Boundary study question

[Anonymous]

How parents saved Garrison: https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/how_garrison_elementary_was_saved/6551

[Anonymous]

I have worked in the office building across the alley from Strong John Thomson Elementary for many years and the family community seems really strong. If the school doesn't have a strong PTO in place, OP, I encourage you to devote some time and effort to getting one going. I think having that in place will ensure that you have a centralized rallying point if you do learn that your school is in danger of closure. But I don't see that happening, honestly. The only real negative is the lack of place space. That little covered garage-type area (which was renovated last year) is not great. I'd love to see the school get some other playground options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This sounds like Strong John Thomson Elementary, and what with downtown emptying out, I'm guessing they are losing some Out of Boundary Students. It's a solid school though.

Totally sounds like Thomson (city, good middle school, lots of room for OOB). I really doubt they will close it.

A decade ago, the city planned to close Garrison due to low enrollment, and send the kids to Seaton instead .Neighbors got together and advocated to keep it open, and now the school really seems to be thriving and growing in enrollment every year (as is Seaton). So there is room to advocate after they make an announcement.

The data's a little old at this point, but basically you can look here and see how much unused capacity each school has.
https://dme.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/dme/publication/attachments/Appendix%20A%20-%20DCPS%20SY2021-22%20Enrollment%20Utilization%20Plans%20MFP%202022%20Supp_Final_0.xlsx

So just to look at schools near Thomson, Amidon-Bowen is 84% full (reno may add capacity?) Ross is 92% full and had to cut PK3. Garrison is 75% full and growing. SWW@FS is 100% full. Seaton is 68% full (reno may add capacity?). Only Walker-Jones isn't very full at 55%. Because DCPS needs to plan for the long term, it would be foolish to close schools that are adjacent to schools that are mostly full. It might make sense to re-zone a few blocks from SWW@FS to Thomson-- probably the best option to relieve overcrowding there. But they're not going to close a school that's doing pretty well, in a desirable location, adjacent to mostly-full schools, and over 60% full. It has to be way worse than that to actually close a school.

[Anonymous]

Before DCPS got serious about checking residency, Thomson was a favorite school for people who lived in PG county but worked downtown. They'd enroll their children through relatives or lying. Cracking down on residency fraud definitely impacted the school's enrollment. But I think Thomson has a good rep and is not in danger of closure.

[Anonymous]

I really don't think they'd close Thomson. They could use any extra space for additional PK or self-contained special ed classrooms.

[Anonymous]

I also don’t think they’d close Thomson when it’s unclear what truly post-pandemic working conditions will be like. Feds are trying to force more folks back by the week & if Republicans get back into the WH, it could definitely happen. If Thomson doesn’t grow before the *next* boundary survey it may have a problem, but not yet…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I also don’t think they’d close Thomson when it’s unclear what truly post-pandemic working conditions will be like. Feds are trying to force more folks back by the week & if Republicans get back into the WH, it could definitely happen. If Thomson doesn’t grow before the *next* boundary survey it may have a problem, but not yet…

In addition to all of the reasons stated above, I do not think they are going to close any school downtown. Regardless of number of workers coming back in person, there are a lot of conversations about how to reuse and redevelop downtown, including bringing more residents. https://www.reimaginedowntowndc.com/ They are going to want to keep capacity in case more residents move nearby. Also they just redid Franklin Park, does the school use that space at all?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also don’t think they’d close Thomson when it’s unclear what truly post-pandemic working conditions will be like. Feds are trying to force more folks back by the week & if Republicans get back into the WH, it could definitely happen. If Thomson doesn’t grow before the *next* boundary survey it may have a problem, but not yet…

In addition to all of the reasons stated above, I do not think they are going to close any school downtown. Regardless of number of workers coming back in person, there are a lot of conversations about how to reuse and redevelop downtown, including bringing more residents. https://www.reimaginedowntowndc.com/ They are going to want to keep capacity in case more residents move nearby. Also they just redid Franklin Park, does the school use that space at all?

Yes, but even if DC goes full-bore into making downtown more residential, it will be decades before there's any meaningful change. A whole lot of people think we can just snap our fingers and turn unused office buildings into residential. It doesn't quite work like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also don’t think they’d close Thomson when it’s unclear what truly post-pandemic working conditions will be like. Feds are trying to force more folks back by the week & if Republicans get back into the WH, it could definitely happen. If Thomson doesn’t grow before the *next* boundary survey it may have a problem, but not yet…

In addition to all of the reasons stated above, I do not think they are going to close any school downtown. Regardless of number of workers coming back in person, there are a lot of conversations about how to reuse and redevelop downtown, including bringing more residents. https://www.reimaginedowntowndc.com/ They are going to want to keep capacity in case more residents move nearby. Also they just redid Franklin Park, does the school use that space at all?

Hey DCUM! OP here. Thank you sooo much for all these thoughtful responses. You are right, it's Thomson. And my own IB is indeed Walker-Jones, which I am not comfortable with at all.

I was nervous about people getting bad impressions of the school because of its enrollment struggles, glad to know its good reputation is more widespread than I had thought. To be clear, no one at the school has suggested it will close - this is probably my paranoia. But because of WFH, it is losing families who preferred it to their IB and for whom it was close to work. Those families are leaving the city, trying their IB, or finding another option. Some worked at the World Bank and apparently they are going back almost full-time so I'm really hoping things will pick up. I think Seaton is a good backup for us if my paranoia is right and Thomson were to close. But I love the school and its staff so much I don't want to leave. Plus for now, Seaton feeds Cardozo Middle, which I don't want.

I'll just go ahead and be a booster (sorry) and say that if you're looking for a solid school with an International Baccalaurette curriculum and a solid middle school feeder...Thomson is metro accessible! Also if you really are on the boundary study committee...parents love the school. Don't close it!

As for Franklin Park, don't get me started. There were originally plans for a playground but those got scrapped by businesses who wanted a feel like New York's Bryant Park and I guess no noisy kids. The compromise: One sad little slide. Otherwise, it's a gorgeous park for mostly non existent office workers near a Title I school lacking outdoor space. To be clear, the Thomson kids actually love their little indoor playgrounds, but I know they turn other parents off from the school who might otherwise consider it. The school does use the park for events. The previous poster who urged me to be an advocate is probably right, but I will probably have to start with the city on that issue, not the school.

[Anonymous]

Thomson will be fine, OP, no worries! You'll probably pick up some Seaton kids during the Seaton renovation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also don’t think they’d close Thomson when it’s unclear what truly post-pandemic working conditions will be like. Feds are trying to force more folks back by the week & if Republicans get back into the WH, it could definitely happen. If Thomson doesn’t grow before the *next* boundary survey it may have a problem, but not yet…

In addition to all of the reasons stated above, I do not think they are going to close any school downtown. Regardless of number of workers coming back in person, there are a lot of conversations about how to reuse and redevelop downtown, including bringing more residents. https://www.reimaginedowntowndc.com/ They are going to want to keep capacity in case more residents move nearby. Also they just redid Franklin Park, does the school use that space at all?

Yes, but even if DC goes full-bore into making downtown more residential, it will be decades before there's any meaningful change. A whole lot of people think we can just snap our fingers and turn unused office buildings into residential. It doesn't quite work like that.

I realize it will be a while before there is any change, and I know there is a lot of work and planning that has to go into converting space to residential. I also know that it is hard to acquire buildings for schools, so I think that the planners in the education side of things are not going to close a building in that central level location regardless if it is not fully enrolled at this point. I am also on the boundary review committee and while I definitely can't say exactly what will come of all of it, closing any school entirely has not been part of the conversation at all.

[Anonymous]

I think residential in the Thomson boundary may happen, but it's unlikely to result in a significant number of elementary-age children. That type of housing tends to be for childless working adults.

It would be foolish to close a cetntrally located school that is performing well, and in the long run they're going to need the space because SWWFS is so full. There aren't a lot of options for relieving crowding at SWWFS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also don’t think they’d close Thomson when it’s unclear what truly post-pandemic working conditions will be like. Feds are trying to force more folks back by the week & if Republicans get back into the WH, it could definitely happen. If Thomson doesn’t grow before the *next* boundary survey it may have a problem, but not yet…

In addition to all of the reasons stated above, I do not think they are going to close any school downtown. Regardless of number of workers coming back in person, there are a lot of conversations about how to reuse and redevelop downtown, including bringing more residents. https://www.reimaginedowntowndc.com/ They are going to want to keep capacity in case more residents move nearby. Also they just redid Franklin Park, does the school use that space at all?

Yes, but even if DC goes full-bore into making downtown more residential, it will be decades before there's any meaningful change. A whole lot of people think we can just snap our fingers and turn unused office buildings into residential. It doesn't quite work like that.

I realize it will be a while before there is any change, and I know there is a lot of work and planning that has to go into converting space to residential. I also know that it is hard to acquire buildings for schools, so I think that the planners in the education side of things are not going to close a building in that central level location regardless if it is not fully enrolled at this point. I am also on the boundary review committee and while I definitely can't say exactly what will come of all of it, closing any school entirely has not been part of the conversation at all.

Thank you for responding! Feeling relieved!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also don’t think they’d close Thomson when it’s unclear what truly post-pandemic working conditions will be like. Feds are trying to force more folks back by the week & if Republicans get back into the WH, it could definitely happen. If Thomson doesn’t grow before the *next* boundary survey it may have a problem, but not yet…

In addition to all of the reasons stated above, I do not think they are going to close any school downtown. Regardless of number of workers coming back in person, there are a lot of conversations about how to reuse and redevelop downtown, including bringing more residents. https://www.reimaginedowntowndc.com/ They are going to want to keep capacity in case more residents move nearby. Also they just redid Franklin Park, does the school use that space at all?

Yes, but even if DC goes full-bore into making downtown more residential, it will be decades before there's any meaningful change. A whole lot of people think we can just snap our fingers and turn unused office buildings into residential. It doesn't quite work like that.

I realize it will be a while before there is any change, and I know there is a lot of work and planning that has to go into converting space to residential. I also know that it is hard to acquire buildings for schools, so I think that the planners in the education side of things are not going to close a building in that central level location regardless if it is not fully enrolled at this point. I am also on the boundary review committee and while I definitely can't say exactly what will come of all of it, closing any school entirely has not been part of the conversation at all.

Thank you for responding! Feeling relieved!!

OP here. Should have clarified that the comment above was me, in case it wasn't obvious. Really appreciate all the responses and I am very glad no one here seems to think Thomson will close - you've all persuaded me that I'm just anxious! School is great and it's hard to find a good elementary connected to a strong middle near us. Hoping the feeder pattern doesn't change and curious what changes the boundary study will bring to this area and around the city.

[Anonymous]

Hi OP - as someone else mentioned, closing any schools has never been on the table for the boundary study, and I don’t see any sign it would be.

Re Thomson, I do hope you will get involved. Thomson has not had a PTO and it would be great for people to get one going. Also there is the Ward 2 Education Council at https://ward2edcouncil.org which is parents across schools organizing for the benefit of all of them; some parents have participated for Thomson from time to time but not as many as for some schools, and I encourage you to.

Finally Thomson is very likely to be feeding into the future MS at Euclid St (old Banneker site) which is pretty easy to reach by bus (or car or bike) from the area. It’s slated to open in fall 2028, when current 1st graders would go. Parents are trying to build up momentum for it and have a strong base of involved parents who help identify what people want in this MS to get a lot of families trying it out from day 1, and especially if your kid is grade 1 or younger, I encourage you to participate in that, which will largely happen through the W2EC.