What’s Fairfax high school like

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is one of the smaller FCPS schools so it is easier to make teams and ECs.

There are 25 regular/magnet high schools in FCPS. Fairfax is #14 in terms of enrollment.

It used to be bigger but the City of Fairfax pushed some county kids out about a decade ago and they ended up at Woodson and Oakton instead.

That left Fairfax with an attendance island in the western part of the county that is closer to Centreville and Chantilly, but zoned for Fairfax.

I don't think the "city" pushed them out. It occurred as part of a regular boundary change.

That is not correct. Fairfax City owns Fairfax HS and several other schools in the City of Fairfax. Fairfax City contracts with FCPS to operate Fairfax HS and, in return, allows some students who live in Fairfax County outside the City of Fairfax to attend the city-owned schools.

In the early 2010s, Fairfax HS was quite overcrowded, with over 2600 kids, and the City of Fairfax asked FCPS to pull county kids out of Lanier (now Johnson) MS and Fairfax HS. FCPS honored that request. It was a bit of a mess because just a few years earlier FCPS had redistricted a bunch of Annandale HS kids to Woodson HS, and the later demand by Fairfax City forced FCPS to move more kids to Woodson. Had they known when they adjusted the Annandale/Woodson boundary that they'd be moving Fairfax kids to Woodson as well, they might have taken a different approach to the Annandale/Woodson boundary change.

You have way too much time on your hands.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is one of the smaller FCPS schools so it is easier to make teams and ECs.

There are 25 regular/magnet high schools in FCPS. Fairfax is #14 in terms of enrollment.

It used to be bigger but the City of Fairfax pushed some county kids out about a decade ago and they ended up at Woodson and Oakton instead.

That left Fairfax with an attendance island in the western part of the county that is closer to Centreville and Chantilly, but zoned for Fairfax.

I don't think the "city" pushed them out. It occurred as part of a regular boundary change.

The boundary change was done at the request of Fairfax city to reduce enrollment at Fairfax High.

That may be what initiated it, but that was not the only change made. One of the previous PP made it sound like FHS was targeted and it wasn't.

Also while there may be neighborhoods closer to Cville and Chantilly, those schools are already overburdened. The other options for those schools were Woodson (where some were diverted) and Robinson. For those options, FHS is negligibly closer.

It wasn't an issue of "targeting." It was the case that the boundary adjustment occurred at the behest of Fairfax City and primarily was intended to reduce the enrollment at Fairfax HS, which was over 2600 kids at the time. The biggest change was to move the Fairfax Villa ES area from Fairfax to Woodson, but some smaller changes moved kids from Fairfax to Chantilly and Oakton. And, at the same time, the School Board eliminated a small Woodson attendance island in Fairfax Station that had sat in the middle of the Robinson district.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is one of the smaller FCPS schools so it is easier to make teams and ECs.

There are 25 regular/magnet high schools in FCPS. Fairfax is #14 in terms of enrollment.

It used to be bigger but the City of Fairfax pushed some county kids out about a decade ago and they ended up at Woodson and Oakton instead.

That left Fairfax with an attendance island in the western part of the county that is closer to Centreville and Chantilly, but zoned for Fairfax.

I don't think the "city" pushed them out. It occurred as part of a regular boundary change.

That is not correct. Fairfax City owns Fairfax HS and several other schools in the City of Fairfax. Fairfax City contracts with FCPS to operate Fairfax HS and, in return, allows some students who live in Fairfax County outside the City of Fairfax to attend the city-owned schools.

In the early 2010s, Fairfax HS was quite overcrowded, with over 2600 kids, and the City of Fairfax asked FCPS to pull county kids out of Lanier (now Johnson) MS and Fairfax HS. FCPS honored that request. It was a bit of a mess because just a few years earlier FCPS had redistricted a bunch of Annandale HS kids to Woodson HS, and the later demand by Fairfax City forced FCPS to move more kids to Woodson. Had they known when they adjusted the Annandale/Woodson boundary that they'd be moving Fairfax kids to Woodson as well, they might have taken a different approach to the Annandale/Woodson boundary change.

You have way too much time on your hands.

I think that the poster provided valuable context. DCUM values engaged parents, and that poster clearly understands the behind the scenes goings-on as to why some things are the way they are today.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is one of the smaller FCPS schools so it is easier to make teams and ECs.

There are 25 regular/magnet high schools in FCPS. Fairfax is #14 in terms of enrollment.

It used to be bigger but the City of Fairfax pushed some county kids out about a decade ago and they ended up at Woodson and Oakton instead.

That left Fairfax with an attendance island in the western part of the county that is closer to Centreville and Chantilly, but zoned for Fairfax.

I don't think the "city" pushed them out. It occurred as part of a regular boundary change.

That is not correct. Fairfax City owns Fairfax HS and several other schools in the City of Fairfax. Fairfax City contracts with FCPS to operate Fairfax HS and, in return, allows some students who live in Fairfax County outside the City of Fairfax to attend the city-owned schools.

In the early 2010s, Fairfax HS was quite overcrowded, with over 2600 kids, and the City of Fairfax asked FCPS to pull county kids out of Lanier (now Johnson) MS and Fairfax HS. FCPS honored that request. It was a bit of a mess because just a few years earlier FCPS had redistricted a bunch of Annandale HS kids to Woodson HS, and the later demand by Fairfax City forced FCPS to move more kids to Woodson. Had they known when they adjusted the Annandale/Woodson boundary that they'd be moving Fairfax kids to Woodson as well, they might have taken a different approach to the Annandale/Woodson boundary change.

You have way too much time on your hands.

Or maybe I just know the history and how to quickly navigate FCPS materials.

From 2013:

"On January 24, 2013, the School Board directed staff to undertake a boundary study aimed at providing enrollment relief for the current and projected overcrowding at Fairfax High School and its feeder, Lanier Middle School. Fairfax High School is projected to be approximately 600 students over its capacity by the 2017-18 school year. The genesis for this boundary study began in summer 2012 when the School Board acknowledged the June 13, 2012, letter from the City of Fairfax School Board asking the Fairfax County School Board to commit to a boundary study of Fairfax High School and its feeders so “that the gross over-enrollment projected in the CIP is avoided.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is one of the smaller FCPS schools so it is easier to make teams and ECs.

There are 25 regular/magnet high schools in FCPS. Fairfax is #14 in terms of enrollment.

It used to be bigger but the City of Fairfax pushed some county kids out about a decade ago and they ended up at Woodson and Oakton instead.

That left Fairfax with an attendance island in the western part of the county that is closer to Centreville and Chantilly, but zoned for Fairfax.

I don't think the "city" pushed them out. It occurred as part of a regular boundary change.

That is not correct. Fairfax City owns Fairfax HS and several other schools in the City of Fairfax. Fairfax City contracts with FCPS to operate Fairfax HS and, in return, allows some students who live in Fairfax County outside the City of Fairfax to attend the city-owned schools.

In the early 2010s, Fairfax HS was quite overcrowded, with over 2600 kids, and the City of Fairfax asked FCPS to pull county kids out of Lanier (now Johnson) MS and Fairfax HS. FCPS honored that request. It was a bit of a mess because just a few years earlier FCPS had redistricted a bunch of Annandale HS kids to Woodson HS, and the later demand by Fairfax City forced FCPS to move more kids to Woodson. Had they known when they adjusted the Annandale/Woodson boundary that they'd be moving Fairfax kids to Woodson as well, they might have taken a different approach to the Annandale/Woodson boundary change.

You have way too much time on your hands.

Or maybe I just know the history and how to quickly navigate FCPS materials.

From 2013:

"On January 24, 2013, the School Board directed staff to undertake a boundary study aimed at providing enrollment relief for the current and projected overcrowding at Fairfax High School and its feeder, Lanier Middle School. Fairfax High School is projected to be approximately 600 students over its capacity by the 2017-18 school year. The genesis for this boundary study began in summer 2012 when the School Board acknowledged the June 13, 2012, letter from the City of Fairfax School Board asking the Fairfax County School Board to commit to a boundary study of Fairfax High School and its feeders so “that the gross over-enrollment projected in the CIP is avoided.”

well, good for you. I can tell you I sat in on those meetings, as well. And that was not how it was presented (and our pyramid was affected by that). No, I did not spend the time mining through the school board docs. Congrats, you win that award. And know the most about school board goings on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is one of the smaller FCPS schools so it is easier to make teams and ECs.

There are 25 regular/magnet high schools in FCPS. Fairfax is #14 in terms of enrollment.

It used to be bigger but the City of Fairfax pushed some county kids out about a decade ago and they ended up at Woodson and Oakton instead.

That left Fairfax with an attendance island in the western part of the county that is closer to Centreville and Chantilly, but zoned for Fairfax.

I don't think the "city" pushed them out. It occurred as part of a regular boundary change.

That is not correct. Fairfax City owns Fairfax HS and several other schools in the City of Fairfax. Fairfax City contracts with FCPS to operate Fairfax HS and, in return, allows some students who live in Fairfax County outside the City of Fairfax to attend the city-owned schools.

In the early 2010s, Fairfax HS was quite overcrowded, with over 2600 kids, and the City of Fairfax asked FCPS to pull county kids out of Lanier (now Johnson) MS and Fairfax HS. FCPS honored that request. It was a bit of a mess because just a few years earlier FCPS had redistricted a bunch of Annandale HS kids to Woodson HS, and the later demand by Fairfax City forced FCPS to move more kids to Woodson. Had they known when they adjusted the Annandale/Woodson boundary that they'd be moving Fairfax kids to Woodson as well, they might have taken a different approach to the Annandale/Woodson boundary change.

You have way too much time on your hands.

Or maybe I just know the history and how to quickly navigate FCPS materials.

From 2013:

"On January 24, 2013, the School Board directed staff to undertake a boundary study aimed at providing enrollment relief for the current and projected overcrowding at Fairfax High School and its feeder, Lanier Middle School. Fairfax High School is projected to be approximately 600 students over its capacity by the 2017-18 school year. The genesis for this boundary study began in summer 2012 when the School Board acknowledged the June 13, 2012, letter from the City of Fairfax School Board asking the Fairfax County School Board to commit to a boundary study of Fairfax High School and its feeders so “that the gross over-enrollment projected in the CIP is avoided.”

well, good for you. I can tell you I sat in on those meetings, as well. And that was not how it was presented (and our pyramid was affected by that). No, I did not spend the time mining through the school board docs. Congrats, you win that award. And know the most about school board goings on.

It absolutely was understood at the time as a boundary study that FCPS undertook at the specific request of Fairfax City.

It's all been implemented by now; the relevance to OP is that Fairfax City has used its leverage as the owner of Fairfax HS (as well as Daniels Run, Providence, and Lanier/Johnson) in a variety of ways over time, including to pressure FCPS to reduce the number of county students at the city-owned schools when those schools got overcrowded.

[Anonymous]

Ridiculous that someone's current question about what Fairfax High School is like, went on a tangent about boundary changes from over a decade ago.

The kids I know that attend FHS are great kids and seem to like the school.

[Anonymous]

When I've been there it's always a bit rough. More kids are on the rowdy side and less well behaved than at other schools.

[Anonymous]

The students who go there really get a lot of options with the academy programs that anyone else has to bus to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The students who go there really get a lot of options with the academy programs that anyone else has to bus to.

Other schools offer courses that replicate a lot of what the Fairfax Academy offers. The only classes there that really stand out are the Dance and Fashion classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The building is really nice and new, at least compared to our kids' soviet bloc style school.

Now I need to guess where your kids go. McLean? Annandale? We were at Westfield HS for a wrestling meet and it was pretty depressing.

The buildings may be shabby but neither McLean nor Annandale has a "Soviet bloc-style" appearance. If any schools deserve that title it would be some of the schools built later in the 70s-90s with fewer windows and interior walls (a number of those schools were later retrofitted to get rid of the "open classrooms").

Have never seen McLean but Annandale is pretty dreary.

[Anonymous]

OP here this was valuable! Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's too diverse which hurts it's scores and rankings. The minimum threshold on DCUM is 75% total Asian/White to be a "good" school.

Yes it’s diverse, but the average SAT score is high. So not sure what you’re implying. Very smart kids. They offer tons of APs, have so many clubs and dedicated sports programs, caring teachers and friendly atmosphere. There is something for everyone at FHS. You can’t go wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I've been there it's always a bit rough. More kids are on the rowdy side and less well behaved than at other schools.

No issues reported by my kids. Rough? Don’t think so. And NOT a lot of fights as another PP claimed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I've been there it's always a bit rough. More kids are on the rowdy side and less well behaved than at other schools.

No issues reported by my kids. Rough? Don’t think so. And NOT a lot of fights as another PP claimed.

+1, my kid is a freshman.