In the midst of so much going on in our schools and lives, APS is planning to move ahead with its Elementary School Boundary Process (new school boundaries which will be effective for 2021/2022 school year). This process could mean changes to who would be zoned for Barrett (particularly affecting the Greenbrier section of the Arlington Forest neighborhood).
This spring is Phase II – data collection to inform options APS will propose. (The options/proposals themselves will come in Phase III in the Fall.)
Please respond to an APS survey (available at https://www.k12insight.com/k/RQsSRTVsQRXVsPsPsP) by June 5. This is a review of data by " planning unit" (PU) - the geographic clusters APS uses to make school boundaries- and is our chance to share information on the planning units for our neighborhoods, specifically whether they are "accurate, complete and ready for use" for the boundary process, according to APS.
For the last open ended question (the third question – "What should APS know about your planning unit?), we suggest the following responses as they relate to our neighborhood's planning units 12010 and 12020 (Note: You are allowed to answer the survey multiple times if you have comments on multiple units, and please do answer this last question, even If you don't have time to review APS's attached documents within the survey, or have opinions on all questions.):
· Please engage our Barrett school to talk about defining "walkable" related to our school. PUs 12010 and 12020 are part of the Barrett community, and are walkable. We used to have 2 buses for this Greenbrier section of Arlington Forest, but since so many students walk to school, it was reduced to one bus (and still one special education bus). Our community was one of the few not engaged in the last walkability assessment.
· These PUs are very involved in volunteering and fundraising for Barrett to support the students who need more assistance than the County provides. If these units were removed from Barrett, especially during and after COVID, it would have a negative impact. Our community boundaries and spirit is crystal clear and rooted at Barrett elementary – splitting the community after such long separations and unusual circumstances will add hardship for students and our community.
· Additionally no other schools are walkable from these PUs. The walk to Barrett from these PUs is a neighborhood walk and doesn't involve children having to cross major roads like Rte 50 and Carlin Springs.
· Walkability, diversity, and strong community spirit are APS goals exhibited by Barrett – and these neighborhoods and planning units are a key part of Barrett.
Please fill out the survey/questionnaire – even if you are not likely affected. This questionnaire allows APS staff to gather community input from stakeholders based on their knowledge of their neighborhoods. We are hopeful that responses will help all of our kids stay together, which is especially even more critical during these challenging times. Feel free to use your own words of course!
For more information on the APS Elementary School Boundary Process, please visit their website at https://www.apsva.us/engage/data-review-for-fall-2020-boundary-process/. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.
Jennie Apter and Andrea Shaw
Barrett PTA Special Committee on APS Elementary School Boundary Process
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