Funding for Coolidge

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:I guess I haven't been paying attention, but I just learned that Coolidge has been budgeted nearly $160 million for its renovation. That will likely be delayed because Chairman Mendelson is in the process of taking that money to use for the homeless shelters. But, the funds are supposed to be restored for Coolidge next year.

Coolidge currently has 400 students according to profiles.dcps.dc.gov. As we have been discussion on this forum, Murch (620 students) and Shepherd (318 students) are struggling for funds to complete their renovations. I know that it is supposed to be some sort of political third rail, but wouldn't it make sense to mothball Coolidge and send its students to newly-renovated Roosevelt until the space is actually needed?

Yes! A thousand times yes!

Some people have b*tched about the $180M price tag for Duke Ellington but at least Ellington gets used! Renovating Coolidge would accomplish nothing - the population will still be in decline. Coolidge is totally unnecessary.

The population in the northern part of the city is definitely not in decline. If you look at a 10 year horizon, it absolutely makes sense to have MS / HS capacity in the area.

The population in that part of the city has more in common with the Hill families who avoid Eastern in droves, than with the Coolidge alums who imagine a restoration of whatever tattered glory it may have once had.

[Anonymous]

Ironically Coolidge is only 47% IB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it really interesting how often over the last decade I've read and heard that Dcps makes decisions to spend hundreds of millions on half empty schools because of the squeaky wheel alumni. I loved my high school but I don't expect it to remain the same or even continue to exist. I get having fond memories and all that, but perhaps back off and allow the city to change in ways that make the most sense, not demand that we stay stuck in the past based on some weird obsession with nostalgia. Why do our elects officials allow people who haven't been students in decades to dictate our school planning?

Because they vote. Because they turn out in large numbers at stuff like candidates' forums, the Ward 4 Democrats meetings, and fundraisers. Because the first question that gets asked when anyone stands up to give their opinion at a community meeting is "how long have you lived here?" and if the answer is less than half your life people will scoff at you out loud. Because "native Washingtonian" is the most important thing you can be here if you want your ideas to matter--and being a white 10-year-old born at GW or Washington Hospital Center or Sibley is not going to cut it. That may change over time, for better or worse, but it sure hasn't changed yet.

And yet, demographics will shape that corner of the district too. What percentage of those "Native Washingtonians" are actually parents of young children? They won't be families using the schools. Coolidge's population will continue to decline because old families are too old have children to send there. Young families feel no attraction to this proposed model.

Other than the developers who pay into Bowser's campaign, low-bid to get the deal, and then inflate the final price tag nobody benefits.

We live IB for Coolidge and this is true. I have now lived in DC for 30 of my 50 years, my kids were born here, but we have been asked that.

The 'native' Washingtonians who go to the community meetings are mostly grandparents and in that way they are still connected to DCPS.

I think that some of these folks would consider it a serious affront to renovate and keep open every other comprehensive high school in the city and not Coolidge.

To be honest the only issue which our neighborhood is even more divided over is the proposed dog park at the Takoma rec center, next door to Coolidge. It's ugly.

[Anonymous]

If DCPS believed the population is rebounding, they would be focused on Coolidge. The population isn't that high, Paul just opened a high school guaranteed to eat Coolidge's lunch, and it's on the edge of the city. Basically, check in again in when Roosevelt is oversubscribed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If DCPS believed the population is rebounding, they would be focused on Coolidge. The population isn't that high, Paul just opened a high school guaranteed to eat Coolidge's lunch, and it's on the edge of the city. Basically, check in again in when Roosevelt is oversubscribed.

I hope you're right (not because I wish anyone any ill will, but because it's a massive boondoogle at the expense of the taxpayers who have about a thousand priorities in front of renovating Coolidge to the tune of almost $200 million dollars). Otoh, Roosevelt is being renovated so maybe anything could happen.

[Anonymous]

Send all the kids to Roosevelt...the Petworth people just fainted. Talking about neighborhood fights...blood shed up and down Georgia Avenue, if the Coolidge and Roosevelt student are mixed. Who are you?

[Anonymous]

To be honest the only issue which our neighborhood is even more divided over is the proposed dog park at the Takoma rec center, next door to Coolidge. It's ugly.

Keep fighting the good fight for that dog park. Your neighbors to the north in Shepherd Park, where our requests for a dog park, bathroom for the playground, benches at the park that no one uses, etc. are completely ignored.

But... Wegmans!

If you're nice, we will let you visit our Wegman's too.

[Anonymous]

I will only go into Wegman's to wipe my dogs paws in the bathroom and leave trash everywhere.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:Send all the kids to Roosevelt...the Petworth people just fainted. Talking about neighborhood fights...blood shed up and down Georgia Avenue, if the Coolidge and Roosevelt student are mixed. Who are you?

This is always what I hear when this subject comes up. But, I really don't understand it. Are these two school populations raised like Arabs and Israelis or something? Are they genetically predisposed to hate each other? I find it hard to believe that two very small groups of children (and in the case of Roosevelt, a group heavily made up of immigrants with no historical attachment to the school) can't get along. I think these problems are more relevant to the adults who probably need to work out their own issues outside of the school environment.

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Send all the kids to Roosevelt...the Petworth people just fainted. Talking about neighborhood fights...blood shed up and down Georgia Avenue, if the Coolidge and Roosevelt student are mixed. Who are you?

This is always what I hear when this subject comes up. But, I really don't understand it. Are these two school populations raised like Arabs and Israelis or something? Are they genetically predisposed to hate each other? I find it hard to believe that two very small groups of children (and in the case of Roosevelt, a group heavily made up of immigrants with no historical attachment to the school) can't get along. I think these problems are more relevant to the adults who probably need to work out their own issues outside of the school environment.

I wonder if we "always hear it" because one person consistently brings it up here based on some rumor that may or may not be true.

[Anonymous]

When I attended all the DME meetings a couple years back about boundaries I realized that there are some hardcore alums who feel very invested in any issue relating to their beloved alma mater, never mind that they have not attended in 40 years and no longer have school aged children. It's ridiculous that people like the school's chancellor would make decisions based on anything other than what's best for the students. I recall looking through the website about the Roosevelt open house tour and the photos were chock full of alums.

[Anonymous]

The Roosevelt tour:
http://www.petworthnews.org/blog/new-roosevelt-long-overdue-renovation

[Anonymous]

Yeah, as everyone here is implying but not saying, the problem with a democracy is voters. If elected authorities do what they want that is no guarantee that good public policy gets enacted. See, e.g., Coolidge HS.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:When I attended all the DME meetings a couple years back about boundaries I realized that there are some hardcore alums who feel very invested in any issue relating to their beloved alma mater, never mind that they have not attended in 40 years and no longer have school aged children. It's ridiculous that people like the school's chancellor would make decisions based on anything other than what's best for the students. I recall looking through the website about the Roosevelt open house tour and the photos were chock full of alums.

In the case of both Coolidge and Roosevelt there are alumni who put a lot of time and effort into trying to improve the schools. Of course, they are exceptions to the larger group to which you refer. But, I wouldn't want the efforts of these individuals to be overlooked or discounted. It is easy to understand the opposition to closing the schools from these folks and it would be sad to see their efforts end in futility.

[Anonymous]

And I should have mentioned that when I attended some of those DME meetings (and later a Chancellor's budget meeting of some sort) they were hosted at Coolidge and it was pretty shocking how awful it was. Leaving the cafeteria and walking to the bathroom was like walking back in time. No students should be attending school there in that state. But we have so many beautiful, newly renovated schools that aren't close to being full. Roosevelt, Cardozo, etc. By the way, is Cardozo supposed to remain as a 7th - 12th school forever?