TJMS Renovations?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone keeping up with the debate in Arlington about renovations to TJMS? https://www.arlnow.com/2025/11/18/students-parents-and-staff-push-aps-to-commit-to-tj-middle-school-upgrades/

You already posted this in AEC, you really want to talk about this huh?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone keeping up with the debate in Arlington about renovations to TJMS? https://www.arlnow.com/2025/11/18/students-parents-and-staff-push-aps-to-commit-to-tj-middle-school-upgrades/

You already posted this in AEC, you really want to talk about this huh?

I’m the OP and I’m not even a member of AEC. Once they let AEM shut down I decided dcum was the only place I wanted to get my APS news

[Anonymous]

I wonder if the Montessori parents know or care the damage they are doing writ large all so their kids can play with clay and string instead of attending regular classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the Montessori parents know or care the damage they are doing writ large all so their kids can play with clay and string instead of attending regular classes.

I don’t think they are doing damage but I think they should be open to considering other options given the state of nearby buildings and budget concerns. That being said families made a decision to attend Montessori based on certain plans and it’s going to be inconvenient for many of them if they end up elsewhere. I know people on here won’t be sympathetic to that but it does suck to have to move your kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the Montessori parents know or care the damage they are doing writ large all so their kids can play with clay and string instead of attending regular classes.

I don’t think they are doing damage but I think they should be open to considering other options given the state of nearby buildings and budget concerns. That being said families made a decision to attend Montessori based on certain plans and it’s going to be inconvenient for many of them if they end up elsewhere. I know people on here won’t be sympathetic to that but it does suck to have to move your kids.

But aren't they bused? HB had to move to another building across the county which wasn't as convenient for some but was more convenient for others. Countywide programs can go anywhere in the county.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if the Montessori parents know or care the damage they are doing writ large all so their kids can play with clay and string instead of attending regular classes.

I don’t think they are doing damage but I think they should be open to considering other options given the state of nearby buildings and budget concerns. That being said families made a decision to attend Montessori based on certain plans and it’s going to be inconvenient for many of them if they end up elsewhere. I know people on here won’t be sympathetic to that but it does suck to have to move your kids.

But aren't they bused? HB had to move to another building across the county which wasn't as convenient for some but was more convenient for others. Countywide programs can go anywhere in the county.

It's only natural for Montessori not to want to be bounced around. Of course it's up to the school board to make the tough decisions. They did just that when they moved HB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

Taylor has one of the biggest neighborhood boundaries as it is, because it is not “nearby” to any other elementary school. You would need to bus almost all of its students if you closed it. The only ones who wouldn’t need busing are the tendrils of the boundary that are close to Rosslyn.

I agree that the open floor plan is terrible though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

One of the 4 schools in a row (Tuckahoe, Nottingham, Discovery, Jamestown) needs to be closed based on enrollment trends and geography. Fortunately, that means we have an extra building for Montessori. Hooray! Glad to hear both Nottingham and Tuckahoe are ready to go. Use the Career Center for swing space for the many many buildings (including Taylor) that need full renovations.

Nottingham/Tuckahoe/Montessori parents will fight this, as they do every time, but eventually they will lose. Ask Escuela Key parents about what happens when you fight the inevitable. For the record, in the end it was just fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

Taylor has one of the biggest neighborhood boundaries as it is, because it is not “nearby” to any other elementary school. You would need to bus almost all of its students if you closed it. The only ones who wouldn’t need busing are the tendrils of the boundary that are close to Rosslyn.

I agree that the open floor plan is terrible though.

You mean the part of the county with the biggest lots? I think its boundaries are big b/c it has less students in it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

One of the 4 schools in a row (Tuckahoe, Nottingham, Discovery, Jamestown) needs to be closed based on enrollment trends and geography. Fortunately, that means we have an extra building for Montessori. Hooray! Glad to hear both Nottingham and Tuckahoe are ready to go. Use the Career Center for swing space for the many many buildings (including Taylor) that need full renovations.

Nottingham/Tuckahoe/Montessori parents will fight this, as they do every time, but eventually they will lose. Ask Escuela Key parents about what happens when you fight the inevitable. For the record, in the end it was just fine.

I can't picture APS inconveniencing parents north of Rt 50 by bussing their kids even temporarily, to the South. They'll probably come up with a more "equitable" plan, like shifting some other population closer to the ACC, so that the North parents don't have to venture so far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

Taylor has one of the biggest neighborhood boundaries as it is, because it is not “nearby” to any other elementary school. You would need to bus almost all of its students if you closed it. The only ones who wouldn’t need busing are the tendrils of the boundary that are close to Rosslyn.

I agree that the open floor plan is terrible though.

Just stop. Taylor is within 1-3 miles of several other schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

Taylor has one of the biggest neighborhood boundaries as it is, because it is not “nearby” to any other elementary school. You would need to bus almost all of its students if you closed it. The only ones who wouldn’t need busing are the tendrils of the boundary that are close to Rosslyn.

I agree that the open floor plan is terrible though.

Just stop. Taylor is within 1-3 miles of several other schools.

Nottingham is half a mile away from Discovery and the walk zones overlap. It's fairly obvious Nottingham should close, even if it was renovated 20 years ago, and Taylor should be gutted and renovated or completely rebuilt. One caveat. If the cost of renovating or rebuilding Taylor is so burdensome that all TJ gets is a roof replacement and a paint job, then I say close Taylor. And remember APS needs to fund the toxic mold abatement for Swanson's auditorium, and also fund a complete renovation and addition to finally get rid of the trailers. Swanson is the oldest of the middle schools. Just shy of 90 years old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

Taylor has one of the biggest neighborhood boundaries as it is, because it is not “nearby” to any other elementary school. You would need to bus almost all of its students if you closed it. The only ones who wouldn’t need busing are the tendrils of the boundary that are close to Rosslyn.

I agree that the open floor plan is terrible though.

Just stop. Taylor is within 1-3 miles of several other schools.

Nottingham is half a mile away from Discovery and the walk zones overlap. It's fairly obvious Nottingham should close, even if it was renovated 20 years ago, and Taylor should be gutted and renovated or completely rebuilt. One caveat. If the cost of renovating or rebuilding Taylor is so burdensome that all TJ gets is a roof replacement and a paint job, then I say close Taylor. And remember APS needs to fund the toxic mold abatement for Swanson's auditorium, and also fund a complete renovation and addition to finally get rid of the trailers. Swanson is the oldest of the middle schools. Just shy of 90 years old.

Nottingham is really convenient to a Swanson reno.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

Taylor has one of the biggest neighborhood boundaries as it is, because it is not “nearby” to any other elementary school. You would need to bus almost all of its students if you closed it. The only ones who wouldn’t need busing are the tendrils of the boundary that are close to Rosslyn.

I agree that the open floor plan is terrible though.

Just stop. Taylor is within 1-3 miles of several other schools.

If 3 miles is the basis, then you can justify closing any elementary school in Arlington. But it makes more sense to close one that has walk zone overlap with another elementary school, which Taylor does not. I don’t have a dog in this fight bc my kids are out of elementary, but please go argue your nonsensical ideas before the school board. I’ll gladly eat my popcorn and watch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Closing Nottingham and using the career center as a swing space for TJ and Swanson renovations does seem to make sense

Close Jamestown, Taylor or Tuckahoe instead. Those buildings are all in far worse shape than Nottingham. Nottingham was renovated-makes no sense to close it.

Tuckahoe was renovated too. Taylor is needed in that part of the county unless Madison or Woodmont reopens.

Not anymore after Innovation opened. Kids could be reshuffled just as they would have to be for any school that closes.

It's poor planning to leave an entire section of the county without a neighborhood elementary school. Bussing all the way to Science Focus, Innovation, Glebe, and/or Jamestown is not a good solution. Makes better sense to close Nottingham or Tuckahoe even if they are newly renovated.

omg the outrage! there are several nearby schools...you mention them. Arlington is a small county and the NE corner has plenty of coverage. There is no money to renovate your precious Taylor just to keep it open for your personal preference when other schools are in much better shape. Taylor just like TJ has that awful open classroom design with flimsy walls that are not real walls. Time to go.

Taylor has one of the biggest neighborhood boundaries as it is, because it is not “nearby” to any other elementary school. You would need to bus almost all of its students if you closed it. The only ones who wouldn’t need busing are the tendrils of the boundary that are close to Rosslyn.

I agree that the open floor plan is terrible though.

Just stop. Taylor is within 1-3 miles of several other schools.

Nottingham is half a mile away from Discovery and the walk zones overlap. It's fairly obvious Nottingham should close, even if it was renovated 20 years ago, and Taylor should be gutted and renovated or completely rebuilt. One caveat. If the cost of renovating or rebuilding Taylor is so burdensome that all TJ gets is a roof replacement and a paint job, then I say close Taylor. And remember APS needs to fund the toxic mold abatement for Swanson's auditorium, and also fund a complete renovation and addition to finally get rid of the trailers. Swanson is the oldest of the middle schools. Just shy of 90 years old.

What money are you going to reuse to gut and renovate or completely rebuild Taylor --- and instead close a school that doesn't need any of that? What justifies that? Like you point out, there are pressing needs to spend that money in other places.