What is going to happen to CAP & VAC?
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Anonymous
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I find all these changes overwhelming. Do i have this right:
--CAP program will stay the same, but will be just for in-boundary Blair students, not for students elsewhere in DCC? --VAC: unclear, because there will be an investment in the arts at Northwood? Will in-boundary Einstein students still have a VAC? Or will they have VAC but not the arts academy? My kid is in 8th grade, so i know both these programs will technically still be there, but i am concerned about the programs being dismantled. |
Anonymous
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VAC will stay for Region 1
CAP is suspiciously absent from presentations so I assume will just be for Blair VAPA will stay but people fear will be diluted as Northwood becomes the performing arts magnet. Music will be a magnet at Einstein. |
Anonymous
There is a regional communications program on the list for Blair (so open to all region 1 kids, not DCC kids since DCC will be abolished, but still kids from 5 schools) but not clear how similar or different it will be to the current CAP. VAC will also be open to all region 1 kids. The bigger question is performing arts which is a bit up in the air right now, but visual arts will continue but just go from being countywide to regional. You could ask the staff at these programs about what changes they expect to classes/pathways/etc. They theoretically should know but very well may not, unfortunately, but still worth asking. |
Anonymous
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There is a lot of confusion. VAC is a longstanding, countywide pre-professional VISUAL arts magnet that students must prepare a portfolio for to be admitted. It has always been at Einstein and will remain at Einstein in its current form.
Einstein will continue to offer performing arts classes to its student body as it has always done. "VAPA", Einstein's performing arts "academy" was never more than a way to organize students. It isn't different than performing arts classes at other schools. In fact, many MCPS schools offer more performing arts classes than Einstein. |
Anonymous
VAC remains at Esintein. From a straight enrollment perspective, it will probably be about the same, since a lot of the kids in VAC are already from nearby clusters (VAC doesn’t have transportation). Because of the way VAC classes are structured (double periods), they’re only open to magnet students, not the rest for the school. There will be criteria based art magnets in each region but I’m doubtful that any of them will be as good as VAC, at least in the first few years. Einstein will also have an interest-based Design pathway, which will be cool. I think those classes will be open to the full student body if there’s space after the magnet kids get their seats. Northwood will have theatre and dance and Einstein will have music. They’ll technically be criteria programs but the baseline criteria will probably be participation in music, dance, or theatre in middle school. Again, those classes - band, orchestra, drama class- are likely to be open to all students. I don’t think magnet kids would get automatic placement in audition-only ensembles like the jazz bands at Einstein or the dance companies at Northwood. Hopefully MCPS will let the teachers handle those details. As for the pathways diluting each other, MCPS only plans to let 15 kids per year into each performing arts pathway of its not at their home school. There so much overlap between dance, vocal music, and theatre that kids will probably apply to both schools in the hopes of getting one of those very few spots. Instrumental music kids will probably gravitate to Einstein. It sucks because in the DCC now, a couple hundred kids per year choose Einstein and Northwood for their arts programs. In the new model, maybe 45 kids per year will get those options. And Loiderman kids won’t have access to either Einstein or Northwood. They’re in region 3, so they’ll all be competing for limited spots at Woodward. They rest will go to Kennedy or Wheaton. Abundance and opportunity, my ass. |
Anonymous
| Given that CAP is currently a regional program, why wouldn’t they at the very least keep it for region 1? |
Anonymous
Einstein is the only school into county with two for-credit jazz ensembles and one of only 5 with a for-credit symphonic ensemble. We also have two dance companies, two vocal ensembles, IB theatre classes, and an annual musical with a live pit orchestra. Three Einstein kids just got picked for All County Senior Jazz Ensemble. It’s a pretty great program. |
Anonymous
It is on all the lists I've seen, have you seen one where it's missing? (A communications regional program at Blair, I mean, which I assume is the same as CAP.) |
Anonymous
They are. It's listed under Blair now as an interest-based program that will be open to students in Region 1. |
Anonymous
It’s listed as a criteria-based regional program in the latest slide. They haven’t said how big it will be, though. At the last BoE meeting they said RMIB will only accept about 60 kids per year (down from over 100) so I’m sure they’ll cut CAP and SMCS at Blair, too. Also, the communications programs in other regions are listed as interest based, not criteria based. MCPS hasn’t given details for those but they probably won’t be as robust as CAP. |
Anonymous
This will depend on the boundaries, too. 3 out of the 4 options leave Blair at 100% utilization, so I don't know how they'd have a meaningful cohort for 2 magnet programs if Options A, C, or D are chosen. What do people think of the idea of moving CAP to Northwood to create space for more seats at SMCS? |
Anonymous
There is 0 chance Blair people are going to give up CAP. CAP and SMCS are their sacred cows that can't be moved. We could have moved CAP and SMCS to Kennedy years ago to help alleviate overcrowding. |
Anonymous
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OP here. still confusing!
So VAC will stay @ Einstein & be unchanged (double periods, apply to get in, etc), other than instead of DCC it will be for anyone in Region 1? And CAP will also be unchanged, aside from it will be Region 1 not DCC? This means for Region 1 kids these programs are not changing? |
Anonymous
CAP will change its selection process from an application to an interest-based lottery. VAC will still be criteria-based. |
Anonymous
Is your kid actually interested in VAC? Are they working on their portfolio? |