Baileys & Sleepy Hollow Parents - Proposed Vertical School Meetings This Week!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do blame Penny Gross, but I also blame FCPS.

Explain why you blame FCPS? The above poster clearly states that FCPS was trying to deal with it but got shot down at every turn by Penny Gross. When Dean Tisdadt retired, the one regret he has was not being able to figure out a solution for Bailey's. The reason it has not been resolved has not been for a lack of trying. If you have some clear solution PP, please share it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:FCPS has been tracking the rapid growth of the Hispanic population in that area for years and had identified the need for a new school. They wanted to build a new ES adjacent to Glasgow MS where there was land, similar to what APS is doing near Williamsburg. That community objected to more congestion near Glasgow and the local supervisor, Penny Gross, not only killed the idea, but also objected to every other proposal FCPS offered, at least until the overcrowding received so much publicity this fall. If you want to blame someone, blame Gross, not the people at FCPS who have been warning Bailey's was becoming overcrowded.

The Glasgow idea needed to be killed. Almost every school in Cluster 3 is at or above capacity and most of the those kids are headed to Glasgow in a few years. If they used the Glasgow land for an elementary school, how would they ever expand Glasgo when the need arises?
As for Penny Gross, she has been obstructionist from the get-go. She killed the idea of using the Willston property as well as the combined school-library idea with Woodrow Wilson library. I'm a Democrat, but I'd vote for any decent candidate of any party who decided to run against her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCPS has been tracking the rapid growth of the Hispanic population in that area for years and had identified the need for a new school. They wanted to build a new ES adjacent to Glasgow MS where there was land, similar to what APS is doing near Williamsburg. That community objected to more congestion near Glasgow and the local supervisor, Penny Gross, not only killed the idea, but also objected to every other proposal FCPS offered, at least until the overcrowding received so much publicity this fall. If you want to blame someone, blame Gross, not the people at FCPS who have been warning Bailey's was becoming overcrowded.

The Glasgow idea needed to be killed. Almost every school in Cluster 3 is at or above capacity and most of the those kids are headed to Glasgow in a few years. If they used the Glasgow land for an elementary school, how would they ever expand Glasgo when the need arises?
As for Penny Gross, she has been obstructionist from the get-go. She killed the idea of using the Willston property as well as the combined school-library idea with Woodrow Wilson library. I'm a Democrat, but I'd vote for any decent candidate of any party who decided to run against her.

Cluster 3 also includes the Annandale and Woodson pyramids, so most kids in that cluster are not headed to Glasgow and Stuart. Glasgow MS is one of the biggest MS in the county, but nearby Poe is not at capacity, so FCPS could have built a new ES near Glasgow and then moved some of the MS kids coming out of Mason Crest and Beech Tree to Poe if needed. I don't think there's much chance Glasgow will be expanded to accommodate more MS kids given how big it is now.

[Anonymous]

On the buildings, I'm not that familiar with all the properties FCPS owns or around Baileys, but I know there are several locations for administration buildings and special services in Falls Church, Vienna, Oakton, etc. so I assumed there would be some within the Stuart high school area as well. FCPS I saw even owns some property near my house along Lawyers Road that I can't believe they'll ever use. It just seems FCPS has enough other properties in Fairfax that it could either buy a suitable new property or relocate one of their programs to open up a facility nearby.

[Anonymous]

Instead of trying to convert an office building back into a school which seems expensive and impractical, why not recommission the Alan E. Leis Instructional Center on 7423 Camp Alger Ave as a school? Then the office building could be used for professional development. Makes way more sense.

[Anonymous]

I'm a Bailey's parent and I'm sick of every idea being shot down. It's easy for everyone to sit around and bash the vertical school, and rehash past plans and propose new ones, but this is the first idea that seems to have real traction. If this idea gets killed, how long will it take for another idea to come along that Penny Gross won't derail. Sorry, our kids have been neglected and packed in like sardines long enough. The vertical school feels like a bird in the hand, I'll take it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a Bailey's parent and I'm sick of every idea being shot down. It's easy for everyone to sit around and bash the vertical school, and rehash past plans and propose new ones, but this is the first idea that seems to have real traction. If this idea gets killed, how long will it take for another idea to come along that Penny Gross won't derail. Sorry, our kids have been neglected and packed in like sardines long enough. The vertical school feels like a bird in the hand, I'll take it.

But the neighbors don't like it.

http://annandaleva.blogspot.com/2013/12/neighbors-oppose-use-of-office-building.html

[Anonymous]

First, get rid of the magnet program at Bailey's.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a Bailey's parent and I'm sick of every idea being shot down. It's easy for everyone to sit around and bash the vertical school, and rehash past plans and propose new ones, but this is the first idea that seems to have real traction. If this idea gets killed, how long will it take for another idea to come along that Penny Gross won't derail. Sorry, our kids have been neglected and packed in like sardines long enough. The vertical school feels like a bird in the hand, I'll take it.

But the neighbors don't like it.

http://annandaleva.blogspot.com/2013/12/neighbors-oppose-use-of-office-building.html

Yes, the neighbors not liking it takes priority over 1300+ kids' education. Sleepy Hollow parents didn't like the idea of sending some Bailey's kids there and that got killed. Brilliant idea, let's neglect the Bailey's kids until we find some solution that no one disagrees with. I'm sure that will happen soon

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First, get rid of the magnet program at Bailey's.

Would love that, but the powers that be all buy into the idea that the white kids who magnet into Bailey's are the only positives in the school and their departure would doom the school. I say get rid of the immersion program too while your at it. But given the fact that Bailey's is twice the size of the average FCPS, even getting rid of those won't solve the problem. Maybe the new vertical school can be for Bailey's kids whose parents just want their kids to get a good education and would prefer not to deal with the magnet/immersion sideshow.

[Anonymous]

Meant "you're" at it.....

[Anonymous]

Didn't realize they also had immersion. They need to get rid of any program that brings in outside kids. In fact, this should be done all across the county. Costs extra money. It is a place to start.

[Anonymous]

They should just make a new school at the office building and change the boundaries. Don't call it Bailey's West or anything -- just make it a new school and redistrict all the area schools boundaries. Definitely drop the magnet and immersion programs at the same time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They should just make a new school at the office building and change the boundaries. Don't call it Bailey's West or anything -- just make it a new school and redistrict all the area schools boundaries. Definitely drop the magnet and immersion programs at the same time.

From what I've read that's the long term plan. The office building will eventually become a new neighborhood elementary school. But that won't be until after the grounds are fenced off and a playground is built which will take a few years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Didn't realize they also had immersion. They need to get rid of any program that brings in outside kids. In fact, this should be done all across the county. Costs extra money. It is a place to start.

How do these programs cost extra money? There is no bussing provided. The parents have to provide their own transportation.