Thoughts on McKinley or Discovery?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The irony here is that an awful lot of the people complaining about the elementary school overcrowding moved to Arlington for the schools when those schools were already at capacity, and therefore are the root cause of the very situation they are decrying.

Those people are not tasked with creating space for students in the schools, so no, they are not the root cause of the problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The irony here is that an awful lot of the people complaining about the elementary school overcrowding moved to Arlington for the schools when those schools were already at capacity, and therefore are the root cause of the very situation they are decrying.

Those people are not tasked with creating space for students in the schools, so no, they are not the root cause of the problem.

If you moved into this area with school-aged kids in the past five years (arguably even further back than that), when there was no way you could miss that there was an overcrowding issue, then you are absolutely part of the problem and you have zero basis to complain because you chose this.

The school board can't create more seats with money and land they don't have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The irony here is that an awful lot of the people complaining about the elementary school overcrowding moved to Arlington for the schools when those schools were already at capacity, and therefore are the root cause of the very situation they are decrying.

Those people are not tasked with creating space for students in the schools, so no, they are not the root cause of the problem.

If you moved into this area with school-aged kids in the past five years (arguably even further back than that), when there was no way you could miss that there was an overcrowding issue, then you are absolutely part of the problem and you have zero basis to complain because you chose this.

The school board can't create more seats with money and land they don't have.

BS. There's no shortage of money or land. It's a lack of foresight and institutional will to make it happen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The irony here is that an awful lot of the people complaining about the elementary school overcrowding moved to Arlington for the schools when those schools were already at capacity, and therefore are the root cause of the very situation they are decrying.

Those people are not tasked with creating space for students in the schools, so no, they are not the root cause of the problem.

If you moved into this area with school-aged kids in the past five years (arguably even further back than that), when there was no way you could miss that there was an overcrowding issue, then you are absolutely part of the problem and you have zero basis to complain because you chose this.

The school board can't create more seats with money and land they don't have.

BS. There's no shortage of money or land. It's a lack of foresight and institutional will to make it happen.

Says the person who hasn't actually been focused on the issue at all or you'd know how ignorant that sounds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:


It's takes money and space to build more schools. Space is hard to find, and there's a large enough population that doesn't have school-aged kids and who are increasingly pushing back on school bonds. The board had to keep the bonds more modest or they risk them not getting passed at all, but it means there's simply less funding for school infrastructure than the county needs to keep up with the growing school-aged population.

Yeah, those old timers who got to send their kids through APS without worrying about overcrowding, who refuse to return their underutilized community centers back to schools, and who, at the same time, want their real estate taxes to be indefinitely deferred. You know, so that their heirs don't even have to pay the county back when their home is sold to a developed for ten times what they paid for it in 1960 whatever.

which underutilized community centers specifically do you think should be converted to school use?

Have you ever set foot in Madison? I took a class there and that place is a ghost town!!!! Very nice sized lot too:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Madison+Community+Center/@38.923666,-77.1245111,329m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89b7b5ece5c6a571:0xfe5f5803dd202ea3!8m2!3d38.9232564!4d-77.1236085

Have you ever set foot in Jennie Dean park? I played tennis there once and it's a dump. I saw a few people walking dogs but really it was like the world's lonelines park on a Saturday afternoon. Another very large sized lot.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Jennie+Dean+Park/@38.8432346,-77.0903567,441m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89b7b14ef8e640b7:0xde14584f847b663d!8m2!3d38.8432304!4d-77.088168

The county board is just pathetic at addressing the overcrowding of the schools. The APS is also limited in its ability in my opinion. Between the both of these groups, I'm thoroughly sick of paying my taxes and having my kid in an elementary grade classroom of 27 kids at a school with no fields because all the outdoor space is filled with trailers.

I was thinking of Madison when I made that comment. I was also thinking of Lubber Run, but I think it will wind up being better utilized after the renovation. Jennie Dean is in a flood plain, and APS will not build there ever, with good reason. Funny enough, when looking into this issue the SAWG learned that while the county won't build schools in the flood plain, they will build committed affordable housing. Hope the residents of Arlington Mill were given life preservers when they moved in.

[Anonymous]

What happened to the greatschools.org demographic info on APS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

which underutilized community centers specifically do you think should be converted to school use?

Have you ever set foot in Madison? I took a class there and that place is a ghost town!!!! Very nice sized lot too:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Madison+Community+Center/@38.923666,-77.1245111,329m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89b7b5ece5c6a571:0xfe5f5803dd202ea3!8m2!3d38.9232564!4d-77.1236085

Have you ever set foot in Jennie Dean park? I played tennis there once and it's a dump. I saw a few people walking dogs but really it was like the world's lonelines park on a Saturday afternoon. Another very large sized lot.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Jennie+Dean+Park/@38.8432346,-77.0903567,441m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89b7b14ef8e640b7:0xde14584f847b663d!8m2!3d38.8432304!4d-77.088168

The county board is just pathetic at addressing the overcrowding of the schools. The APS is also limited in its ability in my opinion. Between the both of these groups, I'm thoroughly sick of paying my taxes and having my kid in an elementary grade classroom of 27 kids at a school with no fields because all the outdoor space is filled with trailers.

I was thinking of Madison when I made that comment. I was also thinking of Lubber Run, but I think it will wind up being better utilized after the renovation. Jennie Dean is in a flood plain, and APS will not build there ever, with good reason. Funny enough, when looking into this issue the SAWG learned that while the county won't build schools in the flood plain, they will build committed affordable housing. Hope the residents of Arlington Mill were given life preservers when they moved in.

PART of Jennie Dean is a flood plain. It's a 22-acre site!!! The parts that have AC buildings are not in the flood plain, for instance. I think there's a lot more potential here than anyone is letting on...

The bottom line is: Arlington has some spaces, but not many. The County Board has to decide that giving up a totally underused senior center makes sense. The County Board has to decide that the 22 acre park might have some space that could be used for better good. Will the CB make these tough choices? Not as far as I'm seeing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

which underutilized community centers specifically do you think should be converted to school use?

Have you ever set foot in Madison? I took a class there and that place is a ghost town!!!! Very nice sized lot too:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Madison+Community+Center/@38.923666,-77.1245111,329m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89b7b5ece5c6a571:0xfe5f5803dd202ea3!8m2!3d38.9232564!4d-77.1236085

Have you ever set foot in Jennie Dean park? I played tennis there once and it's a dump. I saw a few people walking dogs but really it was like the world's lonelines park on a Saturday afternoon. Another very large sized lot.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Jennie+Dean+Park/@38.8432346,-77.0903567,441m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89b7b14ef8e640b7:0xde14584f847b663d!8m2!3d38.8432304!4d-77.088168

The county board is just pathetic at addressing the overcrowding of the schools. The APS is also limited in its ability in my opinion. Between the both of these groups, I'm thoroughly sick of paying my taxes and having my kid in an elementary grade classroom of 27 kids at a school with no fields because all the outdoor space is filled with trailers.

I was thinking of Madison when I made that comment. I was also thinking of Lubber Run, but I think it will wind up being better utilized after the renovation. Jennie Dean is in a flood plain, and APS will not build there ever, with good reason. Funny enough, when looking into this issue the SAWG learned that while the county won't build schools in the flood plain, they will build committed affordable housing. Hope the residents of Arlington Mill were given life preservers when they moved in.

PART of Jennie Dean is a flood plain. It's a 22-acre site!!! The parts that have AC buildings are not in the flood plain, for instance. I think there's a lot more potential here than anyone is letting on...

The bottom line is: Arlington has some spaces, but not many. The County Board has to decide that giving up a totally underused senior center makes sense. The County Board has to decide that the 22 acre park might have some space that could be used for better good. Will the CB make these tough choices? Not as far as I'm seeing.

Madison Community Center is up between Jamestown and Taylor. You could build a third elementary school in that tiny corner of Arlington, but what you'd end up with is another Discovery, way under capacity while other schools are still over capacity because it's not cost-effective from a transit perspective to send more kids there.

Jennie Dean is right between Drew and Abingdon. Doesn't Abingdon have a significant expansion coming online this school year that's expected to leave it significantly under capacity? Seems foolish to put a third elementary school down there for the same reason it doesn't seem like a good use of funds to put an elementary school on the Madison site.

[Anonymous]

Besides. They plan to build sports complexes and performance venues at Jennie Dean.
The dog park will be lucky if it stays.

You aren't getting a school there, so don't even think about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Besides. They plan to build sports complexes and performance venues at Jennie Dean.
The dog park will be lucky if it stays.

You aren't getting a school there, so don't even think about it.

A prime example of lack of institutional will and not land or money. I am so tired of the County Board and APS acting like they aren't part of the same government.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Besides. They plan to build sports complexes and performance venues at Jennie Dean.
The dog park will be lucky if it stays.

You aren't getting a school there, so don't even think about it.

A prime example of lack of institutional will and not land or money. I am so tired of the County Board and APS acting like they aren't part of the same government.

Jennie Dean isn't a good site for a school. Part of smart growth is smart use of land parcels. In addition to the reason noted above why it doesn't make sense to put an elementary school there, putting a middle school or high school there necessarily will have to draw from some of the highest FARMS rate areas in the county, and will only exacerbate the socioeconomic division in the county. New middle and high schools should be located in places that will encourage more diverse schools, not less.

[Anonymous]

Probably THE biggest thing they can do to alleviate crowding north of Rt 50 is turn ATS into a neighborhood school and re-locate the program. Will never happen, the ATS lobby is too strong, in the same way that it's next to impossible to get HB Woodlawn's population meaningfully increased.

I don't know enough about the population and capacity at schools south of 50 other than that Claremont and Oakridge are also severely over-enrolled, so I don't have solutions.

Point being, there IS land, APS just doesn't have the will to use it properly. I'm so disappointed that Lander and Talento caved to Van Doren and agreed to extend Murphy's contract. The guy is a joke, and his staff have shown themselves to make error after error without consequence to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Probably THE biggest thing they can do to alleviate crowding north of Rt 50 is turn ATS into a neighborhood school and re-locate the program. Will never happen, the ATS lobby is too strong, in the same way that it's next to impossible to get HB Woodlawn's population meaningfully increased.

I don't know enough about the population and capacity at schools south of 50 other than that Claremont and Oakridge are also severely over-enrolled, so I don't have solutions.

Point being, there IS land, APS just doesn't have the will to use it properly. I'm so disappointed that Lander and Talento caved to Van Doren and agreed to extend Murphy's contract. The guy is a joke, and his staff have shown themselves to make error after error without consequence to them.

Agree 100%

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Probably THE biggest thing they can do to alleviate crowding north of Rt 50 is turn ATS into a neighborhood school and re-locate the program. Will never happen, the ATS lobby is too strong, in the same way that it's next to impossible to get HB Woodlawn's population meaningfully increased.

.

From listening to the last school board work session- I think this is likely to happen (or it is likely to be abolished.) Part of the strategic plan is to take another look at the role of choice schools in APS, and how they fit into the instructional model. I would think I realistic look at ATS would find that its only real distinctive is that it is small- and does that fit into the APS instructional model? I would think not. The other part they stated was to look at the location of choice schools and does it still make sense. I think if ATS does survive- it is likely to be moved to one of the elementary sites with the smallest footprint that has other nearby elementary schools. I would tend to think that means Randolph. It could also possibly be the Madison school site- if they go with a dividing the county with choice on both sides perspective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Probably THE biggest thing they can do to alleviate crowding north of Rt 50 is turn ATS into a neighborhood school and re-locate the program. Will never happen, the ATS lobby is too strong, in the same way that it's next to impossible to get HB Woodlawn's population meaningfully increased.

.

From listening to the last school board work session- I think this is likely to happen (or it is likely to be abolished.) Part of the strategic plan is to take another look at the role of choice schools in APS, and how they fit into the instructional model. I would think I realistic look at ATS would find that its only real distinctive is that it is small- and does that fit into the APS instructional model? I would think not. The other part they stated was to look at the location of choice schools and does it still make sense. I think if ATS does survive- it is likely to be moved to one of the elementary sites with the smallest footprint that has other nearby elementary schools. I would tend to think that means Randolph. It could also possibly be the Madison school site- if they go with a dividing the county with choice on both sides perspective.

I will be shocked if they eliminate ATS. Shocked! I tend to agree that they don't have a distinct educational model, though the school does have a distinct culture. More likely they will be moved rather than eliminated because, like HB, they have a lot of clout.