Reply to ‘W’ schools boundary study?

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[quote=Anonymous]We're currently zoned for Whitman and watching this closely. I've always assumed that they'd just take some of the pressure off of BCC and further slice up downtown Bethesda given that's where most of the growth is coming from as well as take some of Westbrook ES and Somerset ES.  If this results in additional diversity as a side benefit, great! I think the reality is that we can afford to move if the changes are too drastic, resulting in extensive busing or a significant decline in the quality of our children's schools. While we wouldn't be thrilled with having to sell and eating the transaction costs plus potential property devaluation and changes to our commute, we'd be happy to do this if it's our children's best interests.

I also think what people lose sight of is that the de facto segregation can occur due to very small changes in individual preferences (such as having a small preference to live near neighbors "like themselves"), which can lead to stark outcomes, as Thomas Snelling demonstrated back in 1971:

https://www.citylab.com/design/2014/12/an-immersive-game-shows-how-easily-segregation-arisesand-how-we-might-fix-it/383586/

I don't think most people in the W schools are racist or biased. Rather, I think we live in a society that has become increasingly unequal and parents are doing whatever they can to ensure that their children are set up for the best outcomes in the future. I've read Dream Hoarders, which is an excellent book on the benefits accruing to the UMC.

How are the UMC hoarding dreams from the rest of the country? Through practices like legacy admissions at elite universities, which keep spots from going to other deserving children. Or zoning restrictions on multi-family real estate development that keep lower income households segregated from where the better schools and teachers are. Or unpaid internships at large corporations or within the halls of government, which effectively keep out students whose parents can’t afford for them to go all summer not earning anything.

The following reaction to the book really resonated with me:

https://thereformedbroker.com/2017/08/08/dream-hoarders-my-reaction/

“Okay, that makes sense – but you first.” Who wouldn’t want their own children to have every possible advantage under the sun? Who doesn’t see the wealth they accumulated as earned and deserved? I’m all for leveling the playing field, as long as I don’t have to drop whatever opportunities I’m able to secure for my own kids. I get the sense that Reeves has no plans to disadvantage his own children either, in the name of fairness or the breaking of the nascent class system that’s being forged in the modern economy."[/quote]

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