Initial boundary options for Woodward study area are up

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love RM parent.

Me too. can he present this for us to BOE? I'm a VM parent in favor of modified Option 4 sending my kid to WJ.

Some one will present it, I can assure you.

Having said that, WJ has a well organized and strong PTA. Yes, some members may be a bit conflicted based on where they live, but presentation coming from WJ PTA will work the best. Then adding various HOAs in WJ and Wheaton cluster for support will be helpful. Easiest is to kick start this process by reaching out to your elementary school PTAs and. They are more clued to BOE, HS PTA compared to other parents. School sessions are ending but folks should be able to eletronically comnunicate and meet in some place informally to discuss. We did it in Rockville library and one of the HOAs having big hall during RM 5 boundary.

- RM parent

If anyone wants to speak as the PTA, then they have to have a general PTA meeting, get a quorum, and have the members vote. I know our school does not have the capacity to do that this summer. Maybe the Board is able to do that--get a quorum and vote--and they can speak as the Board. But you can't just speak as the PTA without presenting it to the community and taking a vote.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“RM” parent - you certainly know a lot about the other areas are you sure you are not a parent from that cluster disguising yourself? Seems odd that you are soo involved and keep having to point out that you are an RM parent. I call bullshit..

He sounds genuine. as a VIers Mill parent I agree with his approach.

Even if in disguise, he's right.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Can someone please repeat in detail the RM mom probówek option? Looking at the maps and trying to make sense of it so i can full out the survey.

Modify option 4: Orginally WJ in option 4 has 77% capacity and Wheaton has 120%

Put entire Garrett Park in Woodward.
Put entire Viers Mill in WJ.

This will bring Wheaton below 100% and bring WJ closer to 100%. It will also balance the FARMS in Woodward and WJ instead of WJ becoming another Whitman.

Modifying option 4 solves capacity in all schools without creating huge gap in economic diversity between WJ and Woodward. WJ and Woodward are around half mile of each other so it won't create issue with travel time for anyone to go to one vs other.

- Same RM parent( a Dad)

But the eastern half of Viers Mill is within the Wheaton walk zone, so shouldn't be bussed to WJ.

You cannot expect perfection. There will always be some kids who can walk to one school but instead get bussed somewhere else.

But the whole point of option 4 is to prioritize proximity.

I guess they could have left Wheaton HS even more overcrowded than they did in Option 4. Is that what you want?

No one cares about wheaton or dcc. Woodward was created for WJ.

WJ parent here, and no it isn't. Woodward was renovated and reopened to relieve overcrowding at WJ and DCC, primarily Einstein.

The boundary assessment, along with the one for Crown, should, for all schools included:
-Relieve overcrowding (including accounting for all the building in the pipeline, so none of these schools is overcrowded in 5-7-10 years)
-Balance
the 4 FAA priorities, not focusing on any one of them
-Get rid of split articulation where it currently exists and not create more of it
-Balance school assignments so none have significant FARMs rates
-Create school assignments where kids who could walk to one school would not need to get bussed elsewhere

+1

Woodward was a solution for WJ and DCC over crowding. It was not just for WJ. Anyway, any resource is for entire MCPS and it does not belong to one or two schools.

Hopefully, we pick a good boundary.

- RM parent

Its primarily for WJ. Lets be real. The DCC needs another school in lower DCC near DC, not going to happen.

There may be a need for another school near DC but it factually innaccurate to say repeatedly that Woodward is for WJ only and that DCC is ignored. The fact is Woodward is built and is opening and students from outside the current WJ boundary will attend.

Multiple DCC schools will share the same number as wj. That speaks volumes.

Does it? Given Woodward's proximity to WJ and distance from most DCC schools it makes sense. Don't forget about the additions at Kennedy (recent) and Northwood (ongoing) that will give some extra space closer to the DCC schools.

Kennedy is the worst school in MCPS (though they do have some great kids we know) and Northwood is not getting that many more seats. The bulk of these seats are to fix WJ and that doesn't fully help the multiple DCC schools with overcrowding. At our school, with some classrooms the kids sit on shelving or radiators, and they don't have enough desks. Other schools hold classes in cafeterias and other areas.

[Anonymous]

The problem is again is that the loudest voices will be heard and not the voices of parents who don’t speak English and the families that are receiving FARMS. Where is their voice. I work with these families and they too want their kids in better schools and not have poverty concentrated. What you are proposing with option 4 does not address this. Option 3 does and many of them are okay with bussing to get their kid to a better school and are okay with option 3. There is no reason the povery should be concentrated one part of the county. I plan to present my arguments to the board and represent these families who have been excluded for too long.

[Anonymous]

Capacity and equalizing farms in all schools is the priority and should be. Stop trying to control the narrative to what works for you. Yes, you may be a little inconvenienced but you will survive.. there are many kids onconvenienced as we speak.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please repeat in detail the RM mom probówek option? Looking at the maps and trying to make sense of it so i can full out the survey.

Modify option 4: Orginally WJ in option 4 has 77% capacity and Wheaton has 120%

Put entire Garrett Park in Woodward.
Put entire Viers Mill in WJ.

This will bring Wheaton below 100% and bring WJ closer to 100%. It will also balance the FARMS in Woodward and WJ instead of WJ becoming another Whitman.

Modifying option 4 solves capacity in all schools without creating huge gap in economic diversity between WJ and Woodward. WJ and Woodward are around half mile of each other so it won't create issue with travel time for anyone to go to one vs other.

- Same RM parent( a Dad)

But the eastern half of Viers Mill is within the Wheaton walk zone, so shouldn't be bussed to WJ.

You cannot expect perfection. There will always be some kids who can walk to one school but instead get bussed somewhere else.

But the whole point of option 4 is to prioritize proximity.

I guess they could have left Wheaton HS even more overcrowded than they did in Option 4. Is that what you want?

No one cares about wheaton or dcc. Woodward was created for WJ.

WJ parent here, and no it isn't. Woodward was renovated and reopened to relieve overcrowding at WJ and DCC, primarily Einstein.

The boundary assessment, along with the one for Crown, should, for all schools included:
-Relieve overcrowding (including accounting for all the building in the pipeline, so none of these schools is overcrowded in 5-7-10 years)
-Balance
the 4 FAA priorities, not focusing on any one of them
-Get rid of split articulation where it currently exists and not create more of it
-Balance school assignments so none have significant FARMs rates
-Create school assignments where kids who could walk to one school would not need to get bussed elsewhere

+1

Woodward was a solution for WJ and DCC over crowding. It was not just for WJ. Anyway, any resource is for entire MCPS and it does not belong to one or two schools.

Hopefully, we pick a good boundary.

- RM parent

Its primarily for WJ. Lets be real. The DCC needs another school in lower DCC near DC, not going to happen.

There may be a need for another school near DC but it factually innaccurate to say repeatedly that Woodward is for WJ only and that DCC is ignored. The fact is Woodward is built and is opening and students from outside the current WJ boundary will attend.

Multiple DCC schools will share the same number as wj. That speaks volumes.

Does it? Given Woodward's proximity to WJ and distance from most DCC schools it makes sense. Don't forget about the additions at Kennedy (recent) and Northwood (ongoing) that will give some extra space closer to the DCC schools.

Kennedy is the worst school in MCPS (though they do have some great kids we know) and Northwood is not getting that many more seats. The bulk of these seats are to fix WJ and that doesn't fully help the multiple DCC schools with overcrowding. At our school, with some classrooms the kids sit on shelving or radiators, and they don't have enough desks. Other schools hold classes in cafeterias and other areas.

Kennedy has 300 seats available and Northwood is getting 750 more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Capacity and equalizing farms in all schools is the priority and should be. Stop trying to control the narrative to what works for you. Yes, you may be a little inconvenienced but you will survive.. there are many kids onconvenienced as we speak.

equalizing farms through long bus rides won't work because people will just make changes to avoid that bus ride.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem is again is that the loudest voices will be heard and not the voices of parents who don’t speak English and the families that are receiving FARMS. Where is their voice. I work with these families and they too want their kids in better schools and not have poverty concentrated. What you are proposing with option 4 does not address this. Option 3 does and many of them are okay with bussing to get their kid to a better school and are okay with option 3. There is no reason the povery should be concentrated one part of the county. I plan to present my arguments to the board and represent these families who have been excluded for too long.

well there are others who claim to be representing low-income kids on this thread who say 1) they don't want their kids with the rich kids, 2) they are just fine thank you, 3) they shouldn't have to have long bus rides, 4) their parents won't be able to attend after-school activities or pick up kids.

[Anonymous]

I keep returning to how devoid of thought Option 3 is. It's pretty embarrassing from a a company claiming to know about education.

[Anonymous]

Why don’t we canvas the kids? You know, the people who will
Be most affected by this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love RM parent.

Me too. can he present this for us to BOE? I'm a VM parent in favor of modified Option 4 sending my kid to WJ.

Some one will present it, I can assure you.

Having said that, WJ has a well organized and strong PTA. Yes, some members may be a bit conflicted based on where they live, but presentation coming from WJ PTA will work the best. Then adding various HOAs in WJ and Wheaton cluster for support will be helpful. Easiest is to kick start this process by reaching out to your elementary school PTAs and. They are more clued to BOE, HS PTA compared to other parents. School sessions are ending but folks should be able to eletronically comnunicate and meet in some place informally to discuss. We did it in Rockville library and one of the HOAs having big hall during RM 5 boundary.

- RM parent

If anyone wants to speak as the PTA, then they have to have a general PTA meeting, get a quorum, and have the members vote. I know our school does not have the capacity to do that this summer. Maybe the Board is able to do that--get a quorum and vote--and they can speak as the Board. But you can't just speak as the PTA without presenting it to the community and taking a vote.

WJ PTA has enough time to to do all that if they really want to do it officially as a PTA. Getting a quorum and vote will be pretty easy given how many families are interested in this.

In absence of that, just get elementary PTA members to get the ball rolling. Without offically presenting as PTA, those PTA members will be more familiar with BOE, MCPS and all process. Does not have to be in capacity of PTA, but the same people can help with this process due to knowing the system a bit more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem is again is that the loudest voices will be heard and not the voices of parents who don’t speak English and the families that are receiving FARMS. Where is their voice. I work with these families and they too want their kids in better schools and not have poverty concentrated. What you are proposing with option 4 does not address this. Option 3 does and many of them are okay with bussing to get their kid to a better school and are okay with option 3. There is no reason the povery should be concentrated one part of the county. I plan to present my arguments to the board and represent these families who have been excluded for too long.

I think they should speak for themselves rather than have you assume you know what they want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: There is no reason the povery should be concentrated one part of the county.

Poverty will be always concentrated. Not just in our county but in pretty much all locations.

A dent can be made by county housing policies, but still it will be only a dent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem is again is that the loudest voices will be heard and not the voices of parents who don’t speak English and the families that are receiving FARMS. Where is their voice. I work with these families and they too want their kids in better schools and not have poverty concentrated. What you are proposing with option 4 does not address this. Option 3 does and many of them are okay with bussing to get their kid to a better school and are okay with option 3. There is no reason the povery should be concentrated one part of the county. I plan to present my arguments to the board and represent these families who have been excluded for too long.

I think they should speak for themselves rather than have you assume you know what they want.

+1

MCPS should be doing outreach work directly in communities with low-income students who would be affected to speak with parents, rather than waiting for parents to fill out a survey.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Capacity and equalizing farms in all schools is the priority and should be. Stop trying to control the narrative to what works for you. Yes, you may be a little inconvenienced but you will survive.. there are many kids onconvenienced as we speak.

The RM parent isn’t even in this boundary study. Not everyone is out for themselves as you say.