Tell me why the boundary changes are

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Woodward is currently being used as a holding school for Northwood.

Exactly. So there is precedent to use Crown as a holding school.

As well as a precedent to use Wootton as a holding school and then re-open as a high school if enrollment recovers.

So you’re admitting that MCPS is closing Wootton. Glad we agree.

No... 5 out of the 6 elementary schools are still part of the Wootton school boundaries. If the plan goes through, it's going to move all the teachers and administrators to the new site. If it was truly a closure, all those administrators and teachers would be dispersed into the rest of MCPS.

Montgomery Blair moved out of its original building to its new location. The old building was renovated and then re-opened as a combination elementary school / middle school, nobody called that a closure of Blair.

Good point. The old Blair became Silver Spring International MS and Sligo Elementary. The new Blair is several miles from the original school building, so there is precedent for moving kids away from their current school location.

Did they have to move the Blair boundaries? If so, did they do it at the same time as they closed the old Blair? How many months of public comment did they hold before moving Blair?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Crown never should have been built.

Oh in that case I am going to go get my time machine, thank you!

Fine, let’s use Crown as a holding school. Taylor already has money to fix up and claims that he needs to operate Wootton as a holding school, so why move it or the Wootton boundaries at all? Crown seems line the perfect place to use as a holding school. The excess capacity can be used for 5-10 years while other high schools are renovated and remediated, at which point Crown will have grown it’s student population organically.

That makes no sense. If they are going to use Crown as a high school after it is used as a holding school first, they will have to move kids from other high schools into. Children aren't literal plants that you can grow in a school by planting seeds in the football field.

No, QO and GHS (plus other high schools in the Gaithersburg area) were promised Crown before Option H. Their overcrowding would have filled a significant number of spots at Crown. The remaining excess capacity would be used to hold students from Damascus and Magruder as each of those schools go through phased renovations (not all students red to be moved out).

Instead, Taylor is giving 2000 of the 2700 spots at Crown to Wootton kids, screwing QO and GHS kids (plus other high schools in the Gaithersburg area) by giving them only 700 spots at Crown. He did so because he claims he has no money to operate Wootton as a school building anymore(but he does because he wants to use it as a holding school instead of his shiny new Crown).

This is why there is almost universal opposition to Option H.

A school that's partially a tiny regular high school and partially a holding school for an entirely different school? How would that even work?

Not a tiny regular school. The majority of Crown would be permanent students with the excess capacity used for portions of a high school undergoing phased renovation. Think about a 4-year renovation - each class year is moved individually and temporarily - that way, only a portion need transportation to the holding school (making it easier on families and school staff) and there is no wholesale uprooting of the entire student population (eg 2000+ kids)

A phased high school renovation is a construction approach that updates or expands a school in multiple stages while keeping the school operational. This method minimizes disruptions for students and staff by allowing parts of the school to be renovated at different times.

Ok, now I know you don't have a high schooler. You can't just move 9th graders out of a school, because almost every HS class has kids from every grade. Moreover, a school reconstruction doesn't leave part of the school untouched -- it happens all at once.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Woodward is currently being used as a holding school for Northwood.

Exactly. So there is precedent to use Crown as a holding school.

As well as a precedent to use Wootton as a holding school and then re-open as a high school if enrollment recovers.

So you’re admitting that MCPS is closing Wootton. Glad we agree.

No... 5 out of the 6 elementary schools are still part of the Wootton school boundaries. If the plan goes through, it's going to move all the teachers and administrators to the new site. If it was truly a closure, all those administrators and teachers would be dispersed into the rest of MCPS.

Montgomery Blair moved out of its original building to its new location. The old building was renovated and then re-opened as a combination elementary school / middle school, nobody called that a closure of Blair.

Good point. The old Blair became Silver Spring International MS and Sligo Elementary. The new Blair is several miles from the original school building, so there is precedent for moving kids away from their current school location.

Did they have to move the Blair boundaries? If so, did they do it at the same time as they closed the old Blair? How many months of public comment did they hold before moving Blair?

The Blair boundaries stayed as they were until a few years after the move when Northwood reopened as its own school, comprised of former Blair, Einstein, and Kennedy areas.

[Anonymous]

What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

Is it the same Wootton when you change the boundaries and add 33% from other lower-performing schools? It won’t have the same performance as it did - leading to a decline in reputation and top college admissions statistics. So no, it won’t be the “same old W school”.

It’s also not a minor location change - it goes from a predominantly residential area to a high-traffic commercial area that requires high school kids and buses to drive on 270.

You seem to want to minimize all of the changes. Why is that? What do you have to gain? Do you have a house in Crown and kids who would get to go there?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

As an anecdote, my friend moved to a Wootton district, specifically for Wootton, and his son goes to Frost at the moment. He does not care about option H because his son needs to ride the bus regardless.

Similarly, my parents are still living in the DuFief neighborhood; their neighbors are thrilled because most options had them districted to Crown and if Wootton is moving there, they stay in the same school boundary.

The Wootton boundary was always going to be the flashpoint in the Crown boundary study; this current option is the least disruptive for the Wootton student body. Only Cold Spring is getting moved out of the boundary and the rest stay in.

It is completely understandable for the neighborhoods surrounding the current Wootton site to be upset; their home high school will no longer be walkable. For the majority of the Wootton student population, it's a minimal change, riding a bus to one building rather than another.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Woodward is currently being used as a holding school for Northwood.

Exactly. So there is precedent to use Crown as a holding school.

As well as a precedent to use Wootton as a holding school and then re-open as a high school if enrollment recovers.

So you’re admitting that MCPS is closing Wootton. Glad we agree.

No... 5 out of the 6 elementary schools are still part of the Wootton school boundaries. If the plan goes through, it's going to move all the teachers and administrators to the new site. If it was truly a closure, all those administrators and teachers would be dispersed into the rest of MCPS.

Montgomery Blair moved out of its original building to its new location. The old building was renovated and then re-opened as a combination elementary school / middle school, nobody called that a closure of Blair.

Good point. The old Blair became Silver Spring International MS and Sligo Elementary. The new Blair is several miles from the original school building, so there is precedent for moving kids away from their current school location.

Did they have to move the Blair boundaries? If so, did they do it at the same time as they closed the old Blair? How many months of public comment did they hold before moving Blair?

The Blair boundaries stayed as they were until a few years after the move when Northwood reopened as its own school, comprised of former Blair, Einstein, and Kennedy areas.

So are you saying that Blair moved buildings within its existing boundaries? Which means the student population stayed the same after the move? And the boundaries were moved later after significant community consultation? If so, then it seems line Blair isn’t comparable nor a precedent for Option H.

Also, now the City of Rockville is involved and opposes Option H, so that may give Taylor and the BOE some pause.
https://www.mymcmedia.org/rockville-leadership-sends-letter-opposing-wootton-high-school-relocation-to-crown/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

Is it the same Wootton when you change the boundaries and add 33% from other lower-performing schools? It won’t have the same performance as it did - leading to a decline in reputation and top college admissions statistics. So no, it won’t be the “same old W school”.

It’s also not a minor location change - it goes from a predominantly residential area to a high-traffic commercial area that requires high school kids and buses to drive on 270.

You seem to want to minimize all of the changes. Why is that? What do you have to gain? Do you have a house in Crown and kids who would get to go there?

Way to prove my point. Be careful you're not too successful convincing people that the sky is falling and Wootton won't be Wootton anymore but will instead be a more undesirable school... you're the one who'll have to deal with the consequences if they believe you.

(And no, I have nothing to gain other than the spillover benefits of MCPS not having to pay to renovate Wootton... I'm just watching this from a distance from the other side of the county shaking my head at how alarmist done Wootton families are being about what is really, seriously, not that big a deal. Going from 14% to 19% FARMS is still peanuts. Most of the families and almost all of the staff will be the same. The only reason Wootton will go downhill is if you successfully convince everyone that the move means the school will automatically go downhill and then it starts becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy and families start bailing.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Woodward is currently being used as a holding school for Northwood.

Exactly. So there is precedent to use Crown as a holding school.

As well as a precedent to use Wootton as a holding school and then re-open as a high school if enrollment recovers.

So you’re admitting that MCPS is closing Wootton. Glad we agree.

No... 5 out of the 6 elementary schools are still part of the Wootton school boundaries. If the plan goes through, it's going to move all the teachers and administrators to the new site. If it was truly a closure, all those administrators and teachers would be dispersed into the rest of MCPS.

Montgomery Blair moved out of its original building to its new location. The old building was renovated and then re-opened as a combination elementary school / middle school, nobody called that a closure of Blair.

Good point. The old Blair became Silver Spring International MS and Sligo Elementary. The new Blair is several miles from the original school building, so there is precedent for moving kids away from their current school location.

Did they have to move the Blair boundaries? If so, did they do it at the same time as they closed the old Blair? How many months of public comment did they hold before moving Blair?

The Blair boundaries stayed as they were until a few years after the move when Northwood reopened as its own school, comprised of former Blair, Einstein, and Kennedy areas.

So are you saying that Blair moved buildings within its existing boundaries? Which means the student population stayed the same after the move? And the boundaries were moved later after significant community consultation? If so, then it seems line Blair isn’t comparable nor a precedent for Option H.

Also, now the City of Rockville is involved and opposes Option H, so that may give Taylor and the BOE some pause.
https://www.mymcmedia.org/rockville-leadership-sends-letter-opposing-wootton-high-school-relocation-to-crown/

The point was that moving Blair to a new building was not thought of a closure of Blair, even though its old building is no longer a high school. Boundary changes are really a separate matter from the relocation. School boundaries are never set in stone, and when they change, yes, the school can change too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

Is it the same Wootton when you change the boundaries and add 33% from other lower-performing schools? It won’t have the same performance as it did - leading to a decline in reputation and top college admissions statistics. So no, it won’t be the “same old W school”.

It’s also not a minor location change - it goes from a predominantly residential area to a high-traffic commercial area that requires high school kids and buses to drive on 270.

You seem to want to minimize all of the changes. Why is that? What do you have to gain? Do you have a house in Crown and kids who would get to go there?

Way to prove my point. Be careful you're not too successful convincing people that the sky is falling and Wootton won't be Wootton anymore but will instead be a more undesirable school... you're the one who'll have to deal with the consequences if they believe you.

(And no, I have nothing to gain other than the spillover benefits of MCPS not having to pay to renovate Wootton... I'm just watching this from a distance from the other side of the county shaking my head at how alarmist done Wootton families are being about what is really, seriously, not that big a deal. Going from 14% to 19% FARMS is still peanuts. Most of the families and almost all of the staff will be the same. The only reason Wootton will go downhill is if you successfully convince everyone that the move means the school will automatically go downhill and then it starts becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy and families start bailing.)

Didn’t prove your point at all. It’s a fact when you change the school population as proposed, and handle this closure the way MCPS, performance won’t be the same regardless of the name on the school. Not a self fulfilling prophecy, but rather a consequence of MCPS’ failures.

But I like how you’re making excuses for MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

Is it the same Wootton when you change the boundaries and add 33% from other lower-performing schools? It won’t have the same performance as it did - leading to a decline in reputation and top college admissions statistics. So no, it won’t be the “same old W school”.

It’s also not a minor location change - it goes from a predominantly residential area to a high-traffic commercial area that requires high school kids and buses to drive on 270.

You seem to want to minimize all of the changes. Why is that? What do you have to gain? Do you have a house in Crown and kids who would get to go there?

Way to prove my point. Be careful you're not too successful convincing people that the sky is falling and Wootton won't be Wootton anymore but will instead be a more undesirable school... you're the one who'll have to deal with the consequences if they believe you.

(And no, I have nothing to gain other than the spillover benefits of MCPS not having to pay to renovate Wootton... I'm just watching this from a distance from the other side of the county shaking my head at how alarmist done Wootton families are being about what is really, seriously, not that big a deal. Going from 14% to 19% FARMS is still peanuts. Most of the families and almost all of the staff will be the same. The only reason Wootton will go downhill is if you successfully convince everyone that the move means the school will automatically go downhill and then it starts becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy and families start bailing.)

Didn’t prove your point at all. It’s a fact when you change the school population as proposed, and handle this closure the way MCPS, performance won’t be the same regardless of the name on the school. Not a self fulfilling prophecy, but rather a consequence of MCPS’ failures.

But I like how you’re making excuses for MCPS.

The rest of us are all seeing our schools' boundaries change too, but no one else is freaking out about it as some huge consequential change the way Wootton families are. Boundary changes are a fact it life, you're not immune, sorry. And I have no idea how anyone at a school with a sub-20% FARMS rate thinks it is something worth complaining about

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not about making people happy. They need to utilize the high schools better. Some have way too many people, others don't have enough. Some have crazy boundaries. There has been a lot of construction and immigration since the last countywide boundary changes.

You have high schools that are larger than America's liberal arts colleges.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

Is it the same Wootton when you change the boundaries and add 33% from other lower-performing schools? It won’t have the same performance as it did - leading to a decline in reputation and top college admissions statistics. So no, it won’t be the “same old W school”.

It’s also not a minor location change - it goes from a predominantly residential area to a high-traffic commercial area that requires high school kids and buses to drive on 270.

You seem to want to minimize all of the changes. Why is that? What do you have to gain? Do you have a house in Crown and kids who would get to go there?

Why do you think your school should basically be treated differently than any other school? Crown families probably don't want Wootton families because of how you all behave. Ever think of that? They are wealthy families, probably more wealthy than you, who were promised a new school that is now being taken over by entitled parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's not about making people happy. They need to utilize the high schools better. Some have way too many people, others don't have enough. Some have crazy boundaries. There has been a lot of construction and immigration since the last countywide boundary changes.

You have high schools that are larger than America's liberal arts colleges.

When we are looking at colleges its pretty shocking that some are smaller than our HS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's ironic is that it's pretty clear that Wootton is going to still be very similar after the move, so their reputation and offerings would otherwise stay pretty much the same and no one (except walkers to the current Wootton) would care much... it's still basically the same old W school and any downsides would be cancelled out by the benefits of having a shiny new building. If folks just accepted it as a minor location change and a minor boundary change, it would just be a tiny blip on Wootton's trajectory but otherwise just the same Wootton it's always been.

Except given how much shouting Wootton families are doing about how the move will ruin Wootton and how it won't "really" be Wootton anymore, I do wonder if they're making it a self fulfilling prophecy? Like, any reasonable person knows that it will still be Wootton and it's no big deal, but if everyone around you is saying that it's terrible, the old Wootton will be gone, the new one will be worse, then maybe you start believing it?

Is it the same Wootton when you change the boundaries and add 33% from other lower-performing schools? It won’t have the same performance as it did - leading to a decline in reputation and top college admissions statistics. So no, it won’t be the “same old W school”.

It’s also not a minor location change - it goes from a predominantly residential area to a high-traffic commercial area that requires high school kids and buses to drive on 270.

You seem to want to minimize all of the changes. Why is that? What do you have to gain? Do you have a house in Crown and kids who would get to go there?

Why do you think your school should basically be treated differently than any other school? Crown families probably don't want Wootton families because of how you all behave. Ever think of that? They are wealthy families, probably more wealthy than you, who were promised a new school that is now being taken over by entitled parents.

Way to project there buddy. And good to know you don’t live in Wootton or Gaithersburg, so you don’t really have a direct interest here. You also probably don’t have kids in MCPS at all, so you don’t even have an indirect interest here.

Wootton families don’t want Crown. Gaithersburg families do. And Gaithersburg families would be happy to use Crown’s excess as a holding school. They would be slightly less happy if Crown were completely used as a holding school for a few years (like Woodward) but at least it would be all theirs eventually. This settles the matter according to your logic.

Gaithersburg families don’t need you defending them. They can speak for themselves - and have spoken by opposing Option H. But people like you seem to think you know what’s best for others. Here’s a hint: You don’t.

Take a seat.