Proposed options for AAP Center changes as part of Annandale boundary study

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
or maybe they're just interested in their kids going to a school that's not overcrowded

Parents virtually never ask to have their kids transferred from overcrowded schools to less highly rated schools with extra capacity. FCPS told parents at Westfield their school was over-crowded and they fought tooth and nail against the reassignment to South Lakes.

Nah, that's not it.

[Anonymous]

Interesting that the county suddenly increased Lake Braddock's capacity to 4500 from 4075 just when needed. LB middle school went over capacity the beginning of the school year when we added Ravensworth ES. The HS was at 99% capacity. An in depth capacity study was performed after renovation and had us at 4075. What changed 1 yr. Later? They decided to count the Little Theater and Lecture Hall as classroom space. Maybe they can count the bathrooms next year and get room for 200 more.

[Anonymous]

Option 3 is good because it eliminates the split feeder, but woodson is already under capacity - why would they reduce capacity even further? It is would also be very understandable that WF woodson parents would be very angry at being moved out of such a good school while those in the ahs section woudl be thrilled. Don't think there would be too much drop in home values though - I always heard that LBHS was very good, maybe just not quite as good as woodson - but not like ahs. Quite a drive too - to lbhs. Seems like #2 is the better choice - just have to expand frost a bit. Is the county willing to spend the money to do that? Is there even money to do it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that the county suddenly increased Lake Braddock's capacity to 4500 from 4075 just when needed. LB middle school went over capacity the beginning of the school year when we added Ravensworth ES. The HS was at 99% capacity. An in depth capacity study was performed after renovation and had us at 4075. What changed 1 yr. Later? They decided to count the Little Theater and Lecture Hall as classroom space. Maybe they can count the bathrooms next year and get room for 200 more.

Yes, that's concerning and makes me think the fix is in to do Option 3, and the whole process is just window dressing. Oh well. I'll be pleasantly surprised if it doesn't happen, I guess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Option 3 is good because it eliminates the split feeder, but woodson is already under capacity - why would they reduce capacity even further? It is would also be very understandable that WF woodson parents would be very angry at being moved out of such a good school while those in the ahs section woudl be thrilled. Don't think there would be too much drop in home values though - I always heard that LBHS was very good, maybe just not quite as good as woodson - but not like ahs. Quite a drive too - to lbhs. Seems like #2 is the better choice - just have to expand frost a bit. Is the county willing to spend the money to do that? Is there even money to do it?

They wouldn't propose to move kids out of Woodson to LBSS but for the overcrowding at Frost. It will impact RE values negatively if it happens, but not by too much.

[Anonymous]

Can Annandale maintain its academic standards and athletic prowess if more of its middle/upper income neighborhoods are siphoned off? For decades Annandale was a solid middle class school and a regional sports powerhouse. Back in the 90s the school won back to back state football titles, and is currently on the way to another state lacrosse title.

Why not gerrymander some lower income apartment complexes in Annandale into Lake Braddock or Falls Church, which have capacity? There should be more options on the table.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can Annandale maintain its academic standards and athletic prowess if more of its middle/upper income neighborhoods are siphoned off? For decades Annandale was a solid middle class school and a regional sports powerhouse. Back in the 90s the school won back to back state football titles, and is currently on the way to another state lacrosse title.

Why not gerrymander some lower income apartment complexes in Annandale into Lake Braddock or Falls Church, which have capacity? There should be more options on the table.

I agree this would be preferable. I think the problem is that most of the elementary schools in the Annandale pyramid (except Wakefield Forest) are K-5, and the middle schools in the Lake Braddock and Falls Church pyramids are 7-8.

The whole existing system is very messed up, the result of 40 years of ad hoc changes. What they need to do is scrap it all and start over, but of course that won't happen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I chose to live where I do because of the current boundaries for the high schools.

Yes, most FCPS parents do just that.

http://www.fcps.edu/fts/planning/annandalestudy/regional/pdfs/faq.pdf

Annandale High School is one of the most overcrowded high school, both in the region and in the county, with a current building utilization, including the 14 room modular installed this year, of 101% and which is projected to increase to 115% by the 2016-17 school year. Changes in the area’s demographics, housing, and economy, etc. are attributable to the rise in student enrollments. Much growth has occurred countywide, and with this, the need may arise to adjust some school boundaries so that schools can better serve their student populations. Understandably, school attendance area adjustments can be an emotional process, not just from families facing the possibility of changes to their school attendance areas, but from alumni who relocate to the area, and community members. The Annandale Regional Study aims to achieve the best possible outcome for students through more balanced enrollments and efficient student accommodation planning to meet the needs for existing and future students in the region.

My guess is that the "unemotional" parents who purport to see this objectively and favor options #2 and 3 are WF parents zoned to Poe/Annandale who will see a nice boost in their property values if their children are reassigned to either Frost/Woodson or Lake Braddock.

[Anonymous]

!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The whole existing system is very messed up, the result of 40 years of ad hoc changes. What they need to do is scrap it all and start over, but of course that won't happen.

Agreed. Maybe a new School Board will help that along.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that the county suddenly increased Lake Braddock's capacity to 4500 from 4075 just when needed. LB middle school went over capacity the beginning of the school year when we added Ravensworth ES. The HS was at 99% capacity. An in depth capacity study was performed after renovation and had us at 4075. What changed 1 yr. Later? They decided to count the Little Theater and Lecture Hall as classroom space. Maybe they can count the bathrooms next year and get room for 200 more.

Yes, that's concerning and makes me think the fix is in to do Option 3, and the whole process is just window dressing. Oh well. I'll be pleasantly surprised if it doesn't happen, I guess.

I don't see how they pick anything but Option 1. It doesn't fully fix the problem, but it doesn't make too many people angry and I'm guessing AHS performance/rating would appear to go up given the VERY high percentage of ESOL kids who are sent to Edison under this plan. They took Ravensworth two years ago, no way the Mason District rep lets them take the middle class neighborhoods again. This is less about fixing capacity/overcrowding and more about the appearance of improving performance. I wonder what the Edison rep thinks about that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I don't see how they pick anything but Option 1. It doesn't fully fix the problem, but it doesn't make too many people angry and I'm guessing AHS performance/rating would appear to go up given the VERY high percentage of ESOL kids who are sent to Edison under this plan. They took Ravensworth two years ago, no way the Mason District rep lets them take the middle class neighborhoods again. This is less about fixing capacity/overcrowding and more about the appearance of improving performance. I wonder what the Edison rep thinks about that.

Annandale is the most overcrowded high school in the county now, so the goal is to alleviate the overcrowding, not improve the test scores. It makes sense that Edison is part of the solution, because it's being renovated to accommodate more students. But only moving some kids to Edison won't fully address the overcrowding, so it's likely that FCPS will end up doing something closer to Options #2 or #3 than #1.

Annandale isn't in the Mason District. It's in the Braddock District. Even though most of the students who attend the school live in Mason, it's ultimately Tessie Wilson, not Sandy Evans, who has the most say over what happens to the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Annandale isn't in the Mason District. It's in the Braddock District. Even though most of the students who attend the school live in Mason, it's ultimately Tessie Wilson, not Sandy Evans, who has the most say over what happens to the school.

Annandale High School is in the Mason District due to the recent (April 26, 2011) redistricting of Bristow precinct from Braddock to Mason.

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/redistricting/redistricting-plan.htm

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Annandale isn't in the Mason District. It's in the Braddock District. Even though most of the students who attend the school live in Mason, it's ultimately Tessie Wilson, not Sandy Evans, who has the most say over what happens to the school.

Annandale High School is in the Mason District due to the recent (April 26, 2011) redistricting of Bristow precinct from Braddock to Mason.

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/redistricting/redistricting-plan.htm

Right you are. Wonder whether Sandy will try and stop anything that sends the Wakefield Forest kids to Woodson or Lake Braddock.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Annandale isn't in the Mason District. It's in the Braddock District. Even though most of the students who attend the school live in Mason, it's ultimately Tessie Wilson, not Sandy Evans, who has the most say over what happens to the school.

Annandale High School is in the Mason District due to the recent (April 26, 2011) redistricting of Bristow precinct from Braddock to Mason.

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/redistricting/redistricting-plan.htm

Right you are. Wonder whether Sandy will try and stop anything that sends the Wakefield Forest kids to Woodson or Lake Braddock.

Yes, it's Sandy's now - and the other 11 (or at least most) will likely fall in line with whatever she says. That seems to be the way it works on the school board. No one really wants to meddle in someone else's district. Of course, a bunch of them are not running again in the fall, so maybe there's a first time for everything.