Hardy for 6th & Deal for 7th & 8th? DCPS Survey on Changing Feeder Pattern

[Anonymous]

The kids who walk to Deal now can take a WMATa bus for free. Same in reverse for the Hardy students.

Hardy is not IB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they are considering that for Hardy and Deal, why not for Stuart Hobson and Eliot Hine? Would be interesting to see what would happen.

BC neither SH and EH (and Eastern) are overcrowded the way Deal and Wilson are.

Doing that seems like a much longer shot to convince families and like pp says the pressure on SH just isn't the same. Deal has a real overcrowding issue so those families would get some relief and the hardy families would get access to deal so everyone gets something. For the hill SH isn't as overcrowded and those families wouldn't gain as much

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Going to a school for just nine months seems highly undesirable. My child really enjoys the sense of routine and to have to go through the psychological effort of going to a new school for less than a year just doesn't seem worth it.

I briefly worked with an after school program for junior high students and it was so difficult. Developmentally they are all over the place physically and emotionally. Junior high is already too short. At a minimum students should be 2 years in a school to justify a transition. Maybe Wilson could then become just 10-12?

Are both schools IB programs?

Planners would also need to consider the additional traffic in both directions and add buses accordingly, and reconsider emissions. Seems like a segment of Deal kids walk to school.

As far as I understand the proposal, which has not been developed much yet:

It wouldn't be two different schools.

It would be the same school, two different buildings.

Still IB for all 3 years.

Same cohort, so I don't really see what the issue is with psychological adjustment.

Certainly some inconvenience in terms of commute. Maybe dedicated buses will be provided to shuttle between? Or tweaks to existing public transit?

Presumably one principal for the 3 grades, so now is a good opportunity before Deal hires a new principal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they are considering that for Hardy and Deal, why not for Stuart Hobson and Eliot Hine? Would be interesting to see what would happen.

BC neither SH and EH (and Eastern) are overcrowded the way Deal and Wilson are.

Doing that seems like a much longer shot to convince families and like pp says the pressure on SH just isn't the same. Deal has a real overcrowding issue so those families would get some relief and the hardy families would get access to deal so everyone gets something. For the hill SH isn't as overcrowded and those families wouldn't gain as much

This kind of cluster of the Hill middle schools has been discussed as a way to get more IB parents to enroll. I still think it's a great idea in theory but have not heard any official discussion of it. Also apparently the SH parents wouldn't consider it because the Cluster is so entrenched.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they are considering that for Hardy and Deal, why not for Stuart Hobson and Eliot Hine? Would be interesting to see what would happen.

BC neither SH and EH (and Eastern) are overcrowded the way Deal and Wilson are.

Doing that seems like a much longer shot to convince families and like pp says the pressure on SH just isn't the same. Deal has a real overcrowding issue so those families would get some relief and the hardy families would get access to deal so everyone gets something. For the hill SH isn't as overcrowded and those families wouldn't gain as much

What would be a great situation is to make SH for 5th and 6th and EH for 7th and 8th. That would free up more classrooms at the schools on the Hill for ECE. Some families would probably choose this middle school option versus switching to charters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they are considering that for Hardy and Deal, why not for Stuart Hobson and Eliot Hine? Would be interesting to see what would happen.

BC neither SH and EH (and Eastern) are overcrowded the way Deal and Wilson are.

Doing that seems like a much longer shot to convince families and like pp says the pressure on SH just isn't the same. Deal has a real overcrowding issue so those families would get some relief and the hardy families would get access to deal so everyone gets something. For the hill SH isn't as overcrowded and those families wouldn't gain as much

What would be a great situation is to make SH for 5th and 6th and EH for 7th and 8th. That would free up more classrooms at the schools on the Hill for ECE. Some families would probably choose this middle school option versus switching to charters.

Another good idea. Unfortunately Hill parents are so resistant to "change" that I'm personally skeptical that EH will ever happen in any way. (See other thread on DCUM racists.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I like it! If there were enough space, I'd love to see 6th and 7th at Hardy and then 8th and 9th at Deal. I went to a school district where junior high was 7-9 grade and high school was 10-12 and I really liked it, except for varsity sports. But Deal and Wilson are close enough to each other to work out the sports thing, and even for kids to take advanced classes at the high school.

There isn't enough space at Hardy for just Deal's 6th and 7th, let alone the Hardy kids too. The two 6th grades alone right now would fill Hardy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I like it! If there were enough space, I'd love to see 6th and 7th at Hardy and then 8th and 9th at Deal. I went to a school district where junior high was 7-9 grade and high school was 10-12 and I really liked it, except for varsity sports. But Deal and Wilson are close enough to each other to work out the sports thing, and even for kids to take advanced classes at the high school.

There isn't enough space at Hardy for just Deal's 6th and 7th, let alone the Hardy kids too. The two 6th grades alone right now would fill Hardy.

Hardy has room for 650.

They enroll about 120 students for 6th; Deal has 450-475 6th graders. Together they'd fill the space, with some breathing room.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The kids who walk to Deal now can take a WMATa bus for free. Same in reverse for the Hardy students.

Hardy is not IB.

I prefer the 5 minute walk to school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The kids who walk to Deal now can take a WMATa bus for free. Same in reverse for the Hardy students.

Hardy is not IB.

I prefer the 5 minute walk to school.

I'm sure you do. Do you also prefer 35 kids in a class?

[Anonymous]

If DCPS pursues this idea I hope it's not for several years. We are IB For Hardy, starting there this August. I'm thrilled about our new principal, the engaged PTO and increased interest from feeder schools. I have no desire to undue our progress at Hardy to accommodate families who fought tooth and nail to preserve their boundaries and right to Deal. You can have it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If DCPS pursues this idea I hope it's not for several years. We are IB For Hardy, starting there this August. I'm thrilled about our new principal, the engaged PTO and increased interest from feeder schools. I have no desire to undue our progress at Hardy to accommodate families who fought tooth and nail to preserve their boundaries and right to Deal. You can have it.

Any idea will take time to implement.

But the goal here is to reduce the population both at deal and at Wilson-- where you kid will go next.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If DCPS pursues this idea I hope it's not for several years. We are IB For Hardy, starting there this August. I'm thrilled about our new principal, the engaged PTO and increased interest from feeder schools. I have no desire to undue our progress at Hardy to accommodate families who fought tooth and nail to preserve their boundaries and right to Deal. You can have it.

Any idea will take time to implement.

But the goal here is to reduce the population both at deal and at Wilson-- where you kid will go next.

She's going private, but thanks for your concern. And by going private I'm doing my part to free up space at Wilson.

[Anonymous]

The Intl Baccalaureate curriculum at Deal is an obstacle to this idea.

Simplest solution would be to eliminate it. It would take longer to get all the Hardy teachers trained and the program expansion certified.

And how would they address merged 7th and 8th grades with 20-25% of kids with no exposure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Intl Baccalaureate curriculum at Deal is an obstacle to this idea.

Simplest solution would be to eliminate it. It would take longer to get all the Hardy teachers trained and the program expansion certified.

And how would they address merged 7th and 8th grades with 20-25% of kids with no exposure.

You are probably right and another reason this will never happen. Deal families won't be willing to do something that they perceive as a loss for their children.