APS Families--Pls email county and school boards by Tues. 5/24!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, at least when I get old I'll have a big park to sit in and think about what we could have possibly done to prevent APS from going down the toilet.

oh so without the rich and powerful APS is mere cr@p? got it!

A community without a good school system isn't a place I'm interested in raising my family. And shift learning and distance learning isn't just a couple of extra trailers - it's a complete dismantling of the school system as we know it. I'm not going to get worked up about it at this stage, but I think a lot of families are looking very closely at how the County and the School Boards tackle this issue. It's hard to say if it will result in a mass exodus merely from the schools or from the county altogether. But if there are neighoring communities that have their act together, Arlington starts looking a lot less desirable to families.

So it's off to the far off burbs for white folk again. Shocker.

[Anonymous]

I don't think they need to be posted by today, per se, but the vote is coming up within a month I believe. The closer to the vote, the more difficult to turn the ship around. In other words, the sooner a significant opposition is heard, the more likely the CIP vote will be favorable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why exactly did emails need to be sent by today?

The School and County Boards are meeting tonight for a joint work session. Having huge community input may be helpful as they work through options. Some school board members have said as much.

If you are interested, the session will be televised.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why exactly did emails need to be sent by today?

The School and County Boards are meeting tonight for a joint work session. Having huge community input may be helpful as they work through options. Some school board members have said as much.

If you are interested, the session will be televised.

It is about to start (6) and there are very few members of the public here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why exactly did emails need to be sent by today?

The School and County Boards are meeting tonight for a joint work session. Having huge community input may be helpful as they work through options. Some school board members have said as much.

If you are interested, the session will be televised.

Do you know what channel?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why exactly did emails need to be sent by today?

The School and County Boards are meeting tonight for a joint work session. Having huge community input may be helpful as they work through options. Some school board members have said as much.

If you are interested, the session will be televised.

It is about to start (6) and there are very few members of the public here.

I didn't think there was any point to going because members of the public are not allowed to speak at this one?

[Anonymous]

can watch online here: http://tv.arlingtonva.us/watch/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a current APS family zoned for W-L, and I didn't get one of these surveys. Not sure why not. I hate the idea of a 9th grade academy. Part of the high school experience is meeting and spending time with older kids, seeing their achievements. My kid doesn't need an even bigger pool of kids in the same grade to get lost in.

But, as always, parents should consider this option -- a 9th grade academy -- within the actual decision set available now, instead of comparing it to some ideal situation that doesn't and can't exist. We all want a great experience for our kids. But some of the choices we are actually facing include the following:

--massively overcrowded schools where kids go in shifts (some going from 7-2, some from 8-3, some from 9-4) and spots in sports, band etc. become exceedingly hard to get
--redistricting
--requiring students to spend a semester or a year doing online or offcampus study
--year round school (kids go 3 out of 4 quarters a year, so 3/4 of kids are in school at any given time)
--private school or moving out of Arlington

If those are the choices, doesn't a 9th grade academy seem like one of the better options?

It's obvious another high school is needed but I must say, I don't hate the idea of redistricting (realize I'm probably alone on this) and I also don't hate the idea of year round school. It's unconventional for sure but I can see some advantages for kids to be out during times other than summer.

[Anonymous]

So, if your child is a gifted athlete ... They will be in school for whenever that sport is played?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You people really don't understand who is living in affordable housing.

Can you elaborate?

Affordable housing is not for the middle class. If it were, Arlington Mill wouldn't be 67% below the national poverty level. You can go on the county's website and see the breakdown of who is living in Arlington's AH. It's not teachers, police, or fire fighters. Not at all. It's cab drivers, construction workers, and servers. They are not middle class. They may or may not work in Arlington, and they are by and large not US citizens. Their kids might be, but many/most of the parents are not. They do not care if the kids go to school in shifts, just so long as they can get a meal at some point. These people are from politically volatile and dangerous places. They are satisfied that their children aren't being shot at or lit on fire when they walk to school. They don't give a fuck about band practice, and SOL testing. Many of the parents don't have a traditional formal education themselves. APS is offering them something they couldn't dream about in their home countries. Everything about Arlington is better.
I'm not casting a judgement on these people either way, but it seemed some of the MONA's needed some insight. Here ya' go.

link please

https://arlingtonva.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/15/2014/02/Occupations-of-Tenants-of-CAFs-Feb-2015.pdf

Thanks for this but where did you get the info about them not being us citizens? I always assumed those families tended to live in rentals where buildings were more concentrated like s arlington but not necessarily the recipients of affordable housing through the county.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a current APS family zoned for W-L, and I didn't get one of these surveys. Not sure why not. I hate the idea of a 9th grade academy. Part of the high school experience is meeting and spending time with older kids, seeing their achievements. My kid doesn't need an even bigger pool of kids in the same grade to get lost in.

But, as always, parents should consider this option -- a 9th grade academy -- within the actual decision set available now, instead of comparing it to some ideal situation that doesn't and can't exist. We all want a great experience for our kids. But some of the choices we are actually facing include the following:

--massively overcrowded schools where kids go in shifts (some going from 7-2, some from 8-3, some from 9-4) and spots in sports, band etc. become exceedingly hard to get
--redistricting
--requiring students to spend a semester or a year doing online or offcampus study
--year round school (kids go 3 out of 4 quarters a year, so 3/4 of kids are in school at any given time)
--private school or moving out of Arlington

If those are the choices, doesn't a 9th grade academy seem like one of the better options?

It's obvious another high school is needed but I must say, I don't hate the idea of redistricting (realize I'm probably alone on this) and I also don't hate the idea of year round school. It's unconventional for sure but I can see some advantages for kids to be out during times other than summer.

Redistricting does not fix the seat deficit. It just makes the current unequal distribution of students more equal (eg, Washington-Lee has the bulk of the excess.) Redistricting doesn't add capacity, though.

[Anonymous]

This meeting is such a mutual jerk-off-with-praise opportunity. They really ought to allow members of the public to participate.

[Anonymous]

Van Doren: Washington-Lee is already experimenting with flexible scheduling (leaving early if they have taken all of their classes) and I have kids there now and it's working really, really well.

Other dude: We need to explore the outer edges of what high school can be like in order to have the flexibility to accomplish our capacity goals. Graduating high school early and going on to college.

*blech*

[Anonymous]

Superintendent Murphy: More of the same re flex and high schools.

Board white haired dude (Vihlcheck?): We appreciate your leadership. "One other thing to mention is that these flex scheduling opportunities are also very cost effective."

Van Doren: (quickly) "And also good for education! (AND HOW!!!)

What a effing joke. These people are not in touch with their electorate, that's for sure.

[Anonymous]

Accented school board lady: "We understand that we can't have a full sized high school like the other three, but we appreciate the efforts you are making to get us smaller properties."