George Mason Elementary School?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

[Anonymous]

Very accurate response! Great job poster. I couldn't agree more. My kids are also AAS/TAG. They are excelling academically, emotionally and socially. However we are super involved. I grew up in an urban school system, also child of immigrants who only ever achieved middle class status. And I couldn't agree emote on SB and not holding the superintendent nd CO accountable. The mismanagement of the district and the way they treat teachers and school admin and staff is deplorable. Run for school board!

Anonymous wrote:Hi OP! We are a Maury/Brooks (name changed so older kids graduated from Maury, which is now Brooks) family. During the pandemic, our kids went to a Campagna program for essential workers (we work in health care). We fell in love with the Mason community! The parents are phenomenal and some of my kids' best friends are from Mason/Beverley Hills now that they are at ACHS/GW/Brooks. The PTA is very involved at George Mason and it is very much a neighborhood school. They host a lot of fun social events for the community and the green space and playground is a hub for the neighborhood. My kids ride their bikes to Mason from Rosemont to meet up with their BH friends.

Regarding ACPS, it is super frustrating as a parent. Be prepared to be very involved. Sometimes I wish I sent my kids to our church school (we are religious) but my older two are gifted students and the options for curriculum at the HS level cannot compare to the options at private schools. Seriously. Even my youngest, in his AAS (gifted) class is programming a robot and getting top scores on standardized tests, despite his school being accredited with conditions.

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

The thing about ACPS is that it could be exceptional. I get frustrated because my middle student at GWMS is just an average student and I worry that she will fall through the cracks. My older two and youngest, the school is not really worried or concerned about say test anxiety or social emotional issues I bring up because they are outstanding test takers who test in the top 99%. Middle school was pretty much a wash with the pandemic and honors courses that anyone could be in.

Why have we stayed? First, the curriculum is outstanding. I cannot begin to tell you what my children have achieved academically on the MAP and SOL standard tests. They have opportunities to intern at GWU labs and on national science and math projects. They have dual enrollment with several universities and the opportunity in MS to go on study abroad. The arts program from elementary through HS has been phenomenal, even with my STEM focused oldest. They learned to play an instrument, have a love of music and the arts. I found math to be very strong and my kids were in differentiated math and accelerated math. They have gone to programs in the summer for finance, journalism, science/engineering.

Second, the teachers are invested. We have so many teachers at our schools who are award winning and the highest caliber. The opportunities they afforded my sons and daughters cannot compare to my private school or what my church school would provide. They go above and beyond to help students and they have strong outcomes for middle class and upper middle class kids.

Third, the community. I have never found a more giving and inclusive community than ACPS. People don't have food, clothes, utilities paid. A parent will fundraise or provide. A teacher needs supplies or snacks? You've got it. Someone sees your kid doing something dangerous or not great. They will call them out on it and contact you. It is truly a village.

What is the "bad"? I would say central office and school board. There are people that I like as community members but they don't necessarily manage the superintendent. We've had a string of bad leadership in key roles for facilities, transportation, communications, HR, and superintendent positions.

If your kid has a learning disability or is a student with a disability and you are middle class, you are completely ignored. I find that ACPS very much focuses on the kids with the least resources, which I commend and think is great. But they should be focused on helping students achieve academic competencies and eventually excellence. Education is a great equalizer. It is how my immigrant parents got out of poverty. It is how I got out of the middle class. I worked in public schools as a teacher early in my careers and we need to hold the elected officials--city council and school board accountable. They say that they are progressive Democrats who fight for the marginalized and the issue is that they don't. Kids are living in abysmal housing projects, slum style apartments. They don't have basics like socks and underwear or food at home. Their parents can't pay utilities. We have an issue with chronic absenteeism and police reports at the middle school level. We need to have wrap around services and partner with community organizations to address and have peer mentors for parents to help them get out of this cycle of generational poverty. We are not helping anyone if there are brown and Black students who are low income failing basic math and reading.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

Yes you are right. Not sure why PP used the word city in quotes. Alexandria actually is a city and not a county. (The county portion became Arlington ~ hundred years ago.)

Parts of DC actually feel more suburban than Alexandria, and they are not upzoning the single family neighborhoods there. And they have a height limit unlike Alexandria. Also, DC doesn’t build large 6,000 student urban high schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

You don't even know who I am, so not only do you gaslight but youre someone who makes assumptions too, got it. I grew up in the world's largest and most populous city. If you've visited Alexandria in the last 5 years, then you will see, it is a city. Not sure why people outside like to disprove Alexandrians so much. It's odd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

You don't even know who I am, so not only do you gaslight but youre someone who makes assumptions too, got it. I grew up in the world's largest and most populous city. If you've visited Alexandria in the last 5 years, then you will see, it is a city. Not sure why people outside like to disprove Alexandrians so much. It's odd.

Because I live here (have for actually 5 years, like you said!) and, no, it’s not. It’s a suburb like any close-in big city suburb. Doesn’t matter which big city you go to, they all have an Alexandria or multiple Alexandrias. But most of them don’t have weird apologists who try to use “city” or “urban” to excuse poor schools. Most of them actually have good schools.

I always find this funny, too, because it’s clear most of these people have never set foot west of King or south of Duke. Their Alexandria is only half of the area, if that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

You don't even know who I am, so not only do you gaslight but youre someone who makes assumptions too, got it. I grew up in the world's largest and most populous city. If you've visited Alexandria in the last 5 years, then you will see, it is a city. Not sure why people outside like to disprove Alexandrians so much. It's odd.

Because I live here (have for actually 5 years, like you said!) and, no, it’s not. It’s a suburb like any close-in big city suburb. Doesn’t matter which big city you go to, they all have an Alexandria or multiple Alexandrias. But most of them don’t have weird apologists who try to use “city” or “urban” to excuse poor schools. Most of them actually have good schools.

I always find this funny, too, because it’s clear most of these people have never set foot west of King or south of Duke. Their Alexandria is only half of the area, if that.

If you live here, then a) why would you be so rude in your online comments to a neighbor and say they are from "podunk shticks" I'm so surprised that Alexandrians preach kindness and neighborhood and then come to an anon site and are rude. b) the west end development is the definition of urban. High rise dense apartment buildings housing a mix of new Afghani refugees and upper income young urban professionals. No one refers to Alexandria City as large, It is a small city - the same size as other Tier 3 cities such as Salt Lake City, and has the same challenges and civic discussions as cities do, not towns. When we refer to Alexandria as a city in reference to the schools, we do so in order to identify strategies that work for an urban city school system. If you take a city school system and try to fix it the way you would a small town school system, you would fail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

You don't even know who I am, so not only do you gaslight but youre someone who makes assumptions too, got it. I grew up in the world's largest and most populous city. If you've visited Alexandria in the last 5 years, then you will see, it is a city. Not sure why people outside like to disprove Alexandrians so much. It's odd.

Because I live here (have for actually 5 years, like you said!) and, no, it’s not. It’s a suburb like any close-in big city suburb. Doesn’t matter which big city you go to, they all have an Alexandria or multiple Alexandrias. But most of them don’t have weird apologists who try to use “city” or “urban” to excuse poor schools. Most of them actually have good schools.

I always find this funny, too, because it’s clear most of these people have never set foot west of King or south of Duke. Their Alexandria is only half of the area, if that.

If you live here, then a) why would you be so rude in your online comments to a neighbor and say they are from "podunk shticks" I'm so surprised that Alexandrians preach kindness and neighborhood and then come to an anon site and are rude. b) the west end development is the definition of urban. High rise dense apartment buildings housing a mix of new Afghani refugees and upper income young urban professionals. No one refers to Alexandria City as large, It is a small city - the same size as other Tier 3 cities such as Salt Lake City, and has the same challenges and civic discussions as cities do, not towns. When we refer to Alexandria as a city in reference to the schools, we do so in order to identify strategies that work for an urban city school system. If you take a city school system and try to fix it the way you would a small town school system, you would fail.

Interesting that you accuse me of rudeness after claiming I was engaging in “toxic gaslighting” for merely pointing out that, while incorporated as a city, Alexandria is not a real city for all intents and purposes. Pretty sure the conversation was fine up until that point.

You mention SLC but SLC is the 117th largest city in the US and still about a third larger than Alexandria.

This is what we’re talking about. So long as Alexandrians insist that Alexandria is anything other than a suburb, they will excuse away all of the problems. If Alexandria is “different” than Arlington, Moco, etc., or any other large city close-in suburb with good schools, then there’s nothing to see here, because we’re “different.” But we’re not other than our tolerance for the indefensible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


.

No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

You don't even know who I am, so not only do you gaslight but youre someone who makes assumptions too, got it. I grew up in the world's largest and most populous city. If you've visited Alexandria in the last 5 years, then you will see, it is a city. Not sure why people outside like to disprove Alexandrians so much. It's odd.

Because I live here (have for actually 5 years, like you said!) and, no, it’s not. It’s a suburb like any close-in big city suburb. Doesn’t matter which big city you go to, they all have an Alexandria or multiple Alexandrias. But most of them don’t have weird apologists who try to use “city” or “urban” to excuse poor schools. Most of them actually have good schools.

I always find this funny, too, because it’s clear most of these people have never set foot west of King or south of Duke. Their Alexandria is only half of the area, if that.

If you live here, then a) why would you be so rude in your online comments to a neighbor and say they are from "podunk shticks" I'm so surprised that Alexandrians preach kindness and neighborhood and then come to an anon site and are rude. b) the west end development is the definition of urban. High rise dense apartment buildings housing a mix of new Afghani refugees and upper income young urban professionals. No one refers to Alexandria City as large, It is a small city - the same size as other Tier 3 cities such as Salt Lake City, and has the same challenges and civic discussions as cities do, not towns. When we refer to Alexandria as a city in reference to the schools, we do so in order to identify strategies that work for an urban city school system. If you take a city school system and try to fix it the way you would a small town school system, you would fail.

Interesting that you accuse me of rudeness after claiming I was engaging in “toxic gaslighting” for merely pointing out that, while incorporated as a city, Alexandria is not a real city for all intents and purposes. Pretty sure the conversation was fine up until that point.

You mention SLC but SLC is the 117th largest city in the US and still about a third larger than Alexandria.

This is what we’re talking about. So long as Alexandrians insist that Alexandria is anything other than a suburb, they will excuse away all of the problems. If Alexandria is “different” than Arlington, Moco, etc., or any other large city close-in suburb with good schools, then there’s nothing to see here, because we’re “different.” But we’re not other than our tolerance for the indefensible.

Where we disagree is your definition of what real is. That's what gaslighting is. It is a city, as you mentioned, legally, though a small one. However its problems and advantages are rooted in civic issues tied to cities not suburbs. Like Hoboken for example. I disagree that saying it's a city means we excuse the poor schools, in fact, saying it's a city helps approach the schools in a way that's effective in city school management.

[Anonymous]

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ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


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No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

You don't even know who I am, so not only do you gaslight but youre someone who makes assumptions too, got it. I grew up in the world's largest and most populous city. If you've visited Alexandria in the last 5 years, then you will see, it is a city. Not sure why people outside like to disprove Alexandrians so much. It's odd.

Because I live here (have for actually 5 years, like you said!) and, no, it’s not. It’s a suburb like any close-in big city suburb. Doesn’t matter which big city you go to, they all have an Alexandria or multiple Alexandrias. But most of them don’t have weird apologists who try to use “city” or “urban” to excuse poor schools. Most of them actually have good schools.

I always find this funny, too, because it’s clear most of these people have never set foot west of King or south of Duke. Their Alexandria is only half of the area, if that.

Umm,

1. King runs east-west. How does one step foot west of a road that runs.... west
2. Alexandria is a city. If you don't like that, take it up with the Federal Government. https://data.census.gov/profile/Alexandria_city,_Virginia?g=050XX00US51510
3. You are a sad, poor, troll. I will never understand the special insecurity our city triggers in wannabe Alexandrians.

[Anonymous]

Also, George Mason moms are the second hottest school moms in the city.

[Anonymous]

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ACPS is an urban school district. At Mason, you have kids from Arlandria/Chirilagua section of Alexandria who are new arrivals from Central America and language learners. Their parents primarily work in construction and the service industry. Then you have kids in $1-2M homes here.

I’ve seen this come up a couple of times in recent discussions on ACPS. To be clear, ACPS is not an urban school district. Alexandria has similar demographics to Arlington, Montgomery County, etc. But it has created such a poor school system that a disproportionate number of people with resources have fled to private schools, leaving the publics looking different than the “city” as a whole.

You are incorrect here. While demographics in those other districts may be similar, an urban school district is characterized by the fact that it's a densely populated metropolitan area. Those other districts are suburban, however Alexandria City is 4 miles outside of DC, has a city government, a centralized school management system, a mayor, a city council, a city manager, and a robust public transportation system. It has a high population density, a diverse student population from a wide range of ethnic and socioeconomic background that's 60% FARM, and a large ELL population. Students use DASH and WMATA to navigate the city, the neighborhoods are walkable with a mix of SFH, townhomes, and high rise apartment complexes, and the city houses a tourist destination and downtown It is an urban school system.


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No, this is what a suburb looks like for a large city. All of the things you described are no different than Arlington, Bethesda, etc. That’s just what large city suburbs look like. This fiction that Alexandrians like to peddle about their “city,” (yes, in quotes, it’s legally incorporated as a city but it’s not a real city for all intents and purposes), when it is a suburb of an actual city is exactly why we end up with nonsense like ACPS apologism, the arena debacle, and others.

Toxic gaslighting at its finest. This is why this site is so messed up. "It's legally a city, but not really a city." SMH.

If you’ve ever lived in a real city then you would never describe Alexandria as a city. A town, maybe. But every time I hear someone talk about some thing that Alexandria needs to do or be because it’s a city, I assume that person is from the podunk sticks.

You don't even know who I am, so not only do you gaslight but youre someone who makes assumptions too, got it. I grew up in the world's largest and most populous city. If you've visited Alexandria in the last 5 years, then you will see, it is a city. Not sure why people outside like to disprove Alexandrians so much. It's odd.

Because I live here (have for actually 5 years, like you said!) and, no, it’s not. It’s a suburb like any close-in big city suburb. Doesn’t matter which big city you go to, they all have an Alexandria or multiple Alexandrias. But most of them don’t have weird apologists who try to use “city” or “urban” to excuse poor schools. Most of them actually have good schools.

I always find this funny, too, because it’s clear most of these people have never set foot west of King or south of Duke. Their Alexandria is only half of the area, if that.

Umm,

1. King runs east-west. How does one step foot west of a road that runs.... west
2. Alexandria is a city. If you don't like that, take it up with the Federal Government. https://data.census.gov/profile/Alexandria_city,_Virginia?g=050XX00US51510
3. You are a sad, poor, troll. I will never understand the special insecurity our city triggers in wannabe Alexandrians.

1. Because it kinks at Russell and runs northwest. Look at a map if you can figure out what one is.

2. You clearly missed the discussion between a city as a legal entity and a city as a concept but you do you. There are independent “cities” in Virginia with fewer than 10k people but for all intents and purposes people would not consider them cities in a discussion about city vs suburb vs exurb vs rural vs town vs whatever. This conversation started over whether Alexandria is an “urban” school district which can’t be assessed by looking at the jurisdiction’s legal status.

3. You are one of the several extremely triggered people here over the simple idea that Alexandria is merely a suburb of the actual city and that people should approach it that way. Not sure how that’s trolling other than that you are incapable of hearing anything you don’t want to hear and have a complex about living in the suburbs.

Peace ✌🏼.