Budget Anmendments proposed for the BOE CIP vote

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Montoya has her flaws but it takes guts to challenge MCPS this way and I think everyone who cares about BOE independence (regardless of your opinion on this specific change) should find ways to thank and celebrate her for this (at minimum send her an email with "Thank you for the amendments" or "Thank you for your independence" or something like that in the subject line.)

Um, no. She proposed keeping renovations out of a school with no walls where the kids really can”t learn. She does not have kids’ best interest in mind. She is all about Rita.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montoya has her flaws but it takes guts to challenge MCPS this way and I think everyone who cares about BOE independence (regardless of your opinion on this specific change) should find ways to thank and celebrate her for this (at minimum send her an email with "Thank you for the amendments" or "Thank you for your independence" or something like that in the subject line.)

Um, no. She proposed keeping renovations out of a school with no walls where the kids really can”t learn. She does not have kids’ best interest in mind. She is all about Rita.

They can’t learn? Then why are they the top elementary school?

[Anonymous]

I think what Rita was saying, is that “if population is declining,” and elementary boundary study upcoming, MCPS is likely closing and consolidating elementaries in the near future. Especially if “excess capacity” in a school nearby. So she was trying to make the “long term fiscally responsible” argument; which would mean the school would likely be a prime candidate to be closed when elementary boundary takes place.

[Anonymous]

What was the upshot of this? I’m guessing the amendment did not succeed?

[Anonymous]

From what I saw, No one voted for Rita’s 2nd amendment (to remove cold spring and highland view from CIP; put money into HVAC everywhere instead). Then Stewart tried a different amendment to “remove artificial turf installation” ($30? Million over 2 years), to do more HVAC. But that also failed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think what Rita was saying, is that “if population is declining,” and elementary boundary study upcoming, MCPS is likely closing and consolidating elementaries in the near future. Especially if “excess capacity” in a school nearby. So she was trying to make the “long term fiscally responsible” argument; which would mean the school would likely be a prime candidate to be closed when elementary boundary takes place.

I didn't watch that part of the hearing, but this makes sense to me. I think Cold Spring is part of a cluster of ~5 elementary schools that will collectively be at less than 75% utilization by 2030.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think what Rita was saying, is that “if population is declining,” and elementary boundary study upcoming, MCPS is likely closing and consolidating elementaries in the near future. Especially if “excess capacity” in a school nearby. So she was trying to make the “long term fiscally responsible” argument; which would mean the school would likely be a prime candidate to be closed when elementary boundary takes place.

That makes sense to me. Did MCPS respond to justify why they think they should be investing in so many new elementary schools right now when they might be closing elementary schools in the next few years?

[Anonymous]

Yes I too thought the inclusion of cold spring was odd because it seems to be a prime candidate to be closed given excess capacity at all other schools in the Wootton cluster. Of the 370 students at Cold Spring, I believe about 100 are from other elementary schools but go there for the magnet program. So that could be housed elsewhere in the cluster and then move the boundaries for say Lakewood. Travilah, Stone Mill, Falls Mead could all absorb the shifts. Only issue I guess I see is that all of the Wootton cluster is older with the newest two ES being 2003 and 1992 renovations and then 1988 built and 3 built in the 1970s which haven’t been renovated. So perhaps a different school is closed? But seems to me like the current boundary for Cold Spring is so small that they’d be the easiest one to close.

[Anonymous]

Nope. No Response. Just voted it down as best I could tell. Later, when discussing artificial turfs as opposed to diverting that money to HVAC, I think Grace Rivera-Oven was explaining something like “oh, we don’t want to take any money away from anything. It’s premature. We only do that after county gives us a budget number.” And President Yang? And Wolff? I think were annoyed? Stewart brought the amendment without discussing it with them more before. It was something… not sure how to summarize it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes I too thought the inclusion of cold spring was odd because it seems to be a prime candidate to be closed given excess capacity at all other schools in the Wootton cluster. Of the 370 students at Cold Spring, I believe about 100 are from other elementary schools but go there for the magnet program. So that could be housed elsewhere in the cluster and then move the boundaries for say Lakewood. Travilah, Stone Mill, Falls Mead could all absorb the shifts. Only issue I guess I see is that all of the Wootton cluster is older with the newest two ES being 2003 and 1992 renovations and then 1988 built and 3 built in the 1970s which haven’t been renovated. So perhaps a different school is closed? But seems to me like the current boundary for Cold Spring is so small that they’d be the easiest one to close.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes I too thought the inclusion of cold spring was odd because it seems to be a prime candidate to be closed given excess capacity at all other schools in the Wootton cluster. Of the 370 students at Cold Spring, I believe about 100 are from other elementary schools but go there for the magnet program. So that could be housed elsewhere in the cluster and then move the boundaries for say Lakewood. Travilah, Stone Mill, Falls Mead could all absorb the shifts. Only issue I guess I see is that all of the Wootton cluster is older with the newest two ES being 2003 and 1992 renovations and then 1988 built and 3 built in the 1970s which haven’t been renovated. So perhaps a different school is closed? But seems to me like the current boundary for Cold Spring is so small that they’d be the easiest one to close.

Does it make sense to move Cold Spring into the Churchill cluster? There's a lot of excess capacity at Beverly Farms ES and Wayside ES.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montoya has her flaws but it takes guts to challenge MCPS this way and I think everyone who cares about BOE independence (regardless of your opinion on this specific change) should find ways to thank and celebrate her for this (at minimum send her an email with "Thank you for the amendments" or "Thank you for your independence" or something like that in the subject line.)

Um, no. She proposed keeping renovations out of a school with no walls where the kids really can”t learn. She does not have kids’ best interest in mind. She is all about Rita.

They can’t learn? Then why are they the top elementary school?

Not because of the school. Watch the video that kids from the school put together linked below. I feel especially bad for any students with ADHD or special needs.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1b4AjDSHUp65nfZ2RzzSev4TL9LtIiFn3/view

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montoya has her flaws but it takes guts to challenge MCPS this way and I think everyone who cares about BOE independence (regardless of your opinion on this specific change) should find ways to thank and celebrate her for this (at minimum send her an email with "Thank you for the amendments" or "Thank you for your independence" or something like that in the subject line.)

Um, no. She proposed keeping renovations out of a school with no walls where the kids really can”t learn. She does not have kids’ best interest in mind. She is all about Rita.

They can’t learn? Then why are they the top elementary school?

Not because of the school. Watch the video that kids from the school put together linked below. I feel especially bad for any students with ADHD or special needs.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1b4AjDSHUp65nfZ2RzzSev4TL9LtIiFn3/view

Would temporary walls help?

Longer term... agree this is not a sustainable school, with only 350 students and plenty of excess capacity at nearby schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montoya has her flaws but it takes guts to challenge MCPS this way and I think everyone who cares about BOE independence (regardless of your opinion on this specific change) should find ways to thank and celebrate her for this (at minimum send her an email with "Thank you for the amendments" or "Thank you for your independence" or something like that in the subject line.)

Um, no. She proposed keeping renovations out of a school with no walls where the kids really can”t learn. She does not have kids’ best interest in mind. She is all about Rita.

They can’t learn? Then why are they the top elementary school?

Not because of the school. Watch the video that kids from the school put together linked below. I feel especially bad for any students with ADHD or special needs.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1b4AjDSHUp65nfZ2RzzSev4TL9LtIiFn3/view

This just reinforces the need for this school to be shut down and converted into a holding school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She is passive aggressive and rude- she speaks out of turn and eye rolls. It’s so uncomfortable if you’ve been at these board meetings to watch.

I think we found the MCPS central office poster