School Boundaries and "One Fairfax"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Poor Lee & Herndon. Nobody wants to go there.
People trying to rationalize why someone else's kid should go instead of their own.

The rationalization is that most people bought their houses based off the high school pattern and spent a lot more than someone in another lower performing district.

When youbare talking about 100K or more of value for your house, rezoning matters tremendously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Poor Lee & Herndon. Nobody wants to go there.
People trying to rationalize why someone else's kid should go instead of their own.

I sometimes wonder if the best solution for Lee is to close it as a neighborhood school and send all the feeders elsewhere. Almost every HS on this side of the county is under-enrolled, minus Edison and WS. (And West Potomac, but they don’t directly share a border.) I know it was talked about at one point (turning Lee into an IB magnet for the county and taking IB out of the nearby schools) but decided against. If you have all these schools under capacity, maybe they just don’t need so many schools.

I think Lee should be a trades magnet, or house all the academy programs for that part of the county.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:They should change the Lee/West Springfield boundaries for sure. Top reason for changes is to address overcrowding. Sounds like that’s been an ongoing problem at WSHS.

It is not an issue. That was a temporary issue.

FCPS has West Springfield at 10% over capacity by 2023.

The West Springfield boundaries are hard because they’re relatively compact, not all gerrymandered like the boundaries are in the western part of the county. The most logical thing to do there isn’t to send kids to Lee, it’s to send kids from the southern part of the attendance area to also under-enrolled but physically closer South County. But, if the decisions have to be made with an eye toward balancing SES factors, that would mean sending feeders to Lee even if it makes Lee have a huge attendance area.

NP: not gerrymandered? Daventry played so many games to get realigned from lee to ws. They should have been moving all the houses along okm up until Greely to Lee to alleviate wshs overcrowding pre renovation. Instead, the wealthiest lee subset managed to get realigned to ws. Saratoga houses are trying to follow suit to south county. I taught at key for years. The boundaries are made not by what benefits the majority of children, but what benefits the wealthiest of children.

Not at all gerrymandered.

It is a compact circle, not a bunch of tentacles.

WSHS is set up like a neighborhood school. Fcps should use that as a model. If you look at results, the neighborhood school works well for all the kids, especially lower performing groups.

Daventry and Hunt Valley should never have been moved out of Lee. They were by far the wealthiest elementary schools feeding Lee. Both single digit F/R lunch numbers. All the other feeders are high F/R. Lee has also been several hundred students under enrolled since they moved Hunt Valley out.

There is no going back now. FCPS screwed Lee.

Hunt Valley is the farthest WSHS neighborhood from Lee.

There are the least logical elementary to be rezoned to Lee. There are more than a half dozen elementary schools between hunt valley and Lee HS.

Straight down the Parkway from Gambrill is an easy drive to Lee for Hunt Valley students. That does not take you by any other elementary schools. Though it does take you through the Rolling Valley area - the part that goes to Lee.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They should change the Lee/West Springfield boundaries for sure. Top reason for changes is to address overcrowding. Sounds like that’s been an ongoing problem at WSHS.

It is not an issue. That was a temporary issue.

FCPS has West Springfield at 10% over capacity by 2023.

The West Springfield boundaries are hard because they’re relatively compact, not all gerrymandered like the boundaries are in the western part of the county. The most logical thing to do there isn’t to send kids to Lee, it’s to send kids from the southern part of the attendance area to also under-enrolled but physically closer South County. But, if the decisions have to be made with an eye toward balancing SES factors, that would mean sending feeders to Lee even if it makes Lee have a huge attendance area.

NP: not gerrymandered? Daventry played so many games to get realigned from lee to ws. They should have been moving all the houses along okm up until Greely to Lee to alleviate wshs overcrowding pre renovation. Instead, the wealthiest lee subset managed to get realigned to ws. Saratoga houses are trying to follow suit to south county. I taught at key for years. The boundaries are made not by what benefits the majority of children, but what benefits the wealthiest of children.

Not at all gerrymandered.

It is a compact circle, not a bunch of tentacles.

WSHS is set up like a neighborhood school. Fcps should use that as a model. If you look at results, the neighborhood school works well for all the kids, especially lower performing groups.

Daventry and Hunt Valley should never have been moved out of Lee. They were by far the wealthiest elementary schools feeding Lee. Both single digit F/R lunch numbers. All the other feeders are high F/R. Lee has also been several hundred students under enrolled since they moved Hunt Valley out.

There is no going back now. FCPS screwed Lee.

Hunt Valley is the farthest WSHS neighborhood from Lee.

There are the least logical elementary to be rezoned to Lee. There are more than a half dozen elementary schools between hunt valley and Lee HS.

Straight down the Parkway from Gambrill is an easy drive to Lee for Hunt Valley students. That does not take you by any other elementary schools. Though it does take you through the Rolling Valley area - the part that goes to Lee.

The parkway takes HV kids past at least 4 other elementary schools.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:They should change the Lee/West Springfield boundaries for sure. Top reason for changes is to address overcrowding. Sounds like that’s been an ongoing problem at WSHS.

It is not an issue. That was a temporary issue.

FCPS has West Springfield at 10% over capacity by 2023.

The West Springfield boundaries are hard because they’re relatively compact, not all gerrymandered like the boundaries are in the western part of the county. The most logical thing to do there isn’t to send kids to Lee, it’s to send kids from the southern part of the attendance area to also under-enrolled but physically closer South County. But, if the decisions have to be made with an eye toward balancing SES factors, that would mean sending feeders to Lee even if it makes Lee have a huge attendance area.

NP: not gerrymandered? Daventry played so many games to get realigned from lee to ws. They should have been moving all the houses along okm up until Greely to Lee to alleviate wshs overcrowding pre renovation. Instead, the wealthiest lee subset managed to get realigned to ws. Saratoga houses are trying to follow suit to south county. I taught at key for years. The boundaries are made not by what benefits the majority of children, but what benefits the wealthiest of children.

Not at all gerrymandered.

It is a compact circle, not a bunch of tentacles.

WSHS is set up like a neighborhood school. Fcps should use that as a model. If you look at results, the neighborhood school works well for all the kids, especially lower performing groups.

Daventry and Hunt Valley should never have been moved out of Lee. They were by far the wealthiest elementary schools feeding Lee. Both single digit F/R lunch numbers. All the other feeders are high F/R. Lee has also been several hundred students under enrolled since they moved Hunt Valley out.

There is no going back now. FCPS screwed Lee.

Hunt Valley is the farthest WSHS neighborhood from Lee.

There are the least logical elementary to be rezoned to Lee. There are more than a half dozen elementary schools between hunt valley and Lee HS.

Straight down the Parkway from Gambrill is an easy drive to Lee for Hunt Valley students. That does not take you by any other elementary schools. Though it does take you through the Rolling Valley area - the part that goes to Lee.

The parkway takes HV kids past at least 4 other elementary schools.

How so? Name them. Do they already attend Lee?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

NP here. Your analysis is soley based on the capacity. What this school board is trying to do is to add a new criteria based on OneFairfax. That is to rebalance school demographics based on socioeconomic facotr. Herndon and Langley are close but their demogrpahics are compeletly different. So they may try to switch some of wealth great falls area with some of poor Herndon area. Same for West Springfield and Lee.

The proposed policy--which will likely be passed--is to use socioeconomic factors as the first consideration in a reshuffling. That comes before proximity, geography, traffic patterns, neighborhood communities,avoiding split feeders,etc.

This is what disturbs people.

And, yes, with this policy, they could ship very poor immigrant kids from Herndon to Langley. ( I don't think they will do this.) If they did do this, it will increase truancy, decrease participation in school activities, and almost eliminate almost any family involvement for the kids being transported there.

And, this is the problem with our School Board--they never consider unintended consequences when they make decisions. They only consider their social activism. They almost never think about how it will affect the kids in reality. Their minds are on utopia--not real life.

To me, there is no greater example of their disconnect than when several members were determined to change the name of Stuart to Thurgood Marshall--totally ignoring the fact that there was already a Marshall High School in FCPS. Tunnel vision.

Anything that increases the numbers of buses on the roads is a no go. They can't find enough bus drivers for the buses they have and the fleet is almost on life support because of its average age. So, unless the SB is wiling to increase the transportation budget massively (both for drivers and for more buses), it will be bound by the current number of buses. Haven't seen a board willing to do that. I think they will be able to change boundaries where bussing is not increased- but that will be where the HS are clustered together.

It seems to make the most sense to zone the current McLean high school neighborhoods that are closest to Langley, to Langley. Doesn't that put the least amount of strain on transportation resources?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

NP here. Your analysis is soley based on the capacity. What this school board is trying to do is to add a new criteria based on OneFairfax. That is to rebalance school demographics based on socioeconomic facotr. Herndon and Langley are close but their demogrpahics are compeletly different. So they may try to switch some of wealth great falls area with some of poor Herndon area. Same for West Springfield and Lee.

The proposed policy--which will likely be passed--is to use socioeconomic factors as the first consideration in a reshuffling. That comes before proximity, geography, traffic patterns, neighborhood communities,avoiding split feeders,etc.

This is what disturbs people.

And, yes, with this policy, they could ship very poor immigrant kids from Herndon to Langley. ( I don't think they will do this.) If they did do this, it will increase truancy, decrease participation in school activities, and almost eliminate almost any family involvement for the kids being transported there.

And, this is the problem with our School Board--they never consider unintended consequences when they make decisions. They only consider their social activism. They almost never think about how it will affect the kids in reality. Their minds are on utopia--not real life.

To me, there is no greater example of their disconnect than when several members were determined to change the name of Stuart to Thurgood Marshall--totally ignoring the fact that there was already a Marshall High School in FCPS. Tunnel vision.

Anything that increases the numbers of buses on the roads is a no go. They can't find enough bus drivers for the buses they have and the fleet is almost on life support because of its average age. So, unless the SB is wiling to increase the transportation budget massively (both for drivers and for more buses), it will be bound by the current number of buses. Haven't seen a board willing to do that. I think they will be able to change boundaries where bussing is not increased- but that will be where the HS are clustered together.

It seems to make the most sense to zone the current McLean high school neighborhoods that are closest to Langley, to Langley. Doesn't that put the least amount of strain on transportation resources?

You would think that sending kids from an overcrowded high school to a neighboring high school 3 miles away that has space would make sense. It would also make sense to send the split feeders that already send kids to cooper/langley.

[Anonymous]

I am so sorry after watching that video (news), I still don’t understand what FCPS is going to do? Rezoning whole FCPS? Our basic high school is more than 3 miles away!

[Anonymous]

Good grief. Let FCPS actually start a boundary study and identify different options. After hearing about the Langley parents who protested at a School Board meeting because they are terrified of their kids having to interact with Herndon kids, we have little interest in sending our kids there, but let the chips fall where they may. The lobbying about who should move is premature and distasteful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good grief. Let FCPS actually start a boundary study and identify different options. After hearing about the Langley parents who protested at a School Board meeting because they are terrified of their kids having to interact with Herndon kids, we have little interest in sending our kids there, but let the chips fall where they may. The lobbying about who should move is premature and distasteful.

???
You mean people who want their kids to attend the school that their community has been a part of for @30 years? Have you had kids in high school? I have. Our neighborhood was part of a boundary study where the SB considered doing that with us. Our neighborhood successfully fought it. The high school is an important part of our community activities. I suspect it is with Langley families, as well.

Why would they not be upset to be taken out of an underenrolled school that they like and sent to one that is overcrowded? Just to please the Social Justice Warriors.

Use a little common sense. Everything is not about race.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good grief. Let FCPS actually start a boundary study and identify different options. After hearing about the Langley parents who protested at a School Board meeting because they are terrified of their kids having to interact with Herndon kids, we have little interest in sending our kids there, but let the chips fall where they may. The lobbying about who should move is premature and distasteful.

Why haven't they done it before?

HOW long has McLean been overcrowded?

Why were they not discussing this two years ago when Langley's renovation was nearing completion?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good grief. Let FCPS actually start a boundary study and identify different options. After hearing about the Langley parents who protested at a School Board meeting because they are terrified of their kids having to interact with Herndon kids, we have little interest in sending our kids there, but let the chips fall where they may. The lobbying about who should move is premature and distasteful.

Not everyone is so complacent.

Some people like to have a say in matters that affect them and their children. If you are content to simply let life happen to you, that is your choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good grief. Let FCPS actually start a boundary study and identify different options. After hearing about the Langley parents who protested at a School Board meeting because they are terrified of their kids having to interact with Herndon kids, we have little interest in sending our kids there, but let the chips fall where they may. The lobbying about who should move is premature and distasteful.

Not everyone is so complacent.

Some people like to have a say in matters that affect them and their children. If you are content to simply let life happen to you, that is your choice.

So you think repeatedly expressing your own personal preference as to which neighborhoods get moved into (or perhaps out of) your school on an anonymous message board is really going to move the needle, when there isn’t even a timeline for a boundary study yet?

I guess my neighbors and I just have a different approach to advocacy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good grief. Let FCPS actually start a boundary study and identify different options. After hearing about the Langley parents who protested at a School Board meeting because they are terrified of their kids having to interact with Herndon kids, we have little interest in sending our kids there, but let the chips fall where they may. The lobbying about who should move is premature and distasteful.

Not everyone is so complacent.

Some people like to have a say in matters that affect them and their children. If you are content to simply let life happen to you, that is your choice.

So you think repeatedly expressing your own personal preference as to which neighborhoods get moved into (or perhaps out of) your school on an anonymous message board is really going to move the needle, when there isn’t even a timeline for a boundary study yet?

I guess my neighbors and I just have a different approach to advocacy.

According to your own words you don't advocate. You "let the chips fall where they may."

First you criticized Langley parents advocating for what they perceive as their best interests because you like to chill.

When it is pointed out to you that such an attitude is not good life strategy, you attempt to deflect by making the baseless statement that my advocacy is limited to message board conversations.

I do hope for your sake that your neighbors do, in fact, have some ideas about the best ways to advocate. Maybe they take a longer view than you do and can think more than half a step ahead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good grief. Let FCPS actually start a boundary study and identify different options. After hearing about the Langley parents who protested at a School Board meeting because they are terrified of their kids having to interact with Herndon kids, we have little interest in sending our kids there, but let the chips fall where they may. The lobbying about who should move is premature and distasteful.

Not everyone is so complacent.

Some people like to have a say in matters that affect them and their children. If you are content to simply let life happen to you, that is your choice.

So you think repeatedly expressing your own personal preference as to which neighborhoods get moved into (or perhaps out of) your school on an anonymous message board is really going to move the needle, when there isn’t even a timeline for a boundary study yet?

I guess my neighbors and I just have a different approach to advocacy.

According to your own words you don't advocate. You "let the chips fall where they may."

First you criticized Langley parents advocating for what they perceive as their best interests because you like to chill.

When it is pointed out to you that such an attitude is not good life strategy, you attempt to deflect by making the baseless statement that my advocacy is limited to message board conversations.

I do hope for your sake that your neighbors do, in fact, have some ideas about the best ways to advocate. Maybe they take a longer view than you do and can think more than half a step ahead.

Dp here. I moved from a deemed bad school district to a good school district. I would be damn pissed if we got switched to another bad school. Thankfully we are close enough to schools that we will probably never get switched but feel sympathy for those who may.

Life is not always fair. No amount of busing and attempts at social engineering is going to work.

I do think renaming Lee and creating either an IB magnet (TJ2) or some sort of ESL/vocation school would be a great idea.
I also think moving apartments from tysons as well as the split feeders to Langley would be right move.

Transporting poor kids to create some sort of demographic equality amongst schools seems like a terrible idea and a waste of resources.