While we've all been distracted by the sturm und drang discussions on public housing and the Braddock Road Metro Small Area Plan, a group of neighborhood moms and dads have been quietly gathering in cyberspace to discuss what it will take to turn around Jefferson-Houston Elementary School.
So far they have engaged not only other parents but also Alexandria School District officials in a thoughtful and constructive discussion about academic conditions, curriculum, test scores, uniforms, and student safety. There have been small but meaningful meetings and the subscriber list appears to be growing.
If you care about the school, why not give their listserve a look?
12 comments:
Balanced against those neighbors who genuinely care (and in reading that listserv, there are many who want to turn things around at JH) is the reality of the situation on the ground, which all too familiarly sucks the life out of those who hope for a better future.
It looks like Starbucks just got robbed. 9 cop cars in front of the store this evening, and I dont all think they wanted a cafe mocha.
It was only a matter of time (and how often) that Starbucks got held up. Look at the foot traffic there - it's very low. Plus the Monarch is just about empty. I remember walking through the garage during the weekend (the sales agent thought it was an unusual request) and noticing 1 out of 20 parking spots were filled. If an aspiring miscreant could find a way in, he could live in one of those apartments on a virtualy empty floor for some time before anyone noticed.
"If an aspiring miscreant could find a way in, he could live in one of those apartments on a virtualy empty floor for some time before anyone noticed."
With all due respect why does this blog and the bloggers always promote worst case scenarios? There's theory and there's fact. The fact is Starbuck's was held up. There has been no reported mayhem in the parking garage.
"With all due respect why does this blog and the bloggers always promote worst case scenarios? "
Ties back to JH completely. People assume the worst because they have conditioned to expect the worst by the results they see...
For every effort the JH parents make, they cant control the environment kids that attend JH live in or the demographics of the school.
And no one on that listserv has an answer to those 2 problems.
"For every effort the JH parents make, they cant control the environment kids that attend JH live in or the demographics of the school."
Lame, dude! What parents need to stage is a political uprising of massive proportion. People are being lulled by all this cybercrap. So far all I have noted is that a black JHPTA President is mostly satisfied while the rest of you grumble. Does the JH PTA Prez intend for Potomac Yard to have a mostly white school yard while PG remains home to black school children? I'm guessing so because no long ago I remember a legal ringer coming on the blog and operating unchecked. The JHPTA has what? fewer than 10 PTA members? Easy romp for Ms. E. I think the whities need to contact the town's ACLU lawyer and sue for equitable treatment. As long as the decisions are political ones nobody other than Ms. E. wins.
There is an easy way to fix Jefferson Houston: Bulldoze Adkins, Bland and Jefferson Village. Sadly, although it would make a lot of money for ARHA and the City, it won't ever happen.
"I think the whities need to contact the town's ACLU lawyer and sue for equitable treatment."
White or not, the J-H parents SHOULD seek counsel from the ACLU. The fact is that the City, by redrawing its school boundaries to include almost all of the projects in one district, has unconstitutionally segregated J-H.
Those of you who live along Pendleton, Wythe, and other streets plagued by the talking metro buses, might get a kick out of this article in the Alexandria Times.
http://www.alextimes.com/article.asp?article=9157&paper=1&cat=155
"It was only a matter of time (and how often) that Starbucks got held up. Look at the foot traffic there - it's very low."
I wonder how long the new Queen Street Market will hold up before it gets jacked....
Maybe the new LA boxing studio will dissuade further robbery attempts.....
"There is an easy way to fix Jefferson Houston: Bulldoze Adkins, Bland and Jefferson Village. Sadly, although it would make a lot of money for ARHA and the City, it won't ever happen."
There is no way Lenny Harris would allow the Mayor to bulldoze three "model neighborhoods" like that.
"Maybe the new LA boxing studio will dissuade further robbery attempts....."
That can be part of the training for the new baristas. It might help to deter crime... or produce even tougher criminals.
You know, this area is a fascinating city planning story waiting to be told. I feel like someone at a larger national newspapaer (NYTimes maybe??) might be interested in covering this background and development.
This morning I stopped by Starbucks, and at the time there were two workers and two customers on line (including me). By the time I left a minute or so later there were three more customers on line.
It seems a bit quieter than before (no one at the tables), but still has some customers. I will try to keep up with regular visits to buy coffee; I don't know what else I could do.
Until something else in that building opens and they sell/rent more housing it will continue to have low traffic.
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