FCPS HS Boundary

[Anonymous]

It’s amazing that people are acting surprised that FCPS is looking to do this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In the policy, “Equal Access to Programming” I assume means boundaries that allow for convenient and guaranteed transfers to neighboring schools with a unique ancient or foreign language (like Latin/sign language/Italian/etc), or a bespoke program that the base school doesn’t offer (like a Leadership Academy, etc).

Uh, no high school in FCPS offers Italian.

If you're going to come on here and shill for Democrats on the School Board looking to upend some of FCPS's best pyramids, at least try to familiarize yourself with the district.

Equal Access to programming could actually negate the need for boundary changes if students can conveniently transfer over the boundary.

This is 100% the answer. If FCPS had open boundaries with transportation provided that would solve the issue and keep the most people happy.

For example, parents assigned to Herndon could finally choose to go to Langley if they wish, Great Falls isn't required to go to Herndon so that side is happy, and the lower income kids that need to go to school close by so they can work part time get to stay at Herndon. It's a win for all groups.

[Anonymous]

You expect fcps to be able to provide unlimited transportation like that?

[Anonymous]

The School Board helped to make this mess. They should help fix it. Lewis will not be in any way equivalent to the other schools if they let the enrollment drop to 1425. With neighboring WS at 2900, twice the size of Lewis and over its design capacity - this is why a boundary change is needed.

Alternatively, close down Lewis and distribute the students if it approaches 1425. Boundaries would need to be shuffled to make room. It would probably involve schools from West Potomac to Robinson east and west and from Annandale to South County north to South.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The School Board helped to make this mess. They should help fix it. Lewis will not be in any way equivalent to the other schools if they let the enrollment drop to 1425. With neighboring WS at 2900, twice the size of Lewis and over its design capacity - this is why a boundary change is needed.

Alternatively, close down Lewis and distribute the students if it approaches 1425. Boundaries would need to be shuffled to make room. It would probably involve schools from West Potomac to Robinson east and west and from Annandale to South County north to South.

Closing it down may make sense. And the School Board can turn the former Lewis/Lee into a Governors Academy for Global Leadership. Imagine, a sought after governors school with no attendance boundary could thrive there. It could be modeled after the successful Maggie Walker HS in Richmond.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The School Board helped to make this mess. They should help fix it. Lewis will not be in any way equivalent to the other schools if they let the enrollment drop to 1425. With neighboring WS at 2900, twice the size of Lewis and over its design capacity - this is why a boundary change is needed.

Alternatively, close down Lewis and distribute the students if it approaches 1425. Boundaries would need to be shuffled to make room. It would probably involve schools from West Potomac to Robinson east and west and from Annandale to South County north to South.

They created the mess over a number of years. They only started to fix it recently by adding some AP courses to Lewis.

Lewis has quite a few ES feeders. Give things some time to stabilize and completely replace IB with AP. That will curtail pupil placements and start to help keep students in the pyramid.

All you do by moving West Springfield kids there before Lewis has stabilized is encourage more families to pull their kids out of FCPS. You basically make more families pay for FCPS’s incompetence and its infatuation with things like IB and the leadership program that only have limited appeal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very interesting about Daventry, PP. My sister lives there and as you said, that neighborhood is PACKED full of kids.

We’re in the Hunt Valley neighborhood, and I’ve heard that some of those families would’ve been zoned for Lee/Lewis in the past. Do you know which neighborhoods that would’ve been? I think we’re squarely in the WS zone as we live near Hunt Valley pool. In any case, I have 8th and 10th graders so I’m guessing my kids will be gone before any boundary change happened.

The Gambrill neighborhoods outside the parkway.

That rezoning happened long ago, before any current Lewis or WS pyramid students were in school and before most of them were even born, back when south county was built. The current eeniors were either not yeat born oe newborn infants when that HV neighborhood was rezoned to WS (2005) to give you some perspective of how long ago that was.

The story as I understand it was that when that rezoning happened to accomodate the new high school, Saratoga families fought tooth and nail to remain at Lee (Lewis) instead of transferring to nearby South County only a few minutes from their houses. They were successful, but it did not turn out the way they had hoped in the long term as they were the only neighborhood successful at staying at Lee/Lewis.

There was a very unhappy Saratoga mom who posted about it for years here. That is where I got this background story, so there might be some holes in it. That Saratoga person posted regularly in any rezoning thread very angrily about West Springfield, and specifically that Hunt Valley (the farthest out WS elementary school from Lewis and the farthest out school rezoned to the much closer WS) needs to be rezoned to Lewis. The only justification to their arguments is that part of HV outside the parkway used to be zoned for Lee 20 years ago.

It is a weird story that you would not know if you moved here in the past 2 decades, or if you don't often visit these message boards. That person's kids must have long graduated fcps by now, but suspect that they still posts in threads advocating to rezone WS based on the tone and arguments of some of those posts.

Really, except for the Sangster neighborhoods, HV is the farthest away from Lewis and makes the least sense to rezone to Lewis out of all the WS neighborhoods. The one that makes the most sense out of all the elementary schools geographically is Keene Mill, which would also bring an AAP center to the Lewis pyramid.

But really, if the school board wants to rezone WSHS without a headache, Sangster split feeder to Lake Braddock makes the most sense. At most, they will get a few resigned sighs from families that are generational West Springfield families, but the complaints, appeals and push back would be minimal.

I don’t know much about the rest of the schools, but can say that all the Keene Mill kids are walk-zone to Irving, so that would be an issue. Why add a bunch of buses to lee and eliminate a walk zone or why make kids go k-8 together and then mix for high school. Also, that is where a good chunk of the diversity for WSHS is as the housing stock is less expensive than the surrounding areas. (With the exception of Cardinal Forest Condos). I thought Springfield Estates fed to Lewis, or does it not have an AAP school? Most of the Keene mill AAP kids go to Lake Braddock and all the AAP kids can choose between Braddock and Irving so the argument that it would add AAP to Lewis isn’t really true. Those kids already go somewhere else.

Geographically, Keene Mill is the closest zone to Lewis.

Like I said most of the kids go to lake braddock. This will get you 60 kids a year tops. Not much for all the disruption it will cause. I’m betting the board will go for a school that brings in higher numbers and doesn’t disturb a middle school walk zone.

Most of the Keene Mill kids do NOT go to Lake Braddock.

You clearly don't know what you are talking about.

Oh sorry my kid was went through aap and yes most of his classmates in those 3 classes went to Braddock. The community kids go to Irving which are 2-3 classes of kids. All 3 classes of aap can choose if they want to go to Braddock or Irving if they are keene mill area kids or come from a different school. Not one of those aap kids will choose key/ Lewis over Braddock. So that leaves you with maybe 60 kids or so.

Maybe you didn’t know that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In the policy, “Equal Access to Programming” I assume means boundaries that allow for convenient and guaranteed transfers to neighboring schools with a unique ancient or foreign language (like Latin/sign language/Italian/etc), or a bespoke program that the base school doesn’t offer (like a Leadership Academy, etc).

Uh, no high school in FCPS offers Italian.

If you're going to come on here and shill for Democrats on the School Board looking to upend some of FCPS's best pyramids, at least try to familiarize yourself with the district.

Equal Access to programming could actually negate the need for boundary changes if students can conveniently transfer over the boundary.

This is 100% the answer. If FCPS had open boundaries with transportation provided that would solve the issue and keep the most people happy.

For example, parents assigned to Herndon could finally choose to go to Langley if they wish, Great Falls isn't required to go to Herndon so that side is happy, and the lower income kids that need to go to school close by so they can work part time get to stay at Herndon. It's a win for all groups.

Crazy idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very interesting about Daventry, PP. My sister lives there and as you said, that neighborhood is PACKED full of kids.

We’re in the Hunt Valley neighborhood, and I’ve heard that some of those families would’ve been zoned for Lee/Lewis in the past. Do you know which neighborhoods that would’ve been? I think we’re squarely in the WS zone as we live near Hunt Valley pool. In any case, I have 8th and 10th graders so I’m guessing my kids will be gone before any boundary change happened.

The Gambrill neighborhoods outside the parkway.

That rezoning happened long ago, before any current Lewis or WS pyramid students were in school and before most of them were even born, back when south county was built. The current eeniors were either not yeat born oe newborn infants when that HV neighborhood was rezoned to WS (2005) to give you some perspective of how long ago that was.

The story as I understand it was that when that rezoning happened to accomodate the new high school, Saratoga families fought tooth and nail to remain at Lee (Lewis) instead of transferring to nearby South County only a few minutes from their houses. They were successful, but it did not turn out the way they had hoped in the long term as they were the only neighborhood successful at staying at Lee/Lewis.

There was a very unhappy Saratoga mom who posted about it for years here. That is where I got this background story, so there might be some holes in it. That Saratoga person posted regularly in any rezoning thread very angrily about West Springfield, and specifically that Hunt Valley (the farthest out WS elementary school from Lewis and the farthest out school rezoned to the much closer WS) needs to be rezoned to Lewis. The only justification to their arguments is that part of HV outside the parkway used to be zoned for Lee 20 years ago.

It is a weird story that you would not know if you moved here in the past 2 decades, or if you don't often visit these message boards. That person's kids must have long graduated fcps by now, but suspect that they still posts in threads advocating to rezone WS based on the tone and arguments of some of those posts.

Really, except for the Sangster neighborhoods, HV is the farthest away from Lewis and makes the least sense to rezone to Lewis out of all the WS neighborhoods. The one that makes the most sense out of all the elementary schools geographically is Keene Mill, which would also bring an AAP center to the Lewis pyramid.

But really, if the school board wants to rezone WSHS without a headache, Sangster split feeder to Lake Braddock makes the most sense. At most, they will get a few resigned sighs from families that are generational West Springfield families, but the complaints, appeals and push back would be minimal.

I don’t know much about the rest of the schools, but can say that all the Keene Mill kids are walk-zone to Irving, so that would be an issue. Why add a bunch of buses to lee and eliminate a walk zone or why make kids go k-8 together and then mix for high school. Also, that is where a good chunk of the diversity for WSHS is as the housing stock is less expensive than the surrounding areas. (With the exception of Cardinal Forest Condos). I thought Springfield Estates fed to Lewis, or does it not have an AAP school? Most of the Keene mill AAP kids go to Lake Braddock and all the AAP kids can choose between Braddock and Irving so the argument that it would add AAP to Lewis isn’t really true. Those kids already go somewhere else.

Geographically, Keene Mill is the closest zone to Lewis.

Like I said most of the kids go to lake braddock. This will get you 60 kids a year tops. Not much for all the disruption it will cause. I’m betting the board will go for a school that brings in higher numbers and doesn’t disturb a middle school walk zone.

Most of the Keene Mill kids do NOT go to Lake Braddock.

You clearly don't know what you are talking about.

Oh sorry my kid was went through aap and yes most of his classmates in those 3 classes went to Braddock. The community kids go to Irving which are 2-3 classes of kids. All 3 classes of aap can choose if they want to go to Braddock or Irving if they are keene mill area kids or come from a different school. Not one of those aap kids will choose key/ Lewis over Braddock. So that leaves you with maybe 60 kids or so.

Maybe you didn’t know that.

Most of the kids do not go to Lake Braddock.

It is around half of the AAP kids now that go to Irving over LB, and many of the ones that go to LB for middle school return to WSHS for high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very interesting about Daventry, PP. My sister lives there and as you said, that neighborhood is PACKED full of kids.

We’re in the Hunt Valley neighborhood, and I’ve heard that some of those families would’ve been zoned for Lee/Lewis in the past. Do you know which neighborhoods that would’ve been? I think we’re squarely in the WS zone as we live near Hunt Valley pool. In any case, I have 8th and 10th graders so I’m guessing my kids will be gone before any boundary change happened.

The Gambrill neighborhoods outside the parkway.

That rezoning happened long ago, before any current Lewis or WS pyramid students were in school and before most of them were even born, back when south county was built. The current eeniors were either not yeat born oe newborn infants when that HV neighborhood was rezoned to WS (2005) to give you some perspective of how long ago that was.

The story as I understand it was that when that rezoning happened to accomodate the new high school, Saratoga families fought tooth and nail to remain at Lee (Lewis) instead of transferring to nearby South County only a few minutes from their houses. They were successful, but it did not turn out the way they had hoped in the long term as they were the only neighborhood successful at staying at Lee/Lewis.

There was a very unhappy Saratoga mom who posted about it for years here. That is where I got this background story, so there might be some holes in it. That Saratoga person posted regularly in any rezoning thread very angrily about West Springfield, and specifically that Hunt Valley (the farthest out WS elementary school from Lewis and the farthest out school rezoned to the much closer WS) needs to be rezoned to Lewis. The only justification to their arguments is that part of HV outside the parkway used to be zoned for Lee 20 years ago.

It is a weird story that you would not know if you moved here in the past 2 decades, or if you don't often visit these message boards. That person's kids must have long graduated fcps by now, but suspect that they still posts in threads advocating to rezone WS based on the tone and arguments of some of those posts.

Really, except for the Sangster neighborhoods, HV is the farthest away from Lewis and makes the least sense to rezone to Lewis out of all the WS neighborhoods. The one that makes the most sense out of all the elementary schools geographically is Keene Mill, which would also bring an AAP center to the Lewis pyramid.

But really, if the school board wants to rezone WSHS without a headache, Sangster split feeder to Lake Braddock makes the most sense. At most, they will get a few resigned sighs from families that are generational West Springfield families, but the complaints, appeals and push back would be minimal.

I don’t know much about the rest of the schools, but can say that all the Keene Mill kids are walk-zone to Irving, so that would be an issue. Why add a bunch of buses to lee and eliminate a walk zone or why make kids go k-8 together and then mix for high school. Also, that is where a good chunk of the diversity for WSHS is as the housing stock is less expensive than the surrounding areas. (With the exception of Cardinal Forest Condos). I thought Springfield Estates fed to Lewis, or does it not have an AAP school? Most of the Keene mill AAP kids go to Lake Braddock and all the AAP kids can choose between Braddock and Irving so the argument that it would add AAP to Lewis isn’t really true. Those kids already go somewhere else.

Geographically, Keene Mill is the closest zone to Lewis.

Like I said most of the kids go to lake braddock. This will get you 60 kids a year tops. Not much for all the disruption it will cause. I’m betting the board will go for a school that brings in higher numbers and doesn’t disturb a middle school walk zone.

Most of the Keene Mill kids do NOT go to Lake Braddock.

You clearly don't know what you are talking about.

Oh sorry my kid was went through aap and yes most of his classmates in those 3 classes went to Braddock. The community kids go to Irving which are 2-3 classes of kids. All 3 classes of aap can choose if they want to go to Braddock or Irving if they are keene mill area kids or come from a different school. Not one of those aap kids will choose key/ Lewis over Braddock. So that leaves you with maybe 60 kids or so.

Maybe you didn’t know that.

Most of the kids do not go to Lake Braddock.

It is around half of the AAP kids now that go to Irving over LB, and many of the ones that go to LB for middle school return to WSHS for high school.

How does this help get more aap kids at Lewis? Which was the argument. Do yiu think those numbers would stay the same if the choice were key vs Braddock? That is dreaming my friend.

[Anonymous]

Using 2022- 2023 school profile data from FCPS, Irving had 367 level 4 AAP students.

In the 2 years preceding 22/23:

Sangster had approximately 40 to 50 AAP level 4 kids per grade who were zoned for Irving/WSHS not LB. This translates into approximately 100 level 4 kids in the two 6th grade years preceeding 2022/23 who were zoned for Irving/WSHS.

Keene Mill had approximately 300 level 4 AAP kids total, grades 3rd - 6th, in their AAP program, majority of whom are zoned for Irving/WSHS. This averages to roughly 75 to 80 Keene Mill L4 kids per grade, which translates to roughly 150-160 per grade or 300 to 320 or so level 4 kids in the two 6th grade years preceeding 2022/23 who are zoned for Irving/WSHS.

Rough 400-450 Level IV AAP kids in the two years prior to 2022/23 from Keene Mill and Sangster who are zoned for Irving/WSHS.

367 level 4 AAP kids are listed as enrolled at Irving for 7th and 8th grade in 2022-23 based on the Irving dashboard.

The dashboard numbers of the 3 schools above definitely supports the annecdotal evidnce that the majority of Irving/WSHS zoned level 4 kids are now choosing Irving/WSHS over Lak Braddock.

Even rounding the numbers of AAP level 4 kids zoned for Irving/WSHS to 500 elementary kids over the 2 prior years grades, the dashboard numbers strongly suggest that the majority of level 4 AAP kids zoned for Irving are now cgoosing Irving over LB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very interesting about Daventry, PP. My sister lives there and as you said, that neighborhood is PACKED full of kids.

We’re in the Hunt Valley neighborhood, and I’ve heard that some of those families would’ve been zoned for Lee/Lewis in the past. Do you know which neighborhoods that would’ve been? I think we’re squarely in the WS zone as we live near Hunt Valley pool. In any case, I have 8th and 10th graders so I’m guessing my kids will be gone before any boundary change happened.

The Gambrill neighborhoods outside the parkway.

That rezoning happened long ago, before any current Lewis or WS pyramid students were in school and before most of them were even born, back when south county was built. The current eeniors were either not yeat born oe newborn infants when that HV neighborhood was rezoned to WS (2005) to give you some perspective of how long ago that was.

The story as I understand it was that when that rezoning happened to accomodate the new high school, Saratoga families fought tooth and nail to remain at Lee (Lewis) instead of transferring to nearby South County only a few minutes from their houses. They were successful, but it did not turn out the way they had hoped in the long term as they were the only neighborhood successful at staying at Lee/Lewis.

There was a very unhappy Saratoga mom who posted about it for years here. That is where I got this background story, so there might be some holes in it. That Saratoga person posted regularly in any rezoning thread very angrily about West Springfield, and specifically that Hunt Valley (the farthest out WS elementary school from Lewis and the farthest out school rezoned to the much closer WS) needs to be rezoned to Lewis. The only justification to their arguments is that part of HV outside the parkway used to be zoned for Lee 20 years ago.

It is a weird story that you would not know if you moved here in the past 2 decades, or if you don't often visit these message boards. That person's kids must have long graduated fcps by now, but suspect that they still posts in threads advocating to rezone WS based on the tone and arguments of some of those posts.

Really, except for the Sangster neighborhoods, HV is the farthest away from Lewis and makes the least sense to rezone to Lewis out of all the WS neighborhoods. The one that makes the most sense out of all the elementary schools geographically is Keene Mill, which would also bring an AAP center to the Lewis pyramid.

But really, if the school board wants to rezone WSHS without a headache, Sangster split feeder to Lake Braddock makes the most sense. At most, they will get a few resigned sighs from families that are generational West Springfield families, but the complaints, appeals and push back would be minimal.

I don’t know much about the rest of the schools, but can say that all the Keene Mill kids are walk-zone to Irving, so that would be an issue. Why add a bunch of buses to lee and eliminate a walk zone or why make kids go k-8 together and then mix for high school. Also, that is where a good chunk of the diversity for WSHS is as the housing stock is less expensive than the surrounding areas. (With the exception of Cardinal Forest Condos). I thought Springfield Estates fed to Lewis, or does it not have an AAP school? Most of the Keene mill AAP kids go to Lake Braddock and all the AAP kids can choose between Braddock and Irving so the argument that it would add AAP to Lewis isn’t really true. Those kids already go somewhere else.

Geographically, Keene Mill is the closest zone to Lewis.

Like I said most of the kids go to lake braddock. This will get you 60 kids a year tops. Not much for all the disruption it will cause. I’m betting the board will go for a school that brings in higher numbers and doesn’t disturb a middle school walk zone.

Most of the Keene Mill kids do NOT go to Lake Braddock.

You clearly don't know what you are talking about.

Oh sorry my kid was went through aap and yes most of his classmates in those 3 classes went to Braddock. The community kids go to Irving which are 2-3 classes of kids. All 3 classes of aap can choose if they want to go to Braddock or Irving if they are keene mill area kids or come from a different school. Not one of those aap kids will choose key/ Lewis over Braddock. So that leaves you with maybe 60 kids or so.

Maybe you didn’t know that.

Most of the kids do not go to Lake Braddock.

It is around half of the AAP kids now that go to Irving over LB, and many of the ones that go to LB for middle school return to WSHS for high school.

How does this help get more aap kids at Lewis? Which was the argument. Do yiu think those numbers would stay the same if the choice were key vs Braddock? That is dreaming my friend.

If FCPS was planning to move WSHS kids to Lewis, in a significant number to raise achievement at Lewis, Keene Mill is the closest to Lewis and also a AAP center. There would then be around 75 to 100 AAP kids each year now zoned for Lewis.

As I said multiple times, I don't think that FCPS should do this. If they are rezoning kids to bring down the size of WSHS, eliminating the Sangster split feeder and sending those kids to LB is the easiest, smartest and least disruptive option for any rezoning in that area. It is a lateral move. The majority of level 4 AAP kids zoned for West Springfield are now choosing Irving over LB, so those WS kids will stay on the path most of them would have picked anyway, and the Sangster kids zoned for WS will have an easy transition to what is the zoned HS for most of their classmates.

But if FCPS is trying to social engineer and bring over a large group of WSHS kids specifically to help Lewis with zero regard to the WS students and the disruption that rezoning causes in their lives, then Keene Mill makes the most sense, certainly geographically as the closest neighborhoods to Lewis, but also its size and the AAP center of high performing students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Using 2022- 2023 school profile data from FCPS, Irving had 367 level 4 AAP students.

In the 2 years preceding 22/23:

Sangster had approximately 40 to 50 AAP level 4 kids per grade who were zoned for Irving/WSHS not LB. This translates into approximately 100 level 4 kids in the two 6th grade years preceeding 2022/23 who were zoned for Irving/WSHS.

Keene Mill had approximately 300 level 4 AAP kids total, grades 3rd - 6th, in their AAP program, majority of whom are zoned for Irving/WSHS. This averages to roughly 75 to 80 Keene Mill L4 kids per grade, which translates to roughly 150-160 per grade or 300 to 320 or so level 4 kids in the two 6th grade years preceeding 2022/23 who are zoned for Irving/WSHS.

Rough 400-450 Level IV AAP kids in the two years prior to 2022/23 from Keene Mill and Sangster who are zoned for Irving/WSHS.

367 level 4 AAP kids are listed as enrolled at Irving for 7th and 8th grade in 2022-23 based on the Irving dashboard.

The dashboard numbers of the 3 schools above definitely supports the annecdotal evidnce that the majority of Irving/WSHS zoned level 4 kids are now choosing Irving/WSHS over Lak Braddock.

Even rounding the numbers of AAP level 4 kids zoned for Irving/WSHS to 500 elementary kids over the 2 prior years grades, the dashboard numbers strongly suggest that the majority of level 4 AAP kids zoned for Irving are now cgoosing Irving over LB.

Kaaaay- one more time- how does that pertain to this discussion when those kids will choose lake Braddock over key? None of those aap kids would go to key over Braddock. If they are slated to go to Irving and Lewis or Braddock they will ALL go to Braddock. It just doesn’t help get kids to key.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very interesting about Daventry, PP. My sister lives there and as you said, that neighborhood is PACKED full of kids.

We’re in the Hunt Valley neighborhood, and I’ve heard that some of those families would’ve been zoned for Lee/Lewis in the past. Do you know which neighborhoods that would’ve been? I think we’re squarely in the WS zone as we live near Hunt Valley pool. In any case, I have 8th and 10th graders so I’m guessing my kids will be gone before any boundary change happened.

The Gambrill neighborhoods outside the parkway.

That rezoning happened long ago, before any current Lewis or WS pyramid students were in school and before most of them were even born, back when south county was built. The current eeniors were either not yeat born oe newborn infants when that HV neighborhood was rezoned to WS (2005) to give you some perspective of how long ago that was.

The story as I understand it was that when that rezoning happened to accomodate the new high school, Saratoga families fought tooth and nail to remain at Lee (Lewis) instead of transferring to nearby South County only a few minutes from their houses. They were successful, but it did not turn out the way they had hoped in the long term as they were the only neighborhood successful at staying at Lee/Lewis.

There was a very unhappy Saratoga mom who posted about it for years here. That is where I got this background story, so there might be some holes in it. That Saratoga person posted regularly in any rezoning thread very angrily about West Springfield, and specifically that Hunt Valley (the farthest out WS elementary school from Lewis and the farthest out school rezoned to the much closer WS) needs to be rezoned to Lewis. The only justification to their arguments is that part of HV outside the parkway used to be zoned for Lee 20 years ago.

It is a weird story that you would not know if you moved here in the past 2 decades, or if you don't often visit these message boards. That person's kids must have long graduated fcps by now, but suspect that they still posts in threads advocating to rezone WS based on the tone and arguments of some of those posts.

Really, except for the Sangster neighborhoods, HV is the farthest away from Lewis and makes the least sense to rezone to Lewis out of all the WS neighborhoods. The one that makes the most sense out of all the elementary schools geographically is Keene Mill, which would also bring an AAP center to the Lewis pyramid.

But really, if the school board wants to rezone WSHS without a headache, Sangster split feeder to Lake Braddock makes the most sense. At most, they will get a few resigned sighs from families that are generational West Springfield families, but the complaints, appeals and push back would be minimal.

I don’t know much about the rest of the schools, but can say that all the Keene Mill kids are walk-zone to Irving, so that would be an issue. Why add a bunch of buses to lee and eliminate a walk zone or why make kids go k-8 together and then mix for high school. Also, that is where a good chunk of the diversity for WSHS is as the housing stock is less expensive than the surrounding areas. (With the exception of Cardinal Forest Condos). I thought Springfield Estates fed to Lewis, or does it not have an AAP school? Most of the Keene mill AAP kids go to Lake Braddock and all the AAP kids can choose between Braddock and Irving so the argument that it would add AAP to Lewis isn’t really true. Those kids already go somewhere else.

Geographically, Keene Mill is the closest zone to Lewis.

Like I said most of the kids go to lake braddock. This will get you 60 kids a year tops. Not much for all the disruption it will cause. I’m betting the board will go for a school that brings in higher numbers and doesn’t disturb a middle school walk zone.

Most of the Keene Mill kids do NOT go to Lake Braddock.

You clearly don't know what you are talking about.

Oh sorry my kid was went through aap and yes most of his classmates in those 3 classes went to Braddock. The community kids go to Irving which are 2-3 classes of kids. All 3 classes of aap can choose if they want to go to Braddock or Irving if they are keene mill area kids or come from a different school. Not one of those aap kids will choose key/ Lewis over Braddock. So that leaves you with maybe 60 kids or so.

Maybe you didn’t know that.

Most of the kids do not go to Lake Braddock.

It is around half of the AAP kids now that go to Irving over LB, and many of the ones that go to LB for middle school return to WSHS for high school.

How does this help get more aap kids at Lewis? Which was the argument. Do yiu think those numbers would stay the same if the choice were key vs Braddock? That is dreaming my friend.

If FCPS was planning to move WSHS kids to Lewis, in a significant number to raise achievement at Lewis, Keene Mill is the closest to Lewis and also a AAP center. There would then be around 75 to 100 AAP kids each year now zoned for Lewis.

As I said multiple times, I don't think that FCPS should do this. If they are rezoning kids to bring down the size of WSHS, eliminating the Sangster split feeder and sending those kids to LB is the easiest, smartest and least disruptive option for any rezoning in that area. It is a lateral move. The majority of level 4 AAP kids zoned for West Springfield are now choosing Irving over LB, so those WS kids will stay on the path most of them would have picked anyway, and the Sangster kids zoned for WS will have an easy transition to what is the zoned HS for most of their classmates.

But if FCPS is trying to social engineer and bring over a large group of WSHS kids specifically to help Lewis with zero regard to the WS students and the disruption that rezoning causes in their lives, then Keene Mill makes the most sense, certainly geographically as the closest neighborhoods to Lewis, but also its size and the AAP center of high performing students.

Geographically Keene mill and west Springfield elementary are both 3.1 miles away from Lewis. They are geographically equidistant.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Using 2022- 2023 school profile data from FCPS, Irving had 367 level 4 AAP students.

In the 2 years preceding 22/23:

Sangster had approximately 40 to 50 AAP level 4 kids per grade who were zoned for Irving/WSHS not LB. This translates into approximately 100 level 4 kids in the two 6th grade years preceeding 2022/23 who were zoned for Irving/WSHS.

Keene Mill had approximately 300 level 4 AAP kids total, grades 3rd - 6th, in their AAP program, majority of whom are zoned for Irving/WSHS. This averages to roughly 75 to 80 Keene Mill L4 kids per grade, which translates to roughly 150-160 per grade or 300 to 320 or so level 4 kids in the two 6th grade years preceeding 2022/23 who are zoned for Irving/WSHS.

Rough 400-450 Level IV AAP kids in the two years prior to 2022/23 from Keene Mill and Sangster who are zoned for Irving/WSHS.

367 level 4 AAP kids are listed as enrolled at Irving for 7th and 8th grade in 2022-23 based on the Irving dashboard.

The dashboard numbers of the 3 schools above definitely supports the annecdotal evidnce that the majority of Irving/WSHS zoned level 4 kids are now choosing Irving/WSHS over Lak Braddock.

Even rounding the numbers of AAP level 4 kids zoned for Irving/WSHS to 500 elementary kids over the 2 prior years grades, the dashboard numbers strongly suggest that the majority of level 4 AAP kids zoned for Irving are now cgoosing Irving over LB.
[/quote]

Kaaaay- one more time- how does that pertain to this discussion when those kids will choose lake Braddock over key? None of those aap kids would go to key over Braddock. If they are slated to go to Irving and Lewis or Braddock they will ALL go to Braddock. It just doesn’t help get kids to key. [/quote]

This discussion isn't about Key. It is about Lewis.

The other person said most of the AAP kids out of Keene go to LB and stay at LB for high school.

The data does not support her.

Most of the WS zoned AAP kids are going to Irving now, and following on to WSHS, not LBSS. FCPS dashboard numbers clearly show this.

If Keene was zoned for Lewis, those kids would end up back at Lewis.

Keene is the closest elementary to Lewis and makes the most send based on location to be rezoned to alewis out of all of the WSHS zoned schools.

However, I think that rezoning kids for an agenda that is not in their best interests is a terrible thing and should never happen. If they must rezone, it should be the least disruptive plan that moves forward, and only happen if absolutely necessary.

Unfortunately, the school board does not agree with me.

Some neighborhood is going to get rezoned from WSHS if enrollment trends continue to go up. Let's hope the school board goes with the least disruptive choice, such as eliminating the Sangster split feeder to Lake Braddock, and not moving one of the fringe neighborhoods like Daventry or a Keene Mill neighborhood to Lewis.