LETTER: High-Quality Schools Are Central to City’s Success
TO THE EDITORS OF THE FALLS CHURCH TIMES:
November 29, 2010
I have just caught up with your comments about our schools and with the comments of our local residents. If it isn’t too late I would like to submit mine.
Fifty years ago, residents of Falls Church voted to support their young public school system. The issue then, as it is today, is adequate financial support of our schools.
During these 50 years, our school system, with citizen support, during good times and bad, soared to new heights. This could not have been accomplished without dedicated school boards, supported by favorably disposed city councils.
Our public schools received substantial public support, and in recent years the local Chamber of Commerce and the business community recognized the impact of first-rate schools on business. This continues to be the case.
Let us not refuse to keep our promises to teachers (for they are the heart of our school system), to support them and show our appreciation of what they accomplish daily.
This is a time, as it was in the past, which not only tests souls but pocketbooks. Let us not separate the two, and continue to maintain the high-quality public schools that have evolved. They are central to this little city’s achievements for half a century. I hope they will continue for the next half century.
LOUIS T. OLOM
Falls Church City
Letters to the Editor should be submitted to contact@fallschurchtimes.com. They may be on any subject relevant to our City. Writers should include their full name and city of residence. All submissions are subject to editing.
By (see byline)
November 29, 2010
About 55 years ago I attended first grade at the Oak Street School on the other end of the path through the woods from Timber Lane to S. Oak St. Mr. W.T. Woodson signed my report card as the Superintendant of Schools. The following year I returned for second grade and the name had been changed to Thomas Jefferson Elementary School. Mr. Irvin Schmitt was the superintendant. I couldn’t figure out how I had “moved” to another school without leaving my house on Timber Lane; only later did I learn that the City had purchased the school from Fairfax County. In those days Everyone supported our schools and the bonds it took to start our system. I remember Mr. Olom, Ms. Thackery and Mr. Wollenburg plus many others when the whole community focused on one issue and succeeded.
It all reminds me of the old discussion in Economics class many, many years ago…guns or butter.
Our household income has gone down so talk of a significant tax increase hits the pocketbook…hard. There has to be someplace in the middle, a balance. I think that schools and government will have to share the pain, again.
You forgot the reason behind the establishment of a new school system: Resistance to segregation. That’s the prime driver behind the existence of Falls Church city. One reason the schools are high-achieving, as opposed to neighboring counties (high but not AS high achieving) is demographics. Falls Church city schools draw disproportionately from high-earner, mostly white households. No pesky poverty-related low test scores! Bonanza! No pesky averaging high achieving schools against lower achieving schools — since there’s there’s one each high school and middle school, and two elementary schools.
FXC your comments are totally untrue, enough said!!!!
Times have changed. The City of Falls Church – forget this little city – will survive. The schools need to downsize and take the bite versus the taxpayer. Considering the hard times everyone is going through, I found it amazing that the school is looking to build onto TJ – free funding aside. Funding from govt usually comes w/restrictions, guidelines, whatever. Also, that fifth graders are no longer at TJ. They are too young to be placed at another school. If we do not have pre-K at Mt Daniel, that would free up two classrooms. Our schools are public, you do what you can with what you have. Hardly anyone is receiving payraise; therefore, the schools budgets need to be reduced and/or frozen. They, too, will survive. Perhaps, see a reduction in number of students vice increase.
If we didn’t have pre-K at Mt Daniel it would free up two trailers that have been placed on the property, not classrooms in the building itself.
If our strategy was to stifle the school system in an attempt to reduce demand (i.e. decrease the number of students) the City would be doomed. Property values would decrease, further exasperating the budget problems, and there would quickly be no reason (and no way) for the City to remain independent.
As much as I do not like to admit it, it is difficut to argue against the point that the very purpose of FC City is to maintain a viable, independent school district, regardless of the cost. That being said, it is not difficult to argue against other subsidized projects such as affordable housing and other sop that simply places more burden on the already overburdened, over-regulated FC City property owners.
The tax rate cannot go higher. Maybe some of these “smart” teachers can figure out a way for the city and schools to be more efficient – do more with less. A tax increase is unacceptable – freeze pay, furloughs or layoffs that is the current options. tax increases and fees are UNACCEPTABLE. Man up!
(EDITORS’ REPLY: You have used a fake email address, so we cannot contact you directly. Please use a better identifier, because there are too many “J Smiths.” Another “J Smith” is commenting from Charlottesville, so there is confusion. Future comments from “J Smith” with a fake email will be deleted.)
I see the spreading your “Me First” dogma here too.
You pay taxes because you OWE IT TO THE COMMUNITY. Whether you use the schools or not it is your DUTY to pay for the education you received. It’s PAYBACK time people and while times are not rosy, and the City, like most, didn’t prepare – their problems should not fall on the backs of students.
Education isn’t just about tests and scores. It is the totality of the experience. It is the arts, sports, music, and other activities that prepare our children for life. We had those opportunities and we OWE it to the current and future generations of students. To do less means we are selfishly ignoring our responsibility to repay our community.
What people like Joyce Galovich fail to grasp that without the schools, the very reason why Falls Church is a desirable place to live would disappear, as would our property values, etc. What mister “fake” J Smith seems to not grasp is you get what you pay for – and the best teachers cost more than mediocre ones.
Both of them, at sometime, went to schools paid for by their community and they expected a certain level of education and activities. Now it seems they don’t want to pay for what they got.
Growing up I heard a lot about taxes, it is an American tradition to argue about taxes. I never heard one adult ever complain about paying for the best schools that they could have. Only as an adult, and living in Falls Church, have I ever heard an adult say they felt it was unfair to pay for schools they aren’t using.
Baker, There you go again. We have our opinions/views, you have yours. Because we do not agree w/yours, does not mean we do not get it. I get fiscal responsibility.
Thanks, Andy. I understood classrooms. Whether trailers or classrooms, school budget paid for (continues to pay for) for Pre-K when parents/parent should have been paying for (should be paying for) day care at their expense. Imagine the trailers are taking up playground space and a cost to school budget. Here is some revenue to give toward teachers.
Joyce, as I mentioned in another thread, the pre-K program offered by the City is actually for special needs kids and it includes “peer partners” (kids without special needs) who, I think, pay to be in the program. Do you think the City should be providing this service to special needs kids prior to kindergarten age?
Ms. Galovich is being very disrespectful in calling Mr. Baker by his last name only. It is obvious that she vehemently disagrees with him, but she cheapens her own message by being rude.
I for one agree with Mr. Baker – we adults pay for the education of the children of this country, just as previous generations have done for us. We can debate the budget nuances, but providing a quality public education of all of our citizens is an absolute necessity to ensure the success of our country. Our grandparents would expect nothing less of us.
Great fluff guys — you two said absolutely nothing tangible but were polite and agreeable with each other!
The fundamental problem with our schools (which reflects the remainder of our entitlement society) is that administrators are happy to use other people’s money to provide arts, sports, music, and other activities that prepare our children for life, blah, blah, blah. And, of course parents are happy consumers of services bought with other people’s money and applaud the “efforts” of the administrators. But when does it ever stop? Where should the line be drawn and why should it be drawn there or any where? I’ve got a kid who enjoys archery, shouldn’t the school set up and operate an archery range and hire an instructor for him? I say it prepares him for life, he deserves it, and you owe it to him; what say you? (Don’t dare disagree with me ‘cause if you do I’ll just say the same thing all over again but this next time with my caps lock key on!)
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher once pointed out, the problem is that the people doing the spending eventually run out of other people’s money.
Now hang on ‘cause we are changing gears really fast…..
Speaking of kids with special needs; the SpecEd program is the sad, reprehensible and tragic, dirty secret of the FCCPS System. I have direct knowledge of several kids in the upper end of our school system who literally can’t read, can’t write and can’t spell. I also know firsthand that many of our administrators have no interest in and are incapable of helping them.
You know what the difference between running classes for special needs kids and running classes in arts, sports, music, and blah, blah, blah activities is? The former is required by law and takes real talent, real dedication, and real expertise. The latter is strictly optional and most any dunderhead can do it. (But most importantly, the majority of the parents applaud the dunderheads.)
Here’s a question for you FCCPSophiles, which is of the following two activities is rewarded around here and which is ignored and denied and avoided – helping a ninth grader, who writes at a fourth grade level, gain some competency in this crucial skill or offer a Chinese language course attended by 4 to 6 kids? (Not that this really matters but the 9th grader has been in the FCCPS since kindergarten and the only time one of his teachers said anything about a potential problem was when he was in 6th grade and one of his teachers happened to be in the lady’s rest room at school at the same time as the child’s mom and, after doing a stall check, mentioned that the kid needed to be looked at by an expert. All the other teachers simply gave the kid top grades and passed him on. What a fraud! The SpecEd law even puts a duty on teachers to actively identify and report problems to the administrators – early intervention – but guess what? As of a couple of years ago, no teacher had ever seen any problems here in the little city! I think we need to re-brand it to IB-SpecEd! Then it might receive awards!
I can honestly say I know more about Special Ed – the legalities and therapeutic aspects — then many of our schools practitioners. How do I know this? I have tried to carry on scholarly-like conversations with several of them and they don’t get it. (BTW – what I know, I taught myself at nights and on weekends.)
Of by the way the kid with the writing problem — has an IQ at the 99.7%. Know what one our award winning administrators told the kids parents? “He doesn’t really need to learn to write; some day he will have a secretary to do all of that for him.” I kid you not –pay raise? They should pay me to put up with such ineptness. Lets hoist that administrator on our shoulders and give her an award!
This kid is not the only one — extreme gifted with learning disabilities. There are several who are are failing courses now, not because they aren’t bright and capable, [. . . ]
Extreme giftedness with learning disabilities — a long standing, well documented, phenomenon everywhere except in our award winning schools. I’ll never forget when the former Acting Principle at GMHS said that the only option for this kid was in classes for children who were challenged by the content of the curriculum. [ . . . ]
With all the talk about teachers revolting, I found a reliable source for school system data and worked some calculations to bring appropriate context to FCCPS teacher salary data –
Our Central Office reports that the STARTING SALARY for a FCCPS teacher is $43,720 and the AVERAGE SALARY is $66,035. (I felt bad ’cause it looked like we were using little dollars to pay our teachers.)
What the Central Office forgot to mention is that these figures are calibrated to a school year consisting of only 1500 work hours. (The standard work year consists of 2080 hours.)
To have a recognizable context for understanding teachers’ salaries their numbers must be normalized to a 2080-hour year. So, just multiply salary by 2080, and then divide by 1500.
This shows that FCCPS teachers STARTING SALARY is comparable to someone working year round and earning $60,625 per year.
The AVERAGE SALARY for FCCPS teachers is comparable to someone working year round and earning $91,568 per year.
The other thing to remember is that different professions have different compensation models and the FCCPS teachers union negotiated a generous benefits package — a 35% uplift to their salary. (For comparison, benefits my company provides me yield only a 13% bump-up in dollars.)
So, starting with the original numbers from the Central Office, lifting up the STARTING SALARY shows our teachers have a STARTING COMPENSATION worth $60,625.
Lifting up the 1500 hour/year AVERAGE SALARY by 35% we get see this is comparable to someone working year round for $91,568.
Now, let’s see what the compensation numbers are against the normalized salary levels –
STARTING COMPENSATION for FCCPS teachers is comparable to a year-round job with $81,971 in compensation.
AVERAGE COMPENSATION for FCCPS teachers is comparable to a year-round job with compensation of $123,809.
We taxpayers should be the ones revolting!
THe source of the data I used can be found in WABE 2011 at:
http://www.fcps.edu/fs/budget/wabe/
I encourage folks to look carefully at all the WABE data. You will find a lot of interesting facts like that the real cost per pupil in FCCPS is around $22,000 a year. The difference is they base their cost per pupil value on operating costs only, and ignore items like debt serving and construction costs. This would be like me not including mortgage payments as an expense item in my household budget.
I think comparing local schools and school districts against each other is just a lot of hair splitting. For the most part, there are no “bad” public schools in Fairfax, Arlington, or Falls Church. If you live here long enough, you lose all perspective of this. I’ve lived in rural upstate New York and Hawaii. Now those were some struggling school systems. We need to get over the notion that there is any significant difference in the quality of a K-12 public education in and among the school systems of northern Virginia. We also need stop believing the internally generated hype that “our” school district is better than “that other big school district” and that a smaller system means that kids don’t get lost. It’s almost as though the other school system is 99.8% excellent, and so we need to make sure that we are 99.81% excellent, because after all, that’s who we are.
Sorry for the rant…
Mark, I generally agree with you that all the area schools are really great compared with a lot of the country. What I personally value most is the size and format of our school system. My kids will go through school with the same group of kids – they won’t be split up over the years as some kids go off to other schools.
My wife went to a small private school growing up and I went to a medium-sized public school in Fairfax County. Falls Church seems like a hybrid of the two – something I really like. This is why the notion of merging with Arlington County doesn’t appeal to me – I think the education would still be top notch but the format would be totally different.
The problem is the misconception that we are paying for current costs – we aren’t. We are repaying the investment our parents and peers made when we were in public school – it is our time to pay the bill, we have already received the services.
L.F. Paradise obviously has an axe to grind. I agree that Falls Church does not deal as effectively with children with special needs as it could. But Falls Church is neither worse not better than other Virginia districts in that respect – I work in the field and hear horror stories from Loudon, Fairfax, and other nearby Schools. But to lump the dedicated teachers and professionals as dunderheads because they teach music or coach is the same as if I said all lawyers are crooks and thieves.
I would ask if L.F. Paradise went to see Les Mis at George Mason. That alone should end any argument as to whether arts and music belong in school. You say any dunderhead could teach music. You’re wrong!
The young men an women who make up the music groups in Falls Church by and large are strictly a product of the teaching they have received – most had never played an instrument before the 4th grade. Yet by their High School years many have won awards both in the State, and in Nationally recognized competitions. This is because of what the PROFESSIONALS such as Mary Jo Webster have taught them.
Do you think the achievement that the Girls’ Cross Country Team did by winning the State for the 3rd year doesn’t teach them something about self-worth, pride, & teamwork so need by young women these days – lessons you can’t learn in a book.
It is these achievements that make our graduates stnd out and get accepted to the top schools that they apply to.
As for Mr. Royce, he is being a bit disingenuous – he leaves out that teachers, like all licensed professionals in Virginia – and most of the country, are required by law to take a fair amount of Continuing Learning hours to maintain their certification. While the 1500 hours seems little compared to most workers it is only what the City pays them for – not the time they spend keeping current with their profession. Unlike most of us, they have to be licensed to keep their job. And these hours are done outside of the normal working times. An what is normalized salaries – how is he massaging the numbers to fit his arguments.
Also, the salaries can’t be listed in a vacuum. Most teachers have to take extra classes and do intern work to qualify in college- the equivalent of a Masters degree. In many ways, the duties of a teacher or closer to a small business owner that your average cubicle dweller. Much of the time I see my children’s teachers is after normal school hours. For every hour in the classroom, there is at least the same in preparation. What parents expect from teachers today requires a skill level most of us rarely achieve in our owe careers.
This “Meaness” towards teachers and our schools seems to be growing. We expect teachers to not only teach our children but insure our children get high marks and great scores without any intervention on our part, without any consequences for our children’s lack of effort. Failure on our children’s part is blamed on the teacher, or the schools – and then we have the effrontery to insult many gifted professional by calling them dunderheads.
I’m sorry L.F. Paridise has a problem with Falls Church Schools and the Special Education dept. – and apparently his lack of understanding the need to provide something other than classes and tests to have good schools – but a couple questions
1 – Did you have, whether your participated or not, sports, art, music, etc in your schools growing up? And did it provide opportunities for you and your classmates.
2 – Could you take 30 some odd 14 – 18 year olds, and in 2 months present a production of Les Miserables, much less the quality that was shown at George Mason.
While all school systems have those members who basically are collecting a paycheck, I have found the teachers in the Falls Church School system to be far an above some of the best in Northern Virginia. They EARN every bit of the salary we pay them. And considering the howls of pain coming from the Federal Workforce over the idea of pay freezes, should the teachers not voice their desire for increases after their lack of pay raises.
Oh, L.F. Paradise! I am sure your child is “accessing the curriculum.” Who needs to spell when there is spell check. And who needs basic math and number sense when there is a calculator? That is what I am told. Come now, join the 21st century — we have technology – they don’t need those dated basic skills. What that child needs is Carnagie Units! Don’t you know? That is what is important. Get with FCCPS program! (Can I share your puke bucket, mine is full.)
One thing that I find missing consistently in all of these discussions is the bigger question of why the City cannot attract and retain more businesses to fill all the vacant storefronts along Broad Street. Why is there no public outcry about revenues, only about spending? If we could increase revenues from productive businesses, we would not have to rely so heavily on property taxes and our schools would be the first to benefit.
Also, why are certain folks so quick to belitle the contributions of art, music, and “extras” to a quality education? I know many businesses who value the creative thinking and problem solving abilities of people with arts backgrounds. In fact, I work for one. Theater helps kids learn to feel comfortable with public speaking (I wish I had had the opportunity to learn this before becoming an adult); sports teach teamwork and healthy living; music and art enrich our lives and foster creative thinking; imagine the American economy without the film industry. I could go on. Before you strike out at the “fluff” subjects, take a moment to really think about how they contribute to a well-rounded education for all of us.
I’m all about art, music, and the “extras” of a quality education — however they haven’t arrived at the quality education part yet. (A lot of big talk of course — “we are the best whatever” stuff.)
I suspect many in our community would be appalled at how our schools are ignoring or providing limited / ineffective help for the children with the greatest needs — those who are several grade-levels behind in reading, writing, spelling, etc.
Oh Fluffy – you know what? I think that it is about time to tell our beloved little city all about these very issues. I have been talking about this for years and a plan has yet to be implemented on how to close these gaps. The current strategy is, I believe, to use the law to avoid doing what is instructionally best for the child. I think it is time to explain it all to the entire community and let them all weigh in as to whether this is a policy (instuctional/moral) choice with which we all agree.
What’s worse is that special education teachers that go out of their way to help students and families are not rewarded — either professonally or by their peers. Quite the contrary — at some point — years ago – a special education teacher did something for one of my children and he/she was remarked to by a peer, “You’re making us look bad — now they all will expect it.” Can you imagine a general education teacher telling a professional peer such a thing? Only in the world of special education in our town. I would like to hope things now are better. More on that later.
I am almost certain no-one needs further “more on that later” vitriol that has spread between this and the teacher revolt thread.
Robyn — This is one of the draw backs to the written word — sometimes the tone is lost – so the meaning. So your remark confuses me. Why not more on that later? No one can fix something no one knows is broken. I’m not complaining; just believing the time has finally come to a little exposure to the issues; barriers; and culture in the world of special education (or lack there of as the case may be) in Falls Church.
To (Name not provided):
I share your view in that I too have countless stories of wonderful support from FCCPS special education staff. I did not read that they were being belittled. I attended that meeting two years ago and it is unfortunate that you found it so toxic you left to never return. Pain can be toxic and there was a lot of that in that room that night. Parents feel deeply when their children suffer and the frustration was clear. If it made you uncomfortable perhaps you did not understand their view or share their anguish. Parents only spoke the truth about what was going on. Sometimes the truth can be ugly. I believe each parent who spoke could also offer a positive story if asked. But that night was set up to address a specific and pervasive problem in the high school. There were serious problems then that had been over looked for years. The current staff, I believe is working in many ways to make things better. Also, you said “the committee does not represent…” To be clear – the room was filled that night with parents not on the committee.
You also state that there are more effective ways to voice your concerns. What you may not know is that most of these parents had already exhausted every other avenue including meeting with the Superintendent. I finally organized a community meeting because I had tried everything else. The Committee was responding to a need in the community.
Sometimes when things go very wrong it can get very uncomfortable but change can cause discomfort too and much is needed.
There are approximately 300 students in Falls Church City that receive special education services based on the information I could find from the state of VA. We frequently hear the ‘horror’ stories of Special Education in Falls Church City, and they seem to cycle every few months, by a few, very vocal parents.
This minority of parents do not speak for the majority of parents of special education students, who have watched their children grow, meet their goals, and develop the skills that they will need to be successful as they move out into the world.
Two years ago I attended a meeting of the Special Education Advisory Committee, and found the environment so toxic that I never returned. There are more appropriate and effective ways to seek improvements than belittling those that are simply doing their very best to help children. This committee does not represent the majority of special education parents in Falls Church City.
The untold stories are of the students who overcome tremendous odds, and make a successful transition to post-secondary outcomes (be it college, the military, or vocational careers).
I have countless stories of special education teachers who have gone above and beyond to meet the needs of my children, and my friend’s children, and provided a level of service, professionalism, communication, and efficacy that allows me to proudly recommend this school district to anyone with whom I talk.
There are students in this city with varying levels of disabilities, who have varying levels of needs from the twice exceptional to the student with more significant needs, and this city and its staff has made admirable, effective, and collaborative efforts to present these students with experiences that will not only challenge them, but meet their needs at the same time.
Having lived in affluent areas in Fairfax, and Arlington, and have special needs children at several different levels in their education, I would welcome the few, unhappy, parents to withdraw their children, and enroll them elsewhere, be it public or private. I think there must be a reason you stay—surely you are not just a glutton for the continued outrages of which you frequently speak?
While there is always room for growth, and constant improvement should always be sought, we cannot allow the opinions of a few, upset individuals, to destroy the reputation of what I feel is an exceptional special education program.
Yes, your view is different .. that is good. However, you presume your situation is the norm and not the exception; I have ample reason to believe that is not the case. And, while I am glad that your children receive the help they need, this does not mean that my child and many others have also received the help they need.
What I do know is this — my relentless insistence and countless hours learning and advocating for my child and other children has resulted in significant change at GMHS. This has been no easy feat, but to simply move away or act like it doesn’t exist, might be easier on me in the short run, it would be irresponsible.
I also know with certainty that there are several children in our schools who currently cannot read or write anywhere near grade level. Suggesting this is not the case is shameful and a great disservice to those children and our community. These kids would continue to be overlooked without folks like AK, myself and others.
Since your view is so nice, you should get in engaged and help others to achieve the same state. For instance, I would bet that ESOL children with learning disabilities in our schools are grossly underserved. I’d be happy to work with you.
My child is one of the children that reads significantly below grade level. They will never read at grade level, despite school supports, private supports, and in home supports. From a very early age, i have recognized this, and set realistic expectations for my child. Yes, I could complain that the school has failed my child, but they have not. They have worked hard to help a situation that will never “be on grade level” but one that has impoved, and I hope over the next few years will continue to do so.
It becomes a question of accountability. You can blame the school, or you work to try to find a solution (which does not always lie within the context of the school setting).
If there are 300 people with disabilities in the city, then the advisory committee certaintly represents a minority of those in the city.
I am sorry your child may never read on grade level. However, there are programs that work for children with certain profiles. We know this. The schools know this. What parents want is early access to these programs, and an effort made by the schools to make these programs readily and consistently available to the children who need them. This unfortunately has not been the case for reasons I cannot fathom. It’s sadder still that pointing this out is seen as a complaint. My efforts to secure these services for my own child and to mobilize support in the community for making these programs readily available to others was met with organized resistance from administration again for reasons I cannot fathom. What’s more — it was made very clear to some FCCPS staff that helping me was not going to win them any points. They were openly discouraged from helping me not only by administration but by their peers. One staff member was effectively told that supporting my efforts was essentially a conflict of interest! Making disparaging remarks to each other in emails was entertaining to them. (Thank you FERPA.) I do not blame the school for my child’s dyslexia but I am not happy with their response and lack of willingness to provide what data shows to be effective. I have been working diligently to find a solution but not just for my child but for all children who share this profile. I could move — pull them out into private school but, as someone stated, I believe that would be irresponsible. I am going to stay until we have leaders that are willing to serve these children – even if they are a minority.
I wonder what the difference in cost is between education a special ed student versus a “normal” student.
Perhaps you know, at least I do, that you would not find the support and expertise at local private schools or other area schools that you find in Falls Church City Schools. If you could find what you wanted elsewhere you would go there, but, the problem is you can’t find better, so you look to use an IEP for the wrong reasons. A million programs can’t take the place of a few good teachers. If the programs are so great, buy them, and implement them at home. As a parent of students, if you have something that works, and don’t use it, because the school won’t offer it, you are hurting your own child!
The ‘cost’ question is a good question to explore further.
We spend too much on special education. Its a dirty little secret that people move to the City of Falls Church to take advantage of the special education program. The costs are socialized across the rest of the taxpayer base. We MUST limit/cap the size/number of students in the special ed program to contain costs. The free ride is over
To “they who chose not to be named”
Who decides what child doesn’t get an education. Which child, who through no fault of their own is denied. If it was your child, or if it had been you, should you have been denied?
A society is judged by how it takes care of those who need more. What would you have us do, send them off to be “warehoused” in “Special Class.”
I can’t believe people move here because the Special Ed because Allison’s experience is all too true, here and in most jurisdictions.
But even as flawed as the system is, it is better than what we had when I went through school. We owe it to our children to provide a better chance – as a society it is our responsibility to help.
I am saddened by the selfishness of some in Falls Church, they feel it is an unfair burden to support the schools, and now to read that we should abandon those students who need help. We have forgotten that we already enjoyed those benefits, we now are responsible for paying that back.
No new arguments here. The FCCPS are the reason for being a Little City. The same choices remain the same. Pay the costs of independence OR merge with a much larger ‘eduaucracy’ with ‘some savings’ with a loss of autonomy.
I came to FCC (early 70s) to teach and coach. The ‘statewide challenge’ was to vastly improve public education (FCCPS was “light-years” ahead of most of the Commonwealth) for all. I remember administering the ‘first statewide Competency Tests’ that 95% plus of FCCPS students passed on the first try. BUT the financial crises were very similar. FCCPS always “answered the bell first” when it came to adding new ‘special interests’ programs for the students including I B and Inclusion programs.
There was/is/will be a cost of doing the business of education. The great challenge facing the citizens of the LITTLE CITY is how to pay for its top-quality schools.
How could you possibly cap the number of children with special needs that are allowed to live in Falls Church and attend public school? Why shouldn’t people be allowed to move here to obtain educational services which their children need. People are drawn for many reasons. Small class size, IB, athletic and drama programs – are those special needs too? Our schools did not get to where they are by being selfish. Our schools are good because our community supports them and our teachers are good and care about the kids. Our own kids were early 90′s graduates. I will continue to support the schools and all of our children.
(Name not provided) wrote on December 3rd, 2010 8:30 pm:
“I wonder what the difference in cost is between education a special ed student versus a “normal” student.”
I wonder (much later) why it matters and what you would do with that information…