Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Innovation is a newer school, established as a second neighborhood school for the Lyon Village/Courthouse area when APS redrew boundaries because ASFS was overcrowded (at that time, there were over 800 students for a school that has capacity to hold 550). A number of teachers from ASFS left to help start Innovation, which also included a number of ASFS families that had previously been zoned for ASFS. ASFS historically has been an exceptionally strong school -- nationally known. For example, former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan sent his children there, when he served in his cabinet role. However, ASFS now has a new principal as of this 2023-24 school year, and she has been controversial, to put it mildly. Some say she is in over her head, has a clear political agenda, tries to enact change for the sake of change without a reasonable basis, and cares more about securing her next promotion than about the teachers or students she is charged with leading. While the teaching staff care about the students and are themselves strong, the educational quality has gone down, as teacher morale has plummeted, including the morale of many new teachers who joined the school this year, for lack of support. It has been sad to see this, but your family is probably better off, both in terms of educational quality and cultural environment at Innovation.

I’ve heard very disturbing things about behavior at innovation. Fights during recess without consequences, the administration condoning bullying, and drug use on school grounds in the 4th/5th grade. It’s possible that asfs could be there too in a few years, but at least right now that’s not the case. We live in that cutout, and we’re thinking of moving our kids because they were in the original cohort that started innovation. But I was concerned for my eldest since he was a fifth grade boy, and most of what I heard was disturbing from other fifth grade families there.

School quality wise, asfs still has a more active pta. The new principal seems to want to actively alienate parents by eliminating most opportunities to volunteer in the school, so again unclear how long the pta will stay as it is. Right now asfs is slightly better, but again who knows in the future.

I don't want to be naive, but drug use on the playground? Innovation is surrounded by streets with lots of people walking by all the time since it's just a block or so from
the Courthouse metro. Recess is in plain view of tons of people passing by. I don't that someone told you this, but if true, that's pretty bold/bad.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Innovation is a newer school, established as a second neighborhood school for the Lyon Village/Courthouse area when APS redrew boundaries because ASFS was overcrowded (at that time, there were over 800 students for a school that has capacity to hold 550). A number of teachers from ASFS left to help start Innovation, which also included a number of ASFS families that had previously been zoned for ASFS. ASFS historically has been an exceptionally strong school -- nationally known. For example, former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan sent his children there, when he served in his cabinet role. However, ASFS now has a new principal as of this 2023-24 school year, and she has been controversial, to put it mildly. Some say she is in over her head, has a clear political agenda, tries to enact change for the sake of change without a reasonable basis, and cares more about securing her next promotion than about the teachers or students she is charged with leading. While the teaching staff care about the students and are themselves strong, the educational quality has gone down, as teacher morale has plummeted, including the morale of many new teachers who joined the school this year, for lack of support. It has been sad to see this, but your family is probably better off, both in terms of educational quality and cultural environment at Innovation.

I’ve heard very disturbing things about behavior at innovation. Fights during recess without consequences, the administration condoning bullying, and drug use on school grounds in the 4th/5th grade. It’s possible that asfs could be there too in a few years, but at least right now that’s not the case. We live in that cutout, and we’re thinking of moving our kids because they were in the original cohort that started innovation. But I was concerned for my eldest since he was a fifth grade boy, and most of what I heard was disturbing from other fifth grade families there.

School quality wise, asfs still has a more active pta. The new principal seems to want to actively alienate parents by eliminating most opportunities to volunteer in the school, so again unclear how long the pta will stay as it is. Right now asfs is slightly better, but again who knows in the future.

Anonymous wrote:We're at Innovation. Teacher quality has been a little mixed but generally positive, and the community is everything we hoped for living in this area. The biggest issue is that my kid's international friends keep leaving because their parents get stationed in another country.

Anonymous wrote: Right now asfs is slightly better, but again who knows in the future.

Anonymous wrote:I have never heard anyone say Innovation isn't a good school, and I live near you. Can you share more about what you heard?

Anonymous wrote:Innovation is a newer school, established as a second neighborhood school for the Lyon Village/Courthouse area when APS redrew boundaries because ASFS was overcrowded (at that time, there were over 800 students for a school that has capacity to hold 550). A number of teachers from ASFS left to help start Innovation, which also included a number of ASFS families that had previously been zoned for ASFS. ASFS historically has been an exceptionally strong school -- nationally known. For example, former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan sent his children there, when he served in his cabinet role. However, ASFS now has a new principal as of this 2023-24 school year, and she has been controversial, to put it mildly. Some say she is in over her head, has a clear political agenda, tries to enact change for the sake of change without a reasonable basis, and cares more about securing her next promotion than about the teachers or students she is charged with leading. While the teaching staff care about the students and are themselves strong, the educational quality has gone down, as teacher morale has plummeted, including the morale of many new teachers who joined the school this year, for lack of support. It has been sad to see this, but your family is probably better off, both in terms of educational quality and cultural environment at Innovation.

Anonymous wrote:I have never heard anyone say Innovation isn't a good school, and I live near you. Can you share more about what you heard?