Reply to FCPS Boundary Review Updates

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]Maybe I am in the minority viewpoint, or it is just that people like me are not too concerned about all this because our houses are not close to a boundary. [/quote]

You may think you are not close to a boundary, but that does not matter anymore.  When I moved here, we were not close to a boundary.  We haven't moved, but the boundaries have.
Elementary is safe for us because we are walkers.  At least, I think it is safe.  Middle school is very close--yet we are close to a boundary.  High school is very close--yet we are close to a boundary.

When the boundaries were drawn, there were valid reasons for them.  Traffic patterns, overcrowding at some schools, etc.  With limited exceptions, that is not true with this boundary study.

This is kind of like going on vacation and having others come in to rearrange your furniture.  They throw away what they think is not useful--but is important to you.  And, yes, they also rearrange your kitchen so that you cannot find what you frequently use.  [/quote]

Did FCPS promise you that high school in perpetuity?[/quote]

Did FCPS promise you an equity-based hand-out paid for by your neighbors?[/quote]

Boundaries changes. All over the country, not just in Fairfax County.

Build a bridge and get over it. [/quote]
“Get over it.” This is about real impact to real kids so no, I won’t just “get over it”. Since ES, my MS-aged kid has built connections to their zoned HS through sports, music, and academic activities. They visit the HS and know so many of the kids they’ll soon go to school with. Taking that away (and worse, asking them to switch part way through!) isn’t necessary. I’m all for raising resilient kids, but we’ve already asked these kids to be resilient through a pandemic, which significantly disrupted their education and community. What are we trying to achieve through this exercise that’s worth the real impact it will have on kids? I’d prefer that public schools always prioritize the kids. 
Also, any data being used to inform decisions isn’t reliable. This area is facing major changes through the ripple effects of downsizing the federal government and curbing immigration. The region needs to stabilize before we use data to make major and costly decisions. 
[/quote]

Adjustments need to happen periodically. If it’s not your kid being moved now, it’s somebody else’s kids later. I personally would
have loved for this review to happen years ago, but it’s not about me (or you).  Stop taking this personally. [/quote]
But it IS personal, that’s my point. [/quote]

Waiting for PP to identify which changes they think are necessary.

Lots of "we need a county-wide boundary study because there hasn't been one in 40 years," or vague statements about supporting a county-wide study without explaining why it's necessary.

Many things have changed over the past 40 years, and perhaps there was a reason why prior, more informed School Boards did not go down that path.

By itself, the fact that it's been 40 years since the last county-wide boundary study isn't compelling at all.  It's like saying we need to reinstate Prohibition because it's been 92 years since the last one or admit another state to the Union because it's been 65 years since Hawaii was admitted as a state.

That's not to say boundaries shouldn't ever change.  There are a couple of elementary schools with serious overcrowding - Coates and Parklawn.  These situation deserve a boundary study, but that doesn't mean a lot of this other crap they are now rolling out is necessary (and, in fact, much of it appears to have been developed by someone playing with some software but with no real understanding of the county).  Indeed, this larger study is now slowing down revisions to the Coates and Parklawn boundaries that might have been implmented earlier if they weren't being tied down by the larger review. [/quote]

Regardless of whether changes are necessary, it is inappropriate to evaluate the wholist state of the situation on a regular basis. The fact that people object to that is incomprehensible. It’s like never  looking at your bank statements let alone balancing your check books. Why don’t we just invest our retirement money, don’t make changes to it, and not look for 40 years.[/quote]
The Superintendent and School Board have paid $500,000 (so far) to a consultant.  They have spent countless hours of personnel time working on this project and supporting a "community" committee, that is anything but balanced.

And, for what purpose?  You think that a small group of professionals on staff could not have looked at this "wholisitcally?"  Instead, they are spending countless funds on this project that will upset the already stressed communities.

For what?  "They" say it is to save money--but they will just transfer the kids on the bus from one group to another.

Programm
atic equity?  How about getting rid of IB?  Never heard a word about that from our leaders--and it is the obvious solution.

Getting rid of islands?  I'm not familiar with all of Fairfax County, but I see that they have just moved an island from one school to make it an island at another school.  And, FWIW, they skipped one tiny--but ridiculous island and did not address it at all. (It's so small, they probably overlooked it.)

I suspect that split feeders will be even more troubling.  I have read where people are happy to shift others out, as long as their own neighborhood gets to stay put.

What a mess.

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