I understand your argument . I have to admit that I am fortunate to have my children in a non-center school! I've heard the aweful peer stories from the center schools where center children are mean to the non-center children. I am happy these children are being bused out of our base school even though much about the center program is frustrating. I am so greatful my children are removed from the pompous parent and student attitudes. I find it very interesting seeing these center children when they enter the "real school" it is a big wakeup call.

Also looks like they need to break up the AAP students attending Rocky Run Middle and move some of them to another Middle School.

I know Haycock, Louise Archer, and Hunters Woods will no longer have such high numbers of AAP students because of new centers. Is there a new center for Greenbriar West? Seems like the next highest center school with well over 50% of grades 3-6 in AAP.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

OP here. Isn't it true that an AAP student at a base school is still able to receive LLIV services?

Not all base schools have Local Level IV services.

Very few don't anymore.

According to the FCPS website, 37 elementary schools have Local Level IV services and 25 elementary schools have Level IV Center services. There are 139 elementary schools in FCPS. By my math, there are 77 elementary schools without Local Level IV or Level IV Center services.

It's really amusing to read some of these deliberately obtuse replies. As you know, the point is: if your base school offers LLIV, there should be no need to bus your child to a center. Those parents should have to drive their children to the center, if that's where they choose to send them.

There is disparity among Local Level IV programs.

If you would like to see the statistics documenting the disparity, I invite you to peruse the documents provided to the School Board as a follow-up to the July 2013 work session:

http://www.fcps.edu/schlbd/docs/sb%20follow%20up%20responses/fy%202014/SBfollow-up14-2-3-4.pdf

See the chart on page 3 to see how many Center-eligible students are attending the Local Level IV program.

As you know from prior years budget testimony (especially in the FY 2012 budget), the total cost of busing students to Centers that have Local Level IV as an option is less than $500,000.

That is $500,000 that could be applied toward more pressing issues, such as extra busing for later high school start times. Further, if FCPS feels this is an acceptable amount of money to be spent on one group of students, why aren't Gen Ed students allowed to be bused to a different school as well?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

OP here. Isn't it true that an AAP student at a base school is still able to receive LLIV services?

Not all base schools have Local Level IV services.

Very few don't anymore.

According to the FCPS website, 37 elementary schools have Local Level IV services and 25 elementary schools have Level IV Center services. There are 139 elementary schools in FCPS. By my math, there are 77 elementary schools without Local Level IV or Level IV Center services.

It's really amusing to read some of these deliberately obtuse replies. As you know, the point is: if your base school offers LLIV, there should be no need to bus your child to a center. Those parents should have to drive their children to the center, if that's where they choose to send them.

There is disparity among Local Level IV programs.

If you would like to see the statistics documenting the disparity, I invite you to peruse the documents provided to the School Board as a follow-up to the July 2013 work session:

http://www.fcps.edu/schlbd/docs/sb%20follow%20up%20responses/fy%202014/SBfollow-up14-2-3-4.pdf

See the chart on page 3 to see how many Center-eligible students are attending the Local Level IV program.

As you know from prior years budget testimony (especially in the FY 2012 budget), the total cost of busing students to Centers that have Local Level IV as an option is less than $500,000.

Anonymous wrote:The LLIV schools with high numbers also tend to have center schools with the most AAP students. Colvin Run, Louise Archer, and Haycock come to mind. Not sure if this is the case all the time, but it seems like it would help if some of the schools with high LLIV programs feeding into these high AAP centers didn't bus or didn't allow transfers.

Absolutely agree. It's unconscionable that FCPS is still supplying extra busing between these centers and their feeder schools. Especially when the budget is in such dire straits and those extra buses could be used for high schoolers to have later start times. There is no reasonable explanation as to why schools in Cluster 1 even have center schools.

The LLIV schools with high numbers also tend to have center schools with the most AAP students. Colvin Run, Louise Archer, and Haycock come to mind. Not sure if this is the case all the time, but it seems like it would help if some of the schools with high LLIV programs feeding into these high AAP centers didn't bus or didn't allow transfers.

Of the LLIV schools, only a handful have enough to staff an entire AAP class. Many others either have combination classes with other grades or are primarily general ed students with a couple of AAP students in the class as well. I forget the document, but it showed half of the LLIV schools with 10 students or less designated as AAP. There are some LLIV schools like Great Falls which I wonder why they are allowed to be bussed to a center.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

Which happens to be a center overrun by AAP students in many cases. And don't even get me started on many of these AAP students not "needing" these "services."

I think OP asked a perfectly legitimate question. What if what they value is a normal school not infected with AAP madness? Doesn't seem too much to ask. Once again highlights the lopsidedness of current system. The forerunner of the AAP system, the GT program was justified on the basis of "gifted" students having special needs. Hardworking bright students who are not gifted don't have special needs. Hence, the bloated AAP system is not even support by Virginia state law.

Exactly. AAP is not a 'special education' program, as GT was. I don't mind having my taxes spent to support special education, on both ends of the spectrum. But an advanced academic program for the non-gifted? Including busing? No thanks.

Only a name change to label the service vs. the child.

As everyone now knows, that is utter BS. Even FCPS knows this, but they are too cowed by a certain kind of parent to switch back to the more selective "GT" model.

Or, perhaps, they are not persuaded by another kind of parent.

Anonymous wrote:Ask your School Board member.

Sadly, our School Board Member is a complete puppet.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

Which happens to be a center overrun by AAP students in many cases. And don't even get me started on many of these AAP students not "needing" these "services."

I think OP asked a perfectly legitimate question. What if what they value is a normal school not infected with AAP madness? Doesn't seem too much to ask. Once again highlights the lopsidedness of current system. The forerunner of the AAP system, the GT program was justified on the basis of "gifted" students having special needs. Hardworking bright students who are not gifted don't have special needs. Hence, the bloated AAP system is not even support by Virginia state law.

Exactly. AAP is not a 'special education' program, as GT was. I don't mind having my taxes spent to support special education, on both ends of the spectrum. But an advanced academic program for the non-gifted? Including busing? No thanks.

Only a name change to label the service vs. the child.

As everyone now knows, that is utter BS. Even FCPS knows this, but they are too cowed by a certain kind of parent to switch back to the more selective "GT" model.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

OP here. Isn't it true that an AAP student at a base school is still able to receive LLIV services?

Not all base schools have Local Level IV services.

Very few don't anymore.

According to the FCPS website, 37 elementary schools have Local Level IV services and 25 elementary schools have Level IV Center services. There are 139 elementary schools in FCPS. By my math, there are 77 elementary schools without Local Level IV or Level IV Center services.

It's really amusing to read some of these deliberately obtuse replies. As you know, the point is: if your base school offers LLIV, there should be no need to bus your child to a center. Those parents should have to drive their children to the center, if that's where they choose to send them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

Which happens to be a center overrun by AAP students in many cases. And don't even get me started on many of these AAP students not "needing" these "services."

I think OP asked a perfectly legitimate question. What if what they value is a normal school not infected with AAP madness? Doesn't seem too much to ask. Once again highlights the lopsidedness of current system. The forerunner of the AAP system, the GT program was justified on the basis of "gifted" students having special needs. Hardworking bright students who are not gifted don't have special needs. Hence, the bloated AAP system is not even support by Virginia state law.

Exactly. AAP is not a 'special education' program, as GT was. I don't mind having my taxes spent to support special education, on both ends of the spectrum. But an advanced academic program for the non-gifted? Including busing? No thanks.

Only a name change to label the service vs. the child.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

OP here. Isn't it true that an AAP student at a base school is still able to receive LLIV services?

Not all base schools have Local Level IV services.

Very few don't anymore.

According to the FCPS website, 37 elementary schools have Local Level IV services and 25 elementary schools have Level IV Center services. There are 139 elementary schools in FCPS. By my math, there are 77 elementary schools without Local Level IV or Level IV Center services.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm, well, if you look at it, the AAP student is unable to access a service at his/her base school. So the student is provided transportation to receive the service at a center.

What "service" or program would the general education student be seeking at another school? None really. The general education student is still able to receive their general education at the school which happens to also be a center for AAP students.

Which happens to be a center overrun by AAP students in many cases. And don't even get me started on many of these AAP students not "needing" these "services."

I think OP asked a perfectly legitimate question. What if what they value is a normal school not infected with AAP madness? Doesn't seem too much to ask. Once again highlights the lopsidedness of current system. The forerunner of the AAP system, the GT program was justified on the basis of "gifted" students having special needs. Hardworking bright students who are not gifted don't have special needs. Hence, the bloated AAP system is not even support by Virginia state law.

Exactly. AAP is not a 'special education' program, as GT was. I don't mind having my taxes spent to support special education, on both ends of the spectrum. But an advanced academic program for the non-gifted? Including busing? No thanks.