APS - Elementary School Boundaries

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't tuned in a while and just looking at the final decisions.

So Reed will be over capacity and a bunch of those McKinley families are just on the chopping block again in 2 years and oh yeah, Reed is going to have no fields for the first year. And the McKinley people fought for this? I suppose it's what they're used to. Pack them in and no green space.

Yep, and the kids in my neighborhood who are easily walkable to Reed get bussed to Tuckahoe and then get to be the new kids at Reed in two years. It's not a tragedy, but it's stupid.

This is sort of the ongoing problem with boundary issues. Families with kids already in the school have an outsize voice, and they always push for no changes to the current arrangement. Whereas families with younger kids are usually unaware of the discussion, and then their kid starts kindergarten and they are like, wait why do I ride a bus to school instead of going to that school right there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't tuned in a while and just looking at the final decisions.

So Reed will be over capacity and a bunch of those McKinley families are just on the chopping block again in 2 years and oh yeah, Reed is going to have no fields for the first year. And the McKinley people fought for this? I suppose it's what they're used to. Pack them in and no green space.

Yep, and the kids in my neighborhood who are easily walkable to Reed get bussed to Tuckahoe and then get to be the new kids at Reed in two years. It's not a tragedy, but it's stupid.

This is sort of the ongoing problem with boundary issues. Families with kids already in the school have an outsize voice, and they always push for no changes to the current arrangement. Whereas families with younger kids are usually unaware of the discussion, and then their kid starts kindergarten and they are like, wait why do I ride a bus to school instead of going to that school right there.

An excellent reason for staff and the school board to deemphasize “engagement” and get out in the community, using their own eyes to inform many of these decisions. Take community opinion under advisement, but don’t be bullied into decisions by the most irate voices. And don’t take months to engage!

TT was SHOCKED, shocked I tell you! to learn that “advocates” for the Key community were less than comprehensive in the information they gave her. As if they, I don’t know- had an agenda or something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Boo hoo. You left out the fact that those kids are already at Tuckahoe. Spare us, Westover.

Like I said, stupid, not a tragedy.

The stupidity isn't about kids getting bussed. Who cares. My kids take the bus. It's actually quite convenient and a time saver and around here no kid is on the bus for long.

The stupidity is building a massive building towering over a commercial area which includes a public library and a post office that see a lot of traffic and THEN on top of that deciding to bus a bunch of kids there while others who could walk don't go there. Talk about no regard for the majority of the community (not just people who live in Westover) who use the area. Most people who live in Arlington don't have kids in APS schools currently and don't think about APS and are not paying any attention to any of this. But they'll feel the impacts. It's just stupid urban and transportation planning is what it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't tuned in a while and just looking at the final decisions.

So Reed will be over capacity and a bunch of those McKinley families are just on the chopping block again in 2 years and oh yeah, Reed is going to have no fields for the first year. And the McKinley people fought for this? I suppose it's what they're used to. Pack them in and no green space.

Yep, and the kids in my neighborhood who are easily walkable to Reed get bussed to Tuckahoe and then get to be the new kids at Reed in two years. It's not a tragedy, but it's stupid.

My prediction is the rest of the walkable PUs to Reed will never go there. Because McK 2022 will be ramped up to keep as many of them there as possible when the time comes. And in 2 years we're back to in-person insanity. Should be fun for the School Board. No wonder no one stays in the job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Boo hoo. You left out the fact that those kids are already at Tuckahoe. Spare us, Westover.

Like I said, stupid, not a tragedy.

The stupidity isn't about kids getting bussed. Who cares. My kids take the bus. It's actually quite convenient and a time saver and around here no kid is on the bus for long.

The stupidity is building a massive building towering over a commercial area which includes a public library and a post office that see a lot of traffic and THEN on top of that deciding to bus a bunch of kids there while others who could walk don't go there. Talk about no regard for the majority of the community (not just people who live in Westover) who use the area. Most people who live in Arlington don't have kids in APS schools currently and don't think about APS and are not paying any attention to any of this. But they'll feel the impacts. It's just stupid urban and transportation planning is what it is.

Indeed, didn't occur to me anyone thinks riding the bus in itself is a problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could someone PLEASE ask these "pause the boundary process" people how they can possibly be supporting any proposal that leaves a brand new school empty next year while other schools are overcrowded? People flip out when one school is at 83% and another is at 107%. These people are proposing we leave a brand new shiny elementary school at 0%. They're actually proposing that. And no, we do not need random extra space for DL, or whatever they're suggesting. We need permanent seats for kids.

Please someone call them on it. I'm not on AEM, or I would do it myself.

I’m in favor of moving McKinley to Reed and the domino option school moves, full stop. Grandfathering in 4th and 5th graders or taking planning units off the table because they were moved 1-2 years earlier will lead to partial solutions that never work towards a long term vision - because APS has no long term vision. Let’s live with the option schools move for 1-2 years as that supposedly buys a little time for Rosslyn. Then we can do a real boundary process for the whole county where every planning unit is in play.

Ding ding ding. APS has no long term vision -- that is obvious. Stengel is the worst part of it -- look at what she did with ASFS -- the enrollments/transfers change she forced through, then the swap which she then cancelled because it "didn't make sense", then forcing the boundary change (that freezes the entire eastern side of the county for any sort of comprehensive county wide change) during a pandemic. I think she just forces change so she has to correct it in the future and perpetuates her job. Such incompetence.

You are my spirit animal.

Stengel is completely incompetent and dishonest. Instead of saying, I don’t know or everything is still on the tables and I can’t make any promises, she has spent the last 3 years relying (and then lying) to different parent groups to do her due diligence, request help for sorting data, etc. I really don’t understand why she is allowed to remain in that job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Boo hoo. You left out the fact that those kids are already at Tuckahoe. Spare us, Westover.

Like I said, stupid, not a tragedy.

The stupidity isn't about kids getting bussed. Who cares. My kids take the bus. It's actually quite convenient and a time saver and around here no kid is on the bus for long.

The stupidity is building a massive building towering over a commercial area which includes a public library and a post office that see a lot of traffic and THEN on top of that deciding to bus a bunch of kids there while others who could walk don't go there. Talk about no regard for the majority of the community (not just people who live in Westover) who use the area. Most people who live in Arlington don't have kids in APS schools currently and don't think about APS and are not paying any attention to any of this. But they'll feel the impacts. It's just stupid urban and transportation planning is what it is.

Indeed, didn't occur to me anyone thinks riding the bus in itself is a problem.

Well then what was your point? Genuinely asking. That who cares if Westover is a traffic mess for the rest of the community? Keeping these kids together is more important?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They have a plan to help abingdon for 2021-22.

I didn't watch the meeting...did they say what the plan was for Abingdon?

I believe it was at the prior meeting where they said they would reach out and offer Abingdon students to move to Drew (or is it Fleet? Whichever one is under capacity).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There has been a shockingly limited amount of planning for the move of Key to the ATS building. I really hope that APS doesn't wreck its dual immersion program, which is literally world renowned.

Maybe because the Key parents keep trying to overturn the decision?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't tuned in a while and just looking at the final decisions.

So Reed will be over capacity and a bunch of those McKinley families are just on the chopping block again in 2 years and oh yeah, Reed is going to have no fields for the first year. And the McKinley people fought for this? I suppose it's what they're used to. Pack them in and no green space.

Yup. I think they should have just done the whole county, but apparently this is what people wanted.

And then they will all turn on each other and scream about who gets to stay at Reed in 2 years. What fun.

I honestly think the McKinley parents didn’t like the first draft and instead of advocating for small changes, they blew the whole thing up which led to the narrowed process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They have a plan to help abingdon for 2021-22.

I didn't watch the meeting...did they say what the plan was for Abingdon?

I believe it was at the prior meeting where they said they would reach out and offer Abingdon students to move to Drew (or is it Fleet? Whichever one is under capacity).

Interesting. Didn’t the Abington folks really fight hard against moving to Drew a year ago? What makes the SB think anyone is going to go there voluntarily?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven't tuned in a while and just looking at the final decisions.

So Reed will be over capacity and a bunch of those McKinley families are just on the chopping block again in 2 years and oh yeah, Reed is going to have no fields for the first year. And the McKinley people fought for this? I suppose it's what they're used to. Pack them in and no green space.

Incoming Reed family here- what’s up with the no fields? What does that mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't tuned in a while and just looking at the final decisions.

So Reed will be over capacity and a bunch of those McKinley families are just on the chopping block again in 2 years and oh yeah, Reed is going to have no fields for the first year. And the McKinley people fought for this? I suppose it's what they're used to. Pack them in and no green space.

Incoming Reed family here- what’s up with the no fields? What does that mean?

The County has to do a massive storm water project and the field adjacent to Reed will be torn up to do the work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They have a plan to help abingdon for 2021-22.

I didn't watch the meeting...did they say what the plan was for Abingdon?

I believe it was at the prior meeting where they said they would reach out and offer Abingdon students to move to Drew (or is it Fleet? Whichever one is under capacity).

Interesting. Didn’t the Abington folks really fight hard against moving to Drew a year ago? What makes the SB think anyone is going to go there voluntarily?

I’m considering it. The overcrowding is really bad, specifically for lunch and recess. I think if they kept the expanded walk zone (S Fairlington walks) but allowed for busses to Drew some people might take it.

[Anonymous]

There’s an informational meeting on January 14 for the immersion programs that has “Possible proposed Immersion boundary adjustments for 2021-22” on the agenda. I do not see any other information though.