Reply to So, what is wrong with Hardy?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]When I visited looking for my DC, I found it to be loud and chaotic. It seemed like a happy chaos, but lots of kids jostling each other playfully in the hallway. Just wouldn't work for my kid. Has some SN issues that make that environment really hard to navigate.

I liked the teachers and don't mind uniforms. What did concern me was that at the end of my visit, the tour guide administrator had to rush off to deal with a fight. I know they happen, but it was another indicator that it would be a difficult environment for my very sensitive kid.

Academically I was impressed with offerings and wished it were a little calmer because there was a lot to like. DC is a middle-of-the-road to strong student depending on the subject. I liked that they weren't afraid of advancing kids who were ready but also have a strong support team.

If IB families (we're not) would embrace it, I could totally see it as a fabulous smaller alternative to Deal. Not everyone wants such a large MS. Just my 2c.[/quote]

You're assuming, PP, that the current enrollment at Hardy is a natural upper bound on enrollment. It isn't in the sense that the building can accommodate almost twice as many as are currently enrolled.  DCPS understands that 50% or so is the upper limit on FARMs before a school become dysfunctional.  As the IB enrollment at Hardy increases, total enrollment at Hardy will increase as well.  IB families will never get "a fabulous smaller alternative to Deal." [/quote]

And how exactly does DCPS intend to limit the FARMS enrollment ?  It's one thing to manage down OOB a enrollment as IB enrollment increases, and I personally think it would be nuts to expand overall Hardy enrollment just to maintain or enlarge OOB, for the reasons that the PP stated (frittering away Hardy's one clear advantage over Deal, its relatively small size).  But trying to exclude FARMS students per se based on income is offensive and may be illegal and is sort of what prior principal Pope was accused of, non?[/quote]

By limiting the number of slots available in the OOB lottery via a cap on overall enrollment.

The FARMs rate of kids (both IB and OOB) coming from feeder ESs  is easily measured, and undoubtedly very low.  The FARMs rate of kids coming through the OOB lottery can also be measured and is probably stable from year to year.  It pretty clear that the FARMs rate at Hardy is directly related to (non-feeder) OOB enrollment.

Last year, 87% of the kids were OOB and 55% were FARMs.  Assuming that none of the IB kids were FARMs, the FARMs rate was 63% among OOB kids.  If we then consider that many of those OOB kids came through feeder ESs with FARMs rates around 10%, it's likely that 80 to 90% of the kids who lotteried in to Hardy are FARMs.

The vast majority of middle schoolers in DC attend poorly performing schools.  There is little reason to limit the number of kids willing to travel WOTP for a shot at a decent education other than the detrimental impact on the target school of a large influx of poorly prepared kids.  Research suggests that the tipping point at which a functioning school starts to become dysfunctional is a FARMs rate of about 50%.

If 100 IB families decided to abandon their private schools and send their kids to Hardy tomorrow, why shouldn't DCPS evict Filmore to give 100 kids EOTP a shot at a decent education?

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