Why doesn't ACPS address the violence in schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I used to think that the ACPS violence was a small group of parents who were disgruntled and maybe had other issues. No more. In the last week:

-a friend shared with me that he kindergartener was told by another student that he was going to take her in the class restroom and rape her
-an acquaintance with a middle school kid told me about her daughter avoiding the bathrooms because she was afraid of getting beat up and that her daughter got beat up three times in her honors class
-a friend told me her son was robbed by classmates walking home from middle school
-a friends son has been attacked 3x on the bus and then later in the cafeteria
-my son had a classmate bring a taser to class
-our neighbor was jumped in the bathroom
-our other neighbor no longer uses the bathroom and doesn't drink water at school
-my stepdaughter told my nephews to stick with the kids wearing Patagonia and Lululemon or the white and Asian kids to not be beat up

What the heck is up? Why is our school board silent? What is central office doing to address?

What I think you mean is that you are rich, white and liberal and thought that the actual non white and poor people kept to themselves and wouldn't effect you.

+1000

"I used to think that the ACPS violence was a small group of parents who were disgruntled and maybe had other issues" aka I didn't think it was a problem until it affected me. Amazing how that works in life. So you didn't care, until it came for you. Lovely.

DP. I didn’t read it that way. I read it like OP thought the people complaining were a small group of malcontents that were blowing the issues out of proportion. But then OP recently heard issues from so many people that OP is now concerned. Just FWIW.


Idk, maybe I misread the post, but that was how I interpreted OP’s words.

Nope, that poster basically admitted they blew off the concerns and complaints of other parents because she/he labeled them disgruntled and she/he dismissed those complaints and not valid because he/she didn't have any personal knowledge or experience. Instead of believing or taking into consideration the experiences or viewpoints of other parents, she just decided they weren't true.

But now that people she/he actually knows, and people close to her/him say yeah, it is true, this poster suddenly has an about face, reconsiders. And probably has their come to Jesus moment that school violence actually can hit close to home and affect their kid too. Now is time to take action. It apparently wasn't enough before, because it didn't affect them, it didn't scare them, because it wasn't penetrating their bubble, It was NBD when it was happening to other people.

Disgusting.

We are saying the same thing except you are very, very angry. Most people have busy lives/other problems and don’t fully realize something is an issue until it affects them. And they trust the experiences of people they know more than strangers. Sorry this offends you.

Wow.

You can continue with your outrage at OP but the only thing that’s “disgusting” is a school district that would allow things to get so had that some children don’t drink water all day for fear of going to the bathroom. Sounds like OP gets it now. You should channel your energy into making things better rather than attacking someone who apparently now sees what you see.

I mean I guess we should be thankful that it finally took a kid not wanting to drink water all day so they don’t have to go to the bathroom vs a student stabbed to death, a girl gang raped, a student being arrested for a double murder…….

My energy has been channeled towards change for years. And I’m very vocal about it. And I’ve been ostracized by PTAC people and others but I don’t care. What have you done? Not believed other people? GMAFB. Nothing changes, nothing.


But I’ve been so busy with work. But my kids are in honors classes and never see it. Listen to yourself.

[Anonymous]

Because ACPS doesn't want to be called "racist"? If ACPS discipline violent behaviors, their discipline data will be reported as "disproportionately punish xxx demographic", imagine how bad that would make the superintendent and principals look like.

[Anonymous]

If you are concerned about safety at the high school (or to a more limited degree, middle school) level, please contact the City Council about needing more funding for Chance for Change Academy. ACPS leadership and the school board support expansion of this program, but the City Council is not giving them money.
For various reasons, some kids just cannot succeed or be safe to be around in a traditional school environment, and Chance for Change provides an alternative that will both potentially help these kids, and remove them from the traditional environment to keep others safe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why aren't these parents protecting their children by showing up at school board meetings or talking to the press or speaking out at PTA meetings. ACPS gets away with schools like this partly because parents don't stand up for their kids.

Many ACPS parents are afraid to speak out.

Who or what do you think they are afraid of? Also, you're right.

I cannot point to one reason why there is ACPS parent fear for speaking out.

For some, I think there is fear about being ostracized by the establishment (be it the Democratic establishment / PTAs / PTAC or ACPS leadership). For others, there may be defensiveness about ACPS in light of its outside reputation. For others, it could just be respect for “authority” and/or the purported expertise of educators (or administrators) (even if ACPS “educators” / administrators lack the expertise or are actively working against student best interest such as Specialized Instruction for special needs students (even if they have the expertise to know better).

You name all the reasons I see. Especially the fear of being ostracized by the establishment. It's sad that they are so cowed that they won't stand up and defend their kids.

This. All of this. People who speak up and speak at the board meetings are seen as problems. They worry about their kids being ostracized or impacting their work.

[Anonymous]

I just don't think the school board, central office, city council, or mayor care. I am a lifelong Democrat. But when a parent speaks out, the members of the Democratic party are all over that person, name calling, diminishing their lived experience, victim blaming. It infuriates me. I am so tired of having to advocate for my kids in ACPS. It would be a lot easier to go private, but my kids love ACPS and they offer the accelerated curriculum they need academically that the private schools I can afford do not. I honestly think that the central office and city WANT middle class and upper class parents to leave ACPS.

And I'm from a big city. Attended public schools in a poor to working class neighborhood. We did NOT have violence like this and people lived in poverty. First, no one's parents would have put up with that behavior. Second, our school set high expectations. There was no tolerance for violence. ACPS needs alternative schools or more than 1-2 middle schools and 1 high school. That is the issue. You can't move kids like you can in APS, FCPS, MCPS, DCPS. There is no alternative.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just don't think the school board, central office, city council, or mayor care. I am a lifelong Democrat. But when a parent speaks out, the members of the Democratic party are all over that person, name calling, diminishing their lived experience, victim blaming. It infuriates me. I am so tired of having to advocate for my kids in ACPS. It would be a lot easier to go private, but my kids love ACPS and they offer the accelerated curriculum they need academically that the private schools I can afford do not. I honestly think that the central office and city WANT middle class and upper class parents to leave ACPS.

And I'm from a big city. Attended public schools in a poor to working class neighborhood. We did NOT have violence like this and people lived in poverty. First, no one's parents would have put up with that behavior. Second, our school set high expectations. There was no tolerance for violence. ACPS needs alternative schools or more than 1-2 middle schools and 1 high school. That is the issue. You can't move kids like you can in APS, FCPS, MCPS, DCPS. There is no alternative.

I agree there has to be a partnership between parents and the schools for “behavior corrections” to work. There was one kid in my school who was always in trouble and I remember his mom came in and suggested more effective ways to discipline him at school. Today it seems like people don’t want their kids to get corrected. Or they just don’t care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why aren't these parents protecting their children by showing up at school board meetings or talking to the press or speaking out at PTA meetings. ACPS gets away with schools like this partly because parents don't stand up for their kids.

Many ACPS parents are afraid to speak out.

THIS. But it's just hurting themselves and their kids.

[Anonymous]

ACPS gets away with what they are allowed to get away with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All of those unaccompanied minors are finally paying dividends.

Did you see the crime news story about the 22 and 23 year olds at minnie howard?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I used to think that the ACPS violence was a small group of parents who were disgruntled and maybe had other issues. No more. In the last week:

-a friend shared with me that he kindergartener was told by another student that he was going to take her in the class restroom and rape her
-an acquaintance with a middle school kid told me about her daughter avoiding the bathrooms because she was afraid of getting beat up and that her daughter got beat up three times in her honors class
-a friend told me her son was robbed by classmates walking home from middle school
-a friends son has been attacked 3x on the bus and then later in the cafeteria
-my son had a classmate bring a taser to class
-our neighbor was jumped in the bathroom
-our other neighbor no longer uses the bathroom and doesn't drink water at school
-my stepdaughter told my nephews to stick with the kids wearing Patagonia and Lululemon or the white and Asian kids to not be beat up

What the heck is up? Why is our school board silent? What is central office doing to address?

What I think you mean is that you are rich, white and liberal and thought that the actual non white and poor people kept to themselves and wouldn't effect you.

+1000

"I used to think that the ACPS violence was a small group of parents who were disgruntled and maybe had other issues" aka I didn't think it was a problem until it affected me. Amazing how that works in life. So you didn't care, until it came for you. Lovely.

DP. I didn’t read it that way. I read it like OP thought the people complaining were a small group of malcontents that were blowing the issues out of proportion. But then OP recently heard issues from so many people that OP is now concerned. Just FWIW.


Idk, maybe I misread the post, but that was how I interpreted OP’s words.

Nope, that poster basically admitted they blew off the concerns and complaints of other parents because she/he labeled them disgruntled and she/he dismissed those complaints and not valid because he/she didn't have any personal knowledge or experience. Instead of believing or taking into consideration the experiences or viewpoints of other parents, she just decided they weren't true.

But now that people she/he actually knows, and people close to her/him say yeah, it is true, this poster suddenly has an about face, reconsiders. And probably has their come to Jesus moment that school violence actually can hit close to home and affect their kid too. Now is time to take action. It apparently wasn't enough before, because it didn't affect them, it didn't scare them, because it wasn't penetrating their bubble, It was NBD when it was happening to other people.

Disgusting.

We are saying the same thing except you are very, very angry. Most people have busy lives/other problems and don’t fully realize something is an issue until it affects them. And they trust the experiences of people they know more than strangers. Sorry this offends you.

Wow.

You can continue with your outrage at OP but the only thing that’s “disgusting” is a school district that would allow things to get so had that some children don’t drink water all day for fear of going to the bathroom. Sounds like OP gets it now. You should channel your energy into making things better rather than attacking someone who apparently now sees what you see.

I mean I guess we should be thankful that it finally took a kid not wanting to drink water all day so they don’t have to go to the bathroom vs a student stabbed to death, a girl gang raped, a student being arrested for a double murder…….

My energy has been channeled towards change for years. And I’m very vocal about it. And I’ve been ostracized by PTAC people and others but I don’t care. What have you done? Not believed other people? GMAFB. Nothing changes, nothing.


But I’ve been so busy with work. But my kids are in honors classes and never see it. Listen to yourself.

All those things are horrible- I was referencing all of the violence when speaking of a kid being afraid to drink water and use the restroom. I think everyone doesn’t know every single thing that happens in a large school district. And yeah, people do work a lot here. It’s very expensive to live here. Thank you for trying to make things better. I’m sorry I rubbed you the wrong way but I do think many people tend to wake up when they or people they know are affected. It’s not necessarily malicious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because ACPS doesn't want to be called "racist"? If ACPS discipline violent behaviors, their discipline data will be reported as "disproportionately punish xxx demographic", imagine how bad that would make the superintendent and principals look like.

This. But by and large just the superintendent/district.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All of those unaccompanied minors are finally paying dividends.

Did you see the crime news story about the 22 and 23 year olds at minnie howard?

What!??? Link?

[Anonymous]

City of Alexandria has a history of covering up crimes in schools.

https://www.wmal.com/2022/03/18/alexandria-school-withholds-sexual-assault-details-from-parents/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I used to think that the ACPS violence was a small group of parents who were disgruntled and maybe had other issues. No more. In the last week:

-a friend shared with me that he kindergartener was told by another student that he was going to take her in the class restroom and rape her
-an acquaintance with a middle school kid told me about her daughter avoiding the bathrooms because she was afraid of getting beat up and that her daughter got beat up three times in her honors class
-a friend told me her son was robbed by classmates walking home from middle school
-a friends son has been attacked 3x on the bus and then later in the cafeteria
-my son had a classmate bring a taser to class
-our neighbor was jumped in the bathroom
-our other neighbor no longer uses the bathroom and doesn't drink water at school
-my stepdaughter told my nephews to stick with the kids wearing Patagonia and Lululemon or the white and Asian kids to not be beat up

What the heck is up? Why is our school board silent? What is central office doing to address?

What I think you mean is that you are rich, white and liberal and thought that the actual non white and poor people kept to themselves and wouldn't effect you.

+1000

"I used to think that the ACPS violence was a small group of parents who were disgruntled and maybe had other issues" aka I didn't think it was a problem until it affected me. Amazing how that works in life. So you didn't care, until it came for you. Lovely.

DP. I didn’t read it that way. I read it like OP thought the people complaining were a small group of malcontents that were blowing the issues out of proportion. But then OP recently heard issues from so many people that OP is now concerned. Just FWIW.


Idk, maybe I misread the post, but that was how I interpreted OP’s words.

Nope, that poster basically admitted they blew off the concerns and complaints of other parents because she/he labeled them disgruntled and she/he dismissed those complaints and not valid because he/she didn't have any personal knowledge or experience. Instead of believing or taking into consideration the experiences or viewpoints of other parents, she just decided they weren't true.

But now that people she/he actually knows, and people close to her/him say yeah, it is true, this poster suddenly has an about face, reconsiders. And probably has their come to Jesus moment that school violence actually can hit close to home and affect their kid too. Now is time to take action. It apparently wasn't enough before, because it didn't affect them, it didn't scare them, because it wasn't penetrating their bubble, It was NBD when it was happening to other people.

Disgusting.

We are saying the same thing except you are very, very angry. Most people have busy lives/other problems and don’t fully realize something is an issue until it affects them. And they trust the experiences of people they know more than strangers. Sorry this offends you.

Wow.

You can continue with your outrage at OP but the only thing that’s “disgusting” is a school district that would allow things to get so had that some children don’t drink water all day for fear of going to the bathroom. Sounds like OP gets it now. You should channel your energy into making things better rather than attacking someone who apparently now sees what you see.

I mean I guess we should be thankful that it finally took a kid not wanting to drink water all day so they don’t have to go to the bathroom vs a student stabbed to death, a girl gang raped, a student being arrested for a double murder…….

My energy has been channeled towards change for years. And I’m very vocal about it. And I’ve been ostracized by PTAC people and others but I don’t care. What have you done? Not believed other people? GMAFB. Nothing changes, nothing.


But I’ve been so busy with work. But my kids are in honors classes and never see it. Listen to yourself.

Yes! Totally agree and experienced the same things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just don't think the school board, central office, city council, or mayor care. I am a lifelong Democrat. But when a parent speaks out, the members of the Democratic party are all over that person, name calling, diminishing their lived experience, victim blaming. It infuriates me. I am so tired of having to advocate for my kids in ACPS. It would be a lot easier to go private, but my kids love ACPS and they offer the accelerated curriculum they need academically that the private schools I can afford do not. I honestly think that the central office and city WANT middle class and upper class parents to leave ACPS.

And I'm from a big city. Attended public schools in a poor to working class neighborhood. We did NOT have violence like this and people lived in poverty. First, no one's parents would have put up with that behavior. Second, our school set high expectations. There was no tolerance for violence. ACPS needs alternative schools or more than 1-2 middle schools and 1 high school. That is the issue. You can't move kids like you can in APS, FCPS, MCPS, DCPS. There is no alternative.

100% true and completely insane.