FFX CNTY Redistricting Option D Board decision

[Anonymous]

To the poster "My family will stay at the school no matter what, but many of our kids' friends will be leaving (and just about our entire PTA) and going to Poplar Tree."

How is GBW being impacted so much? A small section is going to Poplar Tree, and looking at the map, clearly this section should have been in Poplar Tree in the first place.

Please dont over-state your concerns, and muddy the discussion. Clifton parents have real concerns.

Also, isnt the Clifton decision a done deal? Why is it being pulled into the SW boundary disussion?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To the poster "My family will stay at the school no matter what, but many of our kids' friends will be leaving (and just about our entire PTA) and going to Poplar Tree."

How is GBW being impacted so much? A small section is going to Poplar Tree, and looking at the map, clearly this section should have been in Poplar Tree in the first place.

Please dont over-state your concerns, and muddy the discussion. Clifton parents have real concerns.

Also, isnt the Clifton decision a done deal? Why is it being pulled into the SW boundary disussion?

I'm the poster that you responded to. First off, I didn't say that Clifton parents didn't have real concerns and I don't begin to understand that whole debate as I was not part of it. Second, your questions are identical to mine - "Isn't the Clifton decision a done deal and why is it being pulled into the SW boundary discussion?"

Further, I suppose it is a matter of perspective as to whether I have "over-stated" my concerns. Whether students belong here or there or should have been somewhere else "in the first place" is not my concern. These students are at GBW now and have been for 40 years. Sure if you look at these decisions in the abstract - pick up students here, plop them over there - it all sounds harmless -- but we are impacting people's daily lives. I just hate to see decisions being made that impact children and their families without good justification. I'm not conviniced we have that here.

[Anonymous]

Just an FYI, this post is about all the changes, not just Clifton. Other posters are free to offer their opinions on different aspects of the plan. It is not a hijack.

As far as GBW goes, well I think this time they are trying to lesson some attendance islands and hopefully reduce transportation costs.

In the last redistricting, for the opening of Eagle View, our neighborhood was moved from GBW to GBE, for no apparent reason. We made the argument against the move b/c it would create a split district for GBW to no avail. Our son's bus ride went from 20 minutes to an hour.

This time around our neighborhood is proposed to be moved back to GBW. Go figure.

I seem to recall a few years ago that the kids in Coppermine were moved like 5 times in 8 years.

[Anonymous]

I have a child who goes to Eagle View currently (a 3-min drive away), and my neighbors and I are not looking forward to the long bus drive (more than 30 mins) to Fairfax Villa. So, I want to know, as tax-paying citizens and parents, what can we do to show our opposition to this short-term solution (as other students will be moved from Fairfax Villa to make way for Eagle View kids)? How do we challenge this, if indeed it can be challenged, and have our voices heard?

[Anonymous]

The best way to be heard is to have your PTA support you in writing and at the school board meetings. You have to attend every meeting and speak.

The really best way is to be a big money doner in your school district. You can still see some neighborhoods isolated from changes due to politcal power. The little people don't have much chance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a child who goes to Eagle View currently (a 3-min drive away), and my neighbors and I are not looking forward to the long bus drive (more than 30 mins) to Fairfax Villa. So, I want to know, as tax-paying citizens and parents, what can we do to show our opposition to this short-term solution (as other students will be moved from Fairfax Villa to make way for Eagle View kids)? How do we challenge this, if indeed it can be challenged, and have our voices heard?

Sign up to speak at the February 7 Public Hearing.

http://www.fcps.edu/schlbd/requestspeak.htm

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JK798WD

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
First of all, I do, actually. I have many friends there, I live nearby and have many, many friends who are teachers and are intimately familiar with the situation there. That said, I don't see what that has to do with anything.

As for Bradsher, et. al, I could not agree more that they have behaved atrociously. I've read the emails. I think that most of the SW Study is preordained and that -despite my participation in it- it is an empty exercise b/c the decisions have already been made. So, I share your concern, outrage, etc.

But, look at the posts of Clifton parents (here and other boards). They "deserve" a school? "Jealous bitches?" That isn't even the worse I've seen. I don't begruge them fighting for their local school. I'd probably do the same (and am as I do not like the impact of this study on my child's Elem). But, there is an entitlement in the Clifton parents' position that many find distasteful. People can disagree or not with the merits of closing that school (I don't really have a position on it other than if they are going to close a school they need to add capacity elsewhere and they don't seem to be doing that effectively). But the perception of that position is there. And it doesn't work to their advantage.

You can know people in Clifton and not know whether a particular post on an unmoderated internet forum calling someone a "bitch" was made by a Clifton parent, a Clifton sympathizer, or a Clifton opponent who actually wants to demonize them by passing themselves off as an unhinged person who lives there.

We could certainly debate whether it's a good PR strategy to suggest that your neighborhood school is being closed to export your high-achieving children to other schools with lower scores, even if it turned out to be true. But I think it only plays into the likes of Liz Bradsher to have that debate now, when the energy really ought to be focused on putting this School Board under a microscope and challenging their processes and decisions.

I wrote "jealous b1tches" and thought you all might be interested in FCPS cip numbers to see exactly what Bradsher and her people have done to all of us in FX county. As I stated before I don't live anywhere affected by this nonsense but this is what I am paying for....a school for 66 kids. The whole thing is part of a community building/removal of prison stigma ---think FXCO turning the lorton prison area into reston or Columbia MD.

Bradsher wants nothing but community schools for her real constituents . And they define the community. FYI she still busses Hagel Circle to Halley. Multiple school construction later.......................................


2011
Lake Braddock
high +516
middle +338

soco
high -335
middle -306


2015
Lake Braddock
high +683
middle +326

soco
high -601
middle -392


With the construction of SOCO middle the capacity at the existing secondary school will go up to about 2100 removing the big negative number.
However SOCO does not exist in a vacuum. Pre construction numbers for Lake Braddock and SOCO combined show

82 surplus capacity for grades 9 through 12 in 2015 capacity for grades 7 through 8 in 2015
-66 capacity in grades 7 and 8

So if this was an independent school division[district] would the taxpayers be paying for a school for 66 students? A building that will have operating costs/staff/financing?

This is what Bradsher has done. Finally note that SOCO also has in boundary middle school students now at Lake Braddock secondary school for GT centers. The bus is running.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wrote "jealous b1tches" and thought you all might be interested in FCPS cip numbers to see exactly what Bradsher and her people have done to all of us in FX county. As I stated before I don't live anywhere affected by this nonsense but this is what I am paying for....a school for 66 kids. The whole thing is part of a community building/removal of prison stigma ---think FXCO turning the lorton prison area into reston or Columbia MD.

Bradsher wants nothing but community schools for her real constituents . And they define the community. FYI she still busses Hagel Circle to Halley. Multiple school construction later.......................................


2011
Lake Braddock
high +516
middle +338

soco
high -335
middle -306


2015
Lake Braddock
high +683
middle +326

soco
high -601
middle -392


With the construction of SOCO middle the capacity at the existing secondary school will go up to about 2100 removing the big negative number.
However SOCO does not exist in a vacuum. Pre construction numbers for Lake Braddock and SOCO combined show

82 surplus capacity for grades 9 through 12 in 2015 capacity for grades 7 through 8 in 2015
-66 capacity in grades 7 and 8

So if this was an independent school division[district] would the taxpayers be paying for a school for 66 students? A building that will have operating costs/staff/financing?

This is what Bradsher has done. Finally note that SOCO also has in boundary middle school students now at Lake Braddock secondary school for GT centers. The bus is running.

Great post. This is a giant scam, and the fact that taxpayers let Liz Bradsher get away with this garbage is totally ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Great post. This is a giant scam, and the fact that taxpayers let Liz Bradsher get away with this garbage is totally ridiculous.

Absolutely agree with both PPs. How FFX County taxpayers are not ALL up in arms about this is shocking to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wrote "jealous b1tches" and thought you all might be interested in FCPS cip numbers to see exactly what Bradsher and her people have done to all of us in FX county. As I stated before I don't live anywhere affected by this nonsense but this is what I am paying for....a school for 66 kids. The whole thing is part of a community building/removal of prison stigma ---think FXCO turning the lorton prison area into reston or Columbia MD.

Bradsher wants nothing but community schools for her real constituents . And they define the community. FYI she still busses Hagel Circle to Halley. Multiple school construction later.......................................


2011
Lake Braddock
high +516
middle +338

soco
high -335
middle -306


2015
Lake Braddock
high +683
middle +326

soco
high -601
middle -392


With the construction of SOCO middle the capacity at the existing secondary school will go up to about 2100 removing the big negative number.
However SOCO does not exist in a vacuum. Pre construction numbers for Lake Braddock and SOCO combined show

82 surplus capacity for grades 9 through 12 in 2015 capacity for grades 7 through 8 in 2015
-66 capacity in grades 7 and 8

So if this was an independent school division[district] would the taxpayers be paying for a school for 66 students? A building that will have operating costs/staff/financing?

This is what Bradsher has done. Finally note that SOCO also has in boundary middle school students now at Lake Braddock secondary school for GT centers. The bus is running.

Great post. This is a giant scam, and the fact that taxpayers let Liz Bradsher get away with this garbage is totally ridiculous.

Bradsher lives in the Springfield Magisterial District. Lorton/South County Secondary is in the Mount Vernon Magisterial District. Hayfield-a close high school to South County is in the Lee District.

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/mountvernon/hot_topics.htm

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dpz/laurelhill/

Fairfax County wanted out of being the site for DC 's prison at Lorton- in the Mount Vernon District. Bradsher is in Springfield District with a Fairfax Station address . It appears her main schools are Silverbrook [Springfield District -FXstation address], Halley [Mt Vernon District-FXstation address], Newington Forest [MtVernon District-Springfield address].

All used to attend Hayfield for secondary school. All wanted out and into SOCO secondary so the place got overloaded. Years later they sent some areas back to Hayfield but apparently the Bradsher tight constituents are nearest to the Lake Braddock boundary so there is no movement there.

Gerry Connelly now in Congress ran FX county and other politicos let this all happen.

[Anonymous]

With the redevelopment of Lorton, there clearly was a need for additional schools in the area.

However, the way in which this has been implemented over the past 15 years is a disgrace and an embarassment. Bradsher and her friends are in the Silverbrook ES district, in Fairfax Station. Their entire agenda has been to do favors for well-connected groups who, at various times, wanted out of Hayfield (too many minorities) or wanted their yet another school (South County Middle) so they wouldn't have to go to other schools in the area with extra capacity. And, make no mistake about it, many of the middle and high schools in the Mount Vernon and Springfield areas have extra capacity.

Bradsher was elected to the School Board because of her work in getting South County SS bult. She then turned her attention to getting South County MS built, even though it's not needed. In doing so, she completely neglected West Springfield HS, which was in her district and falling apart. When the parents there finally started to organize, she saw that her political future was at risk, so she looked for ways to make amends with those parents. Her solution: close Clifton ES, a high-performing school that is closer to areas where there is actually OVER-CROWDING at the elementary school level, to free up some additional funds to renovate West Springfield sooner. When Clifton parents objected to this, she worked with FCPS Staff to manufacture BS reasons to close the school - water-quality issues that turned out to be non-issues; projections of declining enrollment that were based on incomplete data, etc. And she made it very personal, by attacking Clifton parents personally and exchanging catty, disparaging e-mails with her "gal pals" on the School Board (Kathy Smith, Tessie Wilson), who are no better than she is.

So what do we get, as taxpayers and parents, for all this? Widespread boundary changes throughout the SW part of the county that are more extensive than they needed to be, one less elementary school that could have been part of the solution to the overcrowding (rather than a contributor to it), more students at primary schools (apparently, 900 students is great for an elementary school now), costly additions to current schools, and the prospect of trailers at some schools for many, many years.

Wake up, folks, and boot these clowns out of office.

[Anonymous]

Since the Clifton decision is final:


- then I will comment that the proposed boundary changes do a pretty good job of ensuring community boundaries are well aligned with the schools.

Now, coming back to Clifton - how many kids were impacted ie had to move to a new school because of the closing?

Has it already closed or starting 2011 no students will go there?