how to address the under enrollment at Brookland Middle School

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can't fix under enrollment at Brookland so long as it feeds to Dunbar.

It's a sysiphean task.

It is a huge task but it can work. Stuart-Hobson feeds to Eastern but parents have made a lot of progress there in the last 20 years.

The key phrase is 20 years. I would imagine OP has a child who is already born, and will need a MS option she's confident in sooner than that.

I'm the OP, and have a K child. I don't think it would take 20 years to fill up the building. I think if they offer an IB program, there would be increased demand next year. Look at the incredible demand for charters that offer desirable programming. Many of them have no track record, and terrible facilities. And yet the people flock to them. This isn't that hard.

[Anonymous]

OP - I'd suggest you go find the DCPS docs from when they were planning the school.

I think IB was discussed and rejected, for some reason. It will help you to find out why and how things got to where they are now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can't fix under enrollment at Brookland so long as it feeds to Dunbar.

It's a sysiphean task.

It is a huge task but it can work. Stuart-Hobson feeds to Eastern but parents have made a lot of progress there in the last 20 years.

The key phrase is 20 years. I would imagine OP has a child who is already born, and will need a MS option she's confident in sooner than that.

I'm the OP, and have a K child. I don't think it would take 20 years to fill up the building. I think if they offer an IB program, there would be increased demand next year. Look at the incredible demand for charters that offer desirable programming. Many of them have no track record, and terrible facilities. And yet the people flock to them. This isn't that hard.

I think the rules are kind of different when you're talking about middle school vs. elementary school. People are a lot less willing to take a chance on an unproven school or a school with a history of problems that is under new leadership or going in a new direction.

I think that if the quality of education being provided at Brookland is good, people SHOULD take a chance on it, but I doubt they will.

[Anonymous]

It's going to take time and consistent outreach by the school. Plus, it takes financial investment. School budgets are calculated based on enrollment numbers and upward adjustments for ELA and special education students. But, when a school is new and struggling to build enrollment, I really think there has to be additional investment from DCPS. So that the school can add a few more bells and whistles; so that staff can be compensated for after-hours promotion activities; money to fund a community event or two (a fair or festival) that will allow families to check out the school in a casual way; funding for quality after school activities and clubs.

I have to assume that the PTA at Brookland is likely fledging and they aren't raising much money. DCPS has to step in and make up for the lack in fundraising for "extras" if they want Brookland to attract middle class families.

For example, one of the most important tools for a school is their website but in DC, it's every school for themselves. So wealthier schools with more parents with professional degrees and more ability to volunteer have nicer websites, monthly enewsletters and a focus on timely communication. Usually some techie parent has volunteered to run the website or some parent who works in communications has offered to handle the newsletter. But when you have a school that doesn't have the parent volunteer base, it results in limited communications and not-so-great websites. If DCPS wants Brookland to thrive it should give the principal extra money in her budget to hire someone to do the website.

And the most important thing, in my opinion, is having GREAT teachers and allowing prospective families to meet them. The principal should tout her teaching staff. Write up bios for each one and have them on the website. How long have they been teaching? Where did they go to college? Any awards? Why do they teach? What inspires them?

[Anonymous]

Brookland apparently has something called a "Behavior Team." What the heck is that? A team dedicated just to dealing with student behavior? That's the sort of thing that the school needs to think about...what the optics are. I see that on the website and I immediately assume behavior is a huge problem at Brookland.

[Anonymous]

OP - have you seen this thread from 2014?

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/431504.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can't fix under enrollment at Brookland so long as it feeds to Dunbar.

It's a sysiphean task.

It is a huge task but it can work. Stuart-Hobson feeds to Eastern but parents have made a lot of progress there in the last 20 years.

The key phrase is 20 years. I would imagine OP has a child who is already born, and will need a MS option she's confident in sooner than that.

Right. You aren't going to get there on current parents. But I have been involved in our IB since my daughter was fetal, and I'm going to stay involved long after she lotteries out. Many of our best team members don't even have kids or are local businesses. It is a long term process and if you only care about your own kid, understand that others take a broader view.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Brookland apparently has something called a "Behavior Team." What the heck is that? A team dedicated just to dealing with student behavior? That's the sort of thing that the school needs to think about...what the optics are. I see that on the website and I immediately assume behavior is a huge problem at Brookland.

I love the idea and think the optics are great. Everyone knows there is a behavior issue. It is middle school FFS. Better to face up and acknowledge it, than try and fail to hide the reality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Brookland apparently has something called a "Behavior Team." What the heck is that? A team dedicated just to dealing with student behavior? That's the sort of thing that the school needs to think about...what the optics are. I see that on the website and I immediately assume behavior is a huge problem at Brookland.

I don't know what this means specifically at Brookland, but we have behavior techs at our DCPS elementary school too. They work with kids who have behavioral issues. The kids usually have some kind of special education designation and get services through the behavior team.

You are overreacting. If behavior was "a huge problem" there would be more than 2 behavior techs on staff. That you care more about the optics of having the words "behavior team" on the website than providing support for kids who need behavioral support says a lot more about you than it does about the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Brookland apparently has something called a "Behavior Team." What the heck is that? A team dedicated just to dealing with student behavior? That's the sort of thing that the school needs to think about...what the optics are. I see that on the website and I immediately assume behavior is a huge problem at Brookland.

I don't know what this means specifically at Brookland, but we have behavior techs at our DCPS elementary school too. They work with kids who have behavioral issues. The kids usually have some kind of special education designation and get services through the behavior team.

You are overreacting. If behavior was "a huge problem" there would be more than 2 behavior techs on staff. That you care more about the optics of having the words "behavior team" on the website than providing support for kids who need behavioral support says a lot more about you than it does about the school.

+1. Two behavior techs is not many. That's about the minimum any school should have to keep up with normal middle school drama.

[Anonymous]

Behavior tech is a job title that just means an aide with some behavior training. They are your go-to people for all kinds of things that come up during the day and can help you maintain order and ratio when unexpected things come up. Great for all those random times that a kid barfs and the nurse is out, sports injuries, breakup drama crying, helping out substitute teachers, whatever comes up. I wish we had more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Behavior tech is a job title that just means an aide with some behavior training. They are your go-to people for all kinds of things that come up during the day and can help you maintain order and ratio when unexpected things come up. Great for all those random times that a kid barfs and the nurse is out, sports injuries, breakup drama crying, helping out substitute teachers, whatever comes up. I wish we had more.

Sounds great. A different, more positive title might be better, particularly when you describe what they often do...which is NOT all about "behavior."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - have you seen this thread from 2014?

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/431504.page

No I hadn't; thanks for finding and sharing that link. Clearly I'm not the first person to ever raise these issues!

I do wish that DCPS would take the comments of the parents asking for more rigorous programming seriously now than they did before the school opened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's going to take time and consistent outreach by the school. Plus, it takes financial investment. School budgets are calculated based on enrollment numbers and upward adjustments for ELA and special education students. But, when a school is new and struggling to build enrollment, I really think there has to be additional investment from DCPS. So that the school can add a few more bells and whistles; so that staff can be compensated for after-hours promotion activities; money to fund a community event or two (a fair or festival) that will allow families to check out the school in a casual way; funding for quality after school activities and clubs.

I have to assume that the PTA at Brookland is likely fledging and they aren't raising much money. DCPS has to step in and make up for the lack in fundraising for "extras" if they want Brookland to attract middle class families.

For example, one of the most important tools for a school is their website but in DC, it's every school for themselves. So wealthier schools with more parents with professional degrees and more ability to volunteer have nicer websites, monthly enewsletters and a focus on timely communication. Usually some techie parent has volunteered to run the website or some parent who works in communications has offered to handle the newsletter. But when you have a school that doesn't have the parent volunteer base, it results in limited communications and not-so-great websites. If DCPS wants Brookland to thrive it should give the principal extra money in her budget to hire someone to do the website.

And the most important thing, in my opinion, is having GREAT teachers and allowing prospective families to meet them. The principal should tout her teaching staff. Write up bios for each one and have them on the website. How long have they been teaching? Where did they go to college? Any awards? Why do they teach? What inspires them?

I agree with a lot of what you're saying, but I disagree that these things are all necessary to increase parental interest. Just look at what BASIS is doing with its middle school. It has terrible facilities, and very little money. Yet it offers a desirable program, and people are flocking to it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's going to take time and consistent outreach by the school. Plus, it takes financial investment. School budgets are calculated based on enrollment numbers and upward adjustments for ELA and special education students. But, when a school is new and struggling to build enrollment, I really think there has to be additional investment from DCPS. So that the school can add a few more bells and whistles; so that staff can be compensated for after-hours promotion activities; money to fund a community event or two (a fair or festival) that will allow families to check out the school in a casual way; funding for quality after school activities and clubs.

I have to assume that the PTA at Brookland is likely fledging and they aren't raising much money. DCPS has to step in and make up for the lack in fundraising for "extras" if they want Brookland to attract middle class families.

For example, one of the most important tools for a school is their website but in DC, it's every school for themselves. So wealthier schools with more parents with professional degrees and more ability to volunteer have nicer websites, monthly enewsletters and a focus on timely communication. Usually some techie parent has volunteered to run the website or some parent who works in communications has offered to handle the newsletter. But when you have a school that doesn't have the parent volunteer base, it results in limited communications and not-so-great websites. If DCPS wants Brookland to thrive it should give the principal extra money in her budget to hire someone to do the website.

And the most important thing, in my opinion, is having GREAT teachers and allowing prospective families to meet them. The principal should tout her teaching staff. Write up bios for each one and have them on the website. How long have they been teaching? Where did they go to college? Any awards? Why do they teach? What inspires them?

I agree with a lot of what you're saying, but I disagree that these things are all necessary to increase parental interest. Just look at what BASIS is doing with its middle school. It has terrible facilities, and very little money. Yet it offers a desirable program, and people are flocking to it.

Yeah, but BASIS is a charter, not DCPS, which means BASIS has a lot more freedom in how it is organized and ran, how it compensates it's staff, etc. And BASIS DC is, to some extent, riding the reputational coattails of its counterparts in Arizona. Just take a look at the recent US News Best Schools listings....BASIS in AZ ranks top on many lists. And BASIS was founded on the reputation of being hyper-rigorous. All of those things together made BASIS DC a school that higher SES families would consider. I think DCPS was banking that a beautiful new building together with a former, very successful, principal from Janney at the helm of Brookland would be enough to attract families. DCPS needs to do more.