FCPS NEW SUPERINTENDENT : Michelle Reid

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NAACP of NOVA is run almost exclusively by white people.

Well that would be compatible with the founding of the organization. Look up their earliest presidents lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s such a giant therapy session among a bunch of privileged School Board members who care deeply about personally being perceived as on the “right side of history” and not so much about educating students. It’s so, so very painful to watch, not just for the tortured rhetoric but also for what it portends about the future of FCPS.

You freaks need to get a new hobby. This is getting so old. The white supremicist takeover of DCUM has me ready to go. Sorry Jeff, used to love this site, but ever since you let these psychos take over the FCPS and the political forum, I'm just done.

You must read a different DCUM then I do.

Not sure about the white supremacy but yeah the pandemic and school closures galvanized the right wingers who saw the frustration re: school closures as an opportunity to just go down a crazy rabbit hole of the SB is evil, CRT is taking over, the “libs” ruined FCPS, etc. It’s tiring.

Gaslighting alert.

Both sides on the extremes suck. And Im not happy with the status quo at FCPS or the SB but I stand by what I said. It’s pretty obvious to anyone who has been on this site for a while and some people are eating it up. I wish SB members were not affiliated or endorsed by political parties and just ran on things that are important to them. Those of us who are moderates have no option but to vote for those we believe are the lesser of evils. It blows.

Yep. And this pretty much sums up elections and politics in general these days. But, ironically, I think most people are somewhere in the middle in spite of the current state of affairs.

[Anonymous]

She looks like a teacher. Not polished at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She looks like a teacher. Not polished at all.

You're judging this on what? One picture? one appearance? Stop judging women on their looks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She looks like a teacher. Not polished at all.

Misogynist.

Scott Brabrand looks like a farmer wearing a suit, but no one has ever said anything about his looks, have they?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She looks like a teacher. Not polished at all.

Is that an insult? I'd rather we have a teacher in that position over the slimy politicians we have on the school board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

Ok, what are your ideas to bring MVHS up to par with Langley?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

Ok, what are your ideas to bring MVHS up to par with Langley?

I'm just saying it's not just this democratic school board that's focused on equity--it began with the 2001 Republican educational policy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

Ok, what are your ideas to bring MVHS up to par with Langley?

I'm just saying it's not just this democratic school board that's focused on equity--it began with the 2001 Republican educational policy.

The thing is, it's not a problem. It's an ideal that we pay lip service to while realizing that nothing in the board or superintendent's power will ever bring the educational experience at Mt Vernon Woods up to par with Chesterbrook.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

Well, maybe, except what you're calling equity hasn't necessarily meant the same thing over that period.

NCLB's focus was to close achievement gaps, not to do away with the notion of achievement or merit.

But it ran into problems because gaps are hard to narrow, teachers felt like they were being punished for failures to solve problems not of their making, and parents in wealthier communities saw how some of their kids and schools received fewer resources as school districts began to spend much more per pupil on poorer schools.

Now, the equity advocates still want more money spent on schools in low-income communities, but they've figured out that one way to curry favor with the educational establishment is to assert that tests are discriminatory, the idea of merit is racist, and that teachers should never be held accountable for "systemic" problems. That's a lot more attractive than being constantly expected to close an achievement gap.

But at the same time, it breeds suspicion among those whose children were doing well in the public schools, especially those who don't otherwise have a lot of political power, because they no longer see an obvious path for their kids to advance or distinguish themselves. The assumption is that the "equity" advocates want a short-cut to equal outcomes, which won't actually involve raising the academic performance of lower-achieving students, but instead simply reallocating wealth and opportunity through overtly political means (such as the recent changes to the TJ admissions policies).

Reid appears to have been an adept practitioner of this new form of "equity," but she's going to find that FCPS is a much larger and more diverse community than her prior district, and that the degree of suspicion with respect to FCPS's leadership and School Board is currently at an all-time high.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

Ok, what are your ideas to bring MVHS up to par with Langley?

For one thing, FCPS should push for equity in quantity in regards to student population. MVHS is far under-enrolled. It is designed for 2451 students but floats around 1900 and has 1923 at the moment. Meanwhile most high-performing schools tend to sit at 2500-3000. It is no question that having more students in a school pulls up the potential for expanded advanced course opportunities and greater diversity in clubs and activities. Some of the under-enrolled schools can't field a Freshman or JV team for various sports because there aren't enough students to participate. Under-enrollment affects multiple facets of school performance which add up to create a rift.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

Well, maybe, except what you're calling equity hasn't necessarily meant the same thing over that period.

NCLB's focus was to close achievement gaps, not to do away with the notion of achievement or merit.

But it ran into problems because gaps are hard to narrow, teachers felt like they were being punished for failures to solve problems not of their making, and parents in wealthier communities saw how some of their kids and schools received fewer resources as school districts began to spend much more per pupil on poorer schools.

Now, the equity advocates still want more money spent on schools in low-income communities, but they've figured out that one way to curry favor with the educational establishment is to assert that tests are discriminatory, the idea of merit is racist, and that teachers should never be held accountable for "systemic" problems. That's a lot more attractive than being constantly expected to close an achievement gap.

But at the same time, it breeds suspicion among those whose children were doing well in the public schools, especially those who don't otherwise have a lot of political power, because they no longer see an obvious path for their kids to advance or distinguish themselves. The assumption is that the "equity" advocates want a short-cut to equal outcomes, which won't actually involve raising the academic performance of lower-achieving students, but instead simply reallocating wealth and opportunity through overtly political means (such as the recent admissions to the TJ admissions policies).

Reid appears to have been an adept practitioner of this new form of "equity" but she's going to find that FCPS is a much larger and more diverse community than her prior district, and that the degree of suspicion with respect to FCPS's leadership and School Board is currently at an all-time high.

I think the current equity push is the logical end point of focusing on the achievement gap. It's not politically palatable to admit that it will never be closed unless economic disparities cease to exist, but politicians need to find way to make it appear like the gap is closing. At some point they realized that you can close a gap by raising the low to meet the high, but you can also close it by pushing down the high to meet the low. It turns out the latter is easier than the former.

[Anonymous]

I liked the video they put out this afternoon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since I don’t know Dr. Reid at present I have a much more favorable opinion about her than I do of the current School Board. What happened last night was an embarrassing spectacle, with most of the School Board members making it very clear that they care less about our kids’ education than making sure they constantly check off the boxes needed to keep them in good standing with the special interest groups, whether it’s the Fairfax NAACP, Pride Liberation, or the “equity”-obsessed types who dominate the FCDC and control the endorsements for School Board races.

I challenge anyone to watch Abrar Omeish’s rambling speech last night and not come away saying to themselves “WTF is this silly narcissist talking about and what does it have to do with FCPS?” The only saving grace was Pekarsky muttering “oh boy” on a hot mic as Omeish launched into her lengthy spiel.

Politics and spiels aside though, equity is one of the biggest problems any superintendent is going to have to face. FCPS is a big county with schools where wealth is concentrated and schools where it is not and that impacts a lot of the educational process. The equity push actually came from George W. Bush in 2001 with No Child Left Behind where equity was the primary focus. So an equity-focus isn't some new democratic school board thing--it's that there's been 2 decades of pressure to improve equity nationally starting with a Republican president who put it into strong policy. And with 2 decades of trying, FCPS is better than many places--and Virginia has been in the top 5 states in terms of educational achievement for a long time with FCPS near the top in the state-- but it's still been a persistent problem nationally.

Ok, what are your ideas to bring MVHS up to par with Langley?

For one thing, FCPS should push for equity in quantity in regards to student population. MVHS is far under-enrolled. It is designed for 2451 students but floats around 1900 and has 1923 at the moment. Meanwhile most high-performing schools tend to sit at 2500-3000. It is no question that having more students in a school pulls up the potential for expanded advanced course opportunities and greater diversity in clubs and activities. Some of the under-enrolled schools can't field a Freshman or JV team for various sports because there aren't enough students to participate. Under-enrollment affects multiple facets of school performance which add up to create a rift.

It's under enrolled because most parents with the means to not send their kids to a failing school will choose to not send their kids to a failing school.