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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]This just in - unsure if this means JMHS will still have graduation at DAR next year

The Fairfax County School Board on May 11 unanimously approved a $500,000-per-year, sole-source contract with Monumental Sports & Entertainment to rent EagleBank Arena at George Mason University’s Fairfax campus for graduation ceremonies. The contract will run for five years and have a total value of $2.5 million[/quote]

🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 My kid will graduate from JMHS next year and I’m praying for GMU! So much more convenient for my whole family! [/quote]

x1000000

DAR Constitution hall is a nightmare, and no one cares where the venue is, unless it is made easy for the families - that is what people remember. DAR Constitution Hall is not that, and whose hairbrained idea was that, anyway. [/quote]

PP and same w/ jmhs grad next year. Ugh. Is there a way we could lobby for GMU? [/quote]

you all can try, but be forewarned -- [b]there is a loud, intense group of moms at JMHS that will insist on going to DAR, and in the past they have pushed the administration to their way of thinking.[/b]  Of course, there is a new principal now, so maybe she will respond differently.  But, do not under-estimate the pressure that a small group of parents has applied in the past for the sake of "tradition" at DAR.  In 2022, the plan was set to not do DAR, but then the pro-DAR group lobbied the principal, and the alternative plan was scrapped... and we all went back to DAR.  In 2022, we didn't have a problem with traffic, but I did worry about that.  I'm all for whatever has abundant free parking, and is close to where most people live.  The focus should be on the graduating, not making it difficult for several thousand people.

You will need to start immediately to lobby for something else -- and who knows if GMU would even have room for another graduation to be added to their schedule.  Summer is when these plans are set (usually -- although not in 2022).  The administration has to select the date and will notify everyone by mid to late Aug.  So, JMHS would need to get on the GMU schedule in the next two months in order for their to be a change.  Be aware that there is another issue that may hold some weight for staying at DAR:  There are four schools that share the cost for using DAR.  If one opts out and tries to go to GMU, the costs may be increased for the three remaining HSs.  There could be pressure from the other three schools (Langley, McLean and Marshall) or implied pressure to maintain good relationships, to stay with DAR.  But, strike now or expect that it is DAR again next year.[/quote]

Could you possibly be describing the anti-DAR faction?  Sure sounds like it.[/quote]

No.  The "anti-DAR faction" hasn't been able to convince the admin to their way of thinking in the past.

In 2022, the admin DID have a plan to use the stadium and had arranged places for additional parking nearby (the change from DAR was b/c the admin thought that DAR would require proof of covid vax, so the admin on their own decided to look for alternate locations).  But, when the traditional moms got wind of that ---- NO WAY was a non-DAR graduation going to be allowed!  They got the admin to change the plans just a couple months out.  The people with connections used them.  However, the new principal may feel differently.  Or she may not want to rock the boat.

What the PP who wants to spearhead a change should do is first find out if there are any alternative spots at GMU or elsewhere.  If there aren't any openings, then s/he needs to come up with some alternatives that the administration could feasibly consider b/c naturally, they are going to say "no" unless there is a good option.

[b]The past principal said the only reason for not doing GMU historically is that they didn't feel they were treated well there.  Apparently they did try GMU at least once or twice.[/b]  [/quote]

Same could be said of DAR.

Agree that a new venue is needed, and agree that whomever wants it needs to find it and perform due diligence. It would obviously need to be a family with more than one child - who happened to have already experienced the cluster that is DAR.

The people who have an advantage are those who never left the area, for better or worse, because they are aware of the system, and can manipulate it accordingly. The families who tend to branch out and expand their horizons more tend to be punished, in this regard - since they have no interest in "tradition" - or whatever the locals are calling it, in order to prevent change. And so it goes....[/quote]

I haven't posted often on this thread, because we navigated DAR without a hitch and enjoyed the setting, although neither we nor our kids would have had any objection if the graduations had been held somewhere else.

Having said this, the lack of logic in your post is mind-blowing.  Do you really have to go that far down into the gutter to express your preference that a ceremony be held somewhere else?  Just say you'd personally prefer that kids graduate in Virginia somewhere with more seating and cheaper parking, and be done with it.  It's not some giant Rorschach test like you're making it out to be. [/quote]

It really doesn't matter the reason to those who fear change. [/quote]

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