Specifically on-topic contributors to the Drew boundary issue only please -

[Anonymous]

As a Henry parent that lives south of the Pike, I just want someone to tell me more about the plans for Drew next year. How are thy going to integrate multiple school communities? Where are the new teachers coming from? Will any teachers transfer from Henry? Tell me more about how Drew handles advanced readers in the graded program. What makes the graded program special? I understand it has a STEAM focus- how is that implemented?

[Anonymous]

Have you tried contacting the principal? This is a school in flux but it could be great. They will need new parents to take on PTA roles and get involved. I get it—this is time consuming and hard. Most of us are from 2 parent working families but that kind of opportunity can help you develop relationships with staff and leaders and really influence your child’s experience. It’s hard for staff to do outreach before they know who will be attending and it sounds like right now the PYA is just one or two people. It will get better. But you have to reach out, be involved and give the school a chance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you tried contacting the principal? This is a school in flux but it could be great. They will need new parents to take on PTA roles and get involved. I get it—this is time consuming and hard. Most of us are from 2 parent working families but that kind of opportunity can help you develop relationships with staff and leaders and really influence your child’s experience. It’s hard for staff to do outreach before they know who will be attending and it sounds like right now the PYA is just one or two people. It will get better. But you have to reach out, be involved and give the school a chance.

The Drew PTA president posted a nice message to the Arlington Education Matters FB page and introduced herself and offered to be a resource for families who may have questions. I'd recommend reaching out to her through that page.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you tried contacting the principal? This is a school in flux but it could be great. They will need new parents to take on PTA roles and get involved. I get it—this is time consuming and hard. Most of us are from 2 parent working families but that kind of opportunity can help you develop relationships with staff and leaders and really influence your child’s experience. It’s hard for staff to do outreach before they know who will be attending and it sounds like right now the PYA is just one or two people. It will get better. But you have to reach out, be involved and give the school a chance.

The Drew PTA president posted a nice message to the Arlington Education Matters FB page and introduced herself and offered to be a resource for families who may have questions. I'd recommend reaching out to her through that page.

I will reach out to the Drew PTA president.

But to the person lecturing about getting involved, you do realize that implying incoming families will have to start from scratch to try and build a good elementary experience, is not helping?? It adds to the perception that Drew will be a "lesser" experience for at least the next few years. How long will it take to "get better?" I don't have a preschooler. Starting over, when my kid is halfway through elementary school, is not appealing.

[Anonymous]

Starting over with my kid in kindergarten is not appealing. If I wanted to start a school or homeschool I would. The idea that I bring my resources for the school and I have to “work really hard” to make it a great school sounds exhausting. All it does is highlight and acknowledge that my fears and concerns are justified. In a few years the school with be great. They will have an awesome principal. I believe Drew will succeed, but not in time for my children’s entire elementary experience. At a minimum the county should acknowledge that the neighborhood program will need extra resources. I don’t know what the solution is but APS has down a terrible job of promoting Drew the neighborhood school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you tried contacting the principal? This is a school in flux but it could be great. They will need new parents to take on PTA roles and get involved. I get it—this is time consuming and hard. Most of us are from 2 parent working families but that kind of opportunity can help you develop relationships with staff and leaders and really influence your child’s experience. It’s hard for staff to do outreach before they know who will be attending and it sounds like right now the PYA is just one or two people. It will get better. But you have to reach out, be involved and give the school a chance.

The Drew PTA president posted a nice message to the Arlington Education Matters FB page and introduced herself and offered to be a resource for families who may have questions. I'd recommend reaching out to her through that page.

I will reach out to the Drew PTA president.

But to the person lecturing about getting involved, you do realize that implying incoming families will have to start from scratch to try and build a good elementary experience, is not helping?? It adds to the perception that Drew will be a "lesser" experience for at least the next few years. How long will it take to "get better?" I don't have a preschooler. Starting over, when my kid is halfway through elementary school, is not appealing.

DP than the one you're responding to, but wanted to chime in.

Even Discovery had to do this when it opened. From what I remember, the Nottingham PTA provided support (logisitcal and financial) to Discovery, once they knew the boundaries and that most of the students would be drawn from that boundary. Drew (other than Nauck) doesn't have that luxury yet. Since nobody knows who else will be in the boundary, how can anyone step up to officer roles or even offer support? Once the boundary is decided, I imagine whatever other school sends a chunk of kids will have parents who step up, and perhaps the sending school's PTA will offer financial assistance. There's also CCPTA, who provide PTA officer training in the spring, and offer grants to PTAs who have specific requests twice a year.

I get that "starting over" isn't appealing. It's not any more appealing to any other parents whose kids are moving midway through ES, but it's going to have to be someone. What I can say as someone not personally involved, but with my ear close to the ground, the new Drew principal is awesome. She's exactly the leader you want when you're in a "rebuilding" year. Also, APS can be pretty choosy with staff. There are hundreds more applicants than there are positions. There is every reason to be optimistic about what can and will be accomplished at the school with regard to instruction. I think enough of us across Arlington are invested in the idea of Drew succeeding that there will be extra support from other schools and community organizations to try to help get the school and PTA off to the best start possible. People are talking about this, I think they will follow through.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Again, not BK, but what did you guys expect? That we can’t read or see proximity? This is supposed to be a Drew thread but is now dominated by ppl crying crocodile tears over getting more rich (when the alternative is creating a school at least 2/3 low income) and whining that outsiders should just sit down and shut up (and accept some bs gerrymandered boundary). No wonder you don’t want to post on Aem.

You are setting up a false choice. Columbia Heights is not the ONLY option for lowering Drew’s FARMS rate. Personally, I’d like to see some options where more Oakridge units are drawn in. And lots of people have posted on AEM about why we want to stay together, but when you are saying we are crying “crocodile tears” you perpetuate the hate. And by the way, I live north of CP and yes, I don’t want my school to get more rich and white. So FU for saying otherwise.

The reason I posted all of that to being with is a think it's silly that's there's this perfectly good community that will help bring the FARMs rate down that's adjacent to the school but nobody wants to talk about it.

I'm cool with moving some of Oakridge too but which planning units?

So here's the conundrum with the Oakridge units, one that I think staff couldn't solve, so they moved none: since the time of SAWG, The Berkely has been "saved" by AHC and is being doubled in size (no. of overall units) and many of the 155 CAFs will be family-sized units. There's no way to grab the higher income Oakridge PUs while maintaining contiguity and not also taking that CAF currently under construction to Drew, not to mention really ignoring walk zones and putting a bunch of walkers onto a bus that will actually drive past their previous school. They've drawn a pretty fair and balanced boundary for both Oakridge and Hoffman-Boston. Now they need to tweak the rest.

I have to agree. Even though the focus of SAWG and its recommendation was heavily on relief for Oakridge and the assumption that overcrowding there would be relieved by sending people to Drew, Hoffman Boston makes more sense. There is a prior history of that area attending Hoffman Boston. You just drive right up Army Navy Drive onto Columbia Pike. it does not take the most concentrated low-income PUs and does not exacerbate Hoffman Boston's FRL%.

People just need to accept that this is a high density area, schools are close together, some can walk to multiple schools, and people need to be shuffled around. Sorry if you miss out on a brand new shiny building. For the Henry kids, they didn't have it and therefore aren't losing something they never experienced. For the Abingdon kids, it is a bummer to leave a fresh a new building after a year or two. For the vast majority of us, we've never had the pretty new building and never will. Oh well. Personally, I wouldn't have wanted Discovery. I find it much too sterile and I'd rather have an outdoor slide my kids would actually use regularly.

Henry needs to help fill Drew. If you have to shift boundaries westward, then shift them westward. It sets it up nicely for the next round where you can keep shifting them counterclockwise around the County and push some of the west end of the Pike north of 50, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you tried contacting the principal? This is a school in flux but it could be great. They will need new parents to take on PTA roles and get involved. I get it—this is time consuming and hard. Most of us are from 2 parent working families but that kind of opportunity can help you develop relationships with staff and leaders and really influence your child’s experience. It’s hard for staff to do outreach before they know who will be attending and it sounds like right now the PYA is just one or two people. It will get better. But you have to reach out, be involved and give the school a chance.

These questions are precisely why these boundaries should have been completed last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you tried contacting the principal? This is a school in flux but it could be great. They will need new parents to take on PTA roles and get involved. I get it—this is time consuming and hard. Most of us are from 2 parent working families but that kind of opportunity can help you develop relationships with staff and leaders and really influence your child’s experience. It’s hard for staff to do outreach before they know who will be attending and it sounds like right now the PYA is just one or two people. It will get better. But you have to reach out, be involved and give the school a chance.

The Drew PTA president posted a nice message to the Arlington Education Matters FB page and introduced herself and offered to be a resource for families who may have questions. I'd recommend reaching out to her through that page.

I will reach out to the Drew PTA president.

But to the person lecturing about getting involved, you do realize that implying incoming families will have to start from scratch to try and build a good elementary experience, is not helping?? It adds to the perception that Drew will be a "lesser" experience for at least the next few years. How long will it take to "get better?" I don't have a preschooler. Starting over, when my kid is halfway through elementary school, is not appealing.

DP You won't be starting entirely from scratch. The principal is already there building upon the STEAM model put in place last year. Staff will have already spent two years implementing the curriculum. The current staff will be experienced and able to train and mentor the incoming staff on the curriculum. There are some passionate and involved adults getting started on the Drew-only PTA now. Boundaries will be established in December. That gives half a year for the incoming part of the community to go in and discuss where they're all coming from and what they all have to bring and how everyone will meld it all together with what's already there.

I would suggest that everyone - NOW- starts pushing APS administration and SB to ensure that they get a lot of experienced teachers as well as new teachers. As soon as you know you're heading to Drew - get on them and just keep showing up to let them know your expectations and you're going to hold APS to them. By "you," I mean the plural "you" of everyone who will be attending Drew next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It would be helpful to know more about the plans for Drew next year. The choice of principal seems positive, based on the growth of Hoffman-Boston, but overall, being redistricted to Drew is being treated as a punishment, not as something that could be positive.

Assuming the Montessori teachers are moving to Henry, what is the plan for hiring new staff? Is the expectation that teachers will be transferred from the sending schools?

Is the plan to keep a STEAM focus at Drew? How is that being implemented?

How do they plan to integrate 400 new students into the school- are they keeping the existing traditions, or do they plan to develop new traditions?

It looks like Drew has Odyssey of the Mind and Model UN teams- will those continue when Montessori moves?

Give people reasons to be excited about Drew. Otherwise, we're assuming it will be test prep, tutoring and Saturday school, like Carlin Springs, given the 80% predicted FARMS rate.

Montessori teachers were for Montessori classes only. Of course they shared some of specials. As MOntessori moves out (400+ seats) they have to move in that amount of kids. Drew Montessori already separated this year with different office (they used the same before), separate PTA , UN MOdel and Oddysey of Mind were started by Montessori teachers/parents so that will move out and Drew Model will have to figure out, but they working together this year to transfer all thoe skills. And of course, with 400+ new student they will have to hire new teachers or move teachers from other schools. My kids went to HB when we had that principal and she was amazing and all about STEM so I'm guessing that will continue. They have an amazing band and chorus. Drew teachers and community are amazing!!! We will miss Drew and the community when we move to PH next fall. And that school will become one that you would wish you moved to. Just saying!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It would be helpful to know more about the plans for Drew next year. The choice of principal seems positive, based on the growth of Hoffman-Boston, but overall, being redistricted to Drew is being treated as a punishment, not as something that could be positive.

Assuming the Montessori teachers are moving to Henry, what is the plan for hiring new staff? Is the expectation that teachers will be transferred from the sending schools?

Is the plan to keep a STEAM focus at Drew? How is that being implemented?

How do they plan to integrate 400 new students into the school- are they keeping the existing traditions, or do they plan to develop new traditions?

It looks like Drew has Odyssey of the Mind and Model UN teams- will those continue when Montessori moves?

Give people reasons to be excited about Drew. Otherwise, we're assuming it will be test prep, tutoring and Saturday school, like Carlin Springs, given the 80% predicted FARMS rate.

Montessori teachers were for Montessori classes only. Of course they shared some of specials. As MOntessori moves out (400+ seats) they have to move in that amount of kids. Drew Montessori already separated this year with different office (they used the same before), separate PTA , UN MOdel and Oddysey of Mind were started by Montessori teachers/parents so that will move out and Drew Model will have to figure out, but they working together this year to transfer all thoe skills. And of course, with 400+ new student they will have to hire new teachers or move teachers from other schools. My kids went to HB when we had that principal and she was amazing and all about STEM so I'm guessing that will continue. They have an amazing band and chorus. Drew teachers and community are amazing!!! We will miss Drew and the community when we move to PH next fall. And that school will become one that you would wish you moved to. Just saying!!!

Not to be a wet blanket, but what will make Drew different from other high farms schools like Randolph and carlin springs? Those schools struggle because an 80% farms rate has consequences. They've also had the same rate for at least 20 years and there's no reason to believe Drew won't as well.

[Anonymous]

Also spare me, all the Montessori parents claiming you’ll miss Drew and how amazing it is are not helping. You choiced out, your kid didn’t and doesn’t attend the neighborhood program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It would be helpful to know more about the plans for Drew next year. The choice of principal seems positive, based on the growth of Hoffman-Boston, but overall, being redistricted to Drew is being treated as a punishment, not as something that could be positive.

Assuming the Montessori teachers are moving to Henry, what is the plan for hiring new staff? Is the expectation that teachers will be transferred from the sending schools?

Is the plan to keep a STEAM focus at Drew? How is that being implemented?

How do they plan to integrate 400 new students into the school- are they keeping the existing traditions, or do they plan to develop new traditions?

It looks like Drew has Odyssey of the Mind and Model UN teams- will those continue when Montessori moves?

Give people reasons to be excited about Drew. Otherwise, we're assuming it will be test prep, tutoring and Saturday school, like Carlin Springs, given the 80% predicted FARMS rate.

Montessori teachers were for Montessori classes only. Of course they shared some of specials. As MOntessori moves out (400+ seats) they have to move in that amount of kids. Drew Montessori already separated this year with different office (they used the same before), separate PTA , UN MOdel and Oddysey of Mind were started by Montessori teachers/parents so that will move out and Drew Model will have to figure out, but they working together this year to transfer all thoe skills. And of course, with 400+ new student they will have to hire new teachers or move teachers from other schools. My kids went to HB when we had that principal and she was amazing and all about STEM so I'm guessing that will continue. They have an amazing band and chorus. Drew teachers and community are amazing!!! We will miss Drew and the community when we move to PH next fall. And that school will become one that you would wish you moved to. Just saying!!!

Not to be a wet blanket, but what will make Drew different from other high farms schools like Randolph and carlin springs? Those schools struggle because an 80% farms rate has consequences. They've also had the same rate for at least 20 years and there's no reason to believe Drew won't as well.

They're not going with the boundary they first proposed. We don't know what the fr/l rate will be yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also spare me, all the Montessori parents claiming you’ll miss Drew and how amazing it is are not helping. You choiced out, your kid didn’t and doesn’t attend the neighborhood program.

+1. If you love and believe in it so much you should stay instead of moving to PH, right? Your kids would get to keep a great neighborhood school.

...crickets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It would be helpful to know more about the plans for Drew next year. The choice of principal seems positive, based on the growth of Hoffman-Boston, but overall, being redistricted to Drew is being treated as a punishment, not as something that could be positive.

Assuming the Montessori teachers are moving to Henry, what is the plan for hiring new staff? Is the expectation that teachers will be transferred from the sending schools?

Is the plan to keep a STEAM focus at Drew? How is that being implemented?

How do they plan to integrate 400 new students into the school- are they keeping the existing traditions, or do they plan to develop new traditions?

It looks like Drew has Odyssey of the Mind and Model UN teams- will those continue when Montessori moves?

Give people reasons to be excited about Drew. Otherwise, we're assuming it will be test prep, tutoring and Saturday school, like Carlin Springs, given the 80% predicted FARMS rate.

Montessori teachers were for Montessori classes only. Of course they shared some of specials. As MOntessori moves out (400+ seats) they have to move in that amount of kids. Drew Montessori already separated this year with different office (they used the same before), separate PTA , UN MOdel and Oddysey of Mind were started by Montessori teachers/parents so that will move out and Drew Model will have to figure out, but they working together this year to transfer all thoe skills. And of course, with 400+ new student they will have to hire new teachers or move teachers from other schools. My kids went to HB when we had that principal and she was amazing and all about STEM so I'm guessing that will continue. They have an amazing band and chorus. Drew teachers and community are amazing!!! We will miss Drew and the community when we move to PH next fall. And that school will become one that you would wish you moved to. Just saying!!!

Not to be a wet blanket, but what will make Drew different from other high farms schools like Randolph and carlin springs? Those schools struggle because an 80% farms rate has consequences. They've also had the same rate for at least 20 years and there's no reason to believe Drew won't as well.

They're not going with the boundary they first proposed. We don't know what the fr/l rate will be yet.

Ok, for the sake of argument, let's say the first proposal isn't among those that will be voted on. Let's say it gets down to 60. What makes Drew different from a Barrett or a Barcroft?