FCPS is turning the new high school purchased to fix crowding into an Aviation magnet school instead of a high school??

[Anonymous]

Maybe they could send the Reston kids near Herndon out of South Lakes. Then, put more in South Lakes. But, that still does not solve long commute to Oakton, or overcrowding at Chantilly and Westfield.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe they could send the Reston kids near Herndon out of South Lakes. Then, put more in South Lakes. But, that still does not solve long commute to Oakton, or overcrowding at Chantilly and Westfield.

Westfield was under capacity last year. The last CIP also projected it will lose kids over the next five years.

There are schools that are actually overcrowded like Chantilly, and then there are schools that some of you claim are overcrowded but are not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe they could send the Reston kids near Herndon out of South Lakes. Then, put more in South Lakes. But, that still does not solve long commute to Oakton, or overcrowding at Chantilly and Westfield.

Westfield was under capacity last year. The last CIP also projected it will lose kids over the next five years.

There are schools that are actually overcrowded like Chantilly, and then there are schools that some of you claim are overcrowded but are not.

Westfield has over 2700 and new construction. It really does not have the space you think it does. And, when it was expanded, it did not expand things like the cafeteria, etc. Have you ever been in their gym?

[Anonymous]

No dog in this fight, but if some kids are going there for their magnet program then that means they aren’t going to their neighborhood school. Therefore relieving overcrowding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No dog in this fight, but if some kids are going there for their magnet program then that means they aren’t going to their neighborhood school. Therefore relieving overcrowding.

There's the rub. How many is "some?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe they could send the Reston kids near Herndon out of South Lakes. Then, put more in South Lakes. But, that still does not solve long commute to Oakton, or overcrowding at Chantilly and Westfield.

Westfield was under capacity last year. The last CIP also projected it will lose kids over the next five years.

There are schools that are actually overcrowded like Chantilly, and then there are schools that some of you claim are overcrowded but are not.

Westfield has over 2700 and new construction. It really does not have the space you think it does. And, when it was expanded, it did not expand things like the cafeteria, etc. Have you ever been in their gym?

Yes, I’ve been in the Westfield gym. It’s very big compared to most FCPS gyms. Overall, Westfield has a utilitarian look, but it has a lot of space and a large capacity.

There are other schools in the county that are as drab as Westfield but have less space and a lower capacity, so it’s not clear why we’re going to spend all this money on KAA because you don’t want to attend Westfield (or for that matter South Lakes or Herndon).

There should have been a more robust process before FCPS bought KAA, as illustrated by the fact that the deal has closed yet they haven’t figured out what to do with the building. It seems obvious that if the overcrowding was really as acute as you are claiming there would be no debate about the building’s future use. It would be a settled question.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone on Next Door had the idea that this building could be a great community and adult learning center. It certainly doesn’t sound like a traditional high school and why rip it apart to turn it into something it’s not?

Centerville and Chantilly are overcrowded. SLHS and Westfield are close to full. The only HS in the area with space is Herndon HS and that does not have enough space to handle the redistribution that would need to happen to relieve the other schools. And the boundary moves to shift kids from Westfield or SLHS, the two HS that are closer to Herndon, and then kids from Chantilly and Centerville to SLHS and Westfield are more disruptive in number then what would be needed to shift schools to the new HS and then backfill. And the new school could help end some of the split feeder problems that Carson has.

The redistricting plan involves putting kids onto busses to Oakton, which is a long commute. Fox Mill used to go to Oakton and I am amazed at how long that drive is the few times we have been at an event at Oakton from our house. And no one wants to be moved into SLHS because it is an IB program, which people are not interested in. Herndon would be closer than Oakton, so I am not sure why they are sending kids to Oakton other than the fact that most people don't want to be moved to a really high FARMs school.

When the kids were sent to Oakton, Oakton had the space and Herndon did not. But, Herndon is not close to that area at all.

They should open the new school with as many from the area as they can. There are two additional buildings that could be easily utilized. (60,000 square feet total additional space. I assume that is far more than the modulars at other schools.)

What you suggest would shift kids all over the place--and then you have the IB issue in addition.

They could move McNair to Herndon and that would fill Herndon but would not solve the overcrowding at Chantilly--or the commute to Westfield from Floris and Coates.

To send the kids currently going to Oakton to Herndon would put them driving through South Lakes and Westfield areas. And, the time would still be prohibitive.

And, if they really need to fill Herndon, there are kids that live just down the street that make the long drive to Langley.

Yes, seats could be filled at Herndon, but that does not solve the overcrowding at Chantilly, Westfield, and Centreville.

Chantilly and Westfield both have new construction, as well.

We are at Fox Mill, Herndon is further away the SLHS but not by that much. The Crossfield kids going to Oakton are not that far from us, Crossfield is a 5 minute drive from us. I know the boundaries go further away but I suspect the drive to Herndon would be less than the drive to Oakton for most of the kids.

I agree with you though, my post pretty much says that the boundary shifting without KAA as a neighborhood school would be crazy to try and balance out the schools to relieve overcrowding. And no one wants to go to SLHS because it is IB. I think there would be less resistance if SLHS was an AP program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No dog in this fight, but if some kids are going there for their magnet program then that means they aren’t going to their neighborhood school. Therefore relieving overcrowding.

I doubt that that many kids from Chantilly, which has its own STEM academy, or Centerville are going to be looking to move for an aviation academy, certainly not enough to impact the crowding at the schools. Not to mention, the academy classes mean the kids go for one or two classes, they don't transfer schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe they could send the Reston kids near Herndon out of South Lakes. Then, put more in South Lakes. But, that still does not solve long commute to Oakton, or overcrowding at Chantilly and Westfield.

Westfield was under capacity last year. The last CIP also projected it will lose kids over the next five years.

There are schools that are actually overcrowded like Chantilly, and then there are schools that some of you claim are overcrowded but are not.

Westfield has over 2700 and new construction. It really does not have the space you think it does. And, when it was expanded, it did not expand things like the cafeteria, etc. Have you ever been in their gym?

Yes, I’ve been in the Westfield gym. It’s very big compared to most FCPS gyms. Overall, Westfield has a utilitarian look, but it has a lot of space and a large capacity.

There are other schools in the county that are as drab as Westfield but have less space and a lower capacity, so it’s not clear why we’re going to spend all this money on KAA because you don’t want to attend Westfield (or for that matter South Lakes or Herndon).

There should have been a more robust process before FCPS bought KAA, as illustrated by the fact that the deal has closed yet they haven’t figured out what to do with the building. It seems obvious that if the overcrowding was really as acute as you are claiming there would be no debate about the building’s future use. It would be a settled question.

Did they expand the gym? I haven't been there in a few years, but i was shocked at how small it was compared to the other gyms. Herndon used to have a small gym, but I think they expanded it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe they could send the Reston kids near Herndon out of South Lakes. Then, put more in South Lakes. But, that still does not solve long commute to Oakton, or overcrowding at Chantilly and Westfield.

Westfield was under capacity last year. The last CIP also projected it will lose kids over the next five years.

There are schools that are actually overcrowded like Chantilly, and then there are schools that some of you claim are overcrowded but are not.

Westfield has over 2700 and new construction. It really does not have the space you think it does. And, when it was expanded, it did not expand things like the cafeteria, etc. Have you ever been in their gym?

Yes, I’ve been in the Westfield gym. It’s very big compared to most FCPS gyms. Overall, Westfield has a utilitarian look, but it has a lot of space and a large capacity.

There are other schools in the county that are as drab as Westfield but have less space and a lower capacity, so it’s not clear why we’re going to spend all this money on KAA because you don’t want to attend Westfield (or for that matter South Lakes or Herndon).

There should have been a more robust process before FCPS bought KAA, as illustrated by the fact that the deal has closed yet they haven’t figured out what to do with the building. It seems obvious that if the overcrowding was really as acute as you are claiming there would be no debate about the building’s future use. It would be a settled question.

Did they expand the gym? I haven't been there in a few years, but i was shocked at how small it was compared to the other gyms. Herndon used to have a small gym, but I think they expanded it?

Yes. The Herndon gym was expanded. It fits three volleyball practice courts now, and has bleachers on all four sides.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe they could send the Reston kids near Herndon out of South Lakes. Then, put more in South Lakes. But, that still does not solve long commute to Oakton, or overcrowding at Chantilly and Westfield.

Westfield was under capacity last year. The last CIP also projected it will lose kids over the next five years.

There are schools that are actually overcrowded like Chantilly, and then there are schools that some of you claim are overcrowded but are not.

Westfield has over 2700 and new construction. It really does not have the space you think it does. And, when it was expanded, it did not expand things like the cafeteria, etc. Have you ever been in their gym?

Yes, I’ve been in the Westfield gym. It’s very big compared to most FCPS gyms. Overall, Westfield has a utilitarian look, but it has a lot of space and a large capacity.

There are other schools in the county that are as drab as Westfield but have less space and a lower capacity, so it’s not clear why we’re going to spend all this money on KAA because you don’t want to attend Westfield (or for that matter South Lakes or Herndon).

There should have been a more robust process before FCPS bought KAA, as illustrated by the fact that the deal has closed yet they haven’t figured out what to do with the building. It seems obvious that if the overcrowding was really as acute as you are claiming there would be no debate about the building’s future use. It would be a settled question.

Did they expand the gym? I haven't been there in a few years, but i was shocked at how small it was compared to the other gyms. Herndon used to have a small gym, but I think they expanded it?

Westfield gym may be small compared to Robinson or Fairfax but quite large compared to Langley, Marshall, Edison, or TJ. Herndon’s is about average.

[Anonymous]

Westfield gym may be small compared to Robinson or Fairfax but quite large compared to Langley, Marshall, Edison, or TJ. Herndon’s is about average.

But you are trying to add students to a school that is already about 600 kids more than the ones you listed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Westfield gym may be small compared to Robinson or Fairfax but quite large compared to Langley, Marshall, Edison, or TJ. Herndon’s is about average.

But you are trying to add students to a school that is already about 600 kids more than the ones you listed.

Sorry, but you're not going to convince people we can't use the available capacity at Westfield simply because its gym isn't as big as some of the field houses at other schools.

It's become really clear that people don't want to attend Westfield, Herndon, or South Lakes for reasons that have little to do with overcrowding or the size of their gyms and a lot to do with their demographics and academic programs.

Those issues may need to be tackled but opening a new school doesn't solve the problems so much as allow one group of people to avoid them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone on Next Door had the idea that this building could be a great community and adult learning center. It certainly doesn’t sound like a traditional high school and why rip it apart to turn it into something it’s not?

Centerville and Chantilly are overcrowded. SLHS and Westfield are close to full. The only HS in the area with space is Herndon HS and that does not have enough space to handle the redistribution that would need to happen to relieve the other schools. And the boundary moves to shift kids from Westfield or SLHS, the two HS that are closer to Herndon, and then kids from Chantilly and Centerville to SLHS and Westfield are more disruptive in number then what would be needed to shift schools to the new HS and then backfill. And the new school could help end some of the split feeder problems that Carson has.

The redistricting plan involves putting kids onto busses to Oakton, which is a long commute. Fox Mill used to go to Oakton and I am amazed at how long that drive is the few times we have been at an event at Oakton from our house. And no one wants to be moved into SLHS because it is an IB program, which people are not interested in. Herndon would be closer than Oakton, so I am not sure why they are sending kids to Oakton other than the fact that most people don't want to be moved to a really high FARMs school.

When the kids were sent to Oakton, Oakton had the space and Herndon did not. But, Herndon is not close to that area at all.

They should open the new school with as many from the area as they can. There are two additional buildings that could be easily utilized. (60,000 square feet total additional space. I assume that is far more than the modulars at other schools.)

What you suggest would shift kids all over the place--and then you have the IB issue in addition.

They could move McNair to Herndon and that would fill Herndon but would not solve the overcrowding at Chantilly--or the commute to Westfield from Floris and Coates.

To send the kids currently going to Oakton to Herndon would put them driving through South Lakes and Westfield areas. And, the time would still be prohibitive.

And, if they really need to fill Herndon, there are kids that live just down the street that make the long drive to Langley.

Yes, seats could be filled at Herndon, but that does not solve the overcrowding at Chantilly, Westfield, and Centreville.

Chantilly and Westfield both have new construction, as well.

We are at Fox Mill, Herndon is further away the SLHS but not by that much. The Crossfield kids going to Oakton are not that far from us, Crossfield is a 5 minute drive from us. I know the boundaries go further away but I suspect the drive to Herndon would be less than the drive to Oakton for most of the kids.

I agree with you though, my post pretty much says that the boundary shifting without KAA as a neighborhood school would be crazy to try and balance out the schools to relieve overcrowding. And no one wants to go to SLHS because it is IB. I think there would be less resistance if SLHS was an AP program.

Running a big organization is like sailing a ship while it is being rebuilt at all time. But two themes are prominent at this time (1) boundary review prioritize eliminating split feeders (2) we have a new facility for a high school. With or without the new HS, the boundary review eliminating split feeders still have to go on.

Therefore we view the new HS boundary with the boundary review rules,
(1) crossfield span a big area due to lower density of residence. Putting it wholly in Oakton or wholly within the new HS would create a new split feeder. So my guess is that they will not touch crossfield until they absolutely have to.

(2) Fox mill is more compact than crossfield. It is possible to move whole Fox mill to the new HS without increasing the overall commute time. That will depend on whether there is space left after accomodating ESs closer to the new HS.

(3) the ES closest to the new HS : McNair and Coats are big ES with 1000 students each. Floris/OakHill/FoxMill are 600+ each. The five school all together has 4000 students in seven grades, extrapolate that into HS population is around 2285. Without Fox Mill the extrapolated HS population would be 1800.

Among these schools, sending Oak Hill would alleviate Chantilly overcrowding, and McNair/Coats/Floris are just too far from Westfield. Sending Fox Mill to either the new HS or SLHS doesn't solve any crowding or commuting issue, and as stated above in (3), Fox Mill would make the new HS a bit crowded. So my thought is fox mills is likely stay put.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone on Next Door had the idea that this building could be a great community and adult learning center. It certainly doesn’t sound like a traditional high school and why rip it apart to turn it into something it’s not?

Centerville and Chantilly are overcrowded. SLHS and Westfield are close to full. The only HS in the area with space is Herndon HS and that does not have enough space to handle the redistribution that would need to happen to relieve the other schools. And the boundary moves to shift kids from Westfield or SLHS, the two HS that are closer to Herndon, and then kids from Chantilly and Centerville to SLHS and Westfield are more disruptive in number then what would be needed to shift schools to the new HS and then backfill. And the new school could help end some of the split feeder problems that Carson has.

The redistricting plan involves putting kids onto busses to Oakton, which is a long commute. Fox Mill used to go to Oakton and I am amazed at how long that drive is the few times we have been at an event at Oakton from our house. And no one wants to be moved into SLHS because it is an IB program, which people are not interested in. Herndon would be closer than Oakton, so I am not sure why they are sending kids to Oakton other than the fact that most people don't want to be moved to a really high FARMs school.

When the kids were sent to Oakton, Oakton had the space and Herndon did not. But, Herndon is not close to that area at all.

They should open the new school with as many from the area as they can. There are two additional buildings that could be easily utilized. (60,000 square feet total additional space. I assume that is far more than the modulars at other schools.)

What you suggest would shift kids all over the place--and then you have the IB issue in addition.

They could move McNair to Herndon and that would fill Herndon but would not solve the overcrowding at Chantilly--or the commute to Westfield from Floris and Coates.

To send the kids currently going to Oakton to Herndon would put them driving through South Lakes and Westfield areas. And, the time would still be prohibitive.

And, if they really need to fill Herndon, there are kids that live just down the street that make the long drive to Langley.

Yes, seats could be filled at Herndon, but that does not solve the overcrowding at Chantilly, Westfield, and Centreville.

Chantilly and Westfield both have new construction, as well.

We are at Fox Mill, Herndon is further away the SLHS but not by that much. The Crossfield kids going to Oakton are not that far from us, Crossfield is a 5 minute drive from us. I know the boundaries go further away but I suspect the drive to Herndon would be less than the drive to Oakton for most of the kids.

I agree with you though, my post pretty much says that the boundary shifting without KAA as a neighborhood school would be crazy to try and balance out the schools to relieve overcrowding. And no one wants to go to SLHS because it is IB. I think there would be less resistance if SLHS was an AP program.

Running a big organization is like sailing a ship while it is being rebuilt at all time. But two themes are prominent at this time (1) boundary review prioritize eliminating split feeders (2) we have a new facility for a high school. With or without the new HS, the boundary review eliminating split feeders still have to go on.

Therefore we view the new HS boundary with the boundary review rules,
(1) crossfield span a big area due to lower density of residence. Putting it wholly in Oakton or wholly within the new HS would not eliminate commuting problem and splitting it into half would create a new split feeder. So my guess is that they will not touch crossfield until they absolutely have to.

(2) Fox mill is more compact than crossfield. It is possible to move whole Fox mill to the new HS without increasing the overall commute time. That will depend on whether there is space left after accomodating ESs closer to the new HS.

(3) the ES closest to the new HS : McNair and Coats are big ES with 1000 students each. Floris/OakHill/FoxMill are 600+ each. The five school all together has 4000 students in seven grades, extrapolate that into HS population is around 2285. Without Fox Mill the extrapolated HS population would be 1800.

Among these schools, sending Oak Hill would alleviate Chantilly overcrowding, and McNair/Coats/Floris are just too far from Westfield. Sending Fox Mill to either the new HS or SLHS doesn't solve any crowding or commuting issue, and as stated above in (3), Fox Mill would make the new HS a bit crowded. So my thought is fox mills is likely stay put.

A little fix.