Message
Hi there, it's me, Ann McLeod, Garrison PTA president.
I was really disappointed about the test scores. I haven't talked with the Principal about it yet so I don't know what his explanation might be. I can offer one that I am quite sure will not be adequate for DCUM but I can try.
Last year was the first year after many school closures. Our enrollment went up 20%. We received students from Prospect Learning Center which closed and so our special education percentage increased even more. So, our enrollment increase was not just because an additional PS/PK class was added, it was also from students in upper grades who came from other schools.
I've said it before and I will say it again...my son has been at Garrison since PK. He will be in 3rd grade this year. He has learned to read and do math at Garrison. I certainly did nothing to teach him this. Really, I let him watch way too much TV and have his own iPad on which he plays MineCraft way too often. His cousins who are the same age (one is the the same grade, the other is one grade above) go to school in Potomac Maryland. HE READS AND DOES MATH ON THE SAME LEVEL AS THEM. He learned it all at Garrison. Why are other students not on this same level? I don't know, they have had the same teachers. All I can really point to is that our school is 99% low income and probably 30% special education (this is a MUCH higher sp ed percentage than a lot of other Title I schools). My son is in neither of those categories and that's the difference. If my son, who has a stable home life and inherently knows school is important and that he has to listen and behave was not learning, then I would know there was a problem with the teachers or the administration or whatever other reason you want to give. But that is not the case.
As a person who has spent the majority of her free time working to support the school, it is extremely disheartening to read many of the comments about Garrison and many other similar schools. A school should not be judged on test scores alone. "Hype" about a school is not worth it if the test scores don't go up?? No school is ever going to improve unless we all support the students who are enrolled and each other and stop being so negative. If more involved families don't start attending, of course nothing will change.
So perhaps instead of asking "What's up with Garrison?" how about we ask "How can we help Garrison?" or "What is DCPS doing to help Garrison?" maybe the original poster did not mean the question in a negative way, and maybe I am reading into other posts, but it seems all of the discussion is so negative rather than trying to really figure out what is wrong and what to truly do to help the kids who need help getting to the level where they should be according to some data point.
I would give up reading DCUM but as the PTA president it is my responsibility to come here and read all of this and respond. And you can feel however you want to about what I have said, bash me, or whatever. All I know is I am trying to support the school and our students, who are such great kids, and I'm also really sad that they are not reading and doing math on grade level. I guess on a positive note, at least people are paying attention to Garrison.
Thanks,
ann
I was really disappointed about the test scores. I haven't talked with the Principal about it yet so I don't know what his explanation might be. I can offer one that I am quite sure will not be adequate for DCUM but I can try.
Last year was the first year after many school closures. Our enrollment went up 20%. We received students from Prospect Learning Center which closed and so our special education percentage increased even more. So, our enrollment increase was not just because an additional PS/PK class was added, it was also from students in upper grades who came from other schools.
I've said it before and I will say it again...my son has been at Garrison since PK. He will be in 3rd grade this year. He has learned to read and do math at Garrison. I certainly did nothing to teach him this. Really, I let him watch way too much TV and have his own iPad on which he plays MineCraft way too often. His cousins who are the same age (one is the the same grade, the other is one grade above) go to school in Potomac Maryland. HE READS AND DOES MATH ON THE SAME LEVEL AS THEM. He learned it all at Garrison. Why are other students not on this same level? I don't know, they have had the same teachers. All I can really point to is that our school is 99% low income and probably 30% special education (this is a MUCH higher sp ed percentage than a lot of other Title I schools). My son is in neither of those categories and that's the difference. If my son, who has a stable home life and inherently knows school is important and that he has to listen and behave was not learning, then I would know there was a problem with the teachers or the administration or whatever other reason you want to give. But that is not the case.
As a person who has spent the majority of her free time working to support the school, it is extremely disheartening to read many of the comments about Garrison and many other similar schools. A school should not be judged on test scores alone. "Hype" about a school is not worth it if the test scores don't go up?? No school is ever going to improve unless we all support the students who are enrolled and each other and stop being so negative. If more involved families don't start attending, of course nothing will change.
So perhaps instead of asking "What's up with Garrison?" how about we ask "How can we help Garrison?" or "What is DCPS doing to help Garrison?" maybe the original poster did not mean the question in a negative way, and maybe I am reading into other posts, but it seems all of the discussion is so negative rather than trying to really figure out what is wrong and what to truly do to help the kids who need help getting to the level where they should be according to some data point.
I would give up reading DCUM but as the PTA president it is my responsibility to come here and read all of this and respond. And you can feel however you want to about what I have said, bash me, or whatever. All I know is I am trying to support the school and our students, who are such great kids, and I'm also really sad that they are not reading and doing math on grade level. I guess on a positive note, at least people are paying attention to Garrison.
Thanks,
ann
We have been asking for a full modernization at Garrison for quite some time. While we knew we were getting our Phase I reno this summer, we were also asking to get money in FY2015 to do the next Phases of modernization, rather than have to wait until 2019 and 2021 to complete the remaining phases.
So, while we are disappointed that classrooms won't be renovated this summer, it is great that we will be getting what we have been asking for in 2015 (barring yet another rescheduling of funds...) With the way everything has gone for us, I'll just accept this as a win. With respect to what a previous poster said regarding Gray's and Henderson's attitude towards Garrison, I totally agree...it's been shown over and over that we are simply not a priority to them. What would be nice if there was a strategy for the school (and hey, EVERY school), that everyone supports.
What I do think is great is that even on this forum, everyone agrees that all this pitting school against school has got to stop. We need a strategic plan for modernization of schools that is finalized and committed to and not changed. Plus, more realistic budgeting has to occur - that is what really started the mess to begin with...no contingency funds when things don't go as planned. I hope that all District residents start demanding this. Even if you don't have a child in our public schools, it does affect you and the city.
So, while we are disappointed that classrooms won't be renovated this summer, it is great that we will be getting what we have been asking for in 2015 (barring yet another rescheduling of funds...) With the way everything has gone for us, I'll just accept this as a win. With respect to what a previous poster said regarding Gray's and Henderson's attitude towards Garrison, I totally agree...it's been shown over and over that we are simply not a priority to them. What would be nice if there was a strategy for the school (and hey, EVERY school), that everyone supports.
What I do think is great is that even on this forum, everyone agrees that all this pitting school against school has got to stop. We need a strategic plan for modernization of schools that is finalized and committed to and not changed. Plus, more realistic budgeting has to occur - that is what really started the mess to begin with...no contingency funds when things don't go as planned. I hope that all District residents start demanding this. Even if you don't have a child in our public schools, it does affect you and the city.
TO 10:47, thanks for the advice. Please feel free to email me at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com
Actually, we already thought of this...saying something along the lines of "OK, we'll go to 2015 if you get us the full modernization we want" BUT...time and time again it has been proven that schedules and promises mean nothing. But certainly it is worth having a meeting with the powers that be to discuss.
I most certainly don't want to fight with other schools over the money. All the schools deserve to get what they were promised.
Actually, we already thought of this...saying something along the lines of "OK, we'll go to 2015 if you get us the full modernization we want" BUT...time and time again it has been proven that schedules and promises mean nothing. But certainly it is worth having a meeting with the powers that be to discuss.
I most certainly don't want to fight with other schools over the money. All the schools deserve to get what they were promised.
It's me, Ann McLeod, Garrison PTA President. If I may, I am going to respond to a few items here:
1. Emma Brown, the Post report, was doing her job - reporting breaking NEWS. We would not have found out about this if it were not for her. Personally I am quite grateful. There is a link to the letter that the Mayor sent to the council asking for the reallocation of funds, but for ease, here is a link to the letter. Is it her job to find out why the Mayor made these choices? Certainly we hope that that can be found out but surely getting that answer is near impossible. http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1026524/mayor-vincent-c-grays-capital-funds.pdf
2. TO the poster who said "Why do people believe they should get something from reprogramming - redirecting funds from unspent categories - during the next 6 months rather than as part of the regular budget process and capital improvement plan? I don't get the perspective that anyone was "robbed" here."
We specifically ARE being robbed. Garrison's Phase I modernization is scheduled for this summer - this is the way all phased modernizations work. This has been scheduled for years; same as other schools who are on the "loser" list. We have had many meetings about this, architects have already worked on plans, etc. So, yes, the Mayor is asking that the funds that are "unspent" but the funds have already been set-aside for Garrison via AN APPROVED BUDGET, are now requested to be moved to cover the shortfall for other projects.
3. No where in the document does it say when the modernization will now take place. It just says that it will be in a future fiscal year.
4. One poster said "A bummer for the Garrison parents but some schools have been waiting for 2 decades." So, you think we don't deserve to be modernized now?? Our school has not been renovated since it was built in 1964!! We've been waiting 5 decades, not 2 decades. To say one school is more deserving than another is absurd. The crappy thing about all of this is that the Mayor is pitting one school against another, one neighborhood against another, etc.
Clearly we are not the only school affected and not the only community that is reeling from this news. In a city where we had a budget surplus of over $400 million, there is no reason that these choices have to be made.
Personally, what angers me so much about all of this is that there is no explanation as to WHY the choices were made - no strategic reasons, no "OK folks, we need to do this but we guarantee you'll be in the next fiscal year and you'll get a full modernization so you are guaranteed that future renovations will not be rescheduled like this one has." (Of course, it has been proven over and over again that we cannot trust what is said anyway, so why would we believe that?) There is NO plan.
As always, we thank everyone out there who has been supporting Garrison for their continued support and ask you to write to your Council Member and Mayor Gray expressing your opinion on all of this.
1. Emma Brown, the Post report, was doing her job - reporting breaking NEWS. We would not have found out about this if it were not for her. Personally I am quite grateful. There is a link to the letter that the Mayor sent to the council asking for the reallocation of funds, but for ease, here is a link to the letter. Is it her job to find out why the Mayor made these choices? Certainly we hope that that can be found out but surely getting that answer is near impossible. http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1026524/mayor-vincent-c-grays-capital-funds.pdf
2. TO the poster who said "Why do people believe they should get something from reprogramming - redirecting funds from unspent categories - during the next 6 months rather than as part of the regular budget process and capital improvement plan? I don't get the perspective that anyone was "robbed" here."
We specifically ARE being robbed. Garrison's Phase I modernization is scheduled for this summer - this is the way all phased modernizations work. This has been scheduled for years; same as other schools who are on the "loser" list. We have had many meetings about this, architects have already worked on plans, etc. So, yes, the Mayor is asking that the funds that are "unspent" but the funds have already been set-aside for Garrison via AN APPROVED BUDGET, are now requested to be moved to cover the shortfall for other projects.
3. No where in the document does it say when the modernization will now take place. It just says that it will be in a future fiscal year.
4. One poster said "A bummer for the Garrison parents but some schools have been waiting for 2 decades." So, you think we don't deserve to be modernized now?? Our school has not been renovated since it was built in 1964!! We've been waiting 5 decades, not 2 decades. To say one school is more deserving than another is absurd. The crappy thing about all of this is that the Mayor is pitting one school against another, one neighborhood against another, etc.
Clearly we are not the only school affected and not the only community that is reeling from this news. In a city where we had a budget surplus of over $400 million, there is no reason that these choices have to be made.
Personally, what angers me so much about all of this is that there is no explanation as to WHY the choices were made - no strategic reasons, no "OK folks, we need to do this but we guarantee you'll be in the next fiscal year and you'll get a full modernization so you are guaranteed that future renovations will not be rescheduled like this one has." (Of course, it has been proven over and over again that we cannot trust what is said anyway, so why would we believe that?) There is NO plan.
As always, we thank everyone out there who has been supporting Garrison for their continued support and ask you to write to your Council Member and Mayor Gray expressing your opinion on all of this.
Thanks for your response. Collin was definitely there if it was on a Saturday - we simply cannot get into the building if he isn't there. He does have a bad habit of not always saying who he is before he talks - a lot of times he tries to greet people as they come in, and then when we start the "official" meeting, he just talks, not realizing maybe he didn't meet everyone (which can happen because sometimes he leaves the room for whatever reason before we start). Anyway, I hope you can come back for another open house or to the drop-in dates so you can see classes in action. If those times do not work, you (and everyone) are welcome to schedule a time to come when it is convenient for you. Just email collin at collin.hill@dc.gov to arrange something.
Anonymous wrote:It sounds like their open houses are a lot more organized now. I went to the first one, and it was parents and not teachers, no principals, didn't get a feel for what the program would be like. Glad they've improved them. It's not on our list based on our open house experience.
Hello there, it's Ann. I am sorry you had a bad experience with an open house. May I ask when this was? We would not plan an open house without our principal being there - if it is on a weekend we can't get into the building without him. I'm just trying to connect the dots so we can ensure this does not happen again. We are very aware that we win a lot of people over via open houses, so your report makes me very sad. Thank you.
Regarding a posting last week about the test scores - all I can tell you is what the principal explained to me. The past few years we have only had one class per grade in 3-5. In SY 2011-2012, we had a really exceptional 3rd grade. They moved up to 4th (obviously) and a new 3rd grade class came in, who just were not as strong academically. Since it is such a small sample size, it really affects the scores. We have hired additional staff this year to give kids the resources they need to get to where they should be. Hopefully that answers the question. I know how important test scores are when looking at schools, but a school is so much more than its test scores. My son is in 2nd grade and has friends in other DCPS schools and charters - I've seen what is sent home with them and many of the schools are using the exact same materials...some of our friends even say, "Michael is doing addition of three-column numbers? We're not doing that!". My niece and nephew are in 3rd and 2nd grade in Potomac Maryland, and my son is on par with them. My son is learning multiplication and my niece hasn't even started on that, and she's in 3rd grade. So, I believe 100% that my child would not be getting a better education if he were at another school.
As always, thanks for your interest in Garrison!
ann mcLeod
Garrison PTA President
Hello everyone! here's our Open House schedule:
Each of the following open houses start at 10 am:
Saturday, January 25th,
Saturday February 8th, and
Friday, February 21st.
Additionally, we are having walk in tours on the following Thursdays from 10 am-11am. During this time a preschool/prek teacher will great you, share some information about Garrison, and then give you a tour of some of the classrooms, while students are in center time. The dates are:
Thursday, January 30th
Thursday, February 13th
Thursday, February 27th.
As always, if you have any questions, email us at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com, or our Principal at collin.hill@dc.gov.
best
ann mcLeod
Garrison PTA President
Each of the following open houses start at 10 am:
Saturday, January 25th,
Saturday February 8th, and
Friday, February 21st.
Additionally, we are having walk in tours on the following Thursdays from 10 am-11am. During this time a preschool/prek teacher will great you, share some information about Garrison, and then give you a tour of some of the classrooms, while students are in center time. The dates are:
Thursday, January 30th
Thursday, February 13th
Thursday, February 27th.
As always, if you have any questions, email us at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com, or our Principal at collin.hill@dc.gov.
best
ann mcLeod
Garrison PTA President
Hi, it's Ann again. To answer/comment on the replies:
Collin left Walker-Jones to be our principal. I think it's pretty obvious that someone who's an assistant principal aspires to be a principal...
For the mixed-age rooms, when your child has Ms. McLeod for PS3, she will also have Ms. McLeod for PK4. After PK4, she moves up to kindergarten and a new teacher.
We do have not have tons of families who leave before 5th grade. A few, but most do stay until 5th. I believe we have 17 kids in our 5th grade this year. Personally, unless something crazy happens, we plan to stay until 5th grade unless we win the lottery and we can afford to move to New York City.
Cardozo:
Are people excited about it as it exists now? No, I wouldn't say they are.
Are we going to ask if we can change the feeder pattern? NO. Why bother? It would never happen.
Do we have thoughts on things we think that could be implemented to make it more attractive? Yes, and a few parents have discussed it and are trying to figure out how to engage DCPS and other schools about it. We'll see. I will say that the Cardozo principal, Tanya Roane, is fantastic. She will definitely do great things there. But, yeah, it is a hard sell but families and the community need to work and get invested to make it a realistic option instead of just complaining about it.
Personally, I can only take one year at a time, and things change (relatively) quickly, so I do not spend time freaking out about what we are going to do for middle and high school. For all I know, my child may become a musical prodigy thanks to the Garrison Orchestra and want to go to Ellington, so why waste of my mental energy? I have plenty of other things to worry about.
We hope to have our open house schedule finalized in the next day or two. We also will have drop-in days during the week so you can come sit in on classes in action.
cheers
ann
Collin left Walker-Jones to be our principal. I think it's pretty obvious that someone who's an assistant principal aspires to be a principal...
For the mixed-age rooms, when your child has Ms. McLeod for PS3, she will also have Ms. McLeod for PK4. After PK4, she moves up to kindergarten and a new teacher.
We do have not have tons of families who leave before 5th grade. A few, but most do stay until 5th. I believe we have 17 kids in our 5th grade this year. Personally, unless something crazy happens, we plan to stay until 5th grade unless we win the lottery and we can afford to move to New York City.
Cardozo:
Are people excited about it as it exists now? No, I wouldn't say they are.
Are we going to ask if we can change the feeder pattern? NO. Why bother? It would never happen.
Do we have thoughts on things we think that could be implemented to make it more attractive? Yes, and a few parents have discussed it and are trying to figure out how to engage DCPS and other schools about it. We'll see. I will say that the Cardozo principal, Tanya Roane, is fantastic. She will definitely do great things there. But, yeah, it is a hard sell but families and the community need to work and get invested to make it a realistic option instead of just complaining about it.
Personally, I can only take one year at a time, and things change (relatively) quickly, so I do not spend time freaking out about what we are going to do for middle and high school. For all I know, my child may become a musical prodigy thanks to the Garrison Orchestra and want to go to Ellington, so why waste of my mental energy? I have plenty of other things to worry about.
We hope to have our open house schedule finalized in the next day or two. We also will have drop-in days during the week so you can come sit in on classes in action.
cheers
ann
Greetings, this is Ann McLeod, Garrison PTA President. Thanks so much for your interest in our school!
Of course I'll chime in what I think and I appreciate not being flamed for being a "booster" - of course I'm boosting Garrison, I'm the PTA President for gosh's sake, it's part of my duties. And next, let me say that my son is in 2nd grade at Garrison so I'm a bit far removed from what is going on in PS3/PK4. Of course I know what is going on but I don't have first-hand experience.
Sorry for not responding sooner but it is not my habit to regularly read DCUM. Another parent alerted me of the posting so thanks to her, she knows who she is!!
To comment specifically on the PS/PK program...this year we have 5 PS/PK classrooms. Yes, 5. After we were successful in keeping Garrison open, DCPS added an additional PS/PK class to the school. There are 16 children per class. All these classes are mixed-age...with 3s and 4s in the same room. A child will stay with the same teacher for both years, which is great. We have an AMAZING group of teachers. They go above and beyond always, are involved with the PTA, and truly love the students. They work as a team so there is consistency in all classes. You're not going to find one room doing something way cool and another room not doing it. We do use the Tools of the Mind curriculum, which all of our families like very much. It has a lot of similarities to Reggio Emila in that children work in "centers" and select their own centers. It's a great way for kids to learn how to self-regulate, learn by play, and be creative.
We have recess every day, and once a week everyone has Spanish, library, PE, music, and art. We do have full-time music, Spanish, and PE teachers on-site. (We used to go to Fillmore but don't any longer for those who visited us in the past.)
Garrison will be modernized this summer and we are fighting the good fight to get more than just the Phase I modernization for which we are scheduled.
Our principal, Collin Hill, is great. He grew up in DC and went to DCPS himself. His children are enrolled in DCPS schools. This is his 2nd year at Garrison (he was AP at Walker-Jones prior to joining us). I think he is amazing. He is very open and honest and truly welcomes thoughts from families and the community.
We have DCPS-run aftercare but not before-care. One aftercare program is orchestra, which is open to 2nd - 5th graders. My son is in it and is learning to play the cello. He absolutely LOVES it. We are the only DCPS elementary school with an orchestra
I hope this helps somewhat. We are getting together an open house schedule, which I will post. However, you are ALWAYS welcome to come and sit in a class while it is in session. Please contact Collin to set up a time - collin.hill@dc.gov.
Feel free to post other specific questions here or email us at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com.
thanks again for your interest!
ann mcLeod
Garrison PTA president
Of course I'll chime in what I think and I appreciate not being flamed for being a "booster" - of course I'm boosting Garrison, I'm the PTA President for gosh's sake, it's part of my duties. And next, let me say that my son is in 2nd grade at Garrison so I'm a bit far removed from what is going on in PS3/PK4. Of course I know what is going on but I don't have first-hand experience.
Sorry for not responding sooner but it is not my habit to regularly read DCUM. Another parent alerted me of the posting so thanks to her, she knows who she is!!
To comment specifically on the PS/PK program...this year we have 5 PS/PK classrooms. Yes, 5. After we were successful in keeping Garrison open, DCPS added an additional PS/PK class to the school. There are 16 children per class. All these classes are mixed-age...with 3s and 4s in the same room. A child will stay with the same teacher for both years, which is great. We have an AMAZING group of teachers. They go above and beyond always, are involved with the PTA, and truly love the students. They work as a team so there is consistency in all classes. You're not going to find one room doing something way cool and another room not doing it. We do use the Tools of the Mind curriculum, which all of our families like very much. It has a lot of similarities to Reggio Emila in that children work in "centers" and select their own centers. It's a great way for kids to learn how to self-regulate, learn by play, and be creative.
We have recess every day, and once a week everyone has Spanish, library, PE, music, and art. We do have full-time music, Spanish, and PE teachers on-site. (We used to go to Fillmore but don't any longer for those who visited us in the past.)
Garrison will be modernized this summer and we are fighting the good fight to get more than just the Phase I modernization for which we are scheduled.
Our principal, Collin Hill, is great. He grew up in DC and went to DCPS himself. His children are enrolled in DCPS schools. This is his 2nd year at Garrison (he was AP at Walker-Jones prior to joining us). I think he is amazing. He is very open and honest and truly welcomes thoughts from families and the community.
We have DCPS-run aftercare but not before-care. One aftercare program is orchestra, which is open to 2nd - 5th graders. My son is in it and is learning to play the cello. He absolutely LOVES it. We are the only DCPS elementary school with an orchestra
I hope this helps somewhat. We are getting together an open house schedule, which I will post. However, you are ALWAYS welcome to come and sit in a class while it is in session. Please contact Collin to set up a time - collin.hill@dc.gov.
Feel free to post other specific questions here or email us at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com.
thanks again for your interest!
ann mcLeod
Garrison PTA president
Hi again. Sorry you cannot make it - we will definitely look into scheduling another one. We were trying to hold it before the requested enrollment form submission date of May 1, so not sure we can swing another one prior to then. We do have another PTA meeting scheduled for April 24 and you are welcome to attend that.
You are ALWAYS welcome to schedule a time to come to the school during classroom hours and observe. Just call our Principal Collin Hill to schedule something.
cheers
ann
You are ALWAYS welcome to schedule a time to come to the school during classroom hours and observe. Just call our Principal Collin Hill to schedule something.
cheers
ann
Greetings everyone, this is Ann McLeod, Garrison PTA President.
My son is in 1st grade and been at Garrison since PK. I love our early childhood team - they are enthusiastic and very involved. My son's PK teacher retired (and got a Rubenstein award!) and his K teacher is there now and was great. I have no direct experience with PS3 so I won't comment on that. I will tell you that many of the families who could give you good insight are either on vacation for Spring Break or do not frequent DCUM. So, if you will email me at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com, I would be happy to forward your email to a few people so they can get back to you.
Second, as you know, we have a meet and greet on April 12 and current PS/PK/K families are invited too, so you can meet people already at the school, so I hope you will join us. We encourage you to ask candid questions - that's what the event is for. We want you to be comfortable with your decision to attend Garrison or find out now that its not for you.
Finally, I'll just comment on a few things that have been brought up. I have no plans to pull my son from Garrison. I will say that we are moving, and I plan to stay at Garrison unless we are way out of the neighborhood, but it is my intention to stay nearby and at Garrison. The teachers are great and sure, the test scores may not be as high as at other schools, but we are a Title I school with 75% low-income students so you really cannot expect scores as high as those at schools West of the Park given this. We are simply a different demographic. But - this is what makes Garrison great. Personally, I chose to live in the city and in Logan Circle, and want my son to go to a school that reflects his neighborhood. There are families in Logan who have lived there for generations and those families attend Garrison as well as people like me who moved to the neighborhood a few years ago. My son is a very strong reader and he learned this from the teachers there. His teacher sends home additional reading and math for him so he is challenged. His teacher knows my son loves baseball so even sends home baseball magazines with him. Two of our PTA officers have kids who have been at Garrison since PS3 and both are advanced - one in 4th grade and one in 2nd. Sure, people have dropped off in the past but I think more are staying now b/c of the increased level of engagement.
Yes, there was not an active PTA prior to three years ago so the students in the upper grades now did not have the influence of a lot of adults being involved at the school. Believe me, all the kids notice that more adults are involved and genuinely care about them...and that does motivate them.
Regarding Middle School, I totally get it. The option right now is scary. But, as another poster said, I cannot make decisions today based on 4 years from now. I know others will but that's just not me. However, the middle school options are NEVER going to get better if more parents do not get involved and stay in the system. For that matter, no school will get better if parents do not get involved and stay with it. (Sorry for the soapbox.)
Thank you for starting this thread and thanks for your interest in Garrison! We hope to see you on April 12 for the meet-n-greet. Anyone who sees this and is on the waitlist for Garrison, you are welcome to join us - please email GarrisonPTA@gmail.com for more info and so we know you are coming.
best
ann
My son is in 1st grade and been at Garrison since PK. I love our early childhood team - they are enthusiastic and very involved. My son's PK teacher retired (and got a Rubenstein award!) and his K teacher is there now and was great. I have no direct experience with PS3 so I won't comment on that. I will tell you that many of the families who could give you good insight are either on vacation for Spring Break or do not frequent DCUM. So, if you will email me at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com, I would be happy to forward your email to a few people so they can get back to you.
Second, as you know, we have a meet and greet on April 12 and current PS/PK/K families are invited too, so you can meet people already at the school, so I hope you will join us. We encourage you to ask candid questions - that's what the event is for. We want you to be comfortable with your decision to attend Garrison or find out now that its not for you.
Finally, I'll just comment on a few things that have been brought up. I have no plans to pull my son from Garrison. I will say that we are moving, and I plan to stay at Garrison unless we are way out of the neighborhood, but it is my intention to stay nearby and at Garrison. The teachers are great and sure, the test scores may not be as high as at other schools, but we are a Title I school with 75% low-income students so you really cannot expect scores as high as those at schools West of the Park given this. We are simply a different demographic. But - this is what makes Garrison great. Personally, I chose to live in the city and in Logan Circle, and want my son to go to a school that reflects his neighborhood. There are families in Logan who have lived there for generations and those families attend Garrison as well as people like me who moved to the neighborhood a few years ago. My son is a very strong reader and he learned this from the teachers there. His teacher sends home additional reading and math for him so he is challenged. His teacher knows my son loves baseball so even sends home baseball magazines with him. Two of our PTA officers have kids who have been at Garrison since PS3 and both are advanced - one in 4th grade and one in 2nd. Sure, people have dropped off in the past but I think more are staying now b/c of the increased level of engagement.
Yes, there was not an active PTA prior to three years ago so the students in the upper grades now did not have the influence of a lot of adults being involved at the school. Believe me, all the kids notice that more adults are involved and genuinely care about them...and that does motivate them.
Regarding Middle School, I totally get it. The option right now is scary. But, as another poster said, I cannot make decisions today based on 4 years from now. I know others will but that's just not me. However, the middle school options are NEVER going to get better if more parents do not get involved and stay in the system. For that matter, no school will get better if parents do not get involved and stay with it. (Sorry for the soapbox.)
Thank you for starting this thread and thanks for your interest in Garrison! We hope to see you on April 12 for the meet-n-greet. Anyone who sees this and is on the waitlist for Garrison, you are welcome to join us - please email GarrisonPTA@gmail.com for more info and so we know you are coming.
best
ann
That's great! Good for them!
A coincidence that her character's last name is Pope??
A coincidence that her character's last name is Pope??
Ha ha, yes, I created a username so no one could accuse me of being a troll or a booster. Also so posts are seen as by me.
We are actually 51% in-boundary. There are some data errors by DCPS that we are working to clear up - it seems they did not include the PS and PK classes when they came up with the 40% as the number. We hope to get that updated on the DCPS profiles page.
Also, I will say that while we are 51% in-boundary, 60% of our students are from Wards 1 and 2 (our boundaries are half in Ward 1 and half in Ward 2), so while technically someone may be OOB, they may live very close to the school.
Thanks again for all the congratulatory notes. It is so nice to hear. And a special congrats to Francis-Stevens, who we forged a great relationship with during this process. Our hearts go out to the 15 other schools who did not get the same results. I cannot imagine how they are feeling right now, and wish them the very best of luck moving forward.
best
ann
We are actually 51% in-boundary. There are some data errors by DCPS that we are working to clear up - it seems they did not include the PS and PK classes when they came up with the 40% as the number. We hope to get that updated on the DCPS profiles page.
Also, I will say that while we are 51% in-boundary, 60% of our students are from Wards 1 and 2 (our boundaries are half in Ward 1 and half in Ward 2), so while technically someone may be OOB, they may live very close to the school.
Thanks again for all the congratulatory notes. It is so nice to hear. And a special congrats to Francis-Stevens, who we forged a great relationship with during this process. Our hearts go out to the 15 other schools who did not get the same results. I cannot imagine how they are feeling right now, and wish them the very best of luck moving forward.
best
ann
Hi there, our principal is Collin Hill. Prior to Garrison (he was hired over the summer), he was AP at Walker-Jones for 2 years...he was at Scott Montgomery before that as AP...that school closed and consolidated into Walker-Jones. You can view a message from him on our website that gives a lot more details -
http://garrisonelementary.org/content.php?page=Our_Principal
Anyway...I think he is great. He came in and made immediate changes to things - students know exactly what is expected of them now and everyone is on the same page. Communication with parents has increased - he sends home a weekly letter whereas in the past it was more like every 6 weeks; he holds monthly coffees to chat with parents; and he reaches out to the community on his own accord. The culture in the school has improved tremendously since he came on board. He wants to make sure parents understand what their kids are supposed to be learning at school and at PTA meetings has committed to giving updates on academics...for instance, he gave us a good presentation on the common core standards and exactly what that means, because really, people don't understand. I feel he is exactly what our school needed and I have been thrilled.
Hopefully that answers some of your questions!
Thanks!
ann mcLeod
Garrison PTA president
http://garrisonelementary.org/content.php?page=Our_Principal
Anyway...I think he is great. He came in and made immediate changes to things - students know exactly what is expected of them now and everyone is on the same page. Communication with parents has increased - he sends home a weekly letter whereas in the past it was more like every 6 weeks; he holds monthly coffees to chat with parents; and he reaches out to the community on his own accord. The culture in the school has improved tremendously since he came on board. He wants to make sure parents understand what their kids are supposed to be learning at school and at PTA meetings has committed to giving updates on academics...for instance, he gave us a good presentation on the common core standards and exactly what that means, because really, people don't understand. I feel he is exactly what our school needed and I have been thrilled.
Hopefully that answers some of your questions!
Thanks!
ann mcLeod
Garrison PTA president
All, thanks so much for the kind words. We are obviously thrilled.
We are pushing for a modernization that would result in a building and grounds that can be used by the entire community (i.e. community meeting spaces, neighborhood garden, etc). Any way we can make this modernization happen we will find it. In no way do we advocate for a reduction in outdoor space as that is something we treasure. More info to come as we continue our fight for this (it is what we were working on before we got derailed by the closure announcement).
We welcome everyone to our open houses:
Tuesday, Jan. 29th 4:30 pm
Saturday, Feb. 2nd 9:00 am
Tuesday, Feb. 5th 8:30 am
Additional opportunities to bring prospective parents together with current parents and staff are being organized. We may also hold additional open houses toward the end of February.
Please check out our website (built by one of our amazing parents in just one week after the closure announcement was made) at www.garrisonelementary.org or email us at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com.
Best
Ann mcLeod
garrison PTA president
We are pushing for a modernization that would result in a building and grounds that can be used by the entire community (i.e. community meeting spaces, neighborhood garden, etc). Any way we can make this modernization happen we will find it. In no way do we advocate for a reduction in outdoor space as that is something we treasure. More info to come as we continue our fight for this (it is what we were working on before we got derailed by the closure announcement).
We welcome everyone to our open houses:
Tuesday, Jan. 29th 4:30 pm
Saturday, Feb. 2nd 9:00 am
Tuesday, Feb. 5th 8:30 am
Additional opportunities to bring prospective parents together with current parents and staff are being organized. We may also hold additional open houses toward the end of February.
Please check out our website (built by one of our amazing parents in just one week after the closure announcement was made) at www.garrisonelementary.org or email us at GarrisonPTA@gmail.com.
Best
Ann mcLeod
garrison PTA president