SLVerity Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> chantilly mom Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
>
> >
> > and yes, like it or not, the homes who will be
> > redistricted to SL will lose value because SL
> does
> > not have the same reputation as Oakton
> Westfield
> > or Chantilly. This may not be fair or even
> right,
> > but it is reality.
>
> Tell me Chantilly Mom, if your kids and those at
> Oakton, and Westfield are as superior as everyone
> likes to say, then why would they not improve the
> reputation of SL if they were to attend?

I am not saying that anyone or any school is superior...

I'm sorry you have difficulty dealing with reality.


Like it or not, real estate values of the homes effected would drop.... People have their favorite schools and they buy homes where their kids can go to those schools.

SL may be a great school and may very well be "better" than Oakton, Chantilly or Westfield.. but that does not matter if the perception of the school is that it is not as good or not as sought after or the test scores are lower.

Homes in fairfax county cost over 600,000 and when people spend that kind of money they buy on perception & reputation




the reality is harsh, but it's the reality...


People will buy homes in areas where the schools reputations are good.. If there is a choice between a 800,000 home in SL SD in chantilly and a 800,000 home in chantilly in Oakton SD.. which do you think will sell faster?



you can talk about ap classes, honors, IB's all that is BULL

this is about real estate values and people having the freedom to buy into the school district of their choice without having the fear of being sent to a school that will not only lower the value of their home but force their children to leave their friends.



now if that reality makes you feel that people think that they're superior to you, then this area has gottten to you and you now have insecurity issues.

spanky Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> SLVerity,
> I'm sure someone would trade a couple MMRs for one
> first chair oboe, the captain of the cheerleading
> squad, and possibly a jewelry making elective.
>
> I think you have a typo on your post about the
> percentage of SL population with MMR. It should
> read 99.1%, not 19.1%.
>
> You are a football.

Have another cocktail, Spanky.

Is that #11, or #12? Geez, what a knucklehead.

chantilly mom -


I'm curious as to what you are worried about. I can't imagine a scenario where a Chantilly school would go to South Lakes.

After the redistricting, all the schools in the study area will be approximately the same.

Chantilly Mom.

Glad you like Chantilly - I like Reston and that is the way it should be. Personally, I just want better resources for SL. It is unfortunate that the county is handling this the way it is.

Quick Question: You said you bought into a "school district" - my understanding is that you did not. You bought into an existing "school boundary". Can anyone clarify this? I know you still don't want to move, but there is a big differance between the two.

Thanks and good luck to you with the process.

There seems to be a consensus among many in last nights break out sessions that the Madison Island should go. Someone on this post calls it a no brainer. The students in Madison Island that face redistricting represent less than 100 in grades K-12. The high school students are less than 30. So why the push to redistrict this area? Why did the speakers at Chantilly spend so much time on it in their opening statements? There is an ancient strategy that tells us Avoid Strength, Attack Weakness: Strike Where the Enemy Is Most Vulnerable. The Madison Island area represents the smallest and probably due to it's size the weakest group. There is a reason to position Madison as the first to fall, because it is the easiest target. It seems there are more opinions regarding who should be redistricted than there are about whether there is a legitimate reason for redistricting to begin with. Those of us with children facing a forced change from the communities they have grown up in would be best served to stand together and demand evidence that redistricting is necessary.

Chantilly Mom-

Can you please site some specific examples for COMPARABLE housing between Reston and Chantilly and disparities in value. I would imagine that there are many homes in your area that don't bring top-dollar. I won't mention them, so as not to offend, but they are hardly desirable in today's market.

All I am saying about the reputation, is have faith in yourself and your kids and your ability to affect the reputation of any school you attend. I remember when North Point kids were redistricted to Herndon from South Lakes. Many did not want to move because of the 'inferior' reputation that Herndon had at the time. Look how Herndon has gained ground as a result of having those North Point kids. If that is not the case, they would not be fighting to retain Aldrin and Armstrong in their district. Why does anyone think they were moved to Herndon in the first place?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/13/2007 03:31PM by SLVerity.

SLHS Padre,
I was merely responding to one of your own (SL Verity) posted at 1:08 today. He/she/it was the one that was asking anyone if they wanted to trade MMRs for a magnet program.

Here's an idea. Why don't you SL parents form an on-line fantasy school district. That way you can trade students in and out of as many schools as you want, and attract all the best programs to your school. Maybe you can even turn out a few chefs in your new culinary arts wing (thats hilarious).

In five years, the real SL will still be a failure because of folks like you.

...perhaps she lives on the edge of the boundaries....like me.

When we first bought our house 16 years ago, we used to go to Oakton, not Chantilly or Herndon, and it never made any sense to us why we had to go to Oakton when Chantilly was closer....instead we were redistricted to Westfield, which by the way, we like a lot.

Years ago, we went to a "community" input meeting when the powers that be split one neighborhood in half, if you live on the right side of the street you went to Floris and the cross-the-street neighbord went to Foxmill....meaning that one set of kids went to Oakton and the other to Westfield within the same street...so I can see why she should be worried....not to take sides with her, but perceptions is what have people moving into specific neighborhoods. No matter how they paint SL and how wonderful the new principal is....the reality is that perceptions run high around here. And if you are paying over 600k for a house, you expect to go to a "nice" school with "good programs" our tax money can pay for.

We have a lot of wishful listings as what we want for the boundaries, but the reality is that the board already made their minds, and it seems to me that the community inputs is the exercise that we all have to go through...just like a few years ago. Take a look at the last boundary study and results were the same....people were passionate about it and what happened? They moved the kids regardless of what made sense....and a year later moved them back.

3) the most clarity came from a parent NOT from SL who pointed to the Oakton boundaries on the map and said - "that's some messed up boundary! Why would some kids (Fox Mill and Crossfield) drive all the way to Oakton? They live in Herndon, not Oakton."
>>

The history behind this district is pretty simple. Oakton, Madison and Fairfax are all within 2-3 miles of each other. Fairfax draws from towards the beltway and it is underenrolled. Madison draws from Vienna, and always has been the hometown school for Vienna. Oakton draws then from the west. In order to fill that school, they have to go way out because "Oakton proper" is houses on very large lots and is not very dense. You want to take Fox Mill and Crossfield? Fine. But that will leave Oakton with about 1/3 of what it has now. Then where is the problem? I've had a kid go through Oakton and one who drives there now. Not a problem. As a matter of fact, they have alot more driving experience for kids their age because of it.

In one of the scenarios, either Crossfield or Fox Mill go to SL and Navy comes to Oakton. If people are so concerned with proximity, how does it make sense for a neighborhood directly across from the Greenbriar Shopping Center and next to International Country Club to go to Oakton when they can, as one person in our group explained "hit a good three iron shot from" the front yard to Chantilly?

Islander Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> There seems to be a consensus among many in last
> nights break out sessions that the Madison Island
> should go. Someone on this post calls it a no
> brainer. The students in Madison Island that face
> redistricting represent less than 100 in grades
> K-12. The high school students are less than 30.
> So why the push to redistrict this area? Why did
> the speakers at Chantilly spend so much time on it
> in their opening statements?

I think they were referring to all of MADISON not just the island. They are concerned that all surrounding schools like Madison and Langley aren't in the study. From a demographic standpoint, Madison and Langley have effectively zero free and reduced lunch. Since there are no title 1 schools ie poor in the Madison boundary AND they border SLHS, it seems like they could have been included.


I called it a no-brainer. While I understand that you don't want to be redistricted, look objectively at your boundary. Have you heard from anyone outside your small group that thinks your boundary makes sense?

Redistricting you also sets up all the undeveloped area along Hunter Mill especially the HUGE $2 million dollar Renaissance homes currently being built to go to SLHS.

In five years, we (the sane ones from SLHS, Chantilly, Westfield, Oakton, Madison, etc.) will still be shaking our heads as we watch you try to insult everyone who "lets you down" while you go to your fourth or fifth school to find a proper fit for little jimmy/jimietta or whatever "it" is you call your kid.

hmmm07 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 3) the most clarity came from a parent NOT from SL
> who pointed to the Oakton boundaries on the map
> and said - "that's some messed up boundary! Why
> would some kids (Fox Mill and Crossfield) drive
> all the way to Oakton? They live in Herndon, not
> Oakton."
> >>
>
> The history behind this district is pretty simple.
> Oakton, Madison and Fairfax are all within 2-3
> miles of each other. Fairfax draws from towards
> the beltway and it is underenrolled. Madison
> draws from Vienna, and always has been the
> hometown school for Vienna. Oakton draws then
> from the west. In order to fill that school, they
> have to go way out because "Oakton proper" is
> houses on very large lots and is not very dense.
> You want to take Fox Mill and Crossfield? Fine.
> But that will leave Oakton with about 1/3 of what
> it has now. Then where is the problem? I've had
> a kid go through Oakton and one who drives there
> now. Not a problem. As a matter of fact, they
> have alot more driving experience for kids their
> age because of it.
>
> In one of the scenarios, either Crossfield or Fox
> Mill go to SL and Navy comes to Oakton. If people
> are so concerned with proximity, how does it make
> sense for a neighborhood directly across from the
> Greenbriar Shopping Center and next to
> International Country Club to go to Oakton when
> they can, as one person in our group explained
> "hit a good three iron shot from" the front yard
> to Chantilly?

Funny, why did Oakton get to draw their boundary way out here, when little old SL was right here with declining enrollment. Was it because at the time those boundaries were drawn Oakton may have been suffering from declining enrollment due to aging older districts and needed to expand their base? It's funny that other districts surrounding us have been able to benefit from new development in Fairfax County, but an arbitrary boundary was put up around South Reston. All of the new homes along Hunter Mill Road are much closer to South Lakes, yet those kids go to Madison. Are you going to tell me that there were no politics in play?

Many seem to think they are being screwed by the SB. Has SL been screwed in the past? Was SL screwed when North Point was sent to Herndon? You betcha. Was SL screwed when areas this side of Route 7 were districted to Langley? You betcha. I can provide more examples, if you like, but I've already done so earlier and repeating gets tedious.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/13/2007 04:02PM by SLVerity.

I think 'panky is an anti-chefite. He/she/it sure shows a lot of animosity toward chefs and the culinary arts. Perhaps his mother came after him with a butcher knife when he was little, or something. My brother is a very successful chef, so I take offense at the constant belittling of the profession. /sarcasm off

Closer to Chantilly but not quite Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ...perhaps she lives on the edge of the
> boundaries....like me.
>
>
> And if you are paying over 600k for a house, you
> expect to go to a "nice" school with "good
> programs" our tax money can pay for.
>

You may be surprised to know that many SLHS homes are worth significantly more than $600k - Not that that has ANYTHING to do with this,

But we too want "good programs."

We don't care about the 33% free and reduced lunch (the county average of 20% would be nice), the diverse population (looks like the real world), we don't care about the MMR program (teaches empathy and compassion), we don't care about non-competitive sports teams and music groups - our kids get to be first chair, they get to make the team and actually play on the field (ok the teams stink because there are less #s to draw from but at least they beat TJ).

WE CARE ABOUT ACADEMICS.

And it was very clear from the briefing that our students are disenfranchised and not offered the same academics as those from neighhboring schools. No high level courses, combined language classes and music classes from one of the top school districts in the nation - a FAIRFAX COUNTY school - is just NOT RIGHT.

Old Timer Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Closer to Chantilly but not quite Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ...perhaps she lives on the edge of the
> > boundaries....like me.
> >
> >
> > And if you are paying over 600k for a house,
> you
> > expect to go to a "nice" school with "good
> > programs" our tax money can pay for.
> >
>
> You may be surprised to know that many SLHS homes
> are worth significantly more than $600k - Not that
> that has ANYTHING to do with this,
>
> But we too want "good programs."
>
> We don't care about the 33% free and reduced lunch
> (the county average of 20% would be nice), the
> diverse population (looks like the real world), we
> don't care about the MMR program (teaches empathy
> and compassion), we don't care about
> non-competitive sports teams and music groups -
> our kids get to be first chair, they get to make
> the team and actually play on the field (ok the
> teams stink because there are less #s to draw from
> but at least they beat TJ).
>
> WE CARE ABOUT ACADEMICS.
>
> And it was very clear from the briefing that our
> students are disenfranchised and not offered the
> same academics as those from neighhboring schools.
> No high level courses, combined language classes
> and music classes from one of the top school
> districts in the nation - a FAIRFAX COUNTY school
> - is just NOT RIGHT.


So it is okay that Falls Church, Mt. Vernon, JEB Stuart, West Potomac, and probably a few more schools are not offering the jewelry making classes since they aren't surrounded by larger schools from which they can take students? THey are in FAIRFAX COUNTY as well.

Funny, why did Oakton get to draw their boundary way out here, when little old SL was right here with declining enrollment. Was it because at the time those boundaries were drawn Oakton may have been suffering from declining enrollment due to aging older districts and needed to expand their base? It's funny that other districts surrounding us have been able to benefit from new development in Fairfax County, but an arbitrary boundary was put up around South Reston. All of the new homes along Hunter Mill Road are much closer to South Lakes, yet those kids go to Madison. Are you going to tell me that there were no politics in play?

Many seem to think they are being screwed by the SB. Has SL been screwed in the past? Was SL screwed when North Point was sent to Herndon? You betcha. Was SL screwed when areas this side of Route 7 were districted to Langley? You betcha. I can provide more examples, if you like, but I've already done so earlier and repeating gets tedious.
>>

I honestly don't know when the boundary was drawn out this way relative to the declining enrollment at South Lakes. I do know that over 25 years ago Madison took Vale Road all the way to Rifle Ridge in Oakton, and all the neighborhoods along 123 in the Oakton part of Vienna. So Oakton had to go out Vale road past Rifle Ridge, almost all the way to Fox Mill to get students (other than the ones from Luther Jackson.) People from Oakton have been driving through Madison's district forever to get to school, all the way through Oakton. I don't know how long these boundaries have been in place out this way for Oakton, but I know it has been a pretty long time...long before Westfield was even a blip on the radar. The boundary used to go out to 28. Again, if you want to take Fox Mill and Crossfield so everyone is in proximity to South Lakes, fine. But just tell me what you are going to put into Oakton when you take 2/3 of their student body.

hmmm07 Wrote:
>
> So it is okay that Falls Church, Mt. Vernon, JEB
> Stuart, West Potomac, and probably a few more
> schools are not offering the jewelry making
> classes since they aren't surrounded by larger
> schools from which they can take students? THey
> are in FAIRFAX COUNTY as well.

Maybe Oakton can donate some classes to them. I didn't think that West Potomac was in the same boat as the other schools. Can you clarify? Mount Vernon would not be in the shape it is in right now if the lilly-livered SB had included them in the South County study, BTW. South County is overcrowded and those extra students could have been using available space at MV.

hmmm07, hasn't there been talk of switching some Westfield and/or Chantilly kids to Oakton? It will be interesting to see what is proposed at the next meeting.

I hate having to always play devil's advocate, but it is the nature of this board and the position that the County has put SL in by not addressing these issues a long time ago. I think most of us posting here are very reasonable and concerned parents. I would be honored to have most everyone here attending school in our district.

At the risk of getting snide comments from people posting here who will probably invite me to take a hike, I am wondering just how much more can be said regarding these issues. I am exhausted from all of the debate, frankly. I'll bet you are, too.

SLVerity Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> hmmm07 Wrote:
> >
> > So it is okay that Falls Church, Mt. Vernon,
> JEB
> > Stuart, West Potomac, and probably a few more
> > schools are not offering the jewelry making
> > classes since they aren't surrounded by larger
> > schools from which they can take students?
> THey
> > are in FAIRFAX COUNTY as well.
>
> Maybe Oakton can donate some classes to them. I
> didn't think that West Potomac was in the same
> boat as the other schools. Can you clarify?
> Mount Vernon would not be in the shape it is in
> right now if the lilly-livered SB had included
> them in the South County study, BTW. South County
> is overcrowded and those extra students could have
> been using available space at MV.

I'm sure that if it meant they could stay put, pretty much everyone at Oakton would be happy to donate classes to whoever needs them. And if the Mt. Vernon issues are because of the SB's shortsightedness, how again is it that we are supposed to trust them to get this one right?

> >
> > WE CARE ABOUT ACADEMICS.
> >
> > And it was very clear from the briefing that
> our
> > students are disenfranchised and not offered
> the
> > same academics as those from neighhboring
> schools.
> > No high level courses, combined language
> classes
> > and music classes from one of the top school
> > districts in the nation - a FAIRFAX COUNTY
> school
> > - is just NOT RIGHT.
>
>

Old Timer, you hit the nail on the head. Let's address the resource issue at SL.

hmmm07 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> I'm sure that if it meant they could stay put,
> pretty much everyone at Oakton would be happy to
> donate classes to whoever needs them. And if the
> Mt. Vernon issues are because of the SB's
> shortsightedness, how again is it that we are
> supposed to trust them to get this one right?

I guess this is where we disagree. The SB left MV out because they didn't want to deal with the negative demographics there and apparently did not have the stomach for the fight. Here I think they are doing the right thing by including SL and trying to increase enrollment. Have they done everything right? Absolutely not. Langley, Langley, Langley. But at least they aren't ignoring the problems that they created right here in Reston, which I do think have been political.

SLVerity Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> hmmm07, hasn't there been talk of switching some
> Westfield and/or Chantilly kids to Oakton? It
> will be interesting to see what is proposed at the
> next meeting.
>
> I hate having to always play devil's advocate, but
> it is the nature of this board and the position
> that the County has put SL in by not addressing
> these issues a long time ago. I think most of us
> posting here are very reasonable and concerned
> parents. I would be honored to have most everyone
> here attending school in our district.
>
> At the risk of getting snide comments from people
> posting here who will probably invite me to take a
> hike, I am wondering just how much more can be
> said regarding these issues. I am exhausted from
> all of the debate, frankly. I'll bet you are,
> too.

The talk was of moving Navy into Oakton, but that serves no purpose if you are talking about proximity. Those kids are within a mile or two from Chantilly and have just as long a commute to Oakton as we do from out this way...probably worse because it is further for them to get to back roads, so it would be 66 as a commuter path for them. It would be crazy to send Westfield kids to Oakton because they would be jumping right over us to get there...much further. The issue can be about proximity. I say that now as I'm on my way to make the second of three round trips to Oakton today. But if proximity is the issue then you can't just pull kids close to South Lakes in because there are no kids closer to Oakton to pull in there.

I'm also exhausted. I'm heartened though, by some of the positive debate I've heard. Between the forum, and last night's meeting, I have no doubt that should we end up there, my younger kids will do fine at South Lakes (provided they get an AP program in there,) and I will, no doubt, enjoy the shorter commute. But I do have an allegiance to Oakton, will demand that my rising sophomore be allowed to finish there and will continue to support that school for many years to come whether my kids are there or not. WIth that, I will bow out of the forum. Nobody here is going to change any minds, especially me or mine. I came here to try to get some facts and I think I did. I wish everyone the best. We all want what is best for our kids and I sincerely hope the school board can come up with a well thought out way for that to happen in the manner that will disrupt the least amount of people/families.

Actually, I was only half kidding about having a small exclusive school at South Lakes funded by Reston taxes. Small class sizes, diverse course offerings? It could be great.

Who do we talk to about this?

South lakes has about as many students as Marshall and Falls Church, both are Fairfax County high schools. It would be nice to see the same level of urgency applied to rectifying this situation at all schools where it exists...if its a problem for some FFCPS students, shouldn't it be a problem for all?

That was a great post, hmmm07.

I truly hope it works out for you and yours, too, and -- with a few exceptions -- think that people raise legitimate, understandable concerns and desires.

That proved true last night in the small group in which I participated, also. I think SLHS is much maligned, but I also understand why Chantilly Highlands wants/expects to go to Chantilly (for example).

So, if you are a stronger person than I am (and can resist the urge not to post again -- I have vowed same to myself several times....), all the best.

SLPP, you missed you chance...

You already have small school, and exclusivity seems not to be an issue :)

Just take the $40M+ spent on the removation and turn it into 50 more teachers for the next ten years :) and you get hundreds more course offerings.

Or maybe you forgot about the $40M that all of the county just spend on SLHS? :)

Oakton Parent Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> SLPP, you missed you chance...
>
> You already have small school, and exclusivity
> seems not to be an issue :)
>
> Just take the $40M+ spent on the removation and
> turn it into 50 more teachers for the next ten
> years :) and you get hundreds more course
> offerings.
>
> Or maybe you forgot about the $40M that all of the
> county just spend on SLHS? :)

Well, the $40M was required maintenance--making it an exclusive (meaning only Reston residents) school with all those resources would take much more. Sadly, I fear that the beaurocratic wrangling required to make this happen would be close to impossible. It is a nice dream though.:)



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/13/2007 04:55PM by South Lakes Pyramid parent.

Cheers, Hmmm7. Thanks for your kind response. I am bowing out, too, because, as I've already said, I think we've exhausted the subject here, and in the process have walked a mile...as they say. Again, I would be honored to have the children of people posting here at South Lakes. Good luck to all of you and your children. I have no doubt they will all prosper wherever they end up.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/13/2007 05:30PM by SLVerity.

Thanks for that inspiration, LH to SL Parent. I agree--keep the racist/elitist pigs out of SLHS. I dare say their kids should fear the future with such excellent role models. No one at SL, or any other of the Reston pyramid schools, wants to expose our kids to that kind of rancor. Keep your lily whites where they are--with heads in the sand!

South Lakes Pyramid parent Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Actually, I was only half kidding about having a
> small exclusive school at South Lakes funded by
> Reston taxes. Small class sizes, diverse course
> offerings? It could be great.
>
> Who do we talk to about this?

I think this is a great idea. Who can get the ball rolling?

True in part, no one wants to go to South Lakes, including and most importantly the Reston community.

Why on God's earth does part of Reston go to Herndon when ROA, RYA, and the like control life until........South Lakes....give me a break......

If the community has no pride for their school then great idea....close it....only then the Reston folks will whine about that. You simply want to bus wealthier kids in to a community while your wealthier kids in Reston go else where.

And we all know it is not as simple as RACE....it is not RACIAL....it is economically motivated.........Fairfax County is diverse.......OAKTON WESTFIELDS and Chantilly have racially diverse populations......just not so many free lunch kids.

Why should Oak Hill people go to South Lakes?????? Is this to simply bash the folks that CHOSE not to live in Reston......do you let us use your rec facilities? Do you let us use your fields......no not until you want our economic mix for the high school......total HOGWASH....

Let Reston be Reston......and go to South Lakes or close it down!!!!!!!!!!

macaosandy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> True in part, no one wants to go to South Lakes,
> including and most importantly the Reston
> community.
>
> Why on God's earth does part of Reston go to
> Herndon when ROA, RYA, and the like control life
> until........South Lakes....give me a break......
>
> If the community has no pride for their school
> then great idea....close it....only then the
> Reston folks will whine about that. You simply
> want to bus wealthier kids in to a community while
> your wealthier kids in Reston go else where.
>
> And we all know it is not as simple as RACE....it
> is not RACIAL....it is economically
> motivated.........Fairfax County is
> diverse.......OAKTON WESTFIELDS and Chantilly have
> racially diverse populations......just not so many
> free lunch kids.
>
> Why should Oak Hill people go to South Lakes??????
> Is this to simply bash the folks that CHOSE not to
> live in Reston......do you let us use your rec
> facilities? Do you let us use your fields......no
> not until you want our economic mix for the high
> school......total HOGWASH....
>
> Let Reston be Reston......and go to South Lakes or
> close it down!!!!!!!!!!


The vast majority of Reston likes South Lakes. North Reston goes to Herndon because of the school board's decision, not their own. If you do not live in Reston, don't speak for the people who do as if you have the slightest clue what is going on.

HooTribe Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Chantilly Mom.
>
> Glad you like Chantilly - I like Reston and that
> is the way it should be. Personally, I just want
> better resources for SL. It is unfortunate that
> the county is handling this the way it is.
>
> Quick Question: You said you bought into a
> "school district" - my understanding is that you
> did not. You bought into an existing "school
> boundary". Can anyone clarify this? I know you
> still don't want to move, but there is a big
> differance between the two.
>
> Thanks and good luck to you with the process.




When people have children they not only buy the house they buy in the area that has the schools they want... you can call it what ever you want honey.

This is a fact of life and real estate



I am not in a area of fairfax that will be redistricted. I am simply stating the facts as to why people are upset.

and for you to say that those who's children are to be redistricted should just move because YOU"RE INSULTED says a lot about who YOU are.



why did you buy a home in SL school district?



I can tell you why I bought my house in the school zones I'm in. Because I wanted my kids to go to Navy, Franklin and Chantilly.


sorry that your ego can't take the truth

macaosandy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> True in part, no one wants to go to South Lakes,
> including and most importantly the Reston
> community.
>
> Why on God's earth does part of Reston go to
> Herndon when ROA, RYA, and the like control life
> until........South Lakes....give me a break......
>
> If the community has no pride for their school
> then great idea....close it....only then the
> Reston folks will whine about that. You simply
> want to bus wealthier kids in to a community while
> your wealthier kids in Reston go else where.
>
> And we all know it is not as simple as RACE....it
> is not RACIAL....it is economically
> motivated.........Fairfax County is
> diverse.......OAKTON WESTFIELDS and Chantilly have
> racially diverse populations......just not so many
> free lunch kids.
>
> Why should Oak Hill people go to South Lakes??????
> Is this to simply bash the folks that CHOSE not to
> live in Reston......do you let us use your rec
> facilities? Do you let us use your fields......no
> not until you want our economic mix for the high
> school......total HOGWASH....
>
> Let Reston be Reston......and go to South Lakes or
> close it down!!!!!!!!!!


Don't know where to start on this one, but I can tell you that RYA is the Reston Youth Football Association.

Thanks for letting me know that they are controlling our brainwaves -- must be the helmets.....good thing that the season is over. Maybe there is hope.

we should just save our energy and not fight it
we're bound to end up at south lakes since i live in fox mill. it's closer, too, so i don't mind.

Oh really, well then why did the North Reston parents make t-shirts supporting staying at Herndon HS.....ABC......about balanced community.........

I do know that Reston's lack of acceptance of their own community has caused the rest of western FFX grief over over over again........starting with Hunter's Woods Elementary year's ago......

As I remember turning the elementary school into a magnet school worked for everyone........but FORCING other communities into RESTON is not the answer. It wasn't then and it isn't now!!!!!!

If you live in Reston then you know the community is divided about South Lakes......if North Reston wanted to be in South Lakes then that would work for everyone.....

Who from North Reston has spoken up to come back to South Lakes.........would love to see it in STRONG NUMBERS>>>>>>>>>>

CLARIFICATION:

North Reston was never taken from anyone. Since HHS is one of the oldest county high schools, their attendance areas predate both SL and Langley. North Reston has always gone to HHS and....WE WANT TO STAY AT HHS.

That "sea of red" that you saw last night...North Reston!!

Sorry North Point. You are wrong. My child was at South Lakes when North Point was redistricted to Herndon. Several families did not want to go to Herndon. I lived in Longwood Grove and it most definitely went to Lake Anne Elem, Hughes and SL. Get your facts straight. You are entitled to want to go to Herndon, but not to rewrite history.

I know North Reston was not taken from South Lakes so sorry....but I believe when South Lakes was first opened there were very few homes completed in North Reston.........it just makes more sense as the Reston community grew and changed for your kids to go to their community school......South Lakes was built to educate Reston's kids........FFX is about neighborhood schools.......we do not bus without a purpose.....


And what is so odd is that SO MANY SOUTH LAKES KIDS AND PARENTS ARE HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY.....GREAT SCHOOL GREAT FACILITIES.........BUT THe KIDS FAMILIES GREW UP TOGETHER PLAYING SPORTS, IN THE SCHOOL BANDS ETC ETC.

I was reading solutions and really turning South Lakes into a magnet school or something like that would be a great solution........it would be nice to stop yanking our kids in/out of school districts.......


Oak Hill kids.......we had a saying when Rachael Carson was opened....five schools in five years.....it became a reality for our kids.....that's what our kids went through....and well... they did go on to college, play sports in college and even graduate and get jobs......most kids were given the option to stay with their community high school.....

The point is that Reston has not looked to Reston to solve their underenrollment problems and it is mind boggling to me....I know your kids don't want to move but the geography just seems to make sense.......but so does a magnet school.....maybe even sell land to open another NVCC campus...just throwing out ideas.....

In other parts of the state, JMU bought land (Harrisonburg HS) as the college grew. The Burg built a new HS. NOVA could have sports etc like some of the other MD community colleges........just thinking out loud..,,

CloserTo chantilly,
How were kids moved out of a school then sent back there the following year. That sounds like the worst of all worlds! How did it happen?

If people refuse to choose a school to be sent to South Lakes, without Langley in the mix, and without consideration for magnet programs, you all will prevail. Just hang tough and refuse to choose any of their scenarios, until they throw out this study and consult the community BEFORE they decide to redistrict. Force them to start all over and involve the entire community from the get go.

>>>My child was at South Lakes when North Point was redistricted to Herndon. Several families did not want to go to Herndon. I lived in Longwood Grove and it most definitely went to Lake Anne Elem, Hughes and SL<<<

And you complained when sent to Herndon?

Rather than spend $50 million to renovate TJ, move all those kids into South lakes and sell the TJ property, worth many millions because it's way inside the beltway. Then move all the South Lakes kids to other schools, Oakton, Madison, Langley, Herndon, Westfield, etc. Everyone gets a better school! It's a win-win.

Cricket,
I would gladly come to the meetings if my presence was welcome. Since my area isn't effected, yet, I was concerned that people might resent my pres ence since my schools were not involved. Would they resent my thoughts on schools that are not mine? What do you think?

Madison Island is in Vienna. It has a Vienna address, they go to church in Vienna, play little league in Vienna. They're a part of Vienna. Madison is Vienna's high school. A Vienna address means Madison high school. Until now anyway.

hmmm07 said>>>>the scenarios presented at the next meeting will be 1)no redistricting (but examination of other ways to bring kids to South Lakes) and/or 2) Langley gets brought into the study. If you walked around and looked at the gallery afterwards, those two items were OVERWHELMINGLY the top two items that came from every classroom. IF they continue pitting neighbor against neighbor, school against school, this will get much more ugly before it gets nice<<<

I heard exactly the same things from my friends. How will FCPS deal with the top two things that every group wanted? How will they be spinned to be something other than what they are? How can staff say they want community input and then ignore the two things that every group wanted? If they ignore those two things, they will have to admit that the community meetings are a sham and they are going to do whatever the heck they want to do.

At the next meeting, when staff comes out with 2 or 3 scenarios for boundary changes, you must all hang tough and remind staff that NO group had this as their first choice. Remind staff of what the community said, then you'll have to refuse to choose ANY of their scenarios. Refuse to pit one neighborhood against another. Refuse to put parents in a position of making their neighbors angry. Tell them they must go back to square one and involve the entire community BEFORE any decisions are made about boundary changes. It cannot be left up to Stu, Janie, and Kathy, to eliminate any discussion of magnet programs, nor can they be allowed to decide which schools can be considered and which schools, Langley and Madison, will be held harmless. Force the to redo this entire process. Start OVER!!!!

hmmm07 said>>>>the scenarios presented at the next meeting will be 1)no redistricting (but examination of other ways to bring kids to South Lakes) and/or 2) Langley gets brought into the study. If you walked around and looked at the gallery afterwards, those two items were OVERWHELMINGLY the top two items that came from every classroom. IF they continue pitting neighbor against neighbor, school against school, this will get much more ugly before it gets nice<<<

I heard exactly the same things from my friends. How will FCPS deal with the top two things that every group wanted? How will they be spinned to be something other than what they are? How can staff say they want community input and then ignore the two things that every group wanted? If they ignore those two things, they will have to admit that the community meetings are a sham and they are going to do whatever the heck they want to do.

At the next meeting, when staff comes out with 2 or 3 scenarios for boundary changes, you must all hang tough and remind staff that NO group had this as their first choice. Remind staff of what the community said, then you'll have to refuse to choose ANY of their scenarios. Refuse to pit one neighborhood against another. Refuse to put parents in a position of making their neighbors angry. Tell them they must go back to square one and involve the entire community BEFORE any decisions are made about boundary changes. It cannot be left up to Stu, Janie, and Kathy, to eliminate any discussion of magnet programs, nor can they be allowed to decide which schools can be considered and which schools, Langley and Madison, will be held harmless. Force the to redo this entire process. Start OVER!!!!

hmmm07 said>>>>the scenarios presented at the next meeting will be 1)no redistricting (but examination of other ways to bring kids to South Lakes) and/or 2) Langley gets brought into the study. If you walked around and looked at the gallery afterwards, those two items were OVERWHELMINGLY the top two items that came from every classroom. IF they continue pitting neighbor against neighbor, school against school, this will get much more ugly before it gets nice<<<

I heard exactly the same things from my friends. How will FCPS deal with the top two things that every group wanted? How will they be spinned to be something other than what they are? How can staff say they want community input and then ignore the two things that every group wanted? If they ignore those two things, they will have to admit that the community meetings are a sham and they are going to do whatever the heck they want to do.

At the next meeting, when staff comes out with 2 or 3 scenarios for boundary changes, you must all hang tough and remind staff that NO group had this as their first choice. Remind staff of what the community said, then you'll have to refuse to choose ANY of their scenarios. Refuse to pit one neighborhood against another. Refuse to put parents in a position of making their neighbors angry. Tell them they must go back to square one and involve the entire community BEFORE any decisions are made about boundary changes. It cannot be left up to Stu, Janie, and Kathy, to eliminate any discussion of magnet programs, nor can they be allowed to decide which schools can be considered and which schools, Langley and Madison, will be held harmless. Force the to redo this entire process. Start OVER!!!!

hmmm07 said>>>>the scenarios presented at the next meeting will be 1)no redistricting (but examination of other ways to bring kids to South Lakes) and/or 2) Langley gets brought into the study. If you walked around and looked at the gallery afterwards, those two items were OVERWHELMINGLY the top two items that came from every classroom. IF they continue pitting neighbor against neighbor, school against school, this will get much more ugly before it gets nice<<<

I heard exactly the same things from my friends. How will FCPS deal with the top two things that every group wanted? How will they be spinned to be something other than what they are? How can staff say they want community input and then ignore the two things that every group wanted? If they ignore those two things, they will have to admit that the community meetings are a sham and they are going to do whatever the heck they want to do.

At the next meeting, when staff comes out with 2 or 3 scenarios for boundary changes, you must all hang tough and remind staff that NO group had this as their first choice. Remind staff of what the community said, then you'll have to refuse to choose ANY of their scenarios. Refuse to pit one neighborhood against another. Refuse to put parents in a position of making their neighbors angry. Tell them they must go back to square one and involve the entire community BEFORE any decisions are made about boundary changes. It cannot be left up to Stu, Janie, and Kathy, to eliminate any discussion of magnet programs, nor can they be allowed to decide which schools can be considered and which schools, Langley and Madison, will be held harmless. Force the to redo this entire process. Start OVER!!!!

Neen Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Cricket,
> I would gladly come to the meetings if my presence
> was welcome. Since my area isn't effected, yet, I
> was concerned that people might resent my pres
> ence since my schools were not involved. Would
> they resent my thoughts on schools that are not
> mine? What do you think?

I am sure you would not be alone. Aren't these meetings open to the public? The police were there so why not everyone else in the county?

Neen Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> hmmm07 said>>>>the scenarios presented at the next
> meeting will be 1)no redistricting (but
> examination of other ways to bring kids to South
> Lakes) and/or 2) Langley gets brought into the
> study. If you walked around and looked at the
> gallery afterwards, those two items were
> OVERWHELMINGLY the top two items that came from
> every classroom. IF they continue pitting neighbor
> against neighbor, school against school, this will
> get much more ugly before it gets nice<<<
>
> I heard exactly the same things from my friends.
> How will FCPS deal with the top two things that
> every group wanted? How will they be spinned to
> be something other than what they are? How can
> staff say they want community input and then
> ignore the two things that every group wanted? If
> they ignore those two things, they will have to
> admit that the community meetings are a sham and
> they are going to do whatever the heck they want
> to do.
>
> At the next meeting, when staff comes out with 2
> or 3 scenarios for boundary changes, you must all
> hang tough and remind staff that NO group had this
> as their first choice. Remind staff of what the
> community said, then you'll have to refuse to
> choose ANY of their scenarios. Refuse to pit one
> neighborhood against another. Refuse to put
> parents in a position of making their neighbors
> angry. Tell them they must go back to square one
> and involve the entire community BEFORE any
> decisions are made about boundary changes. It
> cannot be left up to Stu, Janie, and Kathy, to
> eliminate any discussion of magnet programs, nor
> can they be allowed to decide which schools can be
> considered and which schools, Langley and Madison,
> will be held harmless. Force the to redo this
> entire process. Start OVER!!!!

This is how they will try...
They will stick to the agenda of the second meeting and ignore the agenda and purpose (the 2 questions) of the first meeting.

chantilly mom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> HooTribe Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Chantilly Mom.
> >
> > Glad you like Chantilly - I like Reston and
> that
> > is the way it should be. Personally, I just
> want
> > better resources for SL. It is unfortunate
> that
> > the county is handling this the way it is.
> >
> > Quick Question: You said you bought into a
> > "school district" - my understanding is that
> you
> > did not. You bought into an existing "school
> > boundary". Can anyone clarify this? I know
> you
> > still don't want to move, but there is a big
> > differance between the two.
> >
> > Thanks and good luck to you with the process.
>
>
>
>
> When people have children they not only buy the
> house they buy in the area that has the schools
> they want... you can call it what ever you want
> honey.
>
> This is a fact of life and real estate
>
>
>
> I am not in a area of fairfax that will be
> redistricted. I am simply stating the facts as to
> why people are upset.
>
> and for you to say that those who's children are
> to be redistricted should just move because YOU"RE
> INSULTED says a lot about who YOU are.
>
>
>
> why did you buy a home in SL school district?
>
>
>
> I can tell you why I bought my house in the school
> zones I'm in. Because I wanted my kids to go to
> Navy, Franklin and Chantilly.
>
>
> sorry that your ego can't take the truth


OK Chantilly Mom, calm down - my post was trying to be civil. If you need to, please remember to take your medication ... As I said, I am happy to be in Reston, and bought here partly because of Hunters Woods (which we love) and figured changes would be made to South Lakes (we guessed right).

Everyone knows that when they buy into Fairfax County, there are no guarantees as to where you will go to school (except Langley, it seems). If people were so smart when they checked what school they would go to, they would also have checked the boundary map and considered how long it would last. As someone already mentioned in a post above, you can't objectively look at the way Oakton's boundary is drawn and think that it would last forever. Same with the Madison island (sorry guys).

As I said before, I wish you good luck with the process. I hope your ego can handle the truth - the board/staff clearly wants to make a change.

Agree with you Islander although not one myself and I don't believe we should "help" the County solve its imagined/created boundary problem by "giving up" less represented areas. Remaining unified will also become important should the need to litigate become necessary.

The County's actions have inadvertently caused South Lakes High School to be scrutized and analysed as though it was a patient on an operating table. And when statistics are displayed,....as compared to neighboring schools.... again...more harm to the SL reputation and the students in attendance. Yet,obviously, parents at many affected schools are conducting investigations and statistics are part of the review. Nobodys fault but the County of Fairfax.

While the County may not "own" this unintended consequence...it/they can limit the continuing damage being done to the SL Community, and surrounding areas as well, by placing a moratorium on the redistricting agenda while other solutions are considered. This plan was obviously poorly executed from the start.

Neen - you still have horrible grammer. Again: Affect NOT effect.

I live a block from SLHS. Your solution of making the whole place a magnet and busing the neighborhood kids to "good" schools like Madison, Oakton and Westfield is ridiculous. insulting, obnoxious and just plain stupid. You don't think the fine people in my neighborhood would be as mad as all the other people who are getting redistricted now? As best I could tell (as my child is a few years from HS), we LIKE our neighborhood school - and pretty much everyone goes there.

And to macaosandy: you probably didn't "pay" $600K for your house. If you have lived here more than a few years, you probably paid about $250,000. The real estate bubble just made it a $600,000 house. Your self-importance and sense of entitlement apparently got bloated along with the price tag.

Oops. meant to say Grammar in the above post. My bad.

people age everywhere so that's a poor excuse as to why people do not go to South Lakes.

The Fordham Institute just issued a report comparing AP and IB courses in four subjects, "Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate: Do They Deserve Gold Star Status." This report gave AP Calc AB a C+, and IB SL Math a B-. The detailed conclusions about IB Math, on page 43, however, state as follows:

If a student intends to take more math courses at the university level, it is not clear where that student should be placed. What university math courses have as their prerequisites a small amount of calculus, but no exposure to complex numbers, almost no geometry, a spotty background in trig, a smattering of linear algebra, and a good bit of statistics? Perhaps the answer is "more statistics courses." The reliance on calculators and failure to require memorization of formulas puts students wanting to puruse math in college at a further disadvantage.

In fairness to the IBO program, highly motivated students and those most apt to take math in college follow the more rigorous HL syllabus. While notably more complete and mathematically advanced, some gaps exist even at this level.

AP or IB mom,
The post article on this said that both AP and IB were downgraded for too much use of calculators.

South Lakes Pyramid Parent,

That's correct. Overreliance on calculators is a problem with both AP and IB, as is lack of emphasis on proofs. It's worth reading the entire report for all four subjects, though, rather than relying on the Washington Post's summary, since the "grades" for the four courses don't seem to fully reflect the written conclusions.

http://www.edexcellence.net/doc/APIB.pdf

Neen Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> >>>My child was at South Lakes when North Point
> was redistricted to Herndon. Several families did
> not want to go to Herndon. I lived in Longwood
> Grove and it most definitely went to Lake Anne
> Elem, Hughes and SL<<<
>
> And you complained when sent to Herndon?

Why do you assume that I complained? I was merely correcting the record, or does the truth not fit your scenario? Does your unhinged and belligerent nature only come out when you post at 4:00am? Sheesh. Get a life.

Neen Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Madison Island is in Vienna. It has a Vienna
> address, they go to church in Vienna, play little
> league in Vienna. They're a part of Vienna.
> Madison is Vienna's high school. A Vienna address
> means Madison high school. Until now anyway.

Neeny, Neeny, Boo-Hoo. Again you display your ignorance. I now live in Vienna and my neighborhood is districted to South Lakes and has always been districted to South Lakes, as are several other Vienna addresses in our area.

Please just go away. You are wrong so many times and your constant harping reminds me of a certain woman running for President.

HooTribe Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> chantilly mom Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > HooTribe Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > Chantilly Mom.
> > >
> > > Glad you like Chantilly - I like Reston and
> > that
> > > is the way it should be. Personally, I just
> > want
> > > better resources for SL. It is unfortunate
> > that
> > > the county is handling this the way it is.
> > >
> > > Quick Question: You said you bought into a
> > > "school district" - my understanding is that
> > you
> > > did not. You bought into an existing "school
> > > boundary". Can anyone clarify this? I know
> > you
> > > still don't want to move, but there is a big
> > > differance between the two.
> > >
> > > Thanks and good luck to you with the process.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > When people have children they not only buy the
> > house they buy in the area that has the schools
> > they want... you can call it what ever you want
> > honey.
> >
> > This is a fact of life and real estate
> >
> >
> >
> > I am not in a area of fairfax that will be
> > redistricted. I am simply stating the facts as
> to
> > why people are upset.
> >
> > and for you to say that those who's children
> are
> > to be redistricted should just move because
> YOU"RE
> > INSULTED says a lot about who YOU are.
> >
> >
> >
> > why did you buy a home in SL school district?
> >
> >
> >
> > I can tell you why I bought my house in the
> school
> > zones I'm in. Because I wanted my kids to go to
> > Navy, Franklin and Chantilly.
> >
> >
> > sorry that your ego can't take the truth
>
>
> OK Chantilly Mom, calm down - my post was trying
> to be civil. If you need to, please remember to
> take your medication ... As I said, I am happy to
> be in Reston, and bought here partly because of
> Hunters Woods (which we love) and figured changes
> would be made to South Lakes (we guessed right).
>
> Everyone knows that when they buy into Fairfax
> County, there are no guarantees as to where you
> will go to school (except Langley, it seems). If
> people were so smart when they checked what school
> they would go to, they would also have checked the
> boundary map and considered how long it would
> last. As someone already mentioned in a post
> above, you can't objectively look at the way
> Oakton's boundary is drawn and think that it would
> last forever. Same with the Madison island (sorry
> guys).
>
> As I said before, I wish you good luck with the
> process. I hope your ego can handle the truth -
> the board/staff clearly wants to make a change.



everyone does not know that when they buy in Fairfax that there is a chance they could be moved to other schools... Most people who live here have moved here from out of state.


my ego is not in play here dear.

why don't SL parents get more involved in their school in order to increase those test scores before you try to force people to give it a boost with their kids and take a real estate hit in the process.

Our daughter's IB Math teacher doesn't let them use calculators (or only very infrequently). He feels that calculators are overused in the school systems.

OK Chantilly Mom, calm down - my post was trying to be civil. If you need to, please remember to > take your medication ... As I said, I am happy to
> be in Reston, and bought here partly because of Hunters Woods (which we love) and figured changes would be made to South Lakes (we guessed right).
>
> Everyone knows that when they buy into Fairfax
> County, there are no guarantees as to where you
> will go to school (except Langley, it seems). If
> people were so smart when they checked what school
> they would go to, they would also have checked the
> boundary map and considered how long it would
> last. As someone already mentioned in a post
> above, you can't objectively look at the way
> Oakton's boundary is drawn and think that it would
> last forever. Same with the Madison island (sorry
> guys).
>
> As I said before, I wish you good luck with the
> process. I hope your ego can handle the truth -
> the board/staff clearly wants to make a change.



everyone does not know that when they buy in Fairfax that there is a chance they could be moved to other schools... Most people who live here have moved here from out of state.


my ego is not in play here dear.

why don't SL parents get more involved in their school in order to increase those test scores before you try to force people to give it a boost with their kids and take a real estate hit in the process.


Chantilly Mom,

My ego isn't either - that is my point. As for not knowing that they could be moved to other schools - sounds like someone didn't do their homework. To quote you "This is a fact of life and real estate." Not too smart if you and your friends didn't look into that fact if it was so important - don't try to claim ignorance now.

As for improving SL, it will be when it has the same number of programs as other schools. SL isn't forcing anything - the county board is. As I have stated before, I would be fine with a magnet program or students from Langley, but it does not appear that we have that choice.

Calm yourself down and deal with the facts.

A LOT of people like Stu Gibson, that is why he won! I want my elected officials to be intelligent, thinking people. I do not want someone who will say whatever it takes to get elected by pandering to the current mob mentality. The entire high school redistricting uproar is ridiculous. This is Fairfax County- filled with excellent schools. It is not some 3rd world country. Kids who are college bound will be college bound whether they graduate from Oakton or South Lakes. Redistricting IS going to happen. Get over it.

hmmm07 said>>>>the scenarios presented at the next meeting will be 1)no redistricting (but examination of other ways to bring kids to South Lakes) and/or 2) Langley gets brought into the study. If you walked around and looked at the gallery afterwards, those two items were OVERWHELMINGLY the top two items that came from every classroom. IF they continue pitting neighbor against neighbor, school against school, this will get much more ugly before it gets nice<<<

I heard exactly the same things from my friends. How will FCPS deal with the top two things that every group wanted? How will they be spinned to be something other than what they are? How can staff say they want community input and then ignore the two things that every group wanted? If they ignore those two things, they will have to admit that the community meetings are a sham and they are going to do whatever the heck they want to do.

At the next meeting, when staff comes out with 2 or 3 scenarios for boundary changes, you must all hang tough and remind staff that NO group had their scenarios as their first or second choice. Remind staff of what the community said, then you'll have to refuse to choose ANY of their scenarios. Refuse to pit one neighborhood against another. Refuse to put parents in a position of making their neighbors angry. Tell them they must go back to square one and involve the entire community BEFORE any decisions are made about boundary changes. It cannot be left up to Stu, Janie, and Kathy, to eliminate any discussion of magnet programs, nor can they be allowed to decide which schools can be considered and which schools, Langley and Madison, will be held harmless. Force them to redo this entire process. Start OVER!!!! Refuse to throw any neighborhood under the bus so that YOUR neighborhood can escape. Hang together, or you will all hang separately.

>>>I would be fine with a magnet program or students from Langley, but it does not appear that we have that choice.<<<

Why not? If that what the community wants, why isn't that a choice in a PUBLIC school?

Based upon the discussion I have read, and the comments I heard at the Town Meeting on Monday, I now believe the following:

1) The majority of parents would like to keep the current districting.
2) The size of South Lakes puts it at a program disadvantage.
3) More parents prefer AP than IB.

My proposal is to offer a competitive academic program at South Lakes by allocating staff based upon school capacity rather than enrollment. Thus, South Lakes would have roughly the same staffing level and teacher quality as Oakton (similar capacity). South Lakes could then have the same course offerings as more highly enrolled schools, including selected AP classes. As an added benefit, South Lakes' average class size would be smaller than the FCPS average. Because of the smaller class sizes, some parents may even elect to pupil place their students in South Lakes for the quality of instruction!

This proposal preserves the current districting keeping most parents happy in that respect, and makes the program of instruction at South Lakes compeitive with the other Western Fairfax County High Schools. Of course, we will have to take a couple of teachers away from the other schools, but it will be fair to all students and schools in Fairfax County (at least the Western Part!)

I was at the meeting, and I would not call 3 policemen "quite a police presence." I do not blame FCC Schools for the need for police. I blame the immature adults who were there. The jeering, cat calls, and disrepectful behavior toward the County staff by supposedly well-educated people was a disgrace. These are the same arrogant parents who are fearful for their children to go to South Lakes with the "bad" kids? Some example they set.

Buying a home based on the school district is ridiculous. To suggest that school boundaries will never change is not logical. They must change as communities change. Redistricting in some format is going to happen. And all the whining and meetings in the world is not going to change that fact. If folks from Oakton, Herndon or wherever don't want their kids to attend SLHS - fine by me. Just send us your tax dollars so we can keep on improving SL, and keep your kids. Smaller classrooms makes for better learning anyway.

EVERY kid in my neighborhood who graduated from South Lakes in the past 2-3 years has gone to an Ivy league school. There are NO parents who send their kids to private schools. We live in Fairfax County for heavens sake, and while I am sure that everyone who posts here believes their kids should all be in the GT programs, most are average kids who will do just fine in school. And if so inclined, will graduate and go to college, whether they graduate from Oakton or South Lakes. Get a grip.

Were you at the same meeting the rest of us attended?? I was embarrassed for the FCPS staff that had to present the inaccurate content of the program. This if FCPS, one of the top school systems in the country.

When one staff member was asked about the inclusion of the Westfield/Chantilly football game as over crowded and a reason to reduce the size of the schools - she replied "I didn't want to include that - but they made me" Come on...
The citizens/taxpayers wanted answers and NONE WERE GIVEN. Don't call the crowd immature - we pay the taxes that finance our wonderful school system.

This boundary change needs TO BE STOPPED....Let's make sure the School Board makes mature decisions...NOT POLITICALLY FOR STU AND KATHY DECISIONS.

Better get a refund on that Dale Carnegie class, Doglover...

You call others immature, disrepectful and disgrace[ful], warranting police presence, then call others arrogant. Your behavior seems the same to me.

You claim differentiating home location on school district is nonsensical, yet you chose to live in Fairfax County, not Washington DC. Just a coincidence? How is that different from choosing Langley vs. Lorton in FCPS?

And we are pleased to hear that every kid in your neighborhood went to an Ivy League school. Puzzled, perhaps, given Ivy League acceptance rate, but still pleased. Clearly this is the exception rather than the norm...not all 1000 SLHS grads in the last 2-3 years went to Ivy League schools.

If you had listened, rather than just bloviated, the issue that unites many people at all schools is: people don't want their kids to have to change schools and programs when their families get little benefit from it. The Navy parents don't want to move from Chantilly to Oakton. The Aldrin folks don't want to move from Herndon even to go to a school in their own community. And yes, many people do not want to have to move to South Lakes...Fox Mill elementary voted 2:1 against Stu Gibson for just that reason, but that's due as much to a desire to stay put as to South Lake's slightly lagging objective performance measures. People exaggerate South Lake's issues to give reasons not to have to move.

One of your posts even says you are fine with South Lakes not receiving extra kids [though you want special financial treatment...is that arrogant?]...similar to FCPS Falls Church high just ten miles away, which today has less than 1400 kids in a school that holds 2000...if that's the case, let's just call off this whole dubious redistricting project.

The SB is being mature now. They were not being mature when they chose not to address the issue of underenrollment at South Lakes in the past, in response to mob mentality and an irrational fear of South Lakes. They could have districted neighborhoods to SL that had not yet been built, or they could have restored North Point to SL when Herndon was overcrowded a few years ago. Then when Herndon's enrollment started coming down they could have taken areas now being sent to Westfield, such as Floris and McNair. And they would not have had to make Westfield so big.

All of this could have been avoided if they had only stood firm back then and not listened to the irrational, bigoted mob. Incidentally, before 2001 South Lakes was an AP school with great AP teachers and a wonderful Yale educated principal, and no one wanted to go to South Lakes back then. So what was the excuse for not coming? I'll bet you all can guess.

So spare us the pity party. I am sick of all the whining. When is our community going to get its fair share? We have sacrificed for years, lost potential neighborhoods in boundary changes,some done surreptitiously by builders in cahoots with the School Board, had an IB program dumped on us that we didnt' ask for and were not allowed to vet, endured insults at your football and basketball games, had our children asked whey they wanted to go to a 'ghetto' school.

So quit telling us that we don't have a right to expect an equal return on our tax dollars as you have been enjoying all these years.

I should add that even though the parents did not ask for IB, they decided to make the best of the program and have learned to appreciate it, though we would welcome the addition of AP classes in order to please people being moved in.

Dear Oakton Parent, I could not help but notice that you did not iclude the wishes of SL parents who were at the meeting in your post. You wrote about the wishes of Navy, Aldrin, Fox Mill, etc. but nothing about SL. I think that has been our complaint all along...that parents in surrounding districts don't give a s*%$ about what we want. You don't like being called arrogant, but your post is the height of arrogance.

>>>So spare us the pity party. I am sick of all the whining. When is our community going to get its fair share? We have sacrificed for years, lost potential neighborhoods in boundary changes,some done surreptitiously by builders in cahoots with the School Board, had an IB program dumped on us that we didnt' ask for and were not allowed to vet, endured insults at your football and basketball games, had our children asked whey they wanted to go to a 'ghetto' school.<<<

Why didn't you move when all that happened? Or send your children to a different school?

>>>So quit telling us that we don't have a right to expect an equal return on our tax dollars as you have been enjoying all these years.<<<

You just got that new, big, renovation. That makes up for some of the tax money, doesn't it? What other money would make it equitable? People would agree to send more money, but not their children. See, most of them did move to a district where they liked the schools.

I'm not sure why you think others should suffer just because you suffered and remained at South Lakes? You made that choice, they made another choice.

Another voter,
I like your ideas! FCPS can give South Lakes more resources, and more teachers. Classes could be very small. They can have extra funding, just not the extra bodies. Would that be enough for South Lakes parents?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/15/2007 03:08AM by Neen.

>>>EVERY kid in my neighborhood who graduated from South Lakes in the past 2-3 years has gone to an Ivy league school<<<

You'll have to pardon us if we find that to be stretching the truth. No school in FCPS, other than TJ, has had 15 or 20 kids go to an Ivy in the last 2 years, from the same neighborhood. If South Lakes had done that, you can bet that FCPS would have a press release about YOUR neighborhood, complete with pictures.

Many TJ kids who are accepted at Ivies choose to attend UVA. I don't suppose that anyone in your neighborhood decided to do the same and save $200,000. You must live in the Mansionville part of Reston, the part where everyone is gifted, everyone goes to the Ivies, and money is of no concern.

>>>Neen Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> >>>My child was at South Lakes when North Point
> was redistricted to Herndon. Several families did
> not want to go to Herndon. I lived in Longwood
> Grove and it most definitely went to Lake Anne
> Elem, Hughes and SL<<<
>
> And you complained when sent to Herndon?<<<

You addressed this to the wrong person. This is not my statement.

Cheshire Cat,

Name calling ("irrational, bigoted mob") doesn't become you.

Before 1999, South Lakes was close to capacity with 1700 students and couldn't have taken whole school areas such as McNair and Floris.

http://www.schooldigger.com/go/VA/schools/0126000566/school.aspx

You say that other schools don't care what you want...when what you want it to tell other kids they have to leave their schools. That looks like a better idea if you are the place where kids don't have to move, and where your kids will be better off afterwards. My issue, at least, with the process and goals of the redistricting, not with South Lakes high. I am neither irrational nor bigoted, at least not in any significant way as regards this discussion.

Some rationality to address school size issues

In this current situation, the justification for this is the idea that schools should have about 2000 students, and South Lakes, Chantilly and Westfield do not.

After the redistricting, South Lakes will be close to 2000, or so we understand. Chantilly and Westfield still won't be...they'll go from an average of 2900 students to an average of 2600. Hundred of kids will be moved from those schools, while leaving those schools with a "capacity imbalance" that is larger than South Lakes' now. That makes no sense. If you have almost 6000 kids in two schools, and you want to get to 2000/school, you need another school in that part of the county, you don't just move 600 kids out. (Though in practice, you DON"T need to get to 2000 students/school, as shown in Lake Braddock, Robinson, and yes, Chantilly and Westfield. Chantilly and Westfield are fine as they are now.)

Also after the redistricting, Marshall and Falls Church will also be under 1400 students. Marshall is very close to Langley, McLean, and even South Lakes. Falls Church is closer to Reston than is Westfield. If we are rearranging students to get schools to 2000, why are we not addressing these schools? (I wonder if the parents who accuse others of lack of caring about South Lakes spend much time worrying about conditions for the students at Marshall?)

And finally, some practical proposals to address the South Lakes situation:

- Stop the bleeding. (Perhaps done already?) For years, the enrollment "yield" at South Lakes in terms of the percentage of kids who should be there vs. those who end up there has been dropping, by 300 in just the last five years. This accounts for the current underenrollment situation. Those projections are based primarily on the kids in elementary and middle schools. The kids in elementary and middle schools already account for changes in demographics, so there's another factor at work. The housing stock in southern Reston can support 1700 students if that housing all had the people in it you would expect to be there.

- Create attractive alternatives for people to send kids to South Lakes. (And ideally have those people move closer, so they don't need to drive kids all over the place.) I don't think this needs to be another TJ, but certainly you could make a stragic goal to add $1M in teacher salaries/benefits annually, to cover ten teachers would could teach sixty more classes, offering advanced classes with small class sizes...which itself would be a draw. [As a footnote for the new people: my two kids attended the spanish immersion program at Lake Anne...we drove them / carpooled from a Crossfield address to Lake Anne daily for six years, so we know something about the Reston community and schools.]

- Address community continuity. If we need more people for a Reston school, start with the people who live in Reston, and send their kids to Reston community churches, sports programs, etc. In this case, that would be Aldrin elementary. I don't know if this creates a problem at Herdon; in the short term, it would leave Herndon and South Lake at similar size.

- Identify areas of extreme transportation "sub-optimization". There are several long commutes that don't make sense. People within one mile of Herndon high school are bused ten miles to Langley. While I'm a believer in community, if you have a really long skinny community like Great Falls, it will be hard to keep that together if you are also trying to make schools the same size with similar course offerings. I'm aware that the same argument could be used to justify putting Fox Mill into Reston. If that was the only change happening, it would be (to me) justifiable, though they don't want to do that and there are alternatives to doing that.

- If you really just want to move some people out of Westfield and put some more people for South Lakes, then instead of uprooting Fox Mill, instead target the newer and less established community at McNair, which has a long haul now to get to Westfield.

- Last but not least, also take a look at middle school boundaries, and the effect that changes on high school would (or should) have on middle schools.

Thank you Oakton Parent for laying out the case. The county has not justified why it is a sudden emergency to fill up South Lakes.

The one thing I have to add is that McNair/Floris/Oak Hill ( and Rachel Carson and by implication Westfield and Chantilly) will be involved in a boundary study next fall on boundaries for the Coppermine Elementary which is to open in fall of 2009. Why not wait and do it all at once? Does the school board own stock in Tums?

With all of the high schools involved and the possibility of dominoing -- I estimate that there are 7000 or so 8th - 10th graders who don't know where they are going to high school next year.

I know people in Fox Mill, Crossfield, and Floris area that would like to be redistricted because of distance, too-big schools etc. You may not have been vocal so far because you fear alienating your neighbors, or that you just don't feel as strongly about it. But I would encourage anyone at Fox Mill, Crossfield, Floris, and Aldrin--if you would like to be redistricted to South Lakes, or would not mind it if certain conditions were met, please email the school board with your preferences. IF AP or grandfathering are issues for you, make that known. You will be much better off if you use the negotiating power you have for these issues. Don't let these STOP RD people represent you at the meetings--go and make your views known. The moratorium is a failed strategy--only people with something constructive to say will be heard.



And JustSayin, this has been in the works for a good three years, and waiting for the renovation to be complete. No "sudden emergency".

HooTribe Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

>
> As for improving SL, it will be when it has the
> same number of programs as other schools. SL
> isn't forcing anything - the county board is. As
> I have stated before, I would be fine with a
> magnet program or students from Langley, but it
> does not appear that we have that choice.
>
> Calm yourself down and deal with the facts.





the facts are

that SL SOL and SAT test scores lag behind Oakton and chantilly

SL is not as good a school or has the same reputation as oakton or Chantilly


people's homes will lose value if they are Rd to SL

but reston's values will increase once the test scores improve.


no wonder so many SL parents are all for this.

Neen Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> >>>My child was at South Lakes when North Point
> was redistricted to Herndon. Several families did
> not want to go to Herndon. I lived in Longwood
> Grove and it most definitely went to Lake Anne
> Elem, Hughes and SL<<<
>
> And you complained when sent to Herndon?

Neen, where to begin. You did post this at 3:44 am on Monday. Perhaps your brain is foggy because you stay up all night maniacally posting here.

I did move to get back into the SL district. I never said I didn't like the school. Quit making assumptions.

Madison got a great big renovation a couple of years ago and in my memory, no one begrudged them that, even though they are virtually insulated from having to educate anyone but middle class kids.

I remember about 12 years ago there was a big drug bust at Madison. FC Police placed a young-looking officer in the school and his cover was that he pupil-placed from another school. Lots of kids doing drugs and lots arrested. Did we judge your entire school on that incident? NO

Perhaps you should get some sleep and stop posting under cover of darkness. If you read your posts in the light of day you would realize how ridiculous and unhinged you sound.

Keep up the good work, Seahawks.

Oakton Parent Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Cheshire Cat,
>
> Name calling ("irrational, bigoted mob") doesn't
> become you.
>
> Before 1999, South Lakes was close to capacity
> with 1700 students and couldn't have taken whole
> school areas such as McNair and Floris.
>
> http://www.schooldigger.com/go/VA/schools/01260005
> 66/school.aspx
>
> You say that other schools don't care what you
> want...when what you want it to tell other kids
> they have to leave their schools. That looks like
> a better idea if you are the place where kids
> don't have to move, and where your kids will be
> better off afterwards. My issue, at least, with
> the process and goals of the redistricting, not
> with South Lakes high. I am neither irrational
> nor bigoted, at least not in any significant way
> as regards this discussion.

If you had read my post, you would see that I was referring to past actions, not the present redistricting. Interesting that you took that to mean you. I meant that if North Point had been restored to SL, then Herndon could have absorbed students from McNair or Floris.

Oakton Parent Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
I would argue that Oakton Parent did not lay out the case.
>
> After the redistricting, South Lakes will be close
> to 2000, or so we understand. Chantilly and
> Westfield still won't be...they'll go from an
> average of 2900 students to an average of 2600.
> Hundred of kids will be moved from those schools,
> while leaving those schools with a "capacity
> imbalance" that is larger than South Lakes' now.
> That makes no sense. If you have almost 6000 kids
> in two schools, and you want to get to
> 2000/school, you need another school in that part
> of the county, you don't just move 600 kids out.
> (Though in practice, you DON"T need to get to 2000
> students/school, as shown in Lake Braddock,
> Robinson, and yes, Chantilly and Westfield.
> Chantilly and Westfield are fine as they are
> now.)

Since you profess to care so much about enrollment at Marshall and Falls Church (see your comments below), why not give them the extra students from Westfield and Chantilly. South Lakes has no students to 'give.'
>
> Also after the redistricting, Marshall and Falls
> Church will also be under 1400 students. Marshall
> is very close to Langley, McLean, and even South
> Lakes. Falls Church is closer to Reston than is
> Westfield. If we are rearranging students to get
> schools to 2000, why are we not addressing these
> schools? (I wonder if the parents who accuse
> others of lack of caring about South Lakes spend
> much time worrying about conditions for the
> students at Marshall?)

Reston is close to Marshall? Get a grip. Vienna and Oakton are a lot closer to Marshall. Just look at a map.
>
> And finally, some practical proposals to address
> the South Lakes situation:
>
> - Stop the bleeding. (Perhaps done already?) For
> years, the enrollment "yield" at South Lakes in
> terms of the percentage of kids who should be
> there vs. those who end up there has been
> dropping, by 300 in just the last five years.
> This accounts for the current underenrollment
> situation. Those projections are based primarily
> on the kids in elementary and middle schools. The
> kids in elementary and middle schools already
> account for changes in demographics, so there's
> another factor at work. The housing stock in
> southern Reston can support 1700 students if that
> housing all had the people in it you would expect
> to be there.

This has been discussed many times... Much of the housing stock no longer meets current standards, fewer single family homes(lack of garages, etc.) and desire for larger spaces. Much of the housing formerly occupied by families is now full of young couples, singles just starting out.
>
>
> - Identify areas of extreme transportation
> "sub-optimization". There are several long
> commutes that don't make sense. People within one
> mile of Herndon high school are bused ten miles to
> Langley. While I'm a believer in community, if
> you have a really long skinny community like Great
> Falls, it will be hard to keep that together if
> you are also trying to make schools the same size
> with similar course offerings. I'm aware that the
> same argument could be used to justify putting Fox
> Mill into Reston. If that was the only change
> happening, it would be (to me) justifiable, though
> they don't want to do that and there are
> alternatives to doing that.

If you want to eliminate long, skinny commutes, why are we not looking at Oakton's Boundary, which is very long and skinny and reaches into South Lake's neck of the woods.
>
> - If you really just want to move some people out
> of Westfield and put some more people for South
> Lakes, then instead of uprooting Fox Mill, instead
> target the newer and less established community at
> McNair, which has a long haul now to get to
> Westfield.

Because demographically, it is not fair to move another economically disadvantaged school to the South Lakes Pyramid. Surely you aren't suggesting that we don't already pull our weight regarding students in County funded public housing?

Oakton Parent - I am curious about the stop the bleeding comment and the enrollment yield. Because SLHS is an underutilized facility, there is legitimate cause for concern. But it strikes me that any plan to address the enrollment yield needs to identify the causes of that problem. And as I understand the question, the yield loss is relative to those that are in elementary school, meaning that somewhere along the way SLHS is losing students before they get to high school. Is the movement of families? This doesn't make sense to me because it strikes me that people less tied to their housing situations would move at the same rates irrespective of the age of their children. Is it the drop out rate - which no school really has a good grip on? But I cannot imagine the drop-out problem being anywhere near that significant so as to account for that kind of shortfall. Is it a private school phenomena? Again, contrary to some posters above, there are families in the Reston area that send their children to private schools (I know a few of them, and they are, as one might guess, well off), but quite honestly my call on these folks is that they would send their kids to private schools no matter what public high school their children would attend - just as with the Oakton district private schoolers I know - so that doesn't seem to be the reason either. Or it could be a gathering storm of factors. Whatever the reasons, however, it is likely someone in the school system knows, and it would be helpful for them to illuminate the reasons behind the yield deficiencies.

As a student in the IB course at SLHS, I can honestly say that being in this program has made a world of difference. IB classes versus "regular" classes are so different in many aspects. If redistricting occurs, parents from Oakton, Madison, Chantilly, Westfield, and Herndon should know that their children will get one of the best educations that could be provided. IB focuses on skills that are more important in college, such as writing, thinking analytically, and looking at the bigger picture. To get the IB Diploma, students must take 7 IB classes, including Theory of Knowledge, complete over 150 service hours, and write a 4,000 word Extended essay. This is no easy task for any teenager with a social life, school sports, job, etc. Getting a wonderful education at South Lakes is available to anyone who wants it. So, parents, please know that if your child goes to SL, they will get a great education. This is my third year here, and not once have I ever been involved in any violence, gangs, or drugs. Nothing has prevented me from doing the best I can. Because of the IB program and the great staff here at South Lakes, I am challenged to think and do above and beyond. With that, I would not choose to go anywhere else.

-- Proud South Lakes student

Is anyone familiar with the sports eligibility requirements for pupil placed students? The course selection guide says that students who are pupil placed may relinquish their eligibility to participate in sports.

What are the factors?

For cheshire cat...

Sigh...I don't think we're going to see eye to eye...though clearly I did suggest several things that you agree with...but to address a bunch of things quickly...

I wasn't saying you called me those names, that's not really the point.

All of North Point wouldn't have fit in South Lakes at the time of the last redistricting. Aldrin might have fit.

The Westfield part of McNair is actually not so bad, they do well at Rachel Carson, but I understand the issues. You don't know the McNair kids, but don't want them at South Lakes based just on assumed demographics. Isn't that the sort of behavior that elicits name calling when seen in the other direction?

I understand that you don't move kids out of small schools, e.g. from South Lakes to Marshall etc. Gimme a break. I meant to look at all the schools with low enrollments and see what to do about them...live with them, get them more students from other schools, eventually consolidate them, whatever.

Busing from Westfield to Falls Church is clearly unworkable given the distance, I assume you know that...but you can never tell.

The housing stock didn't suddenly deteriorate. Families with kids did move out though, between elementary and high school, you can see it in the historical enrollment data. That's the problem. The Vienna housing stock is similar in many ways, but they don't have that issue.

You said why not look at Oakton's boundary, right below where I talked about Fox Mill, which is the end of Oakton's boundary. Oakton is otherwise at capacity, and would still be reasonable size even without Fox Mill..any other change would involve boundaries of schools like Madison and Fairfax which are right next to Oakton (and which account for the long skinny district, which is actually a lot more compact than it used to be.)

I believe the eastern edge of South Laskes boundary touches the western edge of Marshall near the toll road east of Hunter Mill. That's why I said it was nearby...can't get much closer than adjacent boundaries.

Since the population in Reston is "aging in place", maybe the county should consider closing SL as a school, sending the students to the surrounding high schools, sell it to Sunrise, and turning it in to an assisted living community.

Oakton Parent,

I did not really mean to suggest that students be bused to Marshall and Falls Church. I think we are really the western part of the County and they are the central/Eastern part. They probably can't be looked at together. I think there is actually a Madison buffer between our boundary and Marshall's. In the Hunter Mill area North of the Toll Road there are McLean pockets, Madison pockets, and Langley pockets.

Vienna's housing stock is entirely different, by virtue of the fact that it is almost entirely comprised of single family homes on nice sized lots. Very easy to redevelop one by one, as can be seen all over Vienna today. Reston has townhome developments which are not easy to redevelop for obvious reasons. Vienna also has virtually no low-income housing.

Yes, lots of young people start in Reston because the above-mentioned homes are affordable, but when they are ready to move up, there are not as many choices here, so they move further west, usually.

I don't want you to agree, just acknowledge that we parents in the SL community also have a stake in this. As I noted before, you did not list their wishes when you recapped the desires of parents at the boundary meeting, and I just thought that was interesting. We are also 'customers' here.

South Lakes Pyramid parent Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I know people in Fox Mill, Crossfield, and Floris
> area that would like to be redistricted because of
> distance, too-big schools etc. You may not have
> been vocal so far because you fear alienating your
> neighbors, or that you just don't feel as strongly
> about it. But I would encourage anyone at Fox
> Mill, Crossfield, Floris, and Aldrin--if you would
> like to be redistricted to South Lakes, or would
> not mind it if certain conditions were met, please
> email the school board with your preferences. IF
> AP or grandfathering are issues for you, make that
> known. You will be much better off if you use the
> negotiating power you have for these issues.
> Don't let these STOP RD people represent you at
> the meetings--go and make your views known. The
> moratorium is a failed strategy--only people with
> something constructive to say will be heard.
>
>
>
> And JustSayin, this has been in the works for a
> good three years, and waiting for the renovation
> to be complete. No "sudden emergency".

As I have said several times before, parents who want their kids to attend SL can pupil place any time they want. They don't have to have a boundary change. Transportation might be an issue, but considering that one of the reasons those parents like the idea of SL is because it's closer, maybe they can work something out, carpool, etc. If they want to go to SL, great, they can go, those who don't want to can continue with Oakton/Westfield/Chantilly.

FCO Parent,
Pupil placing clearly has downsides--no transportation, your child is going to a different school than the rest of the neighborhood, etc. That's why most people don't pupil place. Also sounds like limited sports participation. Believe it or not, there are probably people in your neighborhood that want to go to SL, but are afraid to say so in front of the bullies at STOP RD. I know at least a few. They should have a voice too.

SLPP,
Say I want to pupil place for IB. I do not live in an area (at least I don't think I do) that will be affected by this boundary change. My concern would be that if I do this for the academics/IB program, would my child give up the ability to participate in scholastic sports offered by SL?

I saw that there were some schools in PG county that had to forfeit football games because some of the team members did not live within the school boundary.

Along the same lines as sports participation, what about any activity that competes, such as band? Are those activities subject to the same restrictions, if there are any?

I'm pretty sure they can still participate in sports. A couple friends of mine pupil placed from Herndon and were still on the volleyball and lacrosse teams.

Cheshire Cat Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Oakton Parent,
>
> I did not really mean to suggest that students be
> bused to Marshall and Falls Church. I think we
> are really the western part of the County and they
> are the central/Eastern part. They probably can't
> be looked at together. I think there is actually a
> Madison buffer between our boundary and
> Marshall's. In the Hunter Mill area North of the
> Toll Road there are McLean pockets, Madison
> pockets, and Langley pockets.
>
> Vienna's housing stock is entirely different, by
> virtue of the fact that it is almost entirely
> comprised of single family homes on nice sized
> lots. Very easy to redevelop one by one, as can
> be seen all over Vienna today. Reston has
> townhome developments which are not easy to
> redevelop for obvious reasons. Vienna also has
> virtually no low-income housing.
>
> Yes, lots of young people start in Reston because
> the above-mentioned homes are affordable, but when
> they are ready to move up, there are not as many
> choices here, so they move further west, usually.
>
>
> I don't want you to agree, just acknowledge that
> we parents in the SL community also have a stake
> in this. As I noted before, you did not list
> their wishes when you recapped the desires of
> parents at the boundary meeting, and I just
> thought that was interesting. We are also
> 'customers' here.


Here here Cheshire Cat.

I heard at the meeting some parents complain that their neighborhoods have been redistricted several times in the last 10 years. I understand their position entirely. Also some neighborhoods that are split among several schools. I understand their sentiments. But if they stand behind the moratorium and refuse to talk about anything but a moratorium, they are losing the opportunity to advocate for their neighborhood and having any chance of affecting the outcome.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/15/2007 11:28AM by South Lakes Pyramid parent.

Dear Nappy,

I don't think it is an issue. I think they probably do that to keep star athletes from switching to winning teams. Having said that, I know of two good football players who switched from SL to Herndon in 2005, because they thought they would fare better with college recruiting. I did not agree with their move, but they weren't prevented from playing at Herndon. Fancy that!

South Lakes actually needs more kids trying out for activities, and we aren't afraid of being supplanted by newcomers if they are indeed better and deserving of slots on our teams and in our performing arts groups. We are very concerned about academics, though, which is our primary impetus for supporting redistricting.