Return to school: What about the MCPS magnets?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I might be utterly delusional but I still hope that DL and whatever hybrid model MCPS wants to come up with won't last forever! DC is supposed to go to Eastern magnet this fall, and, while DL is questionable, it should end by the fall of 2021 if not sooner and my child will be able to benefit from 2 years of in-person instruction. Meanwhile, we'll just have to supplement and basically ride it out.
What I find scary is the thought that, from now on, there will be no in-person instruction, only endless zoom 'office hours' and doogle.docs assignments. Please say it ain't so!

Write to the BOE and ask for a F2F choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I might be utterly delusional but I still hope that DL and whatever hybrid model MCPS wants to come up with won't last forever! DC is supposed to go to Eastern magnet this fall, and, while DL is questionable, it should end by the fall of 2021 if not sooner and my child will be able to benefit from 2 years of in-person instruction. Meanwhile, we'll just have to supplement and basically ride it out.
What I find scary is the thought that, from now on, there will be no in-person instruction, only endless zoom 'office hours' and doogle.docs assignments. Please say it ain't so!

Write to the BOE and ask for a F2F choice.

Absolutely do this. Don't just sit there and hope, take action.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is time to say good bye to magnets and language immersions. Waste of money. Too much travel and moving around. Resources will need to go to those who need more help.

agree

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The magnets should be cut to save money. They certainly should not be treated better if that’s what you are getting at.

It is considered a special needs program and gets a little extra funding but not much. Eastern and Takoma get 1.2 full time positions (FTEs) each and Blair gets 4 FTEs MCPS has significantly cut funding for special programs over the years. Blair used to get 9 FTEs.
There are many special needs populations in any school system. I support programs for students who have learning difficulties etc and I would hope other parents would support programs for highly gifted children.

[Anonymous]

According to

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomery_Blair_High_School

In 1985, Montgomery County Public Schools opened its first Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science Magnet program at Blair.[35] At the time, Blair had the highest minority population among the high schools in the County and the lowest standardized test scores.[35] The school board conducted a survey to decide that a specialized science magnet program would attract high-achieving white and Asian students to Blair.[36] Although there was criticism of the program from some parents and students, the leaders of the PTA and the principal supported the program, noting that by 1989 more families were staying in the neighborhood to attend Blair and fewer students were seeking to transfer out.[35] In 1993, the Superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools told the New York Times: "I have never seen a high school's image turn around so quickly."[36]

The question is if we get rid of magnet programs like Blair, would Blair continues to be a desirable school ? And would it affect the property value in the area ?

Magnet programs attract highly motivated (if not highly gifted) students to attend the school, and these kids should be much easier to teach. At high school level, kids start to learn more by themselves, particularly true for magnets.

There is additional cost to run a magnet program such as transportation, and specialized curriculum. But the cost is minimal compared what magnet has brought to the school -- the high school's image, and county revenue from property tax as a result.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:According to

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomery_Blair_High_School

In 1985, Montgomery County Public Schools opened its first Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science Magnet program at Blair.[35] At the time, Blair had the highest minority population among the high schools in the County and the lowest standardized test scores.[35] The school board conducted a survey to decide that a specialized science magnet program would attract high-achieving white and Asian students to Blair.[36] Although there was criticism of the program from some parents and students, the leaders of the PTA and the principal supported the program, noting that by 1989 more families were staying in the neighborhood to attend Blair and fewer students were seeking to transfer out.[35] In 1993, the Superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools told the New York Times: "I have never seen a high school's image turn around so quickly."[36]

The question is if we get rid of magnet programs like Blair, would Blair continues to be a desirable school ? And would it affect the property value in the area ?

Magnet programs attract highly motivated (if not highly gifted) students to attend the school, and these kids should be much easier to teach. At high school level, kids start to learn more by themselves, particularly true for magnets.

There is additional cost to run a magnet program such as transportation, and specialized curriculum. But the cost is minimal compared what magnet has brought to the school -- the high school's image, and county revenue from property tax as a result.

I live in Blair cluster, but I don't think it is the job of MCPS to prop up home values. That goes as much for Blair as it does for the folks losing their minds over the upcounty boundary study. With that said, there is value in the SMCS magnet in that it brings together some of the brightest and best-prepared young people in the county and allows them to access resources that would be hard to provide if they remained scattered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:According to

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomery_Blair_High_School

In 1985, Montgomery County Public Schools opened its first Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science Magnet program at Blair.[35] At the time, Blair had the highest minority population among the high schools in the County and the lowest standardized test scores.[35] The school board conducted a survey to decide that a specialized science magnet program would attract high-achieving white and Asian students to Blair.[36] Although there was criticism of the program from some parents and students, the leaders of the PTA and the principal supported the program, noting that by 1989 more families were staying in the neighborhood to attend Blair and fewer students were seeking to transfer out.[35] In 1993, the Superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools told the New York Times: "I have never seen a high school's image turn around so quickly."[36]

The question is if we get rid of magnet programs like Blair, would Blair continues to be a desirable school ? And would it affect the property value in the area ?

Magnet programs attract highly motivated (if not highly gifted) students to attend the school, and these kids should be much easier to teach. At high school level, kids start to learn more by themselves, particularly true for magnets.

There is additional cost to run a magnet program such as transportation, and specialized curriculum. But the cost is minimal compared what magnet has brought to the school -- the high school's image, and county revenue from property tax as a result.

No, that's not the question. Schools aren't there to prop up property-owners property values.

Also, "would Blair continue to be a desirable school" to whom?

[Anonymous]

Even though property value is not MCPS's concern. The school's image is, and often a better school brings higher property value.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomery_Blair_High_School

In 1985, Montgomery County Public Schools opened its first Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science Magnet program at Blair.[35] At the time, Blair had the highest minority population among the high schools in the County and the lowest standardized test scores.[35] The school board conducted a survey to decide that a specialized science magnet program would attract high-achieving white and Asian students to Blair.[36] Although there was criticism of the program from some parents and students, the leaders of the PTA and the principal supported the program, noting that by 1989 more families were staying in the neighborhood to attend Blair and fewer students were seeking to transfer out.[35] In 1993, the Superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools told the New York Times: "I have never seen a high school's image turn around so quickly."[36]

The question is if we get rid of magnet programs like Blair, would Blair continues to be a desirable school ? And would it affect the property value in the area ?

Magnet programs attract highly motivated (if not highly gifted) students to attend the school, and these kids should be much easier to teach. At high school level, kids start to learn more by themselves, particularly true for magnets.

There is additional cost to run a magnet program such as transportation, and specialized curriculum. But the cost is minimal compared what magnet has brought to the school -- the high school's image, and county revenue from property tax as a result.

I live in Blair cluster, but I don't think it is the job of MCPS to prop up home values. That goes as much for Blair as it does for the folks losing their minds over the upcounty boundary study. With that said, there is value in the SMCS magnet in that it brings together some of the brightest and best-prepared young people in the county and allows them to access resources that would be hard to provide if they remained scattered.

+1 and as a previous post pointed out the additional cost is relatively modest especially since funding has already been cut by over 50% over the last decade. The students have an extra class period (which is necessary to enable them to complete the integrated and in depth math and science curriculum) and so they do need a few extra teachers for the 400 magnet students. They don’t really get any additional funding beyond transportation. It has been nearly impossible to get funding for equipment in recent years. They rely on alumni donations for that - so for example when they introduced a new course a few years ago (college level organic chemistry) they used alumni donations to purchase the textbooks. Many of the things Blair gets lauded for (such as winning Math competitions etc) are supported by magnet alumni not the school. For many of these kids being in a group of peers and with teachers who love math and science and “get them” is transformative. Many of these children would be truly miserable in their home schools

[Anonymous]

Most kids who attend magnet programs are smart, but not geniuses. And I’m not saying this out of jealousy. My DC was accepted into two for HS and declined. DC is very bright, but I would not call him brilliant. He is doing great in home HS and able to take all advanced classes.
Blair is not the only magnet program. There are tons, as well as special education programs at various schools. Some serve a real need. Others provide general education and half an hour of social skills a day for those who attend. The problem is not necessarily the extra cost of these programs, but the extra cost of transportation and other expenses. Literally millions and millions of extra dollars to bus kids all over the county, and in many cases they could get a very similar experience in their home school. Given the current situation, I think send most to their home school and save the money for programs that will benefit all kids in mcps. Why should magnet kids take up twice the resources as kids going to their home schools?

[Anonymous]

Parents who send their kids to magnets should be required to transport them themselves. It’s crazy how much money mcps spends bussing those kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parents who send their kids to magnets should be required to transport them themselves. It’s crazy how much money mcps spends bussing those kids.

How much, exactly? Please tell us, because every time this has come up in the past, the amount has turned out to be negligible given the total amount of money MCPS spends on bus transportation.

When you've done that, please explain how this would expand the access of kids from poor/underresourced families to magnet programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most kids who attend magnet programs are smart, but not geniuses. And I’m not saying this out of jealousy. My DC was accepted into two for HS and declined. DC is very bright, but I would not call him brilliant. He is doing great in home HS and able to take all advanced classes.
Blair is not the only magnet program. There are tons, as well as special education programs at various schools. Some serve a real need. Others provide general education and half an hour of social skills a day for those who attend. The problem is not necessarily the extra cost of these programs, but the extra cost of transportation and other expenses. Literally millions and millions of extra dollars to bus kids all over the county, and in many cases they could get a very similar experience in their home school. Given the current situation, I think send most to their home school and save the money for programs that will benefit all kids in mcps. Why should magnet kids take up twice the resources as kids going to their home schools?

The total MCPS budget is $4.6 billion, or 4,600 million dollars. MCPS overall spends about $120 million on student transportation. So "millions and millions" may sound like a big number, but it isn't.

[Anonymous]

It might not be a big percentage of the overall budget, but it is still a lot of money that could be used elsewhere. Like hiring more teachers and reducing class size. Or enhancing distance learning capabilities. Or giving chrome books to kids who need them. The point is that 5 million dollars is still 5 million dollars and could be used for a lot of other things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It might not be a big percentage of the overall budget, but it is still a lot of money that could be used elsewhere. Like hiring more teachers and reducing class size. Or enhancing distance learning capabilities. Or giving chrome books to kids who need them. The point is that 5 million dollars is still 5 million dollars and could be used for a lot of other things.

$5 million for bus transportation to the MCPS magnet programs? That's literally a rounding error in the MCPS $2.68 billion annual operating budget.