drop in 2008 with the economic uncertainty. Those kids are now entering K. By the time they built the new school, they may not need it.

Actually, the data I've seen shows a birth surge continuing in 2008 and shows little decline in following years. And the kids born in 2008 are just finishing Kindergarten. With the schedule MCPS has made, the overcrowding will follow them through elementary school and possibly into middle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One easy solution is to move the Chinese Immersion Program out of College Gardens to a school with more room. All the kids are bussed anyways. They would move as a group with their teachers so there woud be less social issues than a general redistricting of the school. Also, there was a big birth drop in 2008 with the economic uncertainty. Those kids are now entering K. By the time they built the new school, they may not need it.

Actually, the data I've seen shows a birth surge continuing in 2008 and shows little decline in following years. And the kids born in 2008 are just finishing Kindergarten. With the schedule MCPS has made, the overcrowding will follow them through elementary school and possibly into middle.

My DC was born in 2008, is in K now, and the ES DC goes to in the RM cluster has 4 K classes. They said it was one of the largest K class group in the past few years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One easy solution is to move the Chinese Immersion Program out of College Gardens to a school with more room. All the kids are bussed anyways. They would move as a group with their teachers so there woud be less social issues than a general redistricting of the school. Also, there was a big birth drop in 2008 with the economic uncertainty. Those kids are now entering K. By the time they built the new school, they may not need it.

Actually, the data I've seen shows a birth surge continuing in 2008 and shows little decline in following years. And the kids born in 2008 are just finishing Kindergarten. With the schedule MCPS has made, the overcrowding will follow them through elementary school and possibly into middle.

My DC was born in 2008, is in K now, and the ES DC goes to in the RM cluster has 4 K classes. They said it was one of the largest K class group in the past few years.

Just curious, how many kids in each class?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One easy solution is to move the Chinese Immersion Program out of College Gardens to a school with more room. All the kids are bussed anyways. They would move as a group with their teachers so there woud be less social issues than a general redistricting of the school. Also, there was a big birth drop in 2008 with the economic uncertainty. Those kids are now entering K. By the time they built the new school, they may not need it.

Actually, the data I've seen shows a birth surge continuing in 2008 and shows little decline in following years. And the kids born in 2008 are just finishing Kindergarten. With the schedule MCPS has made, the overcrowding will follow them through elementary school and possibly into middle.

My DC was born in 2008, is in K now, and the ES DC goes to in the RM cluster has 4 K classes. They said it was one of the largest K class group in the past few years.

Just curious, how many kids in each class?

I think it's anywhere from 23 to 25 kids per class, but not 100% sure. Some kids left mid-year, and some were added mid-year.

[Anonymous]

When my child was in K in the RM cluster, there were 5 K classes + 1 for Chinese Immersion...28 kids in her class. 29 in grade 1. For second grade they finally added another teacher for 7 classes.