Seriously, enough of this "placating a few in-cluster parents" I can assure you, nobody in the neighborhood or in the EA went to the BOE and said "let's take immersion students out of Westland and put them at SSMI". This was a Weast proclamation- and before everyone made such a big deal out of it, it probably would have died and never been mentioned again.

"No, the point is, supported by the numbers, that moving 79 immersion kids from Westland to any other school will not "address the overcrowding" at Westland. This is a red herring offered by Weast to the BoE to make them feel better about crowding at Westland, which Weast wants to create by moving 175 6th grade students to Westland, which is unprepared for them. In a few short years, Westland could be overcrowded by 4-500 kids, so moving 79 of them to another school doesn't really solve the problem."

So if I understand what is going on, other than placating a few in-cluster parents who seem to resent the program, there is no real benefit to any students of moving the SI program to SSIMs? Does the Board understand this?

Way to go, immersion parents. Push too hard and the Board will be forced to consider whether immersion is still an effective way to stabilize diverse schools. Its happened at least once before -when French Immersion was being moved upcounty to Maryvale from Oakview and unhappy parents showed up in funeral garb. Please, be grateful that your child has been given this opportunity and be very careful what you wish for.

Anonymous wrote: NOBODY in the county is entitled to attend a better school than anyone else. Period.

The natural extension of this argument is elimination of all magnet programs in Montgomery County.

Anonymous wrote:I think the board should consider sending all RCF kids to SSIMS. That would address the overcrowding at Westland and everyone from that school would be treated the same. Also, everyone would get to remain with their peers. Has this been put on the table? I know there are plenty of kids in Silver Spring who get bused to schools that aren't located in their neighborhood, so the distance shouldn't be objectionable to anyone who agrees that everyone in the county should be treated equally.

No, the point is, supported by the numbers, that moving 79 immersion kids from Westland to any other school will not "address the overcrowding" at Westland. This is a red herring offered by Weast to the BoE to make them feel better about crowding at Westland, which Weast wants to create by moving 175 6th grade students to Westland, which is unprepared for them. In a few short years, Westland could be overcrowded by 4-500 kids, so moving 79 of them to another school doesn't really solve the problem.

Anonymous wrote:To the RCF immersion parents who seem to have chosen RCF as a way out of the red zone, your arguments will do an excellent job of reminding the board why the magnet/special programs were placed in the red zone to begin with. And by extension, why the middle school partial immersion program should be moved out of Westland.

The B-CC cluster seems to do a remarkable job of providing support for its diverse students. The infrastructure of parent volunteers and community support are things that DCC high schools can only dream of. It would be hugely beneficial as an outcome of this discussion if parents can focus on ways to bring some of the framework that seems to work so well in B-CC over to their home schools.

I just don't get this argument, but in any event it just disregards the needs of the real life SI students that already view RCF, Westland, and B-CC as their home schools. A few parents inside the arbitrary border view the students from other parts of the county as unwanted guests that, it is baldly asserted, diminish the education of the students more entitled call these their home schools. Rather, because of the special program, these children are just as entitled as your children to call these schools their home school. Please, can someone explain how this change will really help any students, much less enough to cause tremendous turmoil to a few of their classmates and friends?

Enrollment in a special program such as immersion is optional and quite different from redrawing boundaries as you suggest. Some may have the history of the DCC, which I have heard included an attempt to include B-CC.

I think the board should consider sending all RCF kids to SSIMS. That would address the overcrowding at Westland and everyone from that school would be treated the same. Also, everyone would get to remain with their peers. Has this been put on the table? I know there are plenty of kids in Silver Spring who get bused to schools that aren't located in their neighborhood, so the distance shouldn't be objectionable to anyone who agrees that everyone in the county should be treated equally.

To the RCF immersion parents who seem to have chosen RCF as a way out of the red zone, your arguments will do an excellent job of reminding the board why the magnet/special programs were placed in the red zone to begin with. And by extension, why the middle school partial immersion program should be moved out of Westland.

The B-CC cluster seems to do a remarkable job of providing support for its diverse students. The infrastructure of parent volunteers and community support are things that DCC high schools can only dream of. It would be hugely beneficial as an outcome of this discussion if parents can focus on ways to bring some of the framework that seems to work so well in B-CC over to their home schools.

It seems like this is less about SSIMS vs. Westland and more about B-CC vs. DCC. The immersion program has kids from all over the county-they come from 25 of the 40 zip codes and bus down from as far as Olney and Germantown. I have yet to see a post from an immersion parent who complains that they don't want their child attending Sherwood, or Richard Montgomery, or Rockville, but instead think it's only fair that they matriculate to B-CC. The complaints about wanting out of the home cluster all seem to come from DCC parents. I don't find immersion to be a valid reason to COSA to B-CC given that there is apparently no true immersion path at BCC. The IB program is a stand alone program and doesn't have to exist with an immersion program. Lastly, it's important to note that cluster students should always have the first right of refusal when it comes to attending their home school. They have every right to feel that the BOE will put an end to COSAs when the school population is way over 100% of capacity.

What is wrong with being concerned about a high school? My SI children are just as much a part of the cluster as yours, even if they live in a different part of the county. RCF is the only school they have known, with friends and peers in the school and now in Westland. We were lured to the school by the SI program as it now exists. Now it has to be changed to reduce "overcrowding" that will really not be cured until the privileged part of the county gets its new middle school. I am glad my child has learned spanish, but if you did not get a higher number in the lottery, it is time to get over it.

Anonymous wrote:You are sadly misinformed if you call SSIMS a failing school. If you equate SES with success, then you really should move to where more people look like you.

I'm talking about red zone and green zone, plain and simple. Even Weast has acknowledged that downcounty is not living up to the standards of the Montgomery County School District. Your comment was unnecessarily nasty and draws conclusions about me that are simply incorrect.

You are sadly misinformed if you call SSIMS a failing school. If you equate SES with success, then you really should move to where more people look like you.

Somebody should have Weast read this thread. If nothing else, maybe it would persuade him to turn his focus away from addressing overcrowding in the BCC cluster and instead focus on making the downcounty schools a place people don't dread having to send their kids. Every kid in the county is entitled to the same quality of education as the kids receive in the BCC, but this thread once again demonstrates that nobody thinks that's possible. If you wouldn't be willing to send your kid to SSIMS, regardless of where you live or how much your house cost or how much planning you did to insure that you were zoned for a particular school pyramid, you should think twice about telling others to just suck it up, even if SSIMS would otherwise be their home school. If parents played the immersion lottery just to get their kids into a better school - good for them, because the school system is otherwise failing them, and that's not their fault. NOBODY in the county is entitled to attend a better school than anyone else. Period.

11:33 - removing 79 oob students (or more if Westland SI students continue at SSIMS or wherever) equals one class per content area per grade, not "one kid per classroom". . . students would be offered a chance to continue a program which typically. The spot your child is in had 100 students on the waiting list in K; please be honest about whether you are more concerned about the high school your child attends or a unique program. You seem to want it both ways; you are welcome to your opinions, but not the facts. . .