Murch- Getting screwed again?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And then when you think about what DCPS has sunk into Ellington and Dunbar, you come to the conclusion that Bowser and DCPS hate young non-poor children.

Most of those decisions predate Bowser; it's the old "Chocolate City" Democrat machine in action. Now personified in Bowser.

What would it take for a more capable and inclusive leader to win DC's Democratic primary next time?

Bowser was on the Council, so she is not blameless.

I think Catania would have been more capable and inclusive.

But he was running as an Independent. We need someone able to win the Democratic primary.

Or, as some PPs pointed earlier, a good lawsuit against the city.

No taxation without representation.

Why not start by dragging Mary Cheh to an urgent meeting with Murch parents, and demanding that $10 million be shaved from Duke Ellington's "bling palace" project and re-allocated to Murch?! What would be a modest cut for Ellington (currently about a $200 million renovation and still climbing ) would mean a very significant difference to Murch.

Sure.

Additionally, if I were a Murch parent, I'd mobilize neighbors and work with lawyers to find ways to pay lower property taxes, and fund the Munch renovation directly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, just wow. Definitely encourage the Murch families with proximity preference to check out Hearst Open House on Friday at 9:15. Not sure you can get in OOB anymore, but worth a shot. The daily logistics will be about the same for families on the southern Murch boundary.

Except if we do that - especially the families who got rezoned to Lafayette or Hearst - then they will just pack Murch with OOB kids which will only exacerbate the problem with crowding at Deal in the future and hurt everyone. And this isn't a rant against OOB - it's a rant of how overcrowded it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Take the $10 m from Ellington. They won't even notice.

They've probably lost that much already in project "shrinkage" (a polite word for theft and embezzlement) and barely noticed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:This is outrageous. There is no other word for it. I think we should try to help Murch out here.

If you follow the link in the first post of this thread, there is a request to contact Mayor Bowser and Deputy Mayor for Education Jennifer Niles to request additional funding. Connect information in here:

http://murchschool.org/contact-information-for-city-leadership/

and a sample letter is here:

http://murchschool.org/sample-letter-to-mayor-bowser-on-underfunding-of-murch-modernization/
(put this in your own words)

I know that it is easy to write Murch off as a rich, self-absorbed WotP school, but that is really not the case. I think all of us who value quality eduction should take a minute to contact Bowser and Niles on Murch's behalf. I'd also add Council Member David Grosso to the list.

Thank you, Jeff. As a Murch parent, I appreciate your support and really hope others in the community will support us as we try to get DCPS/DGS to finally do right by this school. The ways this little community is getting beaten down is shameful and seemingly never-ending.

Thank you from another Murch parent as well. And many thanks to you who don't have kids at Murch who will also take a moment to write.

Ditto - but don't forget we are not all rich over here - the apartments along Connecticut Avenue give a lot of families a way to be in bounds for Murch so while we are not that economically diverse - we are more than some.

[Anonymous]

Thank you, Jeff, and anyone else who writes on Murch's behalf. We need all the help we can get!

Signed,
A disillusioned and frustrated Murch parent

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And then when you think about what DCPS has sunk into Ellington and Dunbar, you come to the conclusion that Bowser and DCPS hate young non-poor children.

Most of those decisions predate Bowser; it's the old "Chocolate City" Democrat machine in action. Now personified in Bowser.

What would it take for a more capable and inclusive leader to win DC's Democratic primary next time?

Bowser was on the Council, so she is not blameless.

I think Catania would have been more capable and inclusive.

But he was running as an Independent. We need someone able to win the Democratic primary.

Or, as some PPs pointed earlier, a good lawsuit against the city.

No taxation without representation.

Why not start by dragging Mary Cheh to an urgent meeting with Murch parents, and demanding that $10 million be shaved from Duke Ellington's "bling palace" project and re-allocated to Murch?! What would be a modest cut for Ellington (currently about a $200 million renovation and still climbing ) would mean a very significant difference to Murch.

Sure.

Additionally, if I were a Murch parent, I'd mobilize neighbors and work with lawyers to find ways to pay lower property taxes, and fund the Munch renovation directly.

Prof. Cheh should be made to understand that she needs to get the problem fixed or the entire Ward 3 Murch community will be encouraged to support an opponent at the next election. Screwing Murch (esp while Ellington's problems are ignored yet excessively funded) is outrageous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you, Jeff, and anyone else who writes on Murch's behalf. We need all the help we can get!

Signed,
A disillusioned and frustrated Murch parent

Has the PTO/PTA/HSA (whatever Murch has) talked about filing a lawsuit or at least have they looked into it? I"m sure there are several accomplished attorneys who are parents there who could at least give you some insight about how worthwhile suing the city could be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:This is outrageous. There is no other word for it. I think we should try to help Murch out here.

If you follow the link in the first post of this thread, there is a request to contact Mayor Bowser and Deputy Mayor for Education Jennifer Niles to request additional funding. Connect information in here:

http://murchschool.org/contact-information-for-city-leadership/

and a sample letter is here:

http://murchschool.org/sample-letter-to-mayor-bowser-on-underfunding-of-murch-modernization/
(put this in your own words)

I know that it is easy to write Murch off as a rich, self-absorbed WotP school, but that is really not the case. I think all of us who value quality eduction should take a minute to contact Bowser and Niles on Murch's behalf. I'd also add Council Member David Grosso to the list.

Thank you, Jeff. As a Murch parent, I appreciate your support and really hope others in the community will support us as we try to get DCPS/DGS to finally do right by this school. The ways this little community is getting beaten down is shameful and seemingly never-ending.

Thank you from another Murch parent as well. And many thanks to you who don't have kids at Murch who will also take a moment to write.

You are quite welcome! I am trying to get other ward 4 residents to write in as well. This is SHAMEFUL.

-OP

Thank you, and remember too that part of Murch's boundary is in Ward 4, so you are writing for your immediate neighbors and might also reach out to Mr. Todd.

[Anonymous]

I'll write too - but my unsolicited advice is that everyone keep Ellington and the other over budget schools out of it.

$10 million is not that much money to find in the city budget. It isn't on the Murch parents to find where the money needs to come from -- make a lot of noise and demand that they provide enough funding to bring the facility up to the norm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And then when you think about what DCPS has sunk into Ellington and Dunbar, you come to the conclusion that Bowser and DCPS hate young non-poor children.

Most of those decisions predate Bowser; it's the old "Chocolate City" Democrat machine in action. Now personified in Bowser.

What would it take for a more capable and inclusive leader to win DC's Democratic primary next time?

Bowser was on the Council, so she is not blameless.

I think Catania would have been more capable and inclusive.

But he was running as an Independent. We need someone able to win the Democratic primary.

Or, as some PPs pointed earlier, a good lawsuit against the city.

No taxation without representation.

Why not start by dragging Mary Cheh to an urgent meeting with Murch parents, and demanding that $10 million be shaved from Duke Ellington's "bling palace" project and re-allocated to Murch?! What would be a modest cut for Ellington (currently about a $200 million renovation and still climbing ) would mean a very significant difference to Murch.

Sure.

Additionally, if I were a Murch parent, I'd mobilize neighbors and work with lawyers to find ways to pay lower property taxes, and fund the Munch renovation directly.

Murch helped sue the city long ago on facilities. That is what got the city-wide modernization process going. Now, everyone has suggestions for how the Murch community should try to fix the process for the city again.

Honestly, it is easier to move. Many have. More may. But it is a great school and a great community, so I hope people don't give up.

[Anonymous]

Mary Cheh earmarked $9.5 million in the capital budget to build a new rec center building at Palisades that the neighbors don't want. Start there.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:I'll write too - but my unsolicited advice is that everyone keep Ellington and the other over budget schools out of it.

$10 million is not that much money to find in the city budget. It isn't on the Murch parents to find where the money needs to come from -- make a lot of noise and demand that they provide enough funding to bring the facility up to the norm.

This is good advice. This is an issue of common sense. I would say it's an issue of fairness, but it is much more basic than that even. In what world does it make sense to renovate a school and not provide a cafeteria, downsize the library, and turn a playground into a parking lot? This is a clear case of being penny wise but pound foolish. There is no need to pit Murch against any other school. This is a case in which good fiscal management requires spending a bit more money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mary Cheh earmarked $9.5 million in the capital budget to build a new rec center building at Palisades that the neighbors don't want. Start there.

A couple of years ago, DC paid millions to widen Idaho Ave. by 4 feet to access a new development project on Wisconsin Ave., after the developers and DDOT initially forgot how wide the street needed to be to accommodate buses and two way traffic. Mary Cheh strongly supported this. If DC is willing to spend taxpayers' money to benefit private economic interests, then they should be able to find the money to fund a public school renovation that has languished for years.

[Anonymous]

It would have been cheaper and simpler to renovate Murch's 85-year-old existing building, which was designed to hold ~400 kids and then build another elementary school in Ward 3 for the other ~300 students. Instead, the city insists on squeezing 700 kids on the site, which requires a huge addition that covers up more than half the playground. No vision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What was the final decision about the swing space? Where will it be?

The official decision was one year at UDC and one year on-site. The rumblings on the street are that DCPS hasn't actually nailed down the UDC option yet. Doesn't mean it won't happen, but it seems nothing is certain in this project...which is crazy because it is supposed to start in 4 months.