Anonymous
11/05/2025 14:29
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am really worried about this ES boundary study. I get the sense they plan to move a lot of kids around and close some neighborhood schools. I know kids are resilient and yada yada yada. But moving to a new elementary school in fourth or fifth grade with only a small portion of your friends and none of the teachers/ staff/ traditions that you’ve grown to love sounds really crappy. There is a total disregard for minimizing disruption.
+1 and I don't understand the need for ES boundary changes in the way that HS boundary changes are obviously needed with new buildings and several over-crowded. What problem is the ES boundary study trying to solve, other than split articulations?
How are they going to solve split articulations with this? It seems like if they wanted to do that they would change the ES boundaries first and then address the middle and high school boundaries.
Couldn't they use the new middle school boundaries (whatever they are) as starting points, and say, this MS boundary contains the following ES's, let's figure out how best to divide up the expected ES students feeding to this MS among these however many ES's.
Yes, that's the idea. But waiting until after MS boundaries are locked in and then treating them as hard limits drastically limits the options in many cases. They need to do both studies at the same time, or be willing to reopen some MS/HS boundaries later as needed.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 14:22
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am really worried about this ES boundary study. I get the sense they plan to move a lot of kids around and close some neighborhood schools. I know kids are resilient and yada yada yada. But moving to a new elementary school in fourth or fifth grade with only a small portion of your friends and none of the teachers/ staff/ traditions that you’ve grown to love sounds really crappy. There is a total disregard for minimizing disruption.
+1 and I don't understand the need for ES boundary changes in the way that HS boundary changes are obviously needed with new buildings and several over-crowded. What problem is the ES boundary study trying to solve, other than split articulations?
How are they going to solve split articulations with this? It seems like if they wanted to do that they would change the ES boundaries first and then address the middle and high school boundaries.
Couldn't they use the new middle school boundaries (whatever they are) as starting points, and say, this MS boundary contains the following ES's, let's figure out how best to divide up the expected ES students feeding to this MS among these however many ES's.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 14:21
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am really worried about this ES boundary study. I get the sense they plan to move a lot of kids around and close some neighborhood schools. I know kids are resilient and yada yada yada. But moving to a new elementary school in fourth or fifth grade with only a small portion of your friends and none of the teachers/ staff/ traditions that you’ve grown to love sounds really crappy. There is a total disregard for minimizing disruption.
+1 and I don't understand the need for ES boundary changes in the way that HS boundary changes are obviously needed with new buildings and several over-crowded. What problem is the ES boundary study trying to solve, other than split articulations?
How are they going to solve split articulations with this? It seems like if they wanted to do that they would change the ES boundaries first and then address the middle and high school boundaries.
Yes, the sequencing is dumb (they should be done simultaneously), but I believe their plan is to go back and look at elementary schools that have split middle or high school articulation, and redraw elementary school boundaries to group those kids only with other kids going to their same middle/high school. It will be very complicated though. They really should hit pause on the MS/HS boundaries and just do it all together.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 14:14
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am really worried about this ES boundary study. I get the sense they plan to move a lot of kids around and close some neighborhood schools. I know kids are resilient and yada yada yada. But moving to a new elementary school in fourth or fifth grade with only a small portion of your friends and none of the teachers/ staff/ traditions that you’ve grown to love sounds really crappy. There is a total disregard for minimizing disruption.
+1 and I don't understand the need for ES boundary changes in the way that HS boundary changes are obviously needed with new buildings and several over-crowded. What problem is the ES boundary study trying to solve, other than split articulations?
How are they going to solve split articulations with this? It seems like if they wanted to do that they would change the ES boundaries first and then address the middle and high school boundaries.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:53
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:So, MCPS just essentially cried uncle on the Crown study because they can’t manage their existing work (HS boundary studies, program studies and capital improvements), and they want to add this on? Is this just going to be another $700k wasted on a contract they never do anything with? What a debacle.
No, they definitely seem like they do want to implement it.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:45
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
So, MCPS just essentially cried uncle on the Crown study because they can’t manage their existing work (HS boundary studies, program studies and capital improvements), and they want to add this on? Is this just going to be another $700k wasted on a contract they never do anything with? What a debacle.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:42
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:Would they move kids just for 5th grade?
Past practice for boundary changes is that rising 5th, 8th, 11th and 12th get to stay at their previous school, all others must move. But the Board of Ed can change that if they want.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:20
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:Would they move kids just for 5th grade?
They haven't done that in past studies.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:18
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Would they move kids just for 5th grade?
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:13
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:I am really worried about this ES boundary study. I get the sense they plan to move a lot of kids around and close some neighborhood schools. I know kids are resilient and yada yada yada. But moving to a new elementary school in fourth or fifth grade with only a small portion of your friends and none of the teachers/ staff/ traditions that you’ve grown to love sounds really crappy. There is a total disregard for minimizing disruption.
Agreed. It's also ES where some more boundary changes would be made so kids would move ES and end up in a different HS pyramid. All expected but bizarre that it's all split from the current study. Anything being done now to limit split articulation at MS and HS from ES would be back and have to be possibly redone and reconsidered. Why can't this county do actual plans ahead of time!
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:11
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Anonymous wrote:I am really worried about this ES boundary study. I get the sense they plan to move a lot of kids around and close some neighborhood schools. I know kids are resilient and yada yada yada. But moving to a new elementary school in fourth or fifth grade with only a small portion of your friends and none of the teachers/ staff/ traditions that you’ve grown to love sounds really crappy. There is a total disregard for minimizing disruption.
+1 and I don't understand the need for ES boundary changes in the way that HS boundary changes are obviously needed with new buildings and several over-crowded. What problem is the ES boundary study trying to solve, other than split articulations?
Anonymous
11/05/2025 13:09
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
I am really worried about this ES boundary study. I get the sense they plan to move a lot of kids around and close some neighborhood schools. I know kids are resilient and yada yada yada. But moving to a new elementary school in fourth or fifth grade with only a small portion of your friends and none of the teachers/ staff/ traditions that you’ve grown to love sounds really crappy. There is a total disregard for minimizing disruption.
Anonymous
11/05/2025 08:50
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
I'm not sure what to make of how Andrea Swiatocha talks about the timelines around 1:03-- saying something along the lines of how implementing the faster non-recommended timeline where kids move in fall 2028 would be better.
https://www.youtube.com/live/Uo0PvXQBER0?si=ZsPSTZQvUKsgVUbJ
https://www.youtube.com/live/Uo0PvXQBER0?si=ZsPSTZQvUKsgVUbJ
Anonymous
11/04/2025 16:49
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
Taylor talking more at 1:10 on the recording about the goals of the ES boundary study .
Anonymous
11/04/2025 16:39
Subject: Countywide ES boundary study starting next year
More info from today's CIP work session: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DN4KQG52F8D6/$file/FY2027%20Cap%20Bdgt%20FY2027-2032%20CIP%20251104%20PPT.pdf slides 14-15.
MCPS is proposing that the countywide boundary study scope be approved in early 2026, RFP summer 2026, engagement process lasting 1.5 years from fall 2026 to spring 2028, final decision in March 2028, and then students move schools in fall 2029. They also presented an alternative, faster timeline with a vote in March 2027 and then students move schools in fall 2028.
MCPS is proposing that the countywide boundary study scope be approved in early 2026, RFP summer 2026, engagement process lasting 1.5 years from fall 2026 to spring 2028, final decision in March 2028, and then students move schools in fall 2029. They also presented an alternative, faster timeline with a vote in March 2027 and then students move schools in fall 2028.