This is interesting. Reveals precisely how much of the city is being cut out of Wilson...mostly western Ward 2 where the families might be too young to notice or kick up much of a fuss.

Anonymous wrote:
And those complaining about needing multiple languages...it's a valid complaint...please step up an volunteer your time and expertise.

It's not a complaint. It's a concern with a request. If your child were wheelchair-bound and their public school of right did not have ramps or elevators, would you volunteer to retrofit the building? Parents who do not speak or read English as well as coders, and those of us trying to help them who are not professional translators or interpreters, are spending much, much more time than those zipping through the slick interface on your phablet in an uber car.

Given how many people seem to say they want bilingual schools, it seems odd that there is little outreach to non-native English speaking communities.

Chris, thank you for acknowledging the challenge of incorporating other languages. Your work is very much appreciated. It shows a wonderful commitment to the entire community. Thank you. Gracias.

Great app! Thanks Chris!

cmgiven wrote:We're trying our best to identify and remove any inconsistencies with EBIS. Through whatever means EBIS determines that an address is somewhere, it has the final say, so we have to go along with it. If you spot an inconsistency, it would be hugely helpful if you could send me an email with your address so I can work to correct: chris@ourdcschools.org

As for the Shaw address, yes, in some cases where a boundary corresponds to a closed school, but the in-boundary rights of those students are inconsistent, I've opted to point folks to EBIS to avoid giving incorrect information. There are a handful of such boundaries that I can't give answers for, but I assure you, they're not concentrated in any particular area.

You can see the two sides of the coin here: say something wrong vs. avoid saying something as it might be wrong. Trying to avoid both outcomes to the extent possible, but erring on the side of the latter. Appreciate folks flagging issues where they see them, and we'll improve the answers piece by piece.

This confusion also represents many of the confusions people face from the current boundary problem.

We're trying our best to identify and remove any inconsistencies with EBIS. Through whatever means EBIS determines that an address is somewhere, it has the final say, so we have to go along with it. If you spot an inconsistency, it would be hugely helpful if you could send me an email with your address so I can work to correct: chris@ourdcschools.org

As for the Shaw address, yes, in some cases where a boundary corresponds to a closed school, but the in-boundary rights of those students are inconsistent, I've opted to point folks to EBIS to avoid giving incorrect information. There are a handful of such boundaries that I can't give answers for, but I assure you, they're not concentrated in any particular area.

You can see the two sides of the coin here: say something wrong vs. avoid saying something as it might be wrong. Trying to avoid both outcomes to the extent possible, but erring on the side of the latter. Appreciate folks flagging issues where they see them, and we'll improve the answers piece by piece.

The mark of a good idea. The app is community-grown, but if folks are going to help promote it, I can't fault them for that.

It works great for Ward 3 addresses, apparently. But, I put in my Shaw address and it couldn't even tell me what my current assigned school is (it gave an ES that was closed in 2008 as a part of Rhee restructuring). So is this a tool only for Ward 3 residents? I think if you are looking to get true feedback you need to make sure it is working for all of DC, especially in the neighborhoods where schools are struggling.

Anonymous wrote:Hi Chris, This app is great--Thanks! One question, I live in an where where we are in-boundary for Deal and Wilson east of the park. The app says that the current feeder pattern is columbia heights education campus and cardoza, which we are definitely not in. We bought our home to go to Deal and Wilson. Is there any way this can be fixed on the app?

I've seen this too. Suddenly we're in-boundary for Seaton but we never were before. I think part of the issue arises from the fact that DC Atlas/EBIS neighborhood data seems to have changed / been updated multiple times over the last 24 months (though why and by whom is a mystery to me). Any idea if what your seeing on ourschoolsdc is consistent with EBIS?

Chris,

This is a great app and I hope that it generates useful data. I think that DCPS and DME may also like it so well that they are co-opting it. At least some in DCPS are claiming that the app was developed by the DME. To wit, a posting on the Watkins ES listserv by a parent who is also a DCPS employee involved in community engagement:

"Good morning Cluster family,

I want to invite everyone to the Community Engagement meeting this Saturday at Dunbar High School 9am-12noon. FREE CHILDCARE is available onsite. This is part two of the boundaries meeting for our region. Do not worry if you missed the first meeting. We will provide all of part 1's handouts again and a summary of that meeting.

During this Saturday's meeting, the DME will share how they heard and considered our feedback from the first meeting and on EngageDC. They will also share additional information . Like at the first meeting, everyone who attends will be able to interact in working groups at tables to share your feedback.

I would be happy to answer any questions people have and am available to help you if you want to know how you can get involved and stay informed. My email address is [deleted].

The DME set up a new app that allows families to see how the proposed boundary changes might affect you. [Emphasis added.] Check it out at http://greatergreatereducation.org/post/22590/curious-about-how-the-proposed-boundary-changes-will-affect-you-check-out-this-new-app/

Also, you can continue to share your feedback and read updates at www.EngageDC.org"

I just did it. Really great. Thanks for creating it!

If you could share your address with me by email for testing purposes, that'd be very helpful. Thanks!

chris@ourdcschools.org

Hi Chris, This app is great--Thanks! One question, I live in an where where we are in-boundary for Deal and Wilson east of the park. The app says that the current feeder pattern is columbia heights education campus and cardoza, which we are definitely not in. We bought our home to go to Deal and Wilson. Is there any way this can be fixed on the app?

If anyone was experiencing an issue where clicking the "Get Started" button would do nothing, please give us another go. Just pushed a fix that should unbreak a number of addresses that weren't working before.

http://www.ourdcschools.org

I had forgotten I wrote that! I was wondering how so many people were on the same page about emailing me to request the data when available (not that I mind!).

We'll be posting anonymized data on opendatadc.org. We currently anticipate doing this on about a weekly basis, so you can check back there on Sunday or Monday for the first release.

We'll also be sending out updates and maybe discussing what to do with the data on the code-for-dc-edu Google Group. You can subscribe to that here:

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/code-for-dc-edu

Chris, thanks so much for this fantastic app. At the end of the survey I clicked the link that essentially said, "click here if you want us to share the data with you later." it auto-populated an email to your address (I think) but I received a bounceback. This was the email: chris@ourdcschools.org

The bounceback was classified as "failed to deliver; connection rejected." Can you please instruct on how to get on the list for receiving the data? Thanks.

And those complaining about needing multiple languages...it's a valid complaint...please step up an volunteer your time and expertise.