Welcome back! How was your child's first day?

[Anonymous]

Only one of my four kids is still in K-12; she started 10th grade at Roosevelt today. So much cheaper to buy supplies for one kid!

Busy day with HW already in an AP class and lots of sports practice, but she seems pleased enough with her teachers if moderately resigned to another year. We're hoping that she's not up past midnight this year working on assignments. She's very excited about one of her advanced science classes, and I hope it meets her expectations.

How was day one for fellow PGC parents? I'm the product of PGC schools myself and can't help but feel nostalgic!

[Anonymous]

First day of kindergarten for my child. They came off the bus all smiles, but I thought the transportation and getting the kids to class was pretty disorganized. Buses were extremely late this afternoon. Is this typical??

[Anonymous]

First day of 5th grade. My gal barely got 4 hours of sleep last night so she was dragging all day. She had fun seeing all her friends again. When I picked her up she had a small fever and complained of being cold (which she NEVER is). I kept her awake until 8:30, then gave her Tylenol and put her to bed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Only one of my four kids is still in K-12; she started 10th grade at Roosevelt today. So much cheaper to buy supplies for one kid!

Busy day with HW already in an AP class and lots of sports practice, but she seems pleased enough with her teachers if moderately resigned to another year. We're hoping that she's not up past midnight this year working on assignments. She's very excited about one of her advanced science classes, and I hope it meets her expectations.

How was day one for fellow PGC parents? I'm the product of PGC schools myself and can't help but feel nostalgic!

Is Roosevelt your in bound, or did your daughter test into it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First day of kindergarten for my child. They came off the bus all smiles, but I thought the transportation and getting the kids to class was pretty disorganized. Buses were extremely late this afternoon. Is this typical??

OP here--yes, it's typical to have lots of disorganization early on. I remember a few years back when SchoolMax (countywide computer) was new & and dozens of HS students at Roosevelt sat in the auditorium for over a week because classes couldn't be scheduled. (You can read about it here: http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2009-08-26/news/36841162_1_high-school-students-class-schedules-classes-tomorrow )

Less extreme was the phone recording I received tonight from PGCPS informing parents that Roosevelt has no lockers for another couple of weeks, so the teachers will be careful about not asking kids to lug books around. In another example, my daughter told me that there's one chair too few in her AP classroom, so the last kid to the classroom gets to sit on the radiator...and the teacher joked that he'll send in a requisition, but it could take 8 weeks for a desk.

SO! What happens is we've learned to laugh at the system. "It's Prince George's County, what can you do?" And we say & mean it with love, mainly because we've all been born and raised here. One of my kids went to public school K-12, while three of my kids went to private K-8 (and one of my daughters was private K-12), so we've chosen to opt into this crazy system. If it didn't have its upsides (such as an amazing school like Roosevelt!), we'd be less sanguine. Similarly, if we had no choice, we'd likely be more frustrated.

The best thing I can recommend is not to sweat the small stuff, and lots of it is small stuff (though it seems pretty important at the time). I've had to be pretty persistent in following up with administrators for scheduling mishaps, and I had to be seriously self-educated when it came time for college apps, but I really can't praise a school like Roosevelt highly enough. The nature of the PGC school board sucks, but individual schools can really be impressive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First day of 5th grade. My gal barely got 4 hours of sleep last night so she was dragging all day. She had fun seeing all her friends again. When I picked her up she had a small fever and complained of being cold (which she NEVER is). I kept her awake until 8:30, then gave her Tylenol and put her to bed.

Awwwww...poor little one! It's so hard when they have to drag themselves through the school day feeling sick. I hope she feels better soon!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is Roosevelt your in bound, or did your daughter test into it?

My daughter tested into it (and my son before her, who's now a college sophomore). The test is typically administered in December of a child's 8th grade year. If you're interested in more information, just let me know what you're curious about. I am a big-time Roosevelt booster.

[Anonymous]

SO! What happens is we've learned to laugh at the system. "It's Prince George's County, what can you do?" And we say & mean it with love, mainly because we've all been born and raised here.

I guess since I am not from here I don't get it. No snark intended but we should expect more. This stuff doesnt happen in other places. Sorry it just doesnt, and we pay some of the highest gaxes in the state. Sitting on a radiator is not comfortable and not conducive to learning. They have had all summer to get lockers ready what is facilities doing that this wasn't taken care of? At my school we have a sinkhole for a parking lot. I have seen whole neighborhoods be built in the time it has taken for the supposed slow process in getting a parking lot fixed. A few hiccups is okay. But we have and pay a facilities and transportation department to get these things as close to right as possible. I am not sure they are even trying and we should just laugh it off? sorry I don't mean to sound cranky but this is kind of astounding to me.

[Anonymous]

"taxes"

[Anonymous]

First day of 6th grade at a new school (middle) went OK, but OMG the bus...

My poor kid was on for two hours in the afternoon, and got off an hour late. I actually beat him home. It was NOT the driver's fault. New route + construction and road closures + first day kinks, but STILL. I sent a message to Rushern Baker indicating that the transportation issues were unfortunately disappointing again, emphasizing that it wasn't the driver's fault.

Anyway, other than that, it went pretty well. The new school's a big adjustment, but my kid seems relatively excited and likes his teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I guess since I am not from here I don't get it. No snark intended but we should expect more. This stuff doesnt happen in other places. Sorry it just doesnt, and we pay some of the highest gaxes in the state. Sitting on a radiator is not comfortable and not conducive to learning. They have had all summer to get lockers ready what is facilities doing that this wasn't taken care of? At my school we have a sinkhole for a parking lot. I have seen whole neighborhoods be built in the time it has taken for the supposed slow process in getting a parking lot fixed. A few hiccups is okay. But we have and pay a facilities and transportation department to get these things as close to right as possible. I am not sure they are even trying and we should just laugh it off? sorry I don't mean to sound cranky but this is kind of astounding to me.

OP here. I don't mean to frustrate you. I'm clearly resigned after having sent 4 kids through the system, and overall, I'm happy with the big things at this point in time. I realize that the administration is pretty darn awful, as has long been documented, and I understand that funds are not always spent wisely. Were I at a different school, one that's less impressive than Roosevelt, and if I had no options, then I would absolutely agitate for change--and I think it's great if you go that route.

The few times I have chosen to agitate have been extremely frustrating and ultimately unsuccessful. I don't regret trying, though, and I just don't find myself bothered much anymore by kids not having lockers for a week or someone sitting on a radiator for a short time. What upset me more was when my oldest was at public elementary school and wasn't challenged in the least. That was the impetus to send the next 3 to private school in PGC from K-8. I realize I'm lucky to have had that option.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
OP here. I don't mean to frustrate you. I'm clearly resigned after having sent 4 kids through the system, and overall, I'm happy with the big things at this point in time. I realize that the administration is pretty darn awful, as has long been documented, and I understand that funds are not always spent wisely. Were I at a different school, one that's less impressive than Roosevelt, and if I had no options, then I would absolutely agitate for change--and I think it's great if you go that route.

The few times I have chosen to agitate have been extremely frustrating and ultimately unsuccessful. I don't regret trying, though, and I just don't find myself bothered much anymore by kids not having lockers for a week or someone sitting on a radiator for a short time. What upset me more was when my oldest was at public elementary school and wasn't challenged in the least. That was the impetus to send the next 3 to private school in PGC from K-8. I realize I'm lucky to have had that option.

Sorry, I guess I am turning into "that" parent, lol! For me, since it is just kindergarten, my biggest concern is that they get to school safely, know where to go, and someone puts them on the right bus so they make it home safely and timely. Even that didn't happen. I care about learning and we actually are really, really excited about our school. But to me something as big as transportation for 5 year olds should be structured and reliable. They can't learn a routine if the teachers are running around not knowing what bus to put them on, and they can't be dropped off without an adult at the bus stop so we end up waiting and waiting and waiting not knowing what in the world is causing the delay. I just think putting kids on a bus happens every day, every year. It would be the one thing I would think would have some structure. Yesterday was better than the first day. Here's to hoping today is better than yesterday!!

[Anonymous]

I got an email today from Peggy Higgins.

Dear neighbors - In case my earlier email attempts were not successful and did not get to the greenbelters yahoo group, I'm resending this)



I am Peggy Higgins and your School Board representative. I understand that there have been some questions regarding Roosevelt's lockers.



I too am disappointed about the failure to get the lockers properly replaced over the summer. I also have some background information to share that may be helpful.



Of course the plan had always been to replace the lockers over the summer when the students are not in school. In anticipation of the new lockers, Roosevelt's 2,700 old lockers were removed and the area for the new lockers prepared.



Then it was learned that because of a manufacturer delay, the lockers would not arrive until after school started. Principal McNeil and his staff adapted and moved quickly on this situation. By this Monday, the first day of school, they had arranged for students to receive their books incrementally over the week so that the locker problem to the educational inpact would be minimal.



By this past Tuesday, the second day of school, the lockers had arrived. Installation began that night and is scheduled to be completed by the end of the weekend.



In order to prevent a repeat of this problem, the situation is being evaluated by Dr. Maxwell and his staff to identify the problems that occurred with this project.



That said, I would like to commend Principal McNeil and his staff for their solution-focused approach and adaptation to the situation right as school was opening.



I hope this information is helpful and if I can be of any further help, please do not hesitate to contact me.



Regards

Peggy Higgins

--



Peggy Higgins, LCSW-C

Board of Education, District 2

Prince George's County, MD

[Anonymous]

Ooooh, OP here--thanks for the locker update, PP! I didn't get that e-mail, but it's good to know the lockers are in place. As it turns out, my sophomore DD won't ask for one (sophs aren't guaranteed lockers), but I like that her teachers seem to prefer keeping heavy textbooks at home.

PP with the 5-year-old, I totally empathize--it's a completely different animal when you're talking about a young one! I hope the bus situation clears up quickly.