FCPS HS Boundary

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has been something like 30 years since FCPS did a boundary study and reorg, it is needed. I understand that people don’t want to change schools, especially if they are going from a strong school to a school to a weaker school. That doesn’t mean that a boundary study isn’t needed.

There are over-enrolled schools and under-enrolled schools. Boundaries should be adjusted to use the space that we have.

That does not mean that boundaries should be drawn to balance FARMs rates. It does mean that there will be some adjustments because there are high FARMs schools that are under-enrolled near low FARMs schools that are close to capacity or at capacity. Langley is not going to have kids bussed from Lewis. Lewis is not going to have kids bussed from Langley.

I wold prefer that they handle the entire county at once then do the stupid school by school with ripple effects so that it is done with at one time. Then set periodic reviews every 10 years, or something like that.

I think this is also the time to drop IB and make every school AP. Maybe take the empty space in one of the under-enrolled schools and make an IB magnate school for the kids who really want it. You have to be willing to work towards the diploma to attend that magnate school. It would probably increase the number of kids working towards the diploma because they would all be together instead of small numbers at each of the IB schools.

Do you know why schools are under-enrolled? Because net student transfers out are in the hundreds. If you care about using available seats, rather than disrupt the whole system, just turn off the damn spigot.

The reason there is a spigot in the first place is because parents are bailing on failing schools. Why are the schools failing? It’s because FCPS has created a system of “good” (high SES) schools adjacent to “bad” (low SES) schools. The “bad” schools do not offer the same variety of classes, extracurriculars, or educational opportunities as the “good” schools right down the street. So, you think we should just make students stay in the “bad” schools because they happen to live just outside the “good” zone?

The county needs to do a county-wide reassessment of boundaries, which hasn’t been done in a very long time. It should include a comprehensive inventory of facilities, space, and programs offered at each school. Maybe it would conclude that some schools could be closed and consolidated to offer better economy of scale and similarity of course offerings. No county resident should have the idea that their school district is set in stone.

If I were a parent with young kids looking to buy an home in the DC area and read your last sentence, I would simply stop looking for a home in Fairfax County. Home buyers overwhelmingly buy their homes for the schools - it’s a fundamental truth.

Okay. So, go ahead and make that drive to work from Stafford or Loudoun or the exurbs. The reality is that Fairfax real estate is still in high demand because the jobs are here. Prices are higher here for a reason.

[Anonymous]

It's simplistic to suggest that "FCPS has created a system of high-SES schools adjacent to low-SES schools."

There are big disparities in SES among FCPS schools, but the primary driver has been the housing mix in particular pyramids. A secondary driver has been choices that FCPS made over the years to implement certain programs such as IB at some schools, which did not have their intended effect, but the housing mix is the main driver.

In addition, higher-SES schools tend to be clustered in certain parts of the county and not necessarily adjacent to lower-SES schools. Similarly, lower-SES schools tend to be clustered in certain parts of the county and not necessarily adjacent to higher-SES schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s not going to be any county-wide reorg. It would be political suicide.

The School Board members should not care. Who views being on the School Board as a stepping-stone to higher public office? That rarely happens.

Cohen, Pekarsky, and Keys-Gamarra, who were on the 2019-23 School Board, are now in the state legislature. Smith, Palchik, and Storck, three members of the Board of Supervisors, were previously on the School Board. Frisch, McElveen, and Moon, three current School Board members, tried unsuccessfully to run for higher office, but Frisch and McElveen will almost surely run for higher office again. There are other examples of former School Board members getting elected to higher office.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has been something like 30 years since FCPS did a boundary study and reorg, it is needed. I understand that people don’t want to change schools, especially if they are going from a strong school to a school to a weaker school. That doesn’t mean that a boundary study isn’t needed.

There are over-enrolled schools and under-enrolled schools. Boundaries should be adjusted to use the space that we have.

That does not mean that boundaries should be drawn to balance FARMs rates. It does mean that there will be some adjustments because there are high FARMs schools that are under-enrolled near low FARMs schools that are close to capacity or at capacity. Langley is not going to have kids bussed from Lewis. Lewis is not going to have kids bussed from Langley.

I wold prefer that they handle the entire county at once then do the stupid school by school with ripple effects so that it is done with at one time. Then set periodic reviews every 10 years, or something like that.

I think this is also the time to drop IB and make every school AP. Maybe take the empty space in one of the under-enrolled schools and make an IB magnate school for the kids who really want it. You have to be willing to work towards the diploma to attend that magnate school. It would probably increase the number of kids working towards the diploma because they would all be together instead of small numbers at each of the IB schools.

Do you know why schools are under-enrolled? Because net student transfers out are in the hundreds. If you care about using available seats, rather than disrupt the whole system, just turn off the damn spigot.

The reason there is a spigot in the first place is because parents are bailing on failing schools. Why are the schools failing? It’s because FCPS has created a system of “good” (high SES) schools adjacent to “bad” (low SES) schools. The “bad” schools do not offer the same variety of classes, extracurriculars, or educational opportunities as the “good” schools right down the street. So, you think we should just make students stay in the “bad” schools because they happen to live just outside the “good” zone?

The county needs to do a county-wide reassessment of boundaries, which hasn’t been done in a very long time. It should include a comprehensive inventory of facilities, space, and programs offered at each school. Maybe it would conclude that some schools could be closed and consolidated to offer better economy of scale and similarity of course offerings. No county resident should have the idea that their school district is set in stone.

If I were a parent with young kids looking to buy an home in the DC area and read your last sentence, I would simply stop looking for a home in Fairfax County. Home buyers overwhelmingly buy their homes for the schools - it’s a fundamental truth.

Okay. So, go ahead and make that drive to work from Stafford or Loudoun or the exurbs. The reality is that Fairfax real estate is still in high demand because the jobs are here. Prices are higher here for a reason.

It’s cute that you think that ostracizing parents with young kids in our county would have little consequence for the county, just because demand for housing in the county is currently high.

You don’t even have to consider this as a hypothetical. Look on Redfin or Zillow at the housing values on the border between highly rated and lower rated schools. The difference between these neighbors is typically a couple hundred thousand dollars. There is a premium that buyers will pay for reliably good schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has been something like 30 years since FCPS did a boundary study and reorg, it is needed. I understand that people don’t want to change schools, especially if they are going from a strong school to a school to a weaker school. That doesn’t mean that a boundary study isn’t needed.

There are over-enrolled schools and under-enrolled schools. Boundaries should be adjusted to use the space that we have.

That does not mean that boundaries should be drawn to balance FARMs rates. It does mean that there will be some adjustments because there are high FARMs schools that are under-enrolled near low FARMs schools that are close to capacity or at capacity. Langley is not going to have kids bussed from Lewis. Lewis is not going to have kids bussed from Langley.

I wold prefer that they handle the entire county at once then do the stupid school by school with ripple effects so that it is done with at one time. Then set periodic reviews every 10 years, or something like that.

I think this is also the time to drop IB and make every school AP. Maybe take the empty space in one of the under-enrolled schools and make an IB magnate school for the kids who really want it. You have to be willing to work towards the diploma to attend that magnate school. It would probably increase the number of kids working towards the diploma because they would all be together instead of small numbers at each of the IB schools.

Do you know why schools are under-enrolled? Because net student transfers out are in the hundreds. If you care about using available seats, rather than disrupt the whole system, just turn off the damn spigot.

The reason there is a spigot in the first place is because parents are bailing on failing schools. Why are the schools failing? It’s because FCPS has created a system of “good” (high SES) schools adjacent to “bad” (low SES) schools. The “bad” schools do not offer the same variety of classes, extracurriculars, or educational opportunities as the “good” schools right down the street. So, you think we should just make students stay in the “bad” schools because they happen to live just outside the “good” zone?

The county needs to do a county-wide reassessment of boundaries, which hasn’t been done in a very long time. It should include a comprehensive inventory of facilities, space, and programs offered at each school. Maybe it would conclude that some schools could be closed and consolidated to offer better economy of scale and similarity of course offerings. No county resident should have the idea that their school district is set in stone.

If I were a parent with young kids looking to buy an home in the DC area and read your last sentence, I would simply stop looking for a home in Fairfax County. Home buyers overwhelmingly buy their homes for the schools - it’s a fundamental truth.

Okay. So, go ahead and make that drive to work from Stafford or Loudoun or the exurbs. The reality is that Fairfax real estate is still in high demand because the jobs are here. Prices are higher here for a reason.

It’s cute that you think that ostracizing parents with young kids in our county would have little consequence for the county, just because demand for housing in the county is currently high.

You don’t even have to consider this as a hypothetical. Look on Redfin or Zillow at the housing values on the border between highly rated and lower rated schools. The difference between these neighbors is typically a couple hundred thousand dollars. There is a premium that buyers will pay for reliably good schools.

DP. There's already been a lot of flight from western Fairfax to Loudoun. If they try hard enough, they can trigger flight from northern Fairfax to Arlington and Montgomery. We regret our decision to buy in Fairfax, but not to the point of leaving. Yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has been something like 30 years since FCPS did a boundary study and reorg, it is needed. I understand that people don’t want to change schools, especially if they are going from a strong school to a school to a weaker school. That doesn’t mean that a boundary study isn’t needed.

There are over-enrolled schools and under-enrolled schools. Boundaries should be adjusted to use the space that we have.

That does not mean that boundaries should be drawn to balance FARMs rates. It does mean that there will be some adjustments because there are high FARMs schools that are under-enrolled near low FARMs schools that are close to capacity or at capacity. Langley is not going to have kids bussed from Lewis. Lewis is not going to have kids bussed from Langley.

I wold prefer that they handle the entire county at once then do the stupid school by school with ripple effects so that it is done with at one time. Then set periodic reviews every 10 years, or something like that.

I think this is also the time to drop IB and make every school AP. Maybe take the empty space in one of the under-enrolled schools and make an IB magnate school for the kids who really want it. You have to be willing to work towards the diploma to attend that magnate school. It would probably increase the number of kids working towards the diploma because they would all be together instead of small numbers at each of the IB schools.

Do you know why schools are under-enrolled? Because net student transfers out are in the hundreds. If you care about using available seats, rather than disrupt the whole system, just turn off the damn spigot.

The reason there is a spigot in the first place is because parents are bailing on failing schools. Why are the schools failing? It’s because FCPS has created a system of “good” (high SES) schools adjacent to “bad” (low SES) schools. The “bad” schools do not offer the same variety of classes, extracurriculars, or educational opportunities as the “good” schools right down the street. So, you think we should just make students stay in the “bad” schools because they happen to live just outside the “good” zone?

The county needs to do a county-wide reassessment of boundaries, which hasn’t been done in a very long time. It should include a comprehensive inventory of facilities, space, and programs offered at each school. Maybe it would conclude that some schools could be closed and consolidated to offer better economy of scale and similarity of course offerings. No county resident should have the idea that their school district is set in stone.

If I were a parent with young kids looking to buy an home in the DC area and read your last sentence, I would simply stop looking for a home in Fairfax County. Home buyers overwhelmingly buy their homes for the schools - it’s a fundamental truth.

Okay. So, go ahead and make that drive to work from Stafford or Loudoun or the exurbs. The reality is that Fairfax real estate is still in high demand because the jobs are here. Prices are higher here for a reason.

It’s cute that you think that ostracizing parents with young kids in our county would have little consequence for the county, just because demand for housing in the county is currently high.

You don’t even have to consider this as a hypothetical. Look on Redfin or Zillow at the housing values on the border between highly rated and lower rated schools. The difference between these neighbors is typically a couple hundred thousand dollars. There is a premium that buyers will pay for reliably good schools.

That is a private transaction between two parties making property deals. Not to be reductionist, and I know people like to believe they're entitled to what they *think* they're buying with a real estate purchase. But they're buying land in the end. Not entitlements to forevermore surgically segregated school buildings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It won't happen. If the school board tries it, Fairfax voters will protest either by staying home or by voting R. That means Virginia goes red for a few cycles. Youngkin is governor thanks to LCPS's incompetence. FCPS pissing off voters could cost democrats a senate seat or the governorship. The state party knows it and would quietly step in

School board actions have nothing to do with state or national elections. It is a nonpartisan office. The mistake of conflating sb elections with national politics is what led us to the disastrous last school board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has been something like 30 years since FCPS did a boundary study and reorg, it is needed. I understand that people don’t want to change schools, especially if they are going from a strong school to a school to a weaker school. That doesn’t mean that a boundary study isn’t needed.

There are over-enrolled schools and under-enrolled schools. Boundaries should be adjusted to use the space that we have.

That does not mean that boundaries should be drawn to balance FARMs rates. It does mean that there will be some adjustments because there are high FARMs schools that are under-enrolled near low FARMs schools that are close to capacity or at capacity. Langley is not going to have kids bussed from Lewis. Lewis is not going to have kids bussed from Langley.

I wold prefer that they handle the entire county at once then do the stupid school by school with ripple effects so that it is done with at one time. Then set periodic reviews every 10 years, or something like that.

I think this is also the time to drop IB and make every school AP. Maybe take the empty space in one of the under-enrolled schools and make an IB magnate school for the kids who really want it. You have to be willing to work towards the diploma to attend that magnate school. It would probably increase the number of kids working towards the diploma because they would all be together instead of small numbers at each of the IB schools.

Do you know why schools are under-enrolled? Because net student transfers out are in the hundreds. If you care about using available seats, rather than disrupt the whole system, just turn off the damn spigot.

The reason there is a spigot in the first place is because parents are bailing on failing schools. Why are the schools failing? It’s because FCPS has created a system of “good” (high SES) schools adjacent to “bad” (low SES) schools. The “bad” schools do not offer the same variety of classes, extracurriculars, or educational opportunities as the “good” schools right down the street. So, you think we should just make students stay in the “bad” schools because they happen to live just outside the “good” zone?

The county needs to do a county-wide reassessment of boundaries, which hasn’t been done in a very long time. It should include a comprehensive inventory of facilities, space, and programs offered at each school. Maybe it would conclude that some schools could be closed and consolidated to offer better economy of scale and similarity of course offerings. No county resident should have the idea that their school district is set in stone.

If I were a parent with young kids looking to buy an home in the DC area and read your last sentence, I would simply stop looking for a home in Fairfax County. Home buyers overwhelmingly buy their homes for the schools - it’s a fundamental truth.

Okay. So, go ahead and make that drive to work from Stafford or Loudoun or the exurbs. The reality is that Fairfax real estate is still in high demand because the jobs are here. Prices are higher here for a reason.

It’s cute that you think that ostracizing parents with young kids in our county would have little consequence for the county, just because demand for housing in the county is currently high.

You don’t even have to consider this as a hypothetical. Look on Redfin or Zillow at the housing values on the border between highly rated and lower rated schools. The difference between these neighbors is typically a couple hundred thousand dollars. There is a premium that buyers will pay for reliably good schools.

That is a private transaction between two parties making property deals. Not to be reductionist, and I know people like to believe they're entitled to what they *think* they're buying with a real estate purchase. But they're buying land in the end. Not entitlements to forevermore surgically segregated school buildings.

No one actually believes this. FCPS wouldn't tout the variety among its schools unless it wanted to attract people attracted to different programs and offerings. Pull the rug out from families and they've destroyed trust even if they haven't breached a contract.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It won't happen. If the school board tries it, Fairfax voters will protest either by staying home or by voting R. That means Virginia goes red for a few cycles. Youngkin is governor thanks to LCPS's incompetence. FCPS pissing off voters could cost democrats a senate seat or the governorship. The state party knows it and would quietly step in

School board actions have nothing to do with state or national elections. It is a nonpartisan office. The mistake of conflating sb elections with national politics is what led us to the disastrous last school board.

You are joking, right? It is about as partisan as it gets. And if you think their actions don't trickle over to other elections you are kidding yourself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has been something like 30 years since FCPS did a boundary study and reorg, it is needed. I understand that people don’t want to change schools, especially if they are going from a strong school to a school to a weaker school. That doesn’t mean that a boundary study isn’t needed.

There are over-enrolled schools and under-enrolled schools. Boundaries should be adjusted to use the space that we have.

That does not mean that boundaries should be drawn to balance FARMs rates. It does mean that there will be some adjustments because there are high FARMs schools that are under-enrolled near low FARMs schools that are close to capacity or at capacity. Langley is not going to have kids bussed from Lewis. Lewis is not going to have kids bussed from Langley.

I wold prefer that they handle the entire county at once then do the stupid school by school with ripple effects so that it is done with at one time. Then set periodic reviews every 10 years, or something like that.

I think this is also the time to drop IB and make every school AP. Maybe take the empty space in one of the under-enrolled schools and make an IB magnate school for the kids who really want it. You have to be willing to work towards the diploma to attend that magnate school. It would probably increase the number of kids working towards the diploma because they would all be together instead of small numbers at each of the IB schools.

Do you know why schools are under-enrolled? Because net student transfers out are in the hundreds. If you care about using available seats, rather than disrupt the whole system, just turn off the damn spigot.

The reason there is a spigot in the first place is because parents are bailing on failing schools. Why are the schools failing? It’s because FCPS has created a system of “good” (high SES) schools adjacent to “bad” (low SES) schools. The “bad” schools do not offer the same variety of classes, extracurriculars, or educational opportunities as the “good” schools right down the street. So, you think we should just make students stay in the “bad” schools because they happen to live just outside the “good” zone?

The county needs to do a county-wide reassessment of boundaries, which hasn’t been done in a very long time. It should include a comprehensive inventory of facilities, space, and programs offered at each school. Maybe it would conclude that some schools could be closed and consolidated to offer better economy of scale and similarity of course offerings. No county resident should have the idea that their school district is set in stone.

If I were a parent with young kids looking to buy an home in the DC area and read your last sentence, I would simply stop looking for a home in Fairfax County. Home buyers overwhelmingly buy their homes for the schools - it’s a fundamental truth.

Okay. So, go ahead and make that drive to work from Stafford or Loudoun or the exurbs. The reality is that Fairfax real estate is still in high demand because the jobs are here. Prices are higher here for a reason.

It’s cute that you think that ostracizing parents with young kids in our county would have little consequence for the county, just because demand for housing in the county is currently high.

You don’t even have to consider this as a hypothetical. Look on Redfin or Zillow at the housing values on the border between highly rated and lower rated schools. The difference between these neighbors is typically a couple hundred thousand dollars. There is a premium that buyers will pay for reliably good schools.

That is a private transaction between two parties making property deals. Not to be reductionist, and I know people like to believe they're entitled to what they *think* they're buying with a real estate purchase. But they're buying land in the end. Not entitlements to forevermore surgically segregated school buildings.

Oh, my mistake, you’re right, the county in no way cares about housing values in the county. Why would they, it’s not like property tax revenues are directly tied to property values. Wait, is that right?

I’m afraid that many people advocating for redistricting are as naive as you and fail to grasp certain economic truths when it comes to this stuff. “Who cares about private transactions?” You absolutely need to consider the private transactions since that is the foundation for a large amount of tax revenue in the state.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It won't happen. If the school board tries it, Fairfax voters will protest either by staying home or by voting R. That means Virginia goes red for a few cycles. Youngkin is governor thanks to LCPS's incompetence. FCPS pissing off voters could cost democrats a senate seat or the governorship. The state party knows it and would quietly step in

School board actions have nothing to do with state or national elections. It is a nonpartisan office. The mistake of conflating sb elections with national politics is what led us to the disastrous last school board.

If you think that was a mistake, at least be candid enough to recognize it didn't end with the last elections. The SB is as partisan and driven by national politics as ever; the only difference with prior boards is that they've concluded the best way to package their progressive, "equity is at the center of everything we do" agenda is as an exercise in "efficiency."

That's complete BS, as illustrated by the fact they remain prepared to go ahead and spend over $80M on a completely unnecessary ES in Dunn Loring. Any board that cared at all about cost savings would have nixed that school in the most recent CIP, but they didn't do that. The most any of them was say the decision was made before their election, as if it could not be revisited.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has been something like 30 years since FCPS did a boundary study and reorg, it is needed. I understand that people don’t want to change schools, especially if they are going from a strong school to a school to a weaker school. That doesn’t mean that a boundary study isn’t needed.

There are over-enrolled schools and under-enrolled schools. Boundaries should be adjusted to use the space that we have.

That does not mean that boundaries should be drawn to balance FARMs rates. It does mean that there will be some adjustments because there are high FARMs schools that are under-enrolled near low FARMs schools that are close to capacity or at capacity. Langley is not going to have kids bussed from Lewis. Lewis is not going to have kids bussed from Langley.

I wold prefer that they handle the entire county at once then do the stupid school by school with ripple effects so that it is done with at one time. Then set periodic reviews every 10 years, or something like that.

I think this is also the time to drop IB and make every school AP. Maybe take the empty space in one of the under-enrolled schools and make an IB magnate school for the kids who really want it. You have to be willing to work towards the diploma to attend that magnate school. It would probably increase the number of kids working towards the diploma because they would all be together instead of small numbers at each of the IB schools.

Do you know why schools are under-enrolled? Because net student transfers out are in the hundreds. If you care about using available seats, rather than disrupt the whole system, just turn off the damn spigot.

The reason there is a spigot in the first place is because parents are bailing on failing schools. Why are the schools failing? It’s because FCPS has created a system of “good” (high SES) schools adjacent to “bad” (low SES) schools. The “bad” schools do not offer the same variety of classes, extracurriculars, or educational opportunities as the “good” schools right down the street. So, you think we should just make students stay in the “bad” schools because they happen to live just outside the “good” zone?

The county needs to do a county-wide reassessment of boundaries, which hasn’t been done in a very long time. It should include a comprehensive inventory of facilities, space, and programs offered at each school. Maybe it would conclude that some schools could be closed and consolidated to offer better economy of scale and similarity of course offerings. No county resident should have the idea that their school district is set in stone.

If I were a parent with young kids looking to buy an home in the DC area and read your last sentence, I would simply stop looking for a home in Fairfax County. Home buyers overwhelmingly buy their homes for the schools - it’s a fundamental truth.

Okay. So, go ahead and make that drive to work from Stafford or Loudoun or the exurbs. The reality is that Fairfax real estate is still in high demand because the jobs are here. Prices are higher here for a reason.

It’s cute that you think that ostracizing parents with young kids in our county would have little consequence for the county, just because demand for housing in the county is currently high.

You don’t even have to consider this as a hypothetical. Look on Redfin or Zillow at the housing values on the border between highly rated and lower rated schools. The difference between these neighbors is typically a couple hundred thousand dollars. There is a premium that buyers will pay for reliably good schools.

That is a private transaction between two parties making property deals. Not to be reductionist, and I know people like to believe they're entitled to what they *think* they're buying with a real estate purchase. But they're buying land in the end. Not entitlements to forevermore surgically segregated school buildings.

No one actually believes this. FCPS wouldn't tout the variety among its schools unless it wanted to attract people attracted to different programs and offerings. Pull the rug out from families and they've destroyed trust even if they haven't breached a contract.

Youngkin is governor because LCPS botched a sexual assault case and enough Loudon voters either stayed home or voter R to shrink the margin that McAuliffe needed to win.

[Anonymous]

You are never going to have the same classes across all schools because you need to have enough students in each school to offer the class. I know we are looking at SLHS and wondering if the math options will be enough for a kid who is taking Algebra 1 in 7th grade. The IB program is less attractive to us because of how the math is structured and there are fewer STEM electives at SLHS than other schools in the area. SLHS has fewer kids entering with Algebra 1 in 7th grade, there is are fewer kids who are ready for more advanced math so there are fewer options.

And yes, high FARMs schools are going to have fewer kids who are ready for AP or IB classes in high school and so there are fewer class offerings and there are fewer higher level options offered. We are not going to be able to fix that. Dropping IB as a whole will keep more kids at their base school, which should increase the number of students who are in the AP program, allowing for more sections and more class offerings. But even with that, Langley is going to have different courses offered than SLHS.

Honestly, I am fine with that. The classes offered should meet the needs of the students. Offering Dual Enrollment options for kids who are further ahead in the higher FARMs schools can help with the class differences. If kids are staying at their base schools, then there will be more kids in the AP program and things will improve. But if a boundary adjustment and dropping IB means that there are more kids in the high FARMs schools that are participating in the AP program, then that is a good thing.

All of the parents I know at SLHS with kids in IB are pretty happy with the school. All the parents I know at Herndon with kids in the AP track are pretty happy. The schools will do better if the FARMs numbers drop, we saw SLHS improve when the Fox Mill kids were moved to SLHS and that did not add that many kids. I want to say Fox Mill has about 90 kids in each grade level, so adding in about 360 kids but the scores at SLHS jumped a good amount. The number of classes offered increased a good amount. It doesn’t match Langley or Chantilly but it is improved.

But the boundaries need to be updated, it has been too long and they are wonky. We all know that. The people on this board tend to be High SES so people feel like they have to most to lose and that is what we are hearing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are never going to have the same classes across all schools because you need to have enough students in each school to offer the class. I know we are looking at SLHS and wondering if the math options will be enough for a kid who is taking Algebra 1 in 7th grade. The IB program is less attractive to us because of how the math is structured and there are fewer STEM electives at SLHS than other schools in the area. SLHS has fewer kids entering with Algebra 1 in 7th grade, there is are fewer kids who are ready for more advanced math so there are fewer options.

And yes, high FARMs schools are going to have fewer kids who are ready for AP or IB classes in high school and so there are fewer class offerings and there are fewer higher level options offered. We are not going to be able to fix that. Dropping IB as a whole will keep more kids at their base school, which should increase the number of students who are in the AP program, allowing for more sections and more class offerings. But even with that, Langley is going to have different courses offered than SLHS.

Honestly, I am fine with that. The classes offered should meet the needs of the students. Offering Dual Enrollment options for kids who are further ahead in the higher FARMs schools can help with the class differences. If kids are staying at their base schools, then there will be more kids in the AP program and things will improve. But if a boundary adjustment and dropping IB means that there are more kids in the high FARMs schools that are participating in the AP program, then that is a good thing.

All of the parents I know at SLHS with kids in IB are pretty happy with the school. All the parents I know at Herndon with kids in the AP track are pretty happy. The schools will do better if the FARMs numbers drop, we saw SLHS improve when the Fox Mill kids were moved to SLHS and that did not add that many kids. I want to say Fox Mill has about 90 kids in each grade level, so adding in about 360 kids but the scores at SLHS jumped a good amount. The number of classes offered increased a good amount. It doesn’t match Langley or Chantilly but it is improved.

But the boundaries need to be updated, it has been too long and they are wonky. We all know that. The people on this board tend to be High SES so people feel like they have to most to lose and that is what we are hearing.

The boundaries don’t need to be updated, except in rare circumstances. We all know that. (See I can just categorically proclaim a universal truth too.)

Most SJW agitators on this board are just hoping for a small bump in their housing values at the expense of their neighbors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are never going to have the same classes across all schools because you need to have enough students in each school to offer the class. I know we are looking at SLHS and wondering if the math options will be enough for a kid who is taking Algebra 1 in 7th grade. The IB program is less attractive to us because of how the math is structured and there are fewer STEM electives at SLHS than other schools in the area. SLHS has fewer kids entering with Algebra 1 in 7th grade, there is are fewer kids who are ready for more advanced math so there are fewer options.

And yes, high FARMs schools are going to have fewer kids who are ready for AP or IB classes in high school and so there are fewer class offerings and there are fewer higher level options offered. We are not going to be able to fix that. Dropping IB as a whole will keep more kids at their base school, which should increase the number of students who are in the AP program, allowing for more sections and more class offerings. But even with that, Langley is going to have different courses offered than SLHS.

Honestly, I am fine with that. The classes offered should meet the needs of the students. Offering Dual Enrollment options for kids who are further ahead in the higher FARMs schools can help with the class differences. If kids are staying at their base schools, then there will be more kids in the AP program and things will improve. But if a boundary adjustment and dropping IB means that there are more kids in the high FARMs schools that are participating in the AP program, then that is a good thing.

All of the parents I know at SLHS with kids in IB are pretty happy with the school. All the parents I know at Herndon with kids in the AP track are pretty happy. The schools will do better if the FARMs numbers drop, we saw SLHS improve when the Fox Mill kids were moved to SLHS and that did not add that many kids. I want to say Fox Mill has about 90 kids in each grade level, so adding in about 360 kids but the scores at SLHS jumped a good amount. The number of classes offered increased a good amount. It doesn’t match Langley or Chantilly but it is improved.

But the boundaries need to be updated, it has been too long and they are wonky. We all know that. The people on this board tend to be High SES so people feel like they have to most to lose and that is what we are hearing.

The classes being offered convince parents with means to send their kids to another school. You're using SLHS and Herndon as examples, but both of those schools have sufficient cohorts to offer advanced classes. The highest FARMs rate schools do not have those cohorts