Who said there isn't a North-South divide?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

Not necessarily. Moving the immersion programs to Barcroft/Carlin Springs while having Ashlawn cross 50 seemed like a promising step, and the idea seemed to have support from many corners.

I really hope that idea gets some serious consideration in the next go-round. It would not solve all of the problems, but could go a long way towards equalizing some schools. Demographics preclude any option that would help all schools, but overall this plan seems like a win-win. Also, the proximity could allow those two schools to perhaps share resources in a way they can't in their current locations.

I hope so too, but APS really flubbed it. They showed their hand with that f'n spreadsheet and not only lost trust wth the community, now critics of the idea know what's on the table and have two years to lobby against it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

actually that's not true. I would point to the recent middle school rezoning where some 'ideas in the middle' were proposed, that were quickly shut down. Specifically, moving Dominion Hills to Kenmore. Most of that neighborhood is walkable to both Swanson and Kenmore, albeit for most its a mile to Swanson and closer to 1.5 miles to Kenmore. The outrage over this proposal was insane. I wish APS had more of a backbone on this, it would have done a lot to integrate Kenmore.

Dominion Hills is not walkable to Kenmore. It is north of Wilson Blvd., and both the actual and potential walk zone maps showed the Kenmore walkzone ending south of Wilson.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

Strategic placement of the option programs we have may help to break it up, but simply creating new ones, on its own, does not. Further, unless we go to an all-lottery system county-wide, there will never be enough option seats to accommodate everyone who might want to leave those schools. If you're one of the families that doesn't get in, would you rather have your neighborhood school be 70% FARMS, or 87% FARMS because even more of the non-FARMS families were siphoned off by option schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

Strategic placement of the option programs we have may help to break it up, but simply creating new ones, on its own, does not. Further, unless we go to an all-lottery system county-wide, there will never be enough option seats to accommodate everyone who might want to leave those schools. If you're one of the families that doesn't get in, would you rather have your neighborhood school be 70% FARMS, or 87% FARMS because even more of the non-FARMS families were siphoned off by option schools?

It's going to be 87% farms whether there are choice schools or not. People who aren't willing to attend a high poverty neighborhood school and attempt to option out are not going to simply say aw shucks and attend that neighborhood school if they don't get into the option school. They are going to move. Why do you think far flung suburbs exist?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

Strategic placement of the option programs we have may help to break it up, but simply creating new ones, on its own, does not. Further, unless we go to an all-lottery system county-wide, there will never be enough option seats to accommodate everyone who might want to leave those schools. If you're one of the families that doesn't get in, would you rather have your neighborhood school be 70% FARMS, or 87% FARMS because even more of the non-FARMS families were siphoned off by option schools?

It's going to be 87% farms whether there are choice schools or not. People who aren't willing to attend a high poverty neighborhood school and attempt to option out are not going to simply say aw shucks and attend that neighborhood school if they don't get into the option school. They are going to move. Why do you think far flung suburbs exist?

Frankly, I'm not terribly concerned about the families who are going to opt out no matter what. They are part of the problem, not the solution, and I'm not interested in pouring resources into accommodating them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

Strategic placement of the option programs we have may help to break it up, but simply creating new ones, on its own, does not. Further, unless we go to an all-lottery system county-wide, there will never be enough option seats to accommodate everyone who might want to leave those schools. If you're one of the families that doesn't get in, would you rather have your neighborhood school be 70% FARMS, or 87% FARMS because even more of the non-FARMS families were siphoned off by option schools?

It's going to be 87% farms whether there are choice schools or not. People who aren't willing to attend a high poverty neighborhood school and attempt to option out are not going to simply say aw shucks and attend that neighborhood school if they don't get into the option school. They are going to move. Why do you think far flung suburbs exist?

Frankly, I'm not terribly concerned about the families who are going to opt out no matter what. They are part of the problem, not the solution, and I'm not interested in pouring resources into accommodating them.

Dp- but there aren’t enough social juctice warriors to stay. You need to be concerned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

Strategic placement of the option programs we have may help to break it up, but simply creating new ones, on its own, does not. Further, unless we go to an all-lottery system county-wide, there will never be enough option seats to accommodate everyone who might want to leave those schools. If you're one of the families that doesn't get in, would you rather have your neighborhood school be 70% FARMS, or 87% FARMS because even more of the non-FARMS families were siphoned off by option schools?

It's going to be 87% farms whether there are choice schools or not. People who aren't willing to attend a high poverty neighborhood school and attempt to option out are not going to simply say aw shucks and attend that neighborhood school if they don't get into the option school. They are going to move. Why do you think far flung suburbs exist?

Frankly, I'm not terribly concerned about the families who are going to opt out no matter what. They are part of the problem, not the solution, and I'm not interested in pouring resources into accommodating them.

Dp- but there aren’t enough social juctice warriors to stay. You need to be concerned.

So what? Their presence doesn't help the problem so why would I care if they stay or go?

[Anonymous]

You should be trying to get them to stay. That is S Arlington’s only hope!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

actually that's not true. I would point to the recent middle school rezoning where some 'ideas in the middle' were proposed, that were quickly shut down. Specifically, moving Dominion Hills to Kenmore. Most of that neighborhood is walkable to both Swanson and Kenmore, albeit for most its a mile to Swanson and closer to 1.5 miles to Kenmore. The outrage over this proposal was insane. I wish APS had more of a backbone on this, it would have done a lot to integrate Kenmore.

Dominion Hills is not walkable to Kenmore. It is north of Wilson Blvd., and both the actual and potential walk zone maps showed the Kenmore walkzone ending south of Wilson.

+1 Not even Boulevard Manor, which is south of Wilson but still north of 50, is considered walkable to Kenmore, though it's considerably closer to it than DH. There is bus service for Boulevard Manor kids going to Kenmore due to having to cross 50. DH kids would've had to cross Wilson AND 50, so no, Dominion Hills is not walkable to Kenmore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.apsva.us/post/virginia-recognizes-14-arlington-schools-for-excellence-in-education/

With the exception of Glebe, all north Arlington schools at all three levels made the list. Not a one in south Arlington. Yep, all schools are equally good.

APS offers equal, even better resources as needed to schools in south Arlington. Change needs to happen in the homes to bring those school profiles up. Perhaps that is where you should direct your efforts, because widespread busing won’t be happening.

Except in Central Loudoun where realtors came up with a phony campaign to keep Latinos in an apartment complex out of their schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You should be trying to get them to stay. That is S Arlington’s only hope!

How do they help the schools? If they're just going to opt out rather than help integrate, why in the world should we care about keeping them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

Strategic placement of the option programs we have may help to break it up, but simply creating new ones, on its own, does not. Further, unless we go to an all-lottery system county-wide, there will never be enough option seats to accommodate everyone who might want to leave those schools. If you're one of the families that doesn't get in, would you rather have your neighborhood school be 70% FARMS, or 87% FARMS because even more of the non-FARMS families were siphoned off by option schools?

It's going to be 87% farms whether there are choice schools or not. People who aren't willing to attend a high poverty neighborhood school and attempt to option out are not going to simply say aw shucks and attend that neighborhood school if they don't get into the option school. They are going to move. Why do you think far flung suburbs exist?

Frankly, I'm not terribly concerned about the families who are going to opt out no matter what. They are part of the problem, not the solution, and I'm not interested in pouring resources into accommodating them.

Very few opt out "no matter what". Families I need SA opt out because a high poverty elementary school is unacceptable to them, as it should be for everybody. Option school students still have farms rates many, many, many times higher than almost any neighborhood school in NA. So it's not like option schools do not benefit the poor or are unattractive to them. The idea is, create option schools that are broadly popular and so economically integrated, and locate them in high poverty areas where they are accessible to poor kids, marketable to the well off, and help lower concentrations of poverty in neighborhing zones, in turn making those schools more balanced and more attractive to UMC families. It's not that hard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why should SA accept the status quo?

u

Because they can’t convince a parent with a kid who walks to Discovery that a bus to Randolph is a better option.

Always the extreme examples.

DP. No one ever offers concrete suggestions in the middle. All rhetoric, no ideas.

DP. I think, unfortunately, that ideas in the middle will sound terrible on paper. We all want kids to succeed. It is very hard for English learners to succeed without help. It is hard for students that know English to succeed when they have to wait for the others to catch up. There's probably a way to catch up English learners and mainstream them. That's probably happening on some level. But the other kids still have to wait and have to go to a school where the resources are focused on that. In theory, you could test kids and send them to schools that "fit" their needs, but all that results in is segregation. There would be an UMC "academy" and a English learning "bootcamp" or something. (and it would not fly)

There has to be a better option, but like you said, it's always to the extremes.

Look at the CC.

This. This is the hard truth. It's a driving force behind school segregation. It's why Henry and Oakridge are the most overcrowded schools in the county while Randolph, Barcroft and carlin are still at or just below capacity. Immersion was introduced in 1986 at key to address the problem and I guess you could say it worked on a small scale. It's their closest thing we have to integrated schools. Choice schools are necessary because some kids will always be a mismatch for their zoned school, and not just in SA. They are necessary because we don't do in school tracking and because personalized learning is blather. The reality is that NA schools instruction is ahead of SA because teachers have to pace their instruction to just below the middle.

Choice schools don’t integrate neighborhood schools.

Yes, they do. Strategic placement can break up geographically concentrated poverty. Given the CB decision to "preserve" Barcroft Apts, the least APS can do is offer a convenient option school that would allow them to not attend a school that is 80% ED. Everyone deserves that.

Strategic placement of the option programs we have may help to break it up, but simply creating new ones, on its own, does not. Further, unless we go to an all-lottery system county-wide, there will never be enough option seats to accommodate everyone who might want to leave those schools. If you're one of the families that doesn't get in, would you rather have your neighborhood school be 70% FARMS, or 87% FARMS because even more of the non-FARMS families were siphoned off by option schools?

It's going to be 87% farms whether there are choice schools or not. People who aren't willing to attend a high poverty neighborhood school and attempt to option out are not going to simply say aw shucks and attend that neighborhood school if they don't get into the option school. They are going to move. Why do you think far flung suburbs exist?

Frankly, I'm not terribly concerned about the families who are going to opt out no matter what. They are part of the problem, not the solution, and I'm not interested in pouring resources into accommodating them.

Very few opt out "no matter what". Families I need SA opt out because a high poverty elementary school is unacceptable to them, as it should be for everybody. Option school students still have farms rates many, many, many times higher than almost any neighborhood school in NA. So it's not like option schools do not benefit the poor or are unattractive to them. The idea is, create option schools that are broadly popular and so economically integrated, and locate them in high poverty areas where they are accessible to poor kids, marketable to the well off, and help lower concentrations of poverty in neighborhing zones, in turn making those schools more balanced and more attractive to UMC families. It's not that hard.

Like I said, we can strategically move the ones we have to do this, but we don't need to create new ones.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You should be trying to get them to stay. That is S Arlington’s only hope!

How do they help the schools? If they're just going to opt out rather than help integrate, why in the world should we care about keeping them?

^ this poster couldn’t be more daft. Truly.