Leesburg community residents and the Loudoun County School Board came together Dec. 7 at the Loudoun County Government Center for the final public hearing before settling the Leesburg school attendance boundaries.
As the last meeting scheduled in this boundary process, 52 parents and community members were signed up to speak and a majority of them were from the Potomac Station community. As expected the room was full of residents monitoring the process of Leesburg boundaries.
Loudoun County has been forced to redraft the attendance boundaries in Leesburg due to the opening of the new Frederick Douglass Elementary School for the 2012-2013 school year.
Douglass will be located between Plaza Street and Old Sycolin Road in Leesburg.
All eight of the existing schools in Leesburg – Ball’s Bluff, Catoctin, Cool Spring, Evergreen Mill, Frances Hazel Reid, John W. Tolbert Jr., Leesburg and Sycolin Creek – will all have new attendance zones for the 2012-2013 school year.
One of the major complaints of the community has been the division of specific neighborhoods with some of their children moving to new schools and others staying at their current schools.
Potomac Station is one of the neighborhoods that has been split by many of the proposed plans and the public hearing reflected that with almost half the scheduled speakers being residents of Potomac Station.
Those residents in Potomac Station who attended the hearing stood for each of their neighborhood speakers and the contingent filled almost half the room.
Sara Phillips, a resident of Potomac Station, was the first speaker of the evening. She outlined the reason most of the neighborhood came out in such force.
“We are here to keep our community together. I have spoke to you before about the importance of keeping communities together and I was glad to see the amended staff plan did that with the Red Rocks community,” Phillips said. “Unfortunately, our community is still split and I would like for you to please vote on a plan that keeps all of our communities together.
“A community in this area means you pay dues to the same HOA, your kids go to the same pool in the summer and are possibly on the same swim team, you have community events together and community-wide clean-ups,” Phillips said. “I do want to thank Dr. Adamo and the staff for the Bergel Division of planning zone CL 19. I am glad to see that CL 19 was split by neighborhood correctly today, but I want to reiterate that whatever plan you adopt we would like to see CL19 split the way the Bergel division of planning zone CL 19 is shown.”
Leesburg resident Nels Pearsall wanted some clarification from board members and voiced his opinion on the process as it has unfolded.
“I am here on behalf of Leesburg and in my opinion the decision has been made. I believe this is more of a bone tossed to the people who are standing here,” Pearsall said. “I am asking one of you tonight to go on record and say that Loudoun County Public School Policy now is economic integration.
“To this point we have focused on demographics like ELL and free and reduced lunch. If this is in fact what we are doing please tell us,” Pearsall said. “I would like to know because I haven’t seen anything about that and I haven’t seen any mention of a new policy in regards to our selecting new boundaries, but yet it seems to be the main focus. For you guys to do this and say we need at this moment a policy county wide is not acceptable.”
With numerous plans being amended and added to the list of proposals, some board members have chosen to withdraw their original plans.
A total of seven plans had been withdrawn from consideration as of Dec. 12.
Jennifer Bergel (Catoctin) withdrew her Bergel Plan 2 and Bergel Plan 2 amended, Bergel by Request Plan and Bergel By Request Plan B. Tom Marshall (Leesburg) withdrew his Marshall Plan and the Marshall Reed Plan 1 which he proposed with Tom Reed (At-Large). Reed also withdrew his Reed Plan 1.
The proposals that are currently being considered are the Bergel Plan 2 Amended – 12/12, Bergel By Request Plan B (Amended by Marshall) w/ CL19 and Staff Proposal Amended (Bergel) Evergreen Mill ES – no change.
Each of those plans can be viewed on the LCPS website by using the Planning and Legislative Services quick link and clicking on Leesburg Area ES Attendance Zone School Board Proposals.
The attendance boundaries will be finalized as an action item during the final school board meeting of the calendar year Dec. 13.
What a token, fake discussion. Government leaders never have any intention of doing what the people want.
Their goal is to manipulate the borders so that all the bad kids are funneled into one single school that they can write off as a fluke.
Oh noze! Beacon Hill kids have to go to school with teh brown kids!
Waya, agree but School Board has to take some of the blame since they truly lack common sense(and logic and analytical skills) to factor in the school boundaries. Yes, their egos get in the way. Most just back whatever Dr Adamo wants. And to think we’re stuck with Mr Brown nose Reed for another term, geez Can’t wait to see his tough stance on the new school budget.
Residents of Potomac Station, Spring Lakes, Red Rocks, etc., can thank the Leesburg Town Council and Loudoun Board of Supervisors for approving a megazillion homes and only requiring builders to reserve a few acres for small middle and elementary schools (Harper Park and Tolbert share fields, etc.) And it isn’t over, just look at the quadmegabillion luxury town homes going in on the old JR’sFestival Lakes land! Where are those kids going to school?
Yer Wright
Updated: Thirteen-year-old pedestrian hit crossing Route 7 near Dulles Town Center
UPDATE: Missing Leesburg man drowns in drainage pond
Leesburg high schools switch things around
Loudoun inmate dies after suffering massive stroke in prison
Two Loudoun County residents involved in $1.5 million mortgage scheme
