King Abdullah Academy Closing: FCPS Buy for HS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there any existing FCPS school that has such an open design? I’ve been seeing a lot of pictures on my feeds and it’s lovely but I would never want a kid at a school where it would be so easy for a rowdy kid or a bully to toss another student over a railing and seriously injure them. I hope the interior modifications make that impossible.

I’m sure this wasn’t an issue at a private school with discipline and a small enrollment. At a big public school it’s not as safe.

Wow! Better keep your kid home. Ever seen a stairwell? Been in a stadium? A mall?
Lots of schools have some open areas.

I did a bit more digging and the closest I found was Lightridge HS in Loudoun in terms of open spaces and upper level spaces overlooking an atrium. The railings looked higher and safer and I'd hope FCPS would pay some attention to this.

The architect that did KAA did Wakefield HS in Arlington. Both schools are very similar with large atria and a second level opening onto it, swimming pools, and gardens with water features.

At a much smaller scale, Oakton has that same design with their terraced indoor seating. Langley too. I believe the new Falls Church lobby will have something similar. So FCPS is familiar with this design trend. All the new schools are doing it now.

The terraced seating is nice and that doesn't bother me at all. But if you look at Wakefield, it looks like have higher railings and carpeting on the ground level below the second level. I hope they take a look at some adjustments like this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^ Carson above also has the same split feeder issue that Fox Mill poster is complaining about in addition to their long commute.

Fox Mill poster here. I am not complaining about its commute. The commute to Carson is easy enough. Perfectly happy with it. I'll be less happy with the commute when we pupil place for an AP program but that will be our problem and we are aware of that. The only reason Fox Mill has a "weaker case" is because it has fewer students and people are happy to throw it under the bus.

Fox Mill didn't want to move 15 years ago and was ignored. A whole bunch of other schools were able to complain loudly enough that they were not moved, but Fox Mill is small and was ignored. People in the neighborhood love the ES and Carson. People move for HS or pupil place out for HS, it is still happening 15 years later. I believe that the number of kids pupil placing out of SLHS is slightly over 200 kids a year. So yes, there are parents who would be happy to move because they are already leaving. I know some IB parents who like SLHS, but that is a small number.

Fox Mill, which has Carson as it's base MS, can move to KAA. The Fox Mill group is smaller as well so it is easier to fit them in.

If we are worried about Crossfield commute, they can move to SLHS. Given how close Crossfield and Fox Mill are to each other, the commute will be shorter for them then the commute to Oakton. I suspect that they would prefer to stay at Oakton.

And yes, we are very well aware that the School Board doesn't care about us, it is why they made us move 15 years ago when the neighborhood was happy with Oakton.

When you adjust for transfers, Crossfield (581) isn't much larger than Fox Mill (543). This isn't going to be a big consideration.

Some of Crossfield goes to South Lakes (a fairly small area). It is unlikely that they would move to KAA. So, I doubt the Crossfield number is higher--if at all. It's hard to judge because of immersion program, AAP, etc.

I'm not so sure about that. The Thru prposals have the part of Crossfield at South Lakes moving to Oakton to eliminate the split feeder, so moving all of Crossfield to KAA would eliminate either a split feeder or commuting distance issue.

Gosh. I remember when they were sent to South Lakes. That neighborhood lost friendships over it. One I knew begged to stay at Oakton (where they were already going). The other demanded to go to South Lakes becaues they were part of Reston. And, now, they are sending them back?

A lot of time has passed. The Annandale adjustments were years after the South Lakes boundary changes and now Thru is proposing to move Bren Mar Park back to Annandale from Edison and Timber Lane back to Falls Church from McLean.

Policy 8130 says that, wherever possible, boundary adjustments shouldn't affect the same neighborhood more than once every three years, but far more than three years have passed since the prior changes involving those schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

If we are worried about Crossfield commute, they can move to SLHS. Given how close Crossfield and Fox Mill are to each other, the commute will be shorter for them then the commute to Oakton. I suspect that they would prefer to stay at Oakton.

I'm neither a Fox Mill or a Crossfield parent. But, I doubt Crossfield would prefer to stay at Oakton. There have already been Crossfield people posting here about the commute. And, I think the School Board's policy of trying to achieve proximity would include Crossfield.

The Fox Mill poster isn’t very rational. She complains regularly about being moved to South Lakes 17 years ago but then she wants to be moved to an another new school. Her real beef is that SLHS is IB.

The main argument for moving Fox Mill rather than Crossfield is that it’s closer to FAA, but the commute from Crossfield to Oakton is much longer than the commute from Fox Mill to South Lakes. For that reason, if space at KAA is limited, the equities favor moving Crossfield and leaving Fox Mill at SLHS.

Fox Mill feeds to Carson. If left at Carson, it would create a split feeder situation where only the Fox Mill students leave their friends behind. Alternatively, if moved out of Carson to avoid the split feeder, Fox Mill would be moved to a middle school many consider less challenging/desirable.

With all of the unsavory comments on here about Herndon High, I'm *guessing* the Fox Mill poster complaining about IB is trying to sidestep a convo that would similarly disparage another school. (Just a guess.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

If we are worried about Crossfield commute, they can move to SLHS. Given how close Crossfield and Fox Mill are to each other, the commute will be shorter for them then the commute to Oakton. I suspect that they would prefer to stay at Oakton.

I'm neither a Fox Mill or a Crossfield parent. But, I doubt Crossfield would prefer to stay at Oakton. There have already been Crossfield people posting here about the commute. And, I think the School Board's policy of trying to achieve proximity would include Crossfield.

The Fox Mill poster isn’t very rational. She complains regularly about being moved to South Lakes 17 years ago but then she wants to be moved to an another new school. Her real beef is that SLHS is IB.

The main argument for moving Fox Mill rather than Crossfield is that it’s closer to FAA, but the commute from Crossfield to Oakton is much longer than the commute from Fox Mill to South Lakes. For that reason, if space at KAA is limited, the equities favor moving Crossfield and leaving Fox Mill at SLHS.

Fox Mill feeds to Carson. If left at Carson, it would create a split feeder situation where only the Fox Mill students leave their friends behind. Alternatively, if moved out of Carson to avoid the split feeder, Fox Mill would be moved to a middle school many consider less challenging/desirable.

With all of the unsavory comments on here about Herndon High, I'm *guessing* the Fox Mill poster complaining about IB is trying to sidestep a convo that would similarly disparage another school. (Just a guess.)

No, the Fox Mill poster wants to stay at Carson and either pupil place out of South Lakes or get assigned to the new school. She's not trying to avoid negative comments about Hughes or South Lakes. If anything, she's been inviting them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

If we are worried about Crossfield commute, they can move to SLHS. Given how close Crossfield and Fox Mill are to each other, the commute will be shorter for them then the commute to Oakton. I suspect that they would prefer to stay at Oakton.

I'm neither a Fox Mill or a Crossfield parent. But, I doubt Crossfield would prefer to stay at Oakton. There have already been Crossfield people posting here about the commute. And, I think the School Board's policy of trying to achieve proximity would include Crossfield.

The Fox Mill poster isn’t very rational. She complains regularly about being moved to South Lakes 17 years ago but then she wants to be moved to an another new school. Her real beef is that SLHS is IB.

The main argument for moving Fox Mill rather than Crossfield is that it’s closer to FAA, but the commute from Crossfield to Oakton is much longer than the commute from Fox Mill to South Lakes. For that reason, if space at KAA is limited, the equities favor moving Crossfield and leaving Fox Mill at SLHS.

Fox Mill feeds to Carson. If left at Carson, it would create a split feeder situation where only the Fox Mill students leave their friends behind. Alternatively, if moved out of Carson to avoid the split feeder, Fox Mill would be moved to a middle school many consider less challenging/desirable.

With all of the unsavory comments on here about Herndon High, I'm *guessing* the Fox Mill poster complaining about IB is trying to sidestep a convo that would similarly disparage another school. (Just a guess.)

No, the Fox Mill poster wants to stay at Carson and either pupil place out of South Lakes or get assigned to the new school. She's not trying to avoid negative comments about Hughes or South Lakes. If anything, she's been inviting them.

One of her first posts, the one with the list, mentioned moving to Hughes. It's inviting negative comments because it's easy to see that she does not like South Lakes or Hughes even though she isn't saying it directly. It's seems to be a much politer discussion to talk about IB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there any existing FCPS school that has such an open design? I’ve been seeing a lot of pictures on my feeds and it’s lovely but I would never want a kid at a school where it would be so easy for a rowdy kid or a bully to toss another student over a railing and seriously injure them. I hope the interior modifications make that impossible.

I’m sure this wasn’t an issue at a private school with discipline and a small enrollment. At a big public school it’s not as safe.

Wow! Better keep your kid home. Ever seen a stairwell? Been in a stadium? A mall?
Lots of schools have some open areas.

I did a bit more digging and the closest I found was Lightridge HS in Loudoun in terms of open spaces and upper level spaces overlooking an atrium. The railings looked higher and safer and I'd hope FCPS would pay some attention to this.

The architect that did KAA did Wakefield HS in Arlington. Both schools are very similar with large atria and a second level opening onto it, swimming pools, and gardens with water features.

At a much smaller scale, Oakton has that same design with their terraced indoor seating. Langley too. I believe the new Falls Church lobby will have something similar. So FCPS is familiar with this design trend. All the new schools are doing it now.

The terraced seating is nice and that doesn't bother me at all. But if you look at Wakefield, it looks like have higher railings and carpeting on the ground level below the second level. I hope they take a look at some adjustments like this.

Makes sense. Minor renovations are probably in order. The furniture is a nice freebie.

[Anonymous]

Compare the clubs at Hughes to Carson. Or Oakton to SLHS. There are more opportunities at Carson and Oakton. We all want our kids to have the most opportunities available to them. That is what parents want for their kids. That is why Great Falls doesn’t want to move to Herndon, there are more opportunities at Langley then Herndon. I am not sure why this surprises people.

So yes, I would not want my kids MS to be moved from Carson to Hughes and I would prefer an AP school over IB.

And don’t pretend you wouldn’t lose it if FCPS announced that your kids AP school was changing to IB or your kid was moved from a school with lots of clubs and activities to one with a lot less. Because you would. You would advocate for your kid to stay at the school that offers more clubs and advanced classes. You would advocate to move to the school with more opportunities.

SLHS has a lot of great kids and teachers and the kids that go there get a good education but it is not what most people in this County want. We have friends who love it. We have friends who are fine with it. We have friends who pupil place out of it. It is fine but it is not a good fit for kids who want to take high level classes, because the HL IB courses are not offered on a regular basis. That means it is harder to get college credit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Compare the clubs at Hughes to Carson. Or Oakton to SLHS. There are more opportunities at Carson and Oakton. We all want our kids to have the most opportunities available to them. That is what parents want for their kids. That is why Great Falls doesn’t want to move to Herndon, there are more opportunities at Langley then Herndon. I am not sure why this surprises people.

So yes, I would not want my kids MS to be moved from Carson to Hughes and I would prefer an AP school over IB.

And don’t pretend you wouldn’t lose it if FCPS announced that your kids AP school was changing to IB or your kid was moved from a school with lots of clubs and activities to one with a lot less. Because you would. You would advocate for your kid to stay at the school that offers more clubs and advanced classes. You would advocate to move to the school with more opportunities.

SLHS has a lot of great kids and teachers and the kids that go there get a good education but it is not what most people in this County want. We have friends who love it. We have friends who are fine with it. We have friends who pupil place out of it. It is fine but it is not a good fit for kids who want to take high level classes, because the HL IB courses are not offered on a regular basis. That means it is harder to get college credit.

h
I would suggest that the parents organize over IB. When schools were redistricted from Westfield to South Lakes a LOT of parents protested and begged for a change. I don't know if the protest was organized, but it would be more effective if it were.

I have a couple of friends with teens at South Lakes. One from Lake Anne and one from Floris area. Both have said they wished they had AP. I realize that some parents do like IB, but I suspect most would rather not have it. Of course, as long as all the Herndon kids are coming there, it will make it more difficult to get rid of it. If surveys are done, it should only be for those who have "in boundary" students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Compare the clubs at Hughes to Carson. Or Oakton to SLHS. There are more opportunities at Carson and Oakton. We all want our kids to have the most opportunities available to them. That is what parents want for their kids. That is why Great Falls doesn’t want to move to Herndon, there are more opportunities at Langley then Herndon. I am not sure why this surprises people.

So yes, I would not want my kids MS to be moved from Carson to Hughes and I would prefer an AP school over IB.

And don’t pretend you wouldn’t lose it if FCPS announced that your kids AP school was changing to IB or your kid was moved from a school with lots of clubs and activities to one with a lot less. Because you would. You would advocate for your kid to stay at the school that offers more clubs and advanced classes. You would advocate to move to the school with more opportunities.

SLHS has a lot of great kids and teachers and the kids that go there get a good education but it is not what most people in this County want. We have friends who love it. We have friends who are fine with it. We have friends who pupil place out of it. It is fine but it is not a good fit for kids who want to take high level classes, because the HL IB courses are not offered on a regular basis. That means it is harder to get college credit.

h
I would suggest that the parents organize over IB. When schools were redistricted from Westfield to South Lakes a LOT of parents protested and begged for a change. I don't know if the protest was organized, but it would be more effective if it were.

I have a couple of friends with teens at South Lakes. One from Lake Anne and one from Floris area. Both have said they wished they had AP. I realize that some parents do like IB, but I suspect most would rather not have it. Of course, as long as all the Herndon kids are coming there, it will make it more difficult to get rid of it. If surveys are done, it should only be for those who have "in boundary" students.

Can’t they pupil place to Herndon for AP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Compare the clubs at Hughes to Carson. Or Oakton to SLHS. There are more opportunities at Carson and Oakton. We all want our kids to have the most opportunities available to them. That is what parents want for their kids. That is why Great Falls doesn’t want to move to Herndon, there are more opportunities at Langley then Herndon. I am not sure why this surprises people.

So yes, I would not want my kids MS to be moved from Carson to Hughes and I would prefer an AP school over IB.

And don’t pretend you wouldn’t lose it if FCPS announced that your kids AP school was changing to IB or your kid was moved from a school with lots of clubs and activities to one with a lot less. Because you would. You would advocate for your kid to stay at the school that offers more clubs and advanced classes. You would advocate to move to the school with more opportunities.

SLHS has a lot of great kids and teachers and the kids that go there get a good education but it is not what most people in this County want. We have friends who love it. We have friends who are fine with it. We have friends who pupil place out of it. It is fine but it is not a good fit for kids who want to take high level classes, because the HL IB courses are not offered on a regular basis. That means it is harder to get college credit.

h
I would suggest that the parents organize over IB. When schools were redistricted from Westfield to South Lakes a LOT of parents protested and begged for a change. I don't know if the protest was organized, but it would be more effective if it were.

I have a couple of friends with teens at South Lakes. One from Lake Anne and one from Floris area. Both have said they wished they had AP. I realize that some parents do like IB, but I suspect most would rather not have it. Of course, as long as all the Herndon kids are coming there, it will make it more difficult to get rid of it. If surveys are done, it should only be for those who have "in boundary" students.

Can’t they pupil place to Herndon for AP?

Yes. But, no bus transportation. And, most families would like to stay with their neighborhoods. Curre

[Anonymous]

Just checked: 29 transfers to Langley from South Lakes; 18 transfers from Marshall (also IB school)

[Anonymous]

Any pictures of the inside of the building online anywhere

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any pictures of the inside of the building online anywhere

Well, the School Board work session is there tomorrow.

Closed Session and Public Meeting
Friday, June 20, 2025
2949 Education Drive, Herndon, Virginia
Closed portion is closed to the public.
Public portion is open to the public - public portion time is an estimate and may occur later than stated time.
1:00 p.m.
*Times subject to change

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Compare the clubs at Hughes to Carson. Or Oakton to SLHS. There are more opportunities at Carson and Oakton. We all want our kids to have the most opportunities available to them. That is what parents want for their kids. That is why Great Falls doesn’t want to move to Herndon, there are more opportunities at Langley then Herndon. I am not sure why this surprises people.

So yes, I would not want my kids MS to be moved from Carson to Hughes and I would prefer an AP school over IB.

And don’t pretend you wouldn’t lose it if FCPS announced that your kids AP school was changing to IB or your kid was moved from a school with lots of clubs and activities to one with a lot less. Because you would. You would advocate for your kid to stay at the school that offers more clubs and advanced classes. You would advocate to move to the school with more opportunities.

SLHS has a lot of great kids and teachers and the kids that go there get a good education but it is not what most people in this County want. We have friends who love it. We have friends who are fine with it. We have friends who pupil place out of it. It is fine but it is not a good fit for kids who want to take high level classes, because the HL IB courses are not offered on a regular basis. That means it is harder to get college credit.

h
I would suggest that the parents organize over IB. When schools were redistricted from Westfield to South Lakes a LOT of parents protested and begged for a change. I don't know if the protest was organized, but it would be more effective if it were.

I have a couple of friends with teens at South Lakes. One from Lake Anne and one from Floris area. Both have said they wished they had AP. I realize that some parents do like IB, but I suspect most would rather not have it. Of course, as long as all the Herndon kids are coming there, it will make it more difficult to get rid of it. If surveys are done, it should only be for those who have "in boundary" students.

Can’t they pupil place to Herndon for AP?

Some pupil place for Herndon AP. Some pupil place for Langley AP/Russian. Some pupil place for Oakton AP/Japanese. Some pupil place to Westfield AP/Japanese. Slightly more then 200 kids pupil place out of SLHS each year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any pictures of the inside of the building online anywhere

This has already been posted multiple
times. You can scroll to the bottom and click the image to activate the running slide show. Click to hop to the next image.

https://www.kaa-herndon.com/about-us/facilities