Garrison Renovation - when will it start?

[Anonymous]

No schools in this city should look like this or be this run down. We pay high taxes and NO school should look like Garrison in any neighborhood. That is unacceptable. In Montgomery County, MD every school (regardless of neighborhood) is modern. It is absolute BS that there are elementary schools in this condition in this city. There has been some serious mismanagement of money. It needs to go into schools. Make all of them look like places we want to send our children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's be honest. Garrison needs a modernization. So do lots of other schools and several of them have far more serious needs than Garrison. It shouldn't be this bad, but it is.

Far from being ignored, Garrison and its community have pulled together, represented themselves incredibly well, and received more political and media attention than possibly any other school in the city on this issue. Some schools with incredible needs were delayed because Garrison was moved up in the modernization queue and promised a full modernization several years ago.

Meanwhile, families all over the city feel like DCPS doesn't care where they send their children to school, but somehow Garrison keeps being portrayed as a martyr. DC schools are not as strong as they should be and many are not in the condition they should be. The Garrison community should continue pushing for what they need, but should stop acting as if they are the only school not getting what it needs. It makes them sound a little tone deaf.

Actually, this isn't true. A few years ago, a review of DCPS facilities found that three ESs were in most dire need of modernization: Murch, Garrison, and Orr.

Your point doesn't really help your argument because Murch and Orr were ranked lower in that study than Garrison and they are still waiting too. Although, since you mention it, wasn't Garrison to be closed at that point, but remained open and had funds allocated for a full modernization, at the same time Murch and Orr were pushed back?

Hey, I'm a Murch parent and thing the whole thing is a mess; the only "argument" I'm making is that there aren't scores of schools in worse shape than Garrison.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's be honest. Garrison needs a modernization. So do lots of other schools and several of them have far more serious needs than Garrison. It shouldn't be this bad, but it is.

Far from being ignored, Garrison and its community have pulled together, represented themselves incredibly well, and received more political and media attention than possibly any other school in the city on this issue. Some schools with incredible needs were delayed because Garrison was moved up in the modernization queue and promised a full modernization several years ago.

Meanwhile, families all over the city feel like DCPS doesn't care where they send their children to school, but somehow Garrison keeps being portrayed as a martyr. DC schools are not as strong as they should be and many are not in the condition they should be. The Garrison community should continue pushing for what they need, but should stop acting as if they are the only school not getting what it needs. It makes them sound a little tone deaf.

Actually, this isn't true. A few years ago, a review of DCPS facilities found that three ESs were in most dire need of modernization: Murch, Garrison, and Orr.

Your point doesn't really help your argument because Murch and Orr were ranked lower in that study than Garrison and they are still waiting too. Although, since you mention it, wasn't Garrison to be closed at that point, but remained open and had funds allocated for a full modernization, at the same time Murch and Orr were pushed back?

Hey, I'm a Murch parent and thing the whole thing is a mess; the only "argument" I'm making is that there aren't scores of schools in worse shape than Garrison.

No-one is saying "scores" (= multiples of 20). That's a straw man. But yes there are as few as 10-12 worse than Garrison and as many as 20 or so. Look at the table in the link in the other thread. Garrison is a 4 and there are around a dozen 5s. No one is saying that Garrison is not a priority for modernization. Just quit it with the hyperbole and myopia, that's all. One thing about DC is, there's always someone with bigger problems than yours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is no way in hell that the Charter lobby is going to let the city renovate Garrison. They have a stranglehold over the 500 kids that live in-boundary -- and they intend to maintain it.

As a charter school parent, I can tell you the "charter school lobby" cares just as little about the kids in mid-city as DCPS does.

Charter schools care about (and brag about and profit from) market share. Given the changing demographics of DC the only way for them to continue to gain on DCPS is to attract the children of gentrifiers. Therefore it is entirely in their interest to have these increasingly affluent neighborhoods with growing families like Logan Circle deprived of a neighborhood school.

Heck, even if they go to DCPS, the parents in the neighborhood will have been indoctrinated to the "school choice" bandwagon without even realizing it.

So there may not be a lobby, but unrenovated schools are a panacea to charters that want to grow. Even better if their new clients are the offspring of the college-educated.

Charters are in it to win it.

First, school choice is more than just choice. Any DCPS parent that uses the OOB lottery is participating in choice. If you are not in your IB school, you are making a choice.

Second, are you saying that only charter school parents are collage educated? You must not be familiar with charter schools in DC. Or, else you only think of schools like CMI and YY when you think of charter schools. There are almost 100 charter school programs in DC. Many, if most, cater to families who are lower income and minority. Get out of the bubble.

I think you missed the point here. The charter sector has a lock on low income families in wards 7 & 8 and other parts of the city...but if they're going to continue to grow their market share, then they need to have a gentrified babies w/o decent neighborhood school. Garrison is ground zero for these kids (say ~80 inboundary kids turn 3 every year, probably ~500 if you look at all the EOTP/WOTP "border areas") if they don't capture those kids and the influence of their parents, the the charter sector will cease to expand.

So, yes, renovating schools - and Garrison in particular - is anathema to the charter world.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is no way in hell that the Charter lobby is going to let the city renovate Garrison. They have a stranglehold over the 500 kids that live in-boundary -- and they intend to maintain it.

As a charter school parent, I can tell you the "charter school lobby" cares just as little about the kids in mid-city as DCPS does.

Charter schools care about (and brag about and profit from) market share. Given the changing demographics of DC the only way for them to continue to gain on DCPS is to attract the children of gentrifiers. Therefore it is entirely in their interest to have these increasingly affluent neighborhoods with growing families like Logan Circle deprived of a neighborhood school.

Heck, even if they go to DCPS, the parents in the neighborhood will have been indoctrinated to the "school choice" bandwagon without even realizing it.

So there may not be a lobby, but unrenovated schools are a panacea to charters that want to grow. Even better if their new clients are the offspring of the college-educated.

Charters are in it to win it.

First, school choice is more than just choice. Any DCPS parent that uses the OOB lottery is participating in choice. If you are not in your IB school, you are making a choice.

Second, are you saying that only charter school parents are collage educated? You must not be familiar with charter schools in DC. Or, else you only think of schools like CMI and YY when you think of charter schools. There are almost 100 charter school programs in DC. Many, if most, cater to families who are lower income and minority. Get out of the bubble.

I think you missed the point here. The charter sector has a lock on low income families in wards 7 & 8 and other parts of the city...but if they're going to continue to grow their market share, then they need to have a gentrified babies w/o decent neighborhood school. Garrison is ground zero for these kids (say ~80 inboundary kids turn 3 every year, probably ~500 if you look at all the EOTP/WOTP "border areas") if they don't capture those kids and the influence of their parents, the the charter sector will cease to expand.

So, yes, renovating schools - and Garrison in particular - is anathema to the charter world.

We have our own problems searching for buildings thanks to DCPS without worrying about if (or when) you plan to fix yours. I promise you we are not worrying about your broken down buildings. Your EMPTY buildings however....

[Anonymous]

That's nice how you did that "we vs. you" thing there. Glad we are all in this together.

[Anonymous]

That's not a bad idea. Close Garrison and turn over the building to a charter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That's nice how you did that "we vs. you" thing there. Glad we are all in this together.

Yeah...since we are accused of a diabolical plan to keep schools from modernization (and overthrowing neighborhood schools in general). If only you knew how disorganized we really are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That's nice how you did that "we vs. you" thing there. Glad we are all in this together.

Yeah...since we are accused of a diabolical plan to keep schools from modernization (and overthrowing neighborhood schools in general). If only you knew how disorganized we really are.

That is rather shocking considering all the corporate consultants and DCPCSB-mandated vendors.

[Anonymous]

So I guess the rumor that I heard that 1/2 of the Garrison building would be renovated this summer and half next summer were bogus and also that there was still money allocated for the renovation. How depressing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That's nice how you did that "we vs. you" thing there. Glad we are all in this together.

Yeah...since we are accused of a diabolical plan to keep schools from modernization (and overthrowing neighborhood schools in general). If only you knew how disorganized we really are.

That is rather shocking considering all the corporate consultants and DCPCSB-mandated vendors.

Which vendors are those? Corporate consultants?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That's nice how you did that "we vs. you" thing there. Glad we are all in this together.

Yeah...since we are accused of a diabolical plan to keep schools from modernization (and overthrowing neighborhood schools in general). If only you knew how disorganized we really are.

That is rather shocking considering all the corporate consultants and DCPCSB-mandated vendors.

Which vendors are those? Corporate consultants?

The Charter Board has never mandated a vendor. I don't think people on this message board know how independent charters are of each other and of the PCSB. Only KIPP is really close to the DC Government and its affiliates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So I guess the rumor that I heard that 1/2 of the Garrison building would be renovated this summer and half next summer were bogus and also that there was still money allocated for the renovation. How depressing.

That's true, if by "this summer" you mean 2016. That was the latest plan put forth--a phased modernization in summer 2016 and summer 2017. Grosso insists he left enough money for it, but the architects do not agree. So, we'll see.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That's nice how you did that "we vs. you" thing there. Glad we are all in this together.

Yeah...since we are accused of a diabolical plan to keep schools from modernization (and overthrowing neighborhood schools in general). If only you knew how disorganized we really are.

That is rather shocking considering all the corporate consultants and DCPCSB-mandated vendors.

I think you are confusing the national charter lobby and local DC charter schools. That is the difference between the national teacher's union and DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That's nice how you did that "we vs. you" thing there. Glad we are all in this together.

Yeah...since we are accused of a diabolical plan to keep schools from modernization (and overthrowing neighborhood schools in general). If only you knew how disorganized we really are.

That is rather shocking considering all the corporate consultants and DCPCSB-mandated vendors.

Which vendors are those? Corporate consultants?

The Charter Board has never mandated a vendor. I don't think people on this message board know how independent charters are of each other and of the PCSB. Only KIPP is really close to the DC Government and its affiliates.

This - having worked with the Charter Board - I can pretty much tell you, the above (disorganized) is more factual.