APS - questions about Key / ASFS building swap
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Anonymous
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Parent of a little one living in Courthouse here. ES still several years away, so no real dog in any of the current boundary debates, but curious to hear from folks who have been involved in the system longer:
1. Are there contingents strongly against a swap of Key and Science Focus? What are their main concerns? Is it just the logistical hurdles of switching campuses, or do people have concerns that a swap will harm one or both schools, or exclude certain groups of students? Or are people mostly in agreement that a swap would make sense? Asking because I haven’t seen the same kind of hysterics on this board about a Key-ASFS swap that I have seen about other possible moves or changes. 2. If they did switch, would they keep their names? Or switch to something like Key Science Focus and Page School / Escuela Page? |
Anonymous
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I get the sense that's it's pretty clear the Key building needs to be a neighborhood school.
Beyond that, nobody knows at this point. Could they also make the ASFS building a neighborhood school and put Key somewhere else? Maybe? As for naming, since neither school is named for a slave-holder, I'd guess they'd keep their names. The slave-holding is really the only reason the Henry school had to change its name when moving to a new building. |
Anonymous
| There are many unknowns. First, it’s not clear how Key going from shared Key/ASFS boundary to option-only will impact the enrollment and quality of the school. Second, it’s unclear as to what the ASFS boundary will be, and whether it would even include Courthiuse. It probably would, but who knows. I vaguely recall a petition from ASFS parents who were nervous about something. I don’t remember what. What are you worried about, OP? |
Anonymous
| One question was, assuming arguendo there is a switch, what would happen to the lab equipment at ASFS. Guessing it moves too. I wouldn’t take the absence of hysterics (your language) as meaning anything other than that it’s no big deal. |
Anonymous
In the initial work session on boundaries where they announced they'd be considering option school placement they also specified the need to move any special equipment/facilities. While they did not name names in that discussion, to me it sounded very clearly like they were referring to a Key/ASFS swap. Specifically referred to fixing the problem of neighborhood schools that are not in the neighborhoods they serve -- the only one that applies to is ASFS. |
Anonymous
| Parent of two Key alums here and close neighbor to ASFS (whose kids were not able to go to there, despite our house abutting the ASFS "campus"). Key is probably in the most "urban" location of any elementary school in Arlington (with Henry and Drew not far behind). Moving Key to the ASFS building would impact its accessibility by public transportation, which might impact the lower income population it currently serves. Its not clear to me that Key necessarily has to become a neighborhood school. Putting a crossing guard on Kirkwood Road would allow all of Lyon Village to walk to ASFS. |
Anonymous
Two things: 1. Kids aren’t taking public transit to school at Key. See pages 5 and 7. https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Francis_Scott_Key_v2.pdf 2. Relatively few of the Key zone kids live in Lyon Village. Most live further east and south, and most of these kids currently are bussed to ASFS. They would benefit from a closer neighborhood school. https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Stu17K5_PP.jpg |
Anonymous
Low income families don't get generally live in fancy condos abutting metro stations, so they would be taking a bus or two and then transferring to metro -- hardly easy. And that would only be in case where they need extended day. It would make more sense to move immersion to a less walkable neighborhood, since it can't get be a neighborhood school, and bus all the kids. Kids that are in extended day at immersion should have the option to bus to the extended day at their OWN neighborhood school which is likely is walkable or a simple transit ride from their home. Very few kids walk from Lyon Village to ASFS now -- its pretty far and does involve crossing a major road. Most of LV is over 1/2 mile from the school; parents are just not investing the 30 minutes that walk can take with their kids, and kids can't walk alone until they are 5th grade. |
Anonymous
That said, Cherrydale is very walkable, so making both schoools neighborhood schools makes the most sense. But would likely involve Key, ASFS, Long Branch, Taylor, and Glebe to sort out numbers. By removing immersion you effectively dumped another 1/2 schools worth of population without adding any capacity. |
Anonymous
I was thinking more that Key is very accessible to lots of bus lines, not that low income families are "liv[ing] in fancy condos abutting metro stations." Obvious Key is more accessible for large parts of Lyon Village than ASFS, but ASFS is not impossibly far, either. For many in Lyon Village, ASFS is closer. I understand that you would prefer to have Key as your neighborhood school. I hope you recognize that others have different, yet still reasonable, views. |
Anonymous
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Except for the naming questions, I don’t think any of this has been well thought out by APS staff. And between now and June, the SB and staff are going to need to come up with convincing answers to those and many other questions.
Like many things, they may just make up answers and then turn the other way when they create a horrible situation. I see value in looking at the location of option and neighborhood schools. But, they way they are doing it won’t ask and answer the very questions you and others are asking. And no one knows what the impact on enrollment will be if you move any of the option schools. They haven’t reached out to those communities and asked. Yet, they are making a recommendation in three weeks. |
Anonymous
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As far as walking to asfs, there are a lot of concerns with crossing kirkwood to widen its walk zone. Currently only a handful of kids walk to school, mostly from the Clarendon area. Those parents who walk regularly have expressed deep concerns about people regularly crossing kirkwood— it’s objectuvely not a safe road to cross and little can be done short of adding a traffic light. The county has to do a traffic study before doing something like that, so any traffic mitigation’s would be a few years off. There’s a bunch of extra concerns like the back stairs would need to be widened and a handicap ramp added, which is difficult since the county does not own the land directly next to the stairs (it’s someone’s house on either side). They likely will expand the walk zone to include part of Lyon village, but I really hope it doesn’t result in someone being hit by a car.
As far as the swap goes, there are three things: 1. I think the schools would likely change names, but who cares. 2. They have said explicitly when asked by parents from asfs that they would move the equipment and any improvements made to the extent possible. 3. I can’t see Taylor still existing if asfs becomes a neighborhood school. Maybe they do ats —> Taylor and immersion to ats. But that seems like a lot of work especially if ats is more vocal than cherrydale is. But what do I know |
Anonymous
| No one has any answers. It’s sad that it has come to this. |
Anonymous
Students in extended day in immersion get extra, costly buses to return them to their neighborhood schools for parents’ convenience? This would have to be offered to all of the ES option schools. Not going to happen when the superintendent is making numerous recommendations to cut other services and jobs in light of budget constraints. And it shouldn’t happen. If you select an option school for your family instead of your neighborhood school you accept the inconvenience. |
Anonymous
I agree Kirkwood is a tough street to cross. However, a crossing guard at the crosswalk at the bottom of the stairs would adequately deal with this problem. I don't see any reason why the stairs would have to be widened. I can't see any practical way to add a handicap ramp to get up that hill. Even if you did, it would be so steep as to be essentially unusable. If that is a requirement, then the project wouldn't work. I don't think that the ADA or common decency would require a ramp there. In any event, there is already a sidewalk which runs up 14th St. which could be used if necessary. |