APS - new CIP proposal

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Back to the CIP discussion, I get that the new HS building adds 800 seats like they were planning on (plus covers the growth of Arlington Tech which thus far just got trailers). But how many new seats are created at the old Career Center building if Montessori moves there? Did they say that?

I can't really get my head around this proposal without understanding what it costs and how many seats we are adding. Plus, how many cars fit in the new gravel lot? Enough for a 1900 student high school? Plus however many are at Montessori?

They didn't say how many Montessori seats would be added. For the MS/HS - are those choice seats all for Arlington Tech or also some other unidentified choice program. Is there going to be that much demand for Arl Tech?? 1800 students?? Isn't that nearly 3x HB Woodlawn's size? I feel like we are right back where we started, APS is ignoring the problems with this plan, and is proposing the most expensive option of tear everything down and build everything back up again. WTH???

Anyone who doesn't see Montessori's eyes on those MS/HS seats is oblivious to the Montessori community in Arlington. They want their own pre-K-12 campus. They will move the 6-8 Montessori grades out of Gunston (a good thing) and put them there. Then they will push for expansion of Montessori through grade 12.

IMO, they SHOULD be investing in Arlington Tech and making that a bigger program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we move Kenmore somewhere like Career Center and build a full size high school there?? Is it still about buses???

Exactly!! Kenmore's campus is 30 acres. It was always the natural site for a 4th high school. How many years have they wasted at this point and gotten nowhere? Rebuild Kenmore MS at VHC and make Kenmore a HS. Done!

The CC is just down the street from TJ. It makes no sense to have two neighborhood middle schools right next to each other.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we move Kenmore somewhere like Career Center and build a full size high school there?? Is it still about buses???

No, it's about Glencarlyn neighbohood's objections to a high school there. They could easily fit a high school in addition to the middle school on that campus. Especially if they relocate Carlin Springs ES - to the VHC site. But Glencarlyn objects to that, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we move Kenmore somewhere like Career Center and build a full size high school there?? Is it still about buses???

Exactly!! Kenmore's campus is 30 acres. It was always the natural site for a 4th high school. How many years have they wasted at this point and gotten nowhere? Rebuild Kenmore MS at VHC and make Kenmore a HS. Done!

The CC is just down the street from TJ. It makes no sense to have two neighborhood middle schools right next to each other.

Listen we are a small county and have to deal with our limited options. We bus kids in Rosslyn past two other neighborhood schools to Taylor so this is hardly unique to them. It’s the middle of the county at that.

[Anonymous]

The problem with Arlington is being hung up on these stupid little option schools that benefit only a tiny number of students and considering them holy grail options. Need more space?
Here is the answer -

HB Woodlawn must either increase capacity by several hundred students next year OR if there is objection and outrage, then it becomes a regular school next year and with their standard curriculum. The seats are needed. The school has them and there is not more time to fawn over that program like idiots.

Montessori goes. There is nothing special about Montessori elementary. I know I am wrong, I know nothing!! Just stop. The elementary program is nothing special.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They have to build a new facility for Montessori elementary if they’re going to repurpose that part of the site for the Career Center expansion. That was always par of the plan.

Disagree with the bolded. The proposal contemplates repurposing the old Career Center building for Montessori. Hopefully that will be at minimal expense, but I'm not too familiar with the space and how easily adapted it would be to elementary classrooms.

DP - I agree with the PPP. It was always part of Montessori's plan and I'm sure the Montessori SB member had a hand in this plan.

Those were the emails that should’ve been FOIA’ed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we move Kenmore somewhere like Career Center and build a full size high school there?? Is it still about buses???

Exactly!! Kenmore's campus is 30 acres. It was always the natural site for a 4th high school. How many years have they wasted at this point and gotten nowhere? Rebuild Kenmore MS at VHC and make Kenmore a HS. Done!

The CC is just down the street from TJ. It makes no sense to have two neighborhood middle schools right next to each other.

Listen we are a small county and have to deal with our limited options. We bus kids in Rosslyn past two other neighborhood schools to Taylor so this is hardly unique to them. It’s the middle of the county at that.

There are many more elementary schools than middle schools. It's to be expected to be within close distance to multiple schools. But it really does not make any sense to put two full regular middle schools right next to each other. in this case, it would be literally 5 short blocks - a ten minute walk at most. They would have the exact same walk zone; so are you just going to split the walk zone in half and screw with the demographics at each school? There's no need to move Kenmore. Plenty of room for a high school as well as a middle school there. The point is, we may have limited options; but we definitely have reasonable and feasible options other than putting two neighborhood middle schools right next to each other.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem with Arlington is being hung up on these stupid little option schools that benefit only a tiny number of students and considering them holy grail options. Need more space?
Here is the answer -

HB Woodlawn must either increase capacity by several hundred students next year OR if there is objection and outrage, then it becomes a regular school next year and with their standard curriculum. The seats are needed. The school has them and there is not more time to fawn over that program like idiots.

Montessori goes. There is nothing special about Montessori elementary. I know I am wrong, I know nothing!! Just stop. The elementary program is nothing special.

But it's the Montessori kids that are special.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem with Arlington is being hung up on these stupid little option schools that benefit only a tiny number of students and considering them holy grail options. Need more space?
Here is the answer -

HB Woodlawn must either increase capacity by several hundred students next year OR if there is objection and outrage, then it becomes a regular school next year and with their standard curriculum. The seats are needed. The school has them and there is not more time to fawn over that program like idiots.

Montessori goes. There is nothing special about Montessori elementary. I know I am wrong, I know nothing!! Just stop. The elementary program is nothing special.

But it's the Montessori kids that are special.

I agree. If HBW has more space, they need to pack those kids in like other high schools.

I don't know if Montessori should disappear, but it should not get any more special consideration than other option programs or elementary schools.

[Anonymous]

I have a deep distrust of Montessori and the stranglehold that it’s parents have on the APS capital budget. They bootstrap themselves with their preK programs service to underrepresented minorities to hide the dirty secret that they serve primarily rich white kids in elementary. It’s a private Montessori education on the public dime. As shameful as all the money spent on the ridiculous Heights building without expanding HB capacity. I hope Montessori goes down with OGradys exit from the board.

[Anonymous]

HB Woodlawn must either increase capacity by several hundred students next year OR if there is objection and outrage, then it becomes a regular school next year and with their standard curriculum. The seats are needed. The school has them and there is not more time to fawn over that program like idiots.

1) HB new building doesn’t have the capacity to increase by several hundred.

2) HB offers exactky the same- actually less due to the lower population- classes as any other APS middle or high school. It’s not the curriculum that is different. It’s the philosophy of how the school is run and the student-teacher relationship. I have a kid there and one at Wakefield. The Wakefield student has many more classes to choose from.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a deep distrust of Montessori and the stranglehold that it’s parents have on the APS capital budget. They bootstrap themselves with their preK programs service to underrepresented minorities to hide the dirty secret that they serve primarily rich white kids in elementary. It’s a private Montessori education on the public dime. As shameful as all the money spent on the ridiculous Heights building without expanding HB capacity. I hope Montessori goes down with OGradys exit from the board.

+1000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

HB Woodlawn must either increase capacity by several hundred students next year OR if there is objection and outrage, then it becomes a regular school next year and with their standard curriculum. The seats are needed. The school has them and there is not more time to fawn over that program like idiots.

1) HB new building doesn’t have the capacity to increase by several hundred.

2) HB offers exactky the same- actually less due to the lower population- classes as any other APS middle or high school. It’s not the curriculum that is different. It’s the philosophy of how the school is run and the student-teacher relationship. I have a kid there and one at Wakefield. The Wakefield student has many more classes to choose from.

The Heights building is very open air, they can find a way to expand the capacity. Maybe even rent nearby office suites which aren’t super vacant.

As for curriculum, exactly it is nothing special but HB boosters keep claiming they can’t grow or their special program will suffer. Get over that, and work with the same reality as everyone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

HB Woodlawn must either increase capacity by several hundred students next year OR if there is objection and outrage, then it becomes a regular school next year and with their standard curriculum. The seats are needed. The school has them and there is not more time to fawn over that program like idiots.

1) HB new building doesn’t have the capacity to increase by several hundred.

2) HB offers exactky the same- actually less due to the lower population- classes as any other APS middle or high school. It’s not the curriculum that is different. It’s the philosophy of how the school is run and the student-teacher relationship. I have a kid there and one at Wakefield. The Wakefield student has many more classes to choose from.

The Heights building is very open air, they can find a way to expand the capacity. Maybe even rent nearby office suites which aren’t super vacant.

As for curriculum, exactly it is nothing special but HB boosters keep claiming they can’t grow or their special program will suffer. Get over that, and work with the same reality as everyone else.

Which are super vacant.

[Anonymous]

If you think they are just going to rent nearby office buildings that are “super vacant”, please go advocate for that and the logistics of how that can happen so that kids can just traipse all over busy streets with 5 minutes between classes. That’s not realistic. They aren’t going to start new construction on a building that was specifically built for those 2 programs, and furthermore, HB didn’t even want to move in the first place.