Future Western High School

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Isn’t Westfield really crowded too?

Westfield was expanded to have a capacity of 3000 not too long after it was built.. Soon after the expansion was completed , the "new" guidance in 2008 was that all high schools should have a population of 2000. This was to help justify the South Lakes boundary study. A lot of neighborhoods were taken from Westfield and redistricted to South Lakes. This helped justify SB taking kids from Oakton, Westfield, and Madison. It has over 2600 according to the data posted at FCPS. But, unless they have put something else there, there is plenty of room.

I think the target enrollment they announced back then was 2100, not 2000, but of course it meant nothing in the long term and was just part of the rationale to downsize the schools that sent kids to South Lakes. Now they are expanding Madison to 2500, Oakton to 2700, West Potomac to 3000, etc. There is no consistency or logic in what FCPS does from a planning perspective. They make up everything on the fly and then pretend it's consistent with some overarching principles that are then quickly discarded.

[Anonymous]

OP here.

This is just my personal observation/speculation although I’ve been following this topic closely.

1. The possibility of a new school coming to fruition is higher than ever given that it’s going to be on the referendum. This is a tangible action which never happened before.

2. Seems like the Hutchison site is very likely. The CIP MAP shows it and the FPAC has been recommending it.

3. Boundary changes will obviously happen. But this is just one high school and FCPS has more than 25 high schools. I really don’t think the county wide boundary adjustment would happen.

4. Hutchison kids will go to the new school. It’s just too close. That means some relief to Herndon.

5. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Herndon will get Langley kids. Langley was never included as a potentially impacted school in the CIP. Strauss once mentioned that possibility verbally but that’s about it and she is gone.

6. There are some people who want to stick it to Langley by moving Great Falls kids from Langley and moving Tysons (apartment) kids to Langley. There are also some Grear Falls moms on this board who oppose any potential threat to the Langley boundary.

7. Personally I think the high school will get Carson kids plus Hutchison kids giving relief to Herndon, Westfield, South Lakes, and Oakton. Westfield in turn would give relief to Centreville and Chantilly. On the other hand, Herndon will not be able to give releif to Langley. This is because 1) Herndon area is expected to grow fast (look at the town’s development plans), 2) CIP includes only six schools I mentioned but didn’t include Langley, and 3) the political opposition would be too strong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Isn’t Westfield really crowded too?

Westfield was expanded to have a capacity of 3000 not too long after it was built.. Soon after the expansion was completed , the "new" guidance in 2008 was that all high schools should have a population of 2000. This was to help justify the South Lakes boundary study. A lot of neighborhoods were taken from Westfield and redistricted to South Lakes. This helped justify SB taking kids from Oakton, Westfield, and Madison. It has over 2600 according to the data posted at FCPS. But, unless they have put something else there, there is plenty of room.

I think the target enrollment they announced back then was 2100, not 2000, but of course it meant nothing in the long term and was just part of the rationale to downsize the schools that sent kids to South Lakes. Now they are expanding Madison to 2500, Oakton to 2700, West Potomac to 3000, etc. There is no consistency or logic in what FCPS does from a planning perspective. They make up everything on the fly and then pretend it's consistent with some overarching principles that are then quickly discarded.

+1 The rationale was constantly mentioned throughout that process. It was a very ugly process. Stu Gibson and Kathy Smith were the pushers. It was Stu's show, but Kathy was his good pal and helped him. It was all outlined by the South Lakes PTA. They even had it posted online for a while, but then realized that others were reading it. The PTA picked and chose which neighborhoods they wanted. Kathy Smith ponied up Chantilly to lose kids because once Fox Mill was moved to South Lakes, Oakton was underserved. So they sent kids who lived down the street from Chantilly and sent them to Oakton.

South Lakes PTA wanted to pull some kids from Janiie, but she wouldn't let them go. They also wanted Armstrong and Aldrin, but Herndon PTA screamed that they were taking their good PTA workers. Seriously. So, Herndon kept those schools. Stu had wanted all Reston kids to go to South Lakes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here.

This is just my personal observation/speculation although I’ve been following this topic closely.

1. The possibility of a new school coming to fruition is higher than ever given that it’s going to be on the referendum. This is a tangible action which never happened before.

2. Seems like the Hutchison site is very likely. The CIP MAP shows it and the FPAC has been recommending it.

3. Boundary changes will obviously happen. But this is just one high school and FCPS has more than 25 high schools. I really don’t think the county wide boundary adjustment would happen.

4. Hutchison kids will go to the new school. It’s just too close. That means some relief to Herndon.

5. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Herndon will get Langley kids. Langley was never included as a potentially impacted school in the CIP. Strauss once mentioned that possibility verbally but that’s about it and she is gone.

6. There are some people who want to stick it to Langley by moving Great Falls kids from Langley and moving Tysons (apartment) kids to Langley. There are also some Grear Falls moms on this board who oppose any potential threat to the Langley boundary.

7. Personally I think the high school will get Carson kids plus Hutchison kids giving relief to Herndon, Westfield, South Lakes, and Oakton. Westfield in turn would give relief to Centreville and Chantilly. On the other hand, Herndon will not be able to give releif to Langley. This is because 1) Herndon area is expected to grow fast (look at the town’s development plans), 2) CIP includes only six schools I mentioned but didn’t include Langley, and 3) the political opposition would be too strong.

I guess we’ll see. By the time the new school is built there may have been just as much growth in other parts of the county as Herndon, if not more. And the School Board making the decisions about boundary adjustments will likely be a different group than the current board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here.

This is just my personal observation/speculation although I’ve been following this topic closely.

1. The possibility of a new school coming to fruition is higher than ever given that it’s going to be on the referendum. This is a tangible action which never happened before.

2. Seems like the Hutchison site is very likely. The CIP MAP shows it and the FPAC has been recommending it.

3. Boundary changes will obviously happen. But this is just one high school and FCPS has more than 25 high schools. I really don’t think the county wide boundary adjustment would happen.

4. Hutchison kids will go to the new school. It’s just too close. That means some relief to Herndon.

5. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Herndon will get Langley kids. Langley was never included as a potentially impacted school in the CIP. Strauss once mentioned that possibility verbally but that’s about it and she is gone.

6. There are some people who want to stick it to Langley by moving Great Falls kids from Langley and moving Tysons (apartment) kids to Langley. There are also some Grear Falls moms on this board who oppose any potential threat to the Langley boundary.

7. Personally I think the high school will get Carson kids plus Hutchison kids giving relief to Herndon, Westfield, South Lakes, and Oakton. Westfield in turn would give relief to Centreville and Chantilly. On the other hand, Herndon will not be able to give releif to Langley. This is because 1) Herndon area is expected to grow fast (look at the town’s development plans), 2) CIP includes only six schools I mentioned but didn’t include Langley, and 3) the political opposition would be too strong.

I guess we’ll see. By the time the new school is built there may have been just as much growth in other parts of the county as Herndon, if not more. And the School Board making the decisions about boundary adjustments will likely be a different group than the current board.

God, one can only hope.
DP

[Anonymous]

No one has yet said how they are going to solve the traffic problem with the Hutchison site. Elden St is the only logical access to Parcher and it is right by the entrance to the Dulles Toll Rd. Not to mention the very nearby Metro Station.

With the schools mentioned by PP, all of the traffic would be coming from one direction. And, all of it would be funneling into one road that is already a commuter route. I sure hope that the SB has enough sense to look at a map. The DTR borders the back of the property and there will not be roads on that side at all. There is no other outlet.

But, with our SB track record, they will probably go for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DP, but as long as the Langley posters keep arrogantly insisting that in no way, shape, or form can they possibly be affected by a new western high school, when kids living next door to Loudoun are getting bussed 12 miles or so to a school near Arlington, the more others will keep reminding them they live in the same county as the rest of us.

And the whole “look at the map” shtick is getting old when the map highlights how far we’ve been bussing rich kids to their rich-kid school.

This thread is starting to go in circles, but posts like this one keep ignoring that bussing Great Falls kids to Langley is the right thing to do from a capacity management standpoint -- Langley is well under capacity (i.e. needs students) and Great Falls parents want their kids to go there. There is literally no incentive for the School Board -- irrespective of who is on the School Board -- to change that. The comments on this thread largely reinforce the point. There don't appear to be any Langley parents from outside Great Falls saying "get those snotty kids out of our school." There also don't appear to be any parents looking to get redistricted into Langley.

Yes, there are parts of Great Falls that are closer to Herndon. But there are also plenty of high schools in the western part of the county that need capacity relief. If the new school gets built, that will be the target for redistricting. It would be huge stretch to lump Langley -- on the other side of the county -- into that discussion. And, like it or not, there is no logical reason to move kids out of a school that is below capacity even if another school is more convenient.

(Although worth noting is that the parts of Great Falls that are closest to Herndon are also the most lightly populated. So you aren't talking about a lot of students.)

Even Tysons growth likely doesn't change that analysis. The only way that Great Falls kids are getting moved is through an across-the-board redistricting . . . and that would likely be political suicide for the School Board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP, but as long as the Langley posters keep arrogantly insisting that in no way, shape, or form can they possibly be affected by a new western high school, when kids living next door to Loudoun are getting bussed 12 miles or so to a school near Arlington, the more others will keep reminding them they live in the same county as the rest of us.

And the whole “look at the map” shtick is getting old when the map highlights how far we’ve been bussing rich kids to their rich-kid school.

This thread is starting to go in circles, but posts like this one keep ignoring that bussing Great Falls kids to Langley is the right thing to do from a capacity management standpoint -- Langley is well under capacity (i.e. needs students) and Great Falls parents want their kids to go there. There is literally no incentive for the School Board -- irrespective of who is on the School Board -- to change that. The comments on this thread largely reinforce the point. There don't appear to be any Langley parents from outside Great Falls saying "get those snotty kids out of our school." There also don't appear to be any parents looking to get redistricted into Langley.

Yes, there are parts of Great Falls that are closer to Herndon. But there are also plenty of high schools in the western part of the county that need capacity relief. If the new school gets built, that will be the target for redistricting. It would be huge stretch to lump Langley -- on the other side of the county -- into that discussion. And, like it or not, there is no logical reason to move kids out of a school that is below capacity even if another school is more convenient.

(Although worth noting is that the parts of Great Falls that are closest to Herndon are also the most lightly populated. So you aren't talking about a lot of students.)

Even Tysons growth likely doesn't change that analysis. The only way that Great Falls kids are getting moved is through an across-the-board redistricting . . . and that would likely be political suicide for the School Board.

You are correct, but don't expect the mean girl cabal on this thread to acknowledge these facts. They have one mission and one mission only - to make "those Great Falls kids" pay for some imagined transgression. It's beyond insane, but then that explains why a whole bunch of their posts were deleted. Just sheer nastiness, with no basis in reality.

Anyway, the topic of the thread is the future western high school, and as such, the schools which would definitely be affected are Chantilly, Centreville, Herndon, Oakton, possibly South Lakes.

[Anonymous]

If Great Falls west of Springvale used to go to Herndon when there weren’t two high schools in Herndon, then it’s entirely plausible it will get moved back to Herndon if they build at Hutchison, especially if there is continued growth in other parts of the county closer to Langley. And a future School Board might want to reduce the poverty rates at Herndon, just as they aspired to do at South Lakes with the 2008 redistricting.

None of that is punishing Langley for a “transgression.” It would simply be looking at where capacity exists and how best to operate County schools equitably and efficiently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If Great Falls west of Springvale used to go to Herndon when there weren’t two high schools in Herndon, then it’s entirely plausible it will get moved back to Herndon if they build at Hutchison, especially if there is continued growth in other parts of the county closer to Langley. And a future School Board might want to reduce the poverty rates at Herndon, just as they aspired to do at South Lakes with the 2008 redistricting.

None of that is punishing Langley for a “transgression.” It would simply be looking at where capacity exists and how best to operate County schools equitably and efficiently.

Re: the bolded - just say what you mean. "Move white kids in."

At any rate, it's all a moot point right now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If Great Falls west of Springvale used to go to Herndon when there weren’t two high schools in Herndon, then it’s entirely plausible it will get moved back to Herndon if they build at Hutchison, especially if there is continued growth in other parts of the county closer to Langley. And a future School Board might want to reduce the poverty rates at Herndon, just as they aspired to do at South Lakes with the 2008 redistricting.

None of that is punishing Langley for a “transgression.” It would simply be looking at where capacity exists and how best to operate County schools equitably and efficiently.

Re: the bolded - just say what you mean. "Move white kids in."

At any rate, it's all a moot point right now.

LOL

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If Great Falls west of Springvale used to go to Herndon when there weren’t two high schools in Herndon, then it’s entirely plausible it will get moved back to Herndon if they build at Hutchison, especially if there is continued growth in other parts of the county closer to Langley. And a future School Board might want to reduce the poverty rates at Herndon, just as they aspired to do at South Lakes with the 2008 redistricting.

None of that is punishing Langley for a “transgression.” It would simply be looking at where capacity exists and how best to operate County schools equitably and efficiently.

Re: the bolded - just say what you mean. "Move white kids in."

At any rate, it's all a moot point right now.

So that’s “business as usual” when it comes to moving kids into Langley, but “social engineering” when it’s moving kids into Herndon. LOL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP, but as long as the Langley posters keep arrogantly insisting that in no way, shape, or form can they possibly be affected by a new western high school, when kids living next door to Loudoun are getting bussed 12 miles or so to a school near Arlington, the more others will keep reminding them they live in the same county as the rest of us.

And the whole “look at the map” shtick is getting old when the map highlights how far we’ve been bussing rich kids to their rich-kid school.

This thread is starting to go in circles, but posts like this one keep ignoring that bussing Great Falls kids to Langley is the right thing to do from a capacity management standpoint -- Langley is well under capacity (i.e. needs students) and Great Falls parents want their kids to go there. There is literally no incentive for the School Board -- irrespective of who is on the School Board -- to change that. The comments on this thread largely reinforce the point. There don't appear to be any Langley parents from outside Great Falls saying "get those snotty kids out of our school." There also don't appear to be any parents looking to get redistricted into Langley.

Yes, there are parts of Great Falls that are closer to Herndon. But there are also plenty of high schools in the western part of the county that need capacity relief. If the new school gets built, that will be the target for redistricting. It would be huge stretch to lump Langley -- on the other side of the county -- into that discussion. And, like it or not, there is no logical reason to move kids out of a school that is below capacity even if another school is more convenient.

(Although worth noting is that the parts of Great Falls that are closest to Herndon are also the most lightly populated. So you aren't talking about a lot of students.)

Even Tysons growth likely doesn't change that analysis. The only way that Great Falls kids are getting moved is through an across-the-board redistricting . . . and that would likely be political suicide for the School Board.

The above post is just bogus. The low density areas that feed to Langley are western Mclean - outside the special tax district which go to Spring Hill ES, most of the Great Falls ES attendance area, a portion of the Colvin Run attendance area that used to go to Great Falls ES, small portion of what remained at Forestville.

Exactly what parts of Great Falls have Herndon, Reston, or Vienna addresses? " Parts of Great Falls closest to Herndon HS" is so wrong because those residences are not in Great Falls except for Holly Knoll which is not low density and neither are those Herndon addresses.

Pull up boundary maps- easy to find. Here's who got sent to Colvin Run from Forestville [on green spot on the left called Nike Park], Great Falls [near green spot called Great Falls Grange], and Spring Hill. Across Route 7 from Colvin Run is the Toll Bros development. No administrative boundary change from Spring Hill. Find the logic. I cannot unless FCPS is waiting for something big.

Safa Court, Herndon-Forestville, Cooper, Langley. 2.6 miles to Herndon HS. 14.2 to 17 miles to Langley depending on the route.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP, but as long as the Langley posters keep arrogantly insisting that in no way, shape, or form can they possibly be affected by a new western high school, when kids living next door to Loudoun are getting bussed 12 miles or so to a school near Arlington, the more others will keep reminding them they live in the same county as the rest of us.

And the whole “look at the map” shtick is getting old when the map highlights how far we’ve been bussing rich kids to their rich-kid school.

This thread is starting to go in circles, but posts like this one keep ignoring that bussing Great Falls kids to Langley is the right thing to do from a capacity management standpoint -- Langley is well under capacity (i.e. needs students) and Great Falls parents want their kids to go there. There is literally no incentive for the School Board -- irrespective of who is on the School Board -- to change that. The comments on this thread largely reinforce the point. There don't appear to be any Langley parents from outside Great Falls saying "get those snotty kids out of our school." There also don't appear to be any parents looking to get redistricted into Langley.

Yes, there are parts of Great Falls that are closer to Herndon. But there are also plenty of high schools in the western part of the county that need capacity relief. If the new school gets built, that will be the target for redistricting. It would be huge stretch to lump Langley -- on the other side of the county -- into that discussion. And, like it or not, there is no logical reason to move kids out of a school that is below capacity even if another school is more convenient.

(Although worth noting is that the parts of Great Falls that are closest to Herndon are also the most lightly populated. So you aren't talking about a lot of students.)

Even Tysons growth likely doesn't change that analysis. The only way that Great Falls kids are getting moved is through an across-the-board redistricting . . . and that would likely be political suicide for the School Board.

The above post is just bogus. The low density areas that feed to Langley are western Mclean - outside the special tax district which go to Spring Hill ES, most of the Great Falls ES attendance area, a portion of the Colvin Run attendance area that used to go to Great Falls ES, small portion of what remained at Forestville.

Exactly what parts of Great Falls have Herndon, Reston, or Vienna addresses? " Parts of Great Falls closest to Herndon HS" is so wrong because those residences are not in Great Falls except for Holly Knoll which is not low density and neither are those Herndon addresses.

Pull up boundary maps- easy to find. Here's who got sent to Colvin Run from Forestville [on green spot on the left called Nike Park], Great Falls [near green spot called Great Falls Grange], and Spring Hill. Across Route 7 from Colvin Run is the Toll Bros development. No administrative boundary change from Spring Hill. Find the logic. I cannot unless FCPS is waiting for something big.

Safa Court, Herndon-Forestville, Cooper, Langley. 2.6 miles to Herndon HS. 14.2 to 17 miles to Langley depending on the route.

I'm the PP whose post you called bogus. The highest-density parts of Great Falls -- on a relative scale -- are east of Springvale and south of Georgetown Pike. Those areas all go to GEFS or Colvin Run. Most of that area, especially east of Great Falls Village, is closer to Langley than to Herndon (though pretty far from both). There are certainly some higher-density pockets west of Springvale -- you note one -- but there is unquestionably less density in that area. Those are all facts.

Also facts: Langley is well under capacity (it's at ~90%, that's as low as it gets outside of the southernmost parts of the county). Great Falls parents like sending their kids to Langley.

We can argue all day about whether Forestville should feed to Herndon. Herndon is certainly closer. My point is simply that FCPS has much bigger capacity issues to address. Unless Forestville parents want to go to Herndon over Langley (and perhaps some or most do . . . I don't live there so I have no idea), there is no incentive for FCPS to move them out of below-capacity middle and high schools.

[Anonymous]

Yes, FCPS should stupidly continue to expand Langley and Cooper so even more kids whose parents are rich can be bussed to schools nowhere near they live.