School Board Update

The four options developed by staff for consideration as ways to deal with the overcrowding at Annandale High School and to create boundaries at the new elementary school at the Lacey Center site have been posted. Here is the link:

http://www.fcps.edu/fts/planning/annandalestudy/regional/index.htm

When you review them, please keep in mind that we do not have to pick one of these scenarios in its entirety. The final staff recommendation to the School Board may  very well be a combination of options from different scenarios or even involving something new that comes out of community dialogues.

Please plan to come to community dialogues to give your views.  This is a very important part of the process and will be taken into account when staff goes back to make a final recommendation for Annandale HS and "Lacey."

The dialogues will be 7-9 pm on Mon. May 16 (AHS and Edison HS) and Mon. May 23 at Falls Church HS and Lake Braddock Secondary School.  A dialogue for non-English-speakers will be held 7-9 June 6 at Annandale Terrace ES.

I am also scheduling special meetings at Bren Mar Park ES, tentatively set for Sat. May 21 9-10:30 am and Mon. June 13 at 7 pm.

PTA presidents and civic association presidents, I would appreciate it if you would get these out to your communities.

I look forward to hearing from you and working with you on finding the best approach for these schools.

Sandy Evans

Fairfax County School Board, Mason District

School Board Update

Dear Friends,

           

May is especially busy this year.  The School Board will be working on making changes to the FY2012 budget to account for a flat transfer from the County this year as well as working on boundary options for our new elementary school and to relieve overcrowding at Annandale High School. We also continue our work on reforming student discipline policies and practice.

Budget: Superintendent Dale has given us his proposed options for amending the budget that includes teacher raises, paying for AP/IB test fees and putting full-day kindergarten in all of the remaining schools that don't yet have it. He has also recommended setting aside $500,000 for any changes the School Board decides to make on student discipline policies and procedures.

AP/IB Fees: Approval of the proposal will end the AP/IB test fees, and I strongly support doing so (an amendment of mine in January called on the Superintendent to find a way to do this as part of the budget).  You should have received your refunds by now of any AP/IB test fees you had paid this year.

Sports Fees: The superintendent's options don't reduce or eliminate the $100 per sport fees. I am working on an amendment to cap these fees at two per student per year, so at least we will have a bit of a break for some athletes and families. I plan to offer this when we vote on the final budget on May 26.

Timeline: The Board will have work sessions on the budget May 16 and May 19. We will hold budget hearings on May 17 and 18. On May 26, we will approve a final FY2012 budget at our regular School Board meeting. If you would like to speak at the budget hearings, you may sign up online.

New ES Math Sequence: FCPS will have a new math sequence in elementary schools starting in the fall. The changes are intended in part to align with new state math standards but also are intended to allow for greater differentiation within a classroom so that each student can learn at his or her own pace and level.  This should enable students to accelerate in math more easily and seamlessly.

For those of you familiar with "Compacted Math," the new terminology will be "Advanced Mathematics."  One hope of the new sequence will eliminate gaps when students advance more quickly then average. The new advanced math sequence will be available in all elementary schools.

Here's an overview with a link to a PowerPoint on the topic: http://www.fcps.edu/DIS/OEIAS/math/math.htm

Here's a chart that shows the sequence: http://www.fcps.edu/DIS/OEIAS/math/EMISCHARTfinal.pdf

As someone with a great interest and support for advanced math, I welcome any change that enables students to go as far and as fast as they can and should go.  One concern I have heard, and which I will be monitoring, is how well multiple levels of differentiation can work in one classroom.

Student Discipline: On Monday, May 16, the School Board will hold a work session on Dr. Dale's10 recommendations for changes to student discipline procedures and policies. I support these proposals but also want us to expand them to include other revisions, such as more parent notification and more academic support for students when they are on suspension. The work session will start at about 2 pm at Gatehouse Administration Center, 8115 Gatehouse Rd., Falls Church 22042, and is open to the public.

Individual high schools and middle schools are hosting dialogues on discipline issues for their school communities. As always, I welcome getting your views directly via email or visits to my office hours as we consider various proposals for change.

Stuart Raider Run: The 14th Annual Raider Run is this Saturday, May 14, at JEB Stuart High School, 3301 Peace Valley Lane, Falls Church. Starting at Stuart, the run winds through the neighborhood. Please come and join us for a family friendly and healthful event to support the school.  Race day registration begins at 6:45am, and the race begins at 8am. To preregister online: http://raider5k.com/ . Adults are $25 (pre-registered by Thursday, May 12) or $30 on race day and students are always $10.  I'll look forward to seeing you there, where I will serve as starter and then enjoy watching the run.

Annandale High School's Red and White Golf Classic:  At 8 am Wed., May 18^th, at Laurel Hill Golf Club in Lorton, VA. This is Annandale's main PTSA fundraiser. Please consider putting together a group to come out and play some golf, or consider being a sponsor or donor. No need to be affiliated with AHS to participate in this fun outing. For more information:

www.annandalehsptsa.org

Honors Courses: At my request, the School Board will hold a work session on July 18 on honors classes at our Advanced Placement (AP) high schools. Several school PTSAs have expressed concern about elimination of some honors courses, leaving only standard level and AP courses in some areas. The Superintendent will provide more information on the rationale behind going from a three-tier to two-tier course structure where we have done so, and the Board will discuss which approach is preferable.

Annandale/Lacey Site Boundary and NonBoundary Options: Later this week, FCPS will release specific options for boundary and nonboundary solutions to the overcrowding at Annandale High School and Poe Middle School, as well as for the new elementary school at the Lacey Center site. The School Board is scheduled to make final decisions on these on July 28, for implementation in Fall 2012.

When the options are posted, I will issue a special report with a link so you can review them right away.

Who should pay special attention? Anyone with students now attending, or scheduled to attend, Annandale HS, Poe MS, Glasgow MS, Holmes MS.

Elementary schools whose students may well be most affected by possible AHS/Poe boundary changes: Bren Mar Park, Parklawn, Wakefield Forest.

Elementary schools whose students may well be most affected by options for the new elementary school at the Lacey Center site: Annandale Terrace, Beech Tree, Woodburn, Belvedere, Pine Spring.

Community dialogues on these options will be held from 7-9 p.m. on:
 

May 16

• Annandale High School cafeteria, 4700 Medford Drive, Annandale

(use entrance 7)

• Edison High School cafeteria, 5801 Franconia Road, Alexandria

(use entrance 1)
 

May 23

• Falls Church High School cafeteria, 7521 Jaguar Trail, Falls Church

(use entrance 8)

• Lake Braddock Secondary School cafeteria, 9200 Burke Lake Road, Burke

(use entrance 15)
 

June 6

• Specifically for speakers of other languages and will include interpreters for Arabic, Farsi, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese. At Annandale Terrace Elementary, 7604 Herald Street, Annandale. The meeting will be held in the gymnasium, adjacent to the Parent Resource Center.

(use entrance 1)

To register (you won't be turned away if you don't, but this helps for planning purposes): 

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/annandalecommunitydialogue.

These changes will have a significant impact on several schools in our area.  Please plan to attend one of the community dialogues on the proposals to voice your views!

School Board Update

Dear Friends,

Happy Spring Break! Here are some of the things the School Board is working on.

Student Discipline: Thank you to all of you who attended my Town Hall meeting, held jointly with Supervisor Penny Gross, to express your views on student discipline issues. To date, that meeting is the only one I know of expressly inviting the public to speak to this issue, though I have been advocating that the School Board involve the public more broadly as we review and consider changes to our policies and practices.

Since that meeting, Superintendent Jack Dale has made 10 recommendations for changes, which the Board discussed at our April 4 work session.  I applaud these proposals, such as immediately starting to audio record all disciplinary hearings, but I also believe we need to expand upon them. Among the issues I plan to pursue as we continue our revisions are:

• Notifying parents as soon as their children are called in for questioning for infractions that could lead to explusion or criminal charges
• Minimizing or eliminating the amount of time that students are out of school while they are awaiting the resolution of disciplinary proceedings, as long as their behavior does not present a safety risk to other students.
•  Expanding supports for students who are out of school on suspension, so they don't get into an academic hole they can't get out of.
•  Reviewing whether involuntary transfers from one base school to another as a disciplinary measure actually helps put the student back on the right path, whether this helps keep schools safe, and whether there are better options.
• Making sure the punishments fit the infractions and that common sense decisions can be made

To see some background materials used at the Board's March 14 work session, as well as specific issues identified by School Board members, please go to this link. We will be getting more information about the Superintendent's proposals and will hold another public work session on this topic on May 16 at Gatehouse Administration Center.

I appreciate hearing from those of you who wrote to me, talked with me personally or attended my town hall meeting to give me your views.

Annandale/Lacey Site Boundary and NonBoundary Options: In the next few weeks, we should be getting some specific options for boundary solutions to the overcrowding at Annandale High School and Poe Middle School, as well as for the new elementary school at the Lacey Center site. The elementary school piece will also look at whether the school should be K-5^th grade or K-6^th, as well as where students there will attend middle and high school.

At the April 4 work session, the Board agreed that we should pursue one nonboundary proposal for Annandale HS, while also offering several traditional boundary-change plans. The scope of the study is set for approval at our April 28 regular School Board meeting.

The nonboundary option being considered (1A) would turn AHS into a 10^th-12^th grade high school, with 6^th and 7^th graders in the Annandale pyramid attending Holmes Middle School and 8^th and 9^th graders going to Poe Middle School. This was one of the very creative suggestions raised by the Ad Hoc Study Committee made up of community volunteers. For a good discussion of the issues, go to this link:

http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/fairfax/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=8EMQ3664ADBA

May and June will be the time for extensive public engagement on these options. Community meetings are tentatively being set at area high schools for May 16 and May 23, so please mark those on your calendars to be involved in weighing in on specific options. In addition, I plan to meet with constituents through PTAs, civic associations and other organizations to go over the options and get input, especially from parents. If you would like me to attend a community meeting about this issue, please let me know and we will schedule it.

Timeline:

• Early May, specific draft boundary options made public
• Mid- to late May, community meetings to discuss proposals and get public input
• June, FCPS staff will create one recommendation, taking into account public input
• June 23, recommendation posted on School Board regular meeting agenda as New Business
• July 11 and 12, public hearings on recommendation
• July 18, School Board work session to discuss recommendation and any proposed changes to it
• July 28, final vote at regular School Board meeting on recommendation and any proposed amendments to it.

Fall, 2012: Changes to go into effect (NOT this fall)

For more background information, reports, etc. on this study, here's a link.

New Elementary School: I've enjoyed meeting with community members at schools, community centers and apartment complexes to discuss the long-awaited opening of our brand-new elementary school at the Lacey Center site in Fall 2012. While a new school is an exciting prospect, it also brings about understandable questions and concerns about change. Some students will be leaving their current schools for the new one, and I want to ensure we have the smoothest and happiest transition possible as they enter the inaugural class.

Construction is on schedule. Principal selection should begin this fall, so he or she can be in place by the end of this year or early next year. The principal will engage parents, students and the community to plan for a triumphant opening. Programs are expected to include full-day kindergarten, School Aged Child Care and a Base-School Level IV Advanced Academic Program. Other decisions yet to be made are whether the school will be K-5 or K-6, what middle and high school it will feed to, what other programs will be included and what the new school will be named.

Honors Courses: An emerging issue at some of our Advanced Placement (AP) high schools (as opposed to International Baccalaureate schools) is the elimination of some honors courses in recent years. The Woodson High School PTSO last week passed a resolution asking for the restoration or creation of six honors courses where now there are only standard level and AP courses, such as English 11 and 12 and some Social Studies courses.

I have asked that the topic be considered at an upcoming Board Forum (a session where the Board discusses what direction it wants to take on issues). The Superintendent has said he will be getting the Board more information on the rationale behind going from a three-tier to two-tier course structure where we have done so.

Chocolate Milk: On Monday, May 2, chocolate milk will return to our elementary schools.  The removal of chocolate milk had been a controversial decision earlier this school year, with strong feelings on both sides of the issue. Food and Nutrition Services announced recently that it had negotiated with the vendor for a product with less fat and no high-fructose corn syrup. The old product contained 1% low-fat, 150 calories and high-fructose corn syrup. The new product is no-fat, 130 calories, with no high-fructose corn syrup.  Sugar content remains the same at 22 grams.

This followed a lively debate over whether eliminating chocolate milk was an important health change or whether kids would end up just drinking less milk overall and whether high fructose corn syrup is any worse than other sugars. 

It was fun hearing from students on this one, such as the letters from 5^th-graders in Mr. Garces-Foley's class at Weyanoke Elementary. They were clear in their advocacy, telling me they wanted to bring back chocolate milk. No doubt they are looking forward to May 2.

AP/IB Fees: At our March 24 regular School Board meeting, we voted to refund all AP and IB testing fees collected this year, a move I strongly supported. The vote came on the approval of the third-quarter review, which set aside money to make the refunds of the $75 per test fee.  The refunds are due to be paid this month.

In addition, the Board has directed the Superintendent (by a budget amendment of mine in January) to identify revenues in the upcoming budget, to be finalized by the Board in May, for FCPS to continue paying for these fees in future years.

Sports Fees: Considering our budget constraints, it unfortunately seems unlikely we can also find a way to eliminate the $100 per sport fee at our high schools.  I am working on an amendment to cap these fees at two per student per year, so at least we will have a bit of a break for some athletes and families. The loss of revenue would be $200,000, and I will work with my colleagues on where to find this revenue.

Budget: The Board will make final decisions about the FY2012 budget in May. The Board of Supervisors has given us a "flat transfer," meaning we will receive the same amount from the County as we received last year, when they reduced our transfer by $16 million from the year before.  This gives the School Board some tough decisions to make, particularly as we have a significant increase in our number of students.

We have promised our teachers and other dedicated employees that we will give them a raise this year, after putting in a pay freeze (and a reduction of beginning teachers salaries) for two previous years. I believe strongly that the Board must keep this commitment for employee compensation. We will be grappling with how much and in what form next month.

Timeline: The Board will have a work session on the budget on May 2. At that time, the Superintendent will present a revised budget plan. It will include recommendations on employee compensation, how to pay for the AP/IB fees and a plan to complete our transition from half-day kindergarten to full-day kindergarten at the remaining 37 elementary schools over the next three years. The last piece will not affect Mason District schools, all of which already have full-day kindergarten, but it is important to reach this goal at all Fairfax schools.

The Board will have work sessions on the budget May 2, May 16 and May 19. We will hold budget hearings on May 17 and 18. On May 26, we will approve a final FY2012 budget at our regular School Board meeting. 

All the best,

Sandy

School Board Update

Reminder: TOWN HALL MEETING

TOMORROW, 1-3 pm, Sat. March 19,  

Falls Church High School

Town Hall Meeting: To hear more from the Mason District community on how to help troubled teens and on student discipline issues, I will be holding a joint Town Hall Meeting with Supervisor Gross from 1-3 pm Saturday, March 19 at Falls Church High School, 7521 Jaguar Trail, Falls Church, in the Little Theater.

Special invited guests include School Board Member Tina Hone (at-large), who has led the effort on the School Board to review discipline policies; Supervisor Cathy Hudgins (Hunter Mill) and Del. Kaye Kory.

 

 

Student Discipline: The School Board held its first work session on the student discipline issue on Monday, March 14. To see some background materials used, as well as specific issues identified by School Board members, please go to this link.

We will be continuing our review and revision of these policies and practices in the coming months. I look forward to hearing your views. Whether or not you can attend the town hall meeting, you can always let me know your opinion by writing to me at ssevans@fcps.edu.

In addition, I've asked the Public Engagement Committee, on which I serve, to develop a strategy for including the public in the dialog on this important issue as we work on it in the coming months.

Annandale Regional Study: I'm delighted to let you know that the School Board agreed on Monday to pursue nonboundary options proposed by the Ad Hoc Committee on how to deal with overcrowding at Annandale High School (see link to report in left column), at the same time we investigate potential boundary solutions.  This is an unusual parallel track approach, and I applaud School Board members and school system staff for embracing and recommending it. I will have more to report about this important issue, but for now you can see both the recommendation for how to proceed, including an excellent outlining of the issues:

http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/fairfax/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=8EMQ3664ADBA

Also, a report on our decisions from the Work Session (note: I had to cut and paste this into a browser other than AOL to get it to work):

http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/fairfax/Board.nsf/files/8F3PVS65A531/$file/03-14-11%20%20Meeting%20Manager.pdf

We will be continuing work on this and the boundaries for the new elementary school at the Lacey center site in April.

AP/IB Fees: A majority of the Board also agreed at the Work Session that we should refund AP and IB fees collected this year. I strongly support doing this, as well as removing these fees in the future. That determination will be made as part of the FY 2012 budget decisions in May.

HOLLYWOOD COMES TO STUART! "I AM" FILM TO BE SHOWN

Tom Shadyac, graduate of JEB Stuart HS and successful Hollywood Director (Ace Ventura, Nutty Professor, Bruce Almighty) is coming to Stuart on Wednesday, March 23rd at 7:30pm for a screening of his new documentary, "I AM".    To see a clip of it go to: www.iamthedoc.com

The movie will be shown in the Stuart Auditorium and admission is free - no tickets needed.
Everyone is welcome to come - students, parents, teachers, alumni, neighbors, family, and friends.  We want a big crowd to give Tom a warm homecoming welcome - so come join us and bring the family!

The film explores what is right and wrong with the world and how we can change it.  It is a bit autobiographical as Tom explores his own life, which has changed in recent years.  (He sold his mansion and lives much more simply).  Tom will be here for questions and answers after the film.

Tom has generously agreed to allow the JEB Stuart Educational Foundation to accept donations at the event.

Please mark the date on your calendar - this is a BIG event for the Stuart community.  Any questions please contact Susan Tull O'Reilly at sutull@aol.com .  

All the best,

Sandy

School Board Update

Save the Date: Town Hall Meeting 1-3 pm, Sat. March 19, Falls Church High School (details below) 

Dear Friends,

The topic of student discipline has been highlighted in news reports lately after the tragic death of a teen student by suicide as he was going through the FCPS student discipline process.  

This is a heartbreaking story, as is any death of one of our young people, and depression and suicide are complex issues involving many factors. But the case highlighted in the news is not the only one parents are bringing to me with concern.

As I talk with people and read emails,  I hear the pain, frustration and fear that many are feeling. As parents, we know we can only control so much as we try to keep our children safe and secure and on the right path. The idea that one slip-up can radically change a youngster's future is on the minds of many right now.

As one School Board member, I strongly support a review and reevaluation of our discipline policies and practices. The critical questions: Are they fair? Are they effective?

Some of us on the Board have advocated for this review for some time. And finally we will be addressing this in a systematic way over the next few months. Last week, the Board decided at our Forum (an informal discussion we have before every regular School Board meeting) to do a comprehensive evaluation of our discipline policies. The first Work Session on the topic will be from 9-11 am Monday, March 14, at Gatehouse Administration Center, 8115 Gatehouse Rd., Falls Church. This is open to the public but is not televised.

Over the past year that I have served as your Mason District School Board member, I have had these concerns in particular:

• When a student is suspended from school, what sort of support is there so he/she isn't just wasting time alone at home or in the neighborhood?
• Do student reassignments to other schools for infractions actually work? That is, are they effective in putting students on a better path, such as keeping them away from drug use? Or does it just move students to an unfamiliar environment that harms their sense of connectedness
• Are school reassignments helping keep our schools safer? Are there better ways?
• What is the path for a reassigned student to redeem himself and return to his base school?
• Does the punishment fit the crime, when everything is taken into account?
• When a student gets in trouble, when and how are parents notified?
• What rights do students and parents have when a student is in serious trouble? Are students aware that they, along with everyone in this country, have a right to remain silent and not self-incriminate when accused? Are they always allowed to call their parents?

There's been a lot of discussion about "Zero Tolerance" and whether or not Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) has a zero-tolerance system. Frankly, I don't want us to get side-tracked on semantics. Whatever we call it, the key issues are fairness and effectiveness.

A number of leaders are supportive of a reevaluation of how we deal with teens who get in trouble. Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross cosponsored an initiative, passed unanimously by the Board of Supervisors, encouraging such a review and proposing a partnership between the county and school system to help troubled teens and their families. I welcome such a partnership, particularly in the area of teen depression, a long-time concern of mine. Del. Kaye Kory (38^th District) is organizing a task force to examine the Virginia State Code regarding discipline processes. Kory also sponsored a parent notification bill in the Virginia Assembly which passed the House but unfortunately failed in the Senate. The Washington Post in a thoughtful Feb. 24 editorial supported reexamining discipline policies. 

I welcome all of these leaders in working on this effort. But most importantly, we need to engage the community in this conversation. Parents and students, whether or not they have experienced our disciplinary process or the juvenile justice system, are key to this discussion as we move forward, as are teachers and administrators.

Working together, we will keep our schools safe. Schools need to be able to effectively handle any dangerous situation and keep gangs, drugs and violence out of our schools. But we also need to be sure we find the right balance for our students to learn from their mistakes and receive the help they need. After all, we are here to educate our young people and create good citizens.

Town Hall Meeting: To hear more from the Mason District community on how to help troubled teens and on student discipline issues, I will be holding a joint Town Hall Meeting with Supervisor Gross from 1-3 pm Saturday, March 19 at Falls Church High School, 7521 Jaguar Trail, Falls Church, in the Little Theater.

Special invited guests include School Board Member Tina Hone (at-large), who has led the effort on the School Board to review discipline policies; Supervisor Cathy Hudgins (Hunter Mill), who cosponsored the Board of Supervisors initiative; and Del. Kaye Kory.

All the Best,

Sandy

School Board Update

Change to Sandy's Office Hours

THIS SATURDAY, 10:15 am-Noon 

I will still be holding office hours this Saturday, February 19, at the George Mason Library, 7001 Little River Turnpike, Annandale, VA 22003. But I am revising the time to 10:15 am-noon.  Click Here for Directions.

Del. Kaye Kory will be joining me, so please stop by to talk with us about whatever issues are on your mind.

March 5 office hours: CANCELED.

Please attend Delegate Kory's Town  Hall Meeting from 10 to noon, March 5 at Belvedere Elementary School.

My next office hours will be on March 19 at Thomas Jefferson Library at my usual time of 10:30 am to 12:30 pm. 

I hope to see you this Saturday!

Sandy

School Board Report

Dear Friends,

The Budget and Boundaries are the main news right now from the School Board.

FY2012 Budget: The School Board on Thursday, Feb. 3, approved a $2.2 billion Advertised Budget for FY2012 that

• Has no increase in class size
• Gives teachers and other employees raises for the first time in three years
• Paves the way for eliminating AP/IB test fees imposed this year
• Continues the Foreign Language in the Elementary School (FLES) program
• Continues the rollout of Full Day Kindergarten
• Requests a $48.8 million increased transfer from the Board of Supervisors, from which FCPS gets most of its funding.
• Is not a done deal yet by any means-that happens in May

The Advertised Budget now goes to the Board of Supervisors, which will hold public hearings March 29-31, before deciding at the end of April how much they will give the school system.  The School Board will then hold more public hearings and pass a final budget in May.

AP/IB Test Fees: I've been opposed to these $75-per-test fees because of concerns that they are a serious barrier for some of our students to take our most challenging high school courses (Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate). Particularly at our IB schools, where parents wrote to me about receiving bills for $450 for IB test fees in December, on top of new sports fees that can total $300 per year per student.

The Virginia Attorney General recently issued an opinion saying that the testing fees are illegal. I was pleased when Superintendent Dale told the Board that, rather than try to find a way around the opinion, he would recommend eliminating these testing fees and refunding those that have been collected so far this year.

As a result, I withdrew budget amendments I had submitted to limit the fees and instead offered an amendment directing the Superintendent to bring us his plan for dealing with the fees for our March 14 work session.  My amendment passed unanimously. Any plan would still need to be approved by the School Board.

Budget Priorities and Amendments: The Board has set teacher pay raises as a top priority this year, and I am committed to keeping our promise on this.

A full-day kindergarten (FDK) amendment approved on Thursday asks the Superintendent to come up with a plan to put FDK in the remaining 37 schools that don't have it over the next three years. While all of Mason District schools already have FDK, I supported this amendment as a matter of fairness for those schools that "waited" while schools with greater needs went first. Our new school at the old Lacey Center site will need to have FDK, as well.

We received scads of emails about keeping FLES, and we voted unanimously not to cut it from this Advertised Budget. Among schools attended by Mason District students, we have FLES in Sleepy Hollow Elementary School (Arabic), Beech Tree Elementary (Arabic) and Mantua Elementary (Italian).

Unfortunately, other worthy amendments didn't pass. One (offered by At-Large School Board member Tina Hone) would have reinstated summer school for our neediest students. At the Board table, we fashioned a revised amendment that would have simply called for a plan for more early intervention for at-risk kids at the elementary level, but that failed 7 to 5.

Another (also by Ms. Hone) would have provided more support and supervision for students while they are suspended from school. Right now these students all too often are on their own in unsupervised situations while they wait to return to school. This isn't good for the students or the community. But that amendment failed also. I do plan to continue to pursue this issue.

Overall, while this isn't perfect and we still have difficult decisions to make, I feel this is a reasonable budget, one that takes care of our school system's priorities. While we are asking for an increase from the Board of Supervisors, we also are dealing with a significant increase in students, including a higher percentage with special needs. The school system has an obligation to request what we believe we need to serve our students, and that's what this does.

I urge you to support our request for funding when it comes before the Board of Supervisors. To sign up to speak:

https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/bosclerk/speaker_bos.htm

For more on the budget, go to www.fcps.edu and click on the "Details" link in the FY2012 Budget section. There's a wealth of information there, including some interesting budget questions and answers, if you really want to burrow in.

A public Budget Forum will be held from 9 am to noon Saturday, Feb. 26 at Falls Church High School. The forum will include information about the budget, with opportunities for the public to ask questions and raise issues. I urge you to attend.

Annandale Regional Study--Critical Decisions Coming Soon: The School Board will be making critical decisions this spring and summer about how to deal with overcrowding at Annandale High School (AHS) and Poe Middle School. Whatever we do will affect many students and their families, both at these schools and potentially at several surrounding and feeder schools. One of my top priorities this spring is to make sure that potentially affected families are aware of what is being considered, so that they can express their views and be part of fashioning the solution.

The Ad Hoc Study Group on these issues gave its report on Jan. 10, with many creative options, including some that would not require a boundary change. The Board will hear what staff thinks of these nonboundary ideas at our March 14 Work Session.

Boundaries: The options presented by the study group for possible boundary changes to relieve AHS could impact 1) all students coming from the Bren Mar Park ES area 2) students from the Parklawn ES area who now attend Holmes/AHS 3) AHS students from the North Springfield ES area who live outside the Beltway, 4) some students from Wakefield Chapel. The options offered to relieve Poe included changing some students from the Annandale Terrace ES area to Jackson MS and some from the Belvedere ES area to Glasgow MS.

AHS/Poe Survey:  After you've had a chance to read the report, please give your opinion in a survey, especially if you could be affected by the options.

The AHS PTSA has created a new blog to provide the latest information on these efforts. You can sign up for email alerts, keep up to date on the issues, and join the discussion.  Sign up by going to www.annandalehsptsa.org -you'll find the blog by clicking on the "Overcrowding Options" tab on the right side of the home page. 

Annandale Community Meeting Rescheduled: A community meeting to discuss the high school/middle school study has been scheduled for 7 pm, Thursday, Feb. 17 at Poe Middle School.  I urge you to attend to get more information and raise any issues or concerns.

"Lacey" Boundaries: A new elementary school will open at the site of the old Lacey Center in Fall 2012, and the School Board must establish new boundaries for that school this summer. The Ad Hoc Study Group that studied boundary options for the new school  presented its report to the Board on Jan. 10. It offered five boundary scenarios. All of the scenarios affected some families who are now within the boundaries of Annandale Terrace ES, Beech Tree ES and Woodburn ES. Four of the five would affect areas now assigned to Belvedere ES. One (Scenario B) would affect an area now assigned to Columbia ES. One (Scenario A1) would affect areas now assigned to Sleepy Hollow ES, Westlawn ES and Pine Spring ES.

The committee did an excellent job of considering different options and offering those that seemed the most viable. At the same time, these can still be changed or combined to create the best plan possible. Once parents, teachers and other community members have weighed in, the Board will receive staff recommendations and start making decisions.

Please take a few minutes to read the report and weigh in with your opinion.  A new survey on the options is available at the FCPS web site.

"Lacey"/Annandale Time Line:  The Board will have work sessions on the "Lacey" (in quotes because we don't yet know what the actual name will be) boundaries and the AHS/Poe overcrowding issues on March 14, April 4 and July 18. The scope of boundary studies will be approved by the Board at its regular meeting on April 28. Recommended solutions will be posted on June 23, public hearings held on July 11 and 12, and final action scheduled for July 28 at the Board's regular meeting that night.

It's important to me to hear from families that might be affected by the decisions being made. Please express your views through the survey, at community meetings and hearings and in emails directly to me.