Anonymous wrote:She's gone full establishment. She won't rock the boat again.

True, but don't her kids attend MacArthur? Or have they aged out? If it's not ready for her kids, I'm sure she'll speak out.

She's gone full establishment. She won't rock the boat again.

I remember when Council member Amy Jackson made a video when the start of construction was delayed. She needs to get back over there again!

The last thing Alexandria local media is interested in is investigating anything that happens in Alexandria schools or government.

Local media should inquire about this! Seems like it’s getting awfully tight for the first day of school (8/21). What are MacArthur teachers and staff being told about accessing and setting up classrooms?

Anonymous wrote:Originally it was supposed to be done by January 2023, and the kids would start in the new school after winter break. But that's obviously slipped many many times, although it's technically "still on schedule". You're always on schedule if you just throw away the previous schedule.

So true. Zero accountability on the schedule and the money. I hope, but I doubt, they are doing something to penalize the contractors. An 8 month delay shouldn't be rewarded.

Originally it was supposed to be done by January 2023, and the kids would start in the new school after winter break. But that's obviously slipped many many times, although it's technically "still on schedule". You're always on schedule if you just throw away the previous schedule.

Wow 7 million over budget before they started????

when was it supposed to be done? What are the penalties for the builder not delivering on time?

The rebuild was 7 million over budget before they even started. What has that number snowballed into?

In a 1.5 weeks staff and teachers are supposed to move in, so I'm assuming we'll know then whether or not it'll be ready.

Have they moved out of old Patrick Henry? Is the fallback plan to continue classes there if it's not ready? Or will they pivot to virtual?

Three and a half weeks before school starts. Teachers and staff will need to get their things moved and set up well before that.

ACPS should just be honest that the school won't be ready. Just another nail in the coffin of their credibility. ACPS is very lucky that Alexandria parents don't really question or get upset about the state of the school district.

Anonymous wrote:ACPS says it will be ready.

I'm skeptical, but also looking forward to watching the drama from the sidelines when they miss the deadline and manage to completely botch the communications around it, and somehow end up blaming the parents and/or teachers for their failure.

I drive by it weekly and it still looks so unfinished. I can’t fathom that it will be ready.

Based on a lot of years of dealing with ACPS and their building projects...I would bet that the kids will start there.

But should they? ACPS isn't exactly concerned about basic safety in the older schools (no fire detectors or carbon monoxide detectors in wood frame buildings like GM) so if I was a MacArthur parent, I'd ask for a tour and ask a lot of questions. That's not a strong suit of ACPS parents though so they'll likely just drop them off no questions asked.

Does anyone know if they consulted teachers on the classroom designs? I had a longtime ACPS teacher tell me that when they did Jefferson-Houston, ACPS didn't bother to consult teachers so outlets, smart boards and closets were in weird and inconvenient places.

ACPS says it will be ready.

I'm skeptical, but also looking forward to watching the drama from the sidelines when they miss the deadline and manage to completely botch the communications around it, and somehow end up blaming the parents and/or teachers for their failure.

Will MacArthur in Alexandria be ready for the school year? It’s looks like they still have quite the punch list. What do they do if not?