Middle School Boundary Process & Spanish Immersion Program Relocation Proposal

The Department of Facilities and Operations completed a data analysis to help determine what may be the most suitable location for the middle school immersion program considering program enrollment, facility capacity, and transportation choices. The full transportation study may be accessed in Appendix I of the Pre-CIP Report.

The data analysis shows and summarizes the considerations of relocating the immersion program to each one of the middle school facilities. Relocating the immersion program to Dorothy Hamm, Swanson, or Williamsburg would negatively impact transportation choices and APS Transportation services. If the immersion program is relocated to Jefferson or Kenmore, no improvements to transportation choices or APS Transportation services would be achieved.

None of the middle schools have the seats required to maintain a capacity utilization at or below 100%. As result of this analysis, the existence of the immersion program at any of the middle schools does not improve school capacity, transportation choices, or APS Transportation Services. 

The Fall 2023 Middle School Boundary Recommendation Report is included in Appendix H of the Pre-CIP Report and details how the proposal relates to each of the boundary considerations in APS Boundary Policy.

The Fall 2023 middle school boundary recommendation addresses specific alignment issues, will include demographic information on the estimated proportion of students by race/ethnicity, English learner status, special education status, and free/reduced lunch status across all proposals. The Department of Facilities and Operations will also conduct an analysis on walk zones and transportation. The timeline for adjusting middle school boundaries can be found in Appendix H of the Pre-CIP Report.

Rationale for Middle School Boundary Adjustments

• Balance capacity utilization across all neighborhood middle schools and maximize use of facilities
• Provide access to equitable learning environments
• Be good stewards of taxpayer funds
• Address the six considerations in Policy B-2.1 Boundaries
  • Efficiency; Proximity; Stability; Alignment; Demographics; Contiguity

**The Middle School Boundary Planning Unit Data Review Process Ended on Sept. 1, 2023**

APS invites community members to review data that will be used in the Middle School Boundary Process. This review of data by Planning Unit—the geographic building blocks APS uses to establish school attendance zones— will help ensure that the final data reflects what you know about your neighborhood, is accurate, complete, and ready for use in adjusting boundaries across neighborhood middle schools.

We appreciate the community’s collaboration as we seek to ensure we have the most accurate data as we prepare for a Middle School boundary process. The following changes are the result of the Planning Unit Data Review in 2023:

• 2 duplicate records for single family homes were identified and noted.  These records will not be used in a boundary adjustment analysis.
• Toll Brother’s The Grove at Dominion Hills is now included in three phases in planning unit 14030.  The three phases combined will yield about 4.6 middle school students (grades 6 to 8).  These records will be used in a boundary adjustment analysis.
• Arlington County staff confirmed yesterday that as of September 19, no Expanded Housing Options (EHO) housing is under construction.  No EHO housing will be used in the boundary adjustment analysis.

Updated Planning Unit Data Review and Housing Unit Forecast Tables are attached below:

Table 1 – Planning Unit Data Review Table – September 2023 Update

Table 2 – Housing Unit Forecast – September 2023 Update

Community Engagement

The Planning Unit Data Review Process allows APS staff to gather timely community input from all stakeholders based on their knowledge of their neighborhoods. Staff reviews all input and makes any necessary revisions to the planning unit data. A summary of community input and the final planning unit data from 2023 has been posted above.

In the data review process, APS asked community members to do the following:

1. Is the information for your planning unit accurate to the best of your knowledge?
2. Based on your knowledge of your planning unit, are there any existing or planned housing developments that may belong in a different planning unit?
3. Are there any other items, such as future housing developments, in a specific planning unit that APS should consider?
4. What else related to the planning units would you like staff to know?

Resources

The following information resources remain available for community members to review:

• Planning Unit Data Review Table (Table 1)
• Housing Unit Forecast (Table 2)
• Planning Unit Reference Map
• Street Name Reference Map

APS staff will host multiple community engagement sessions to receive feedback on the Pre-CIP Report, which includes the proposal to repurpose Nottingham Elementary School for swing space, the 2023 Middle School Boundary Process, and the relocation of the Spanish Immersion Program to Kenmore from Gunston.

The goal is to make these community engagement sessions as collaborative as possible with the community. The emphasis will be to ensure the community is aware of these recommendations by confirming that the proposals are not final at this time and are still under review.

The feedback received during these community engagement sessions will be used to refine the proposals. This feedback will also be compiled and presented to the School Board for review before decisions are made on these proposals.

Community participation in these community engagement sessions is vital to shaping the final proposals that will be presented to the School Board and ensures the best interests of all community members are represented throughout the process.

The following table lists the upcoming community engagement sessions that includes two sessions specifically focused on the repurposing of Nottingham Elementary School and the relocation of the Spanish Immersion Program.

Information on these proposals is available on the Current and Upcoming Initiatives section of the Engage with APS webpage.

For additional information or questions on these proposals and the upcoming community engagement sessions, please contact engage@apsva.us.

APS staff will host multiple community engagement sessions to receive feedback on the Pre-CIP Report, which includes the proposal to repurpose Nottingham Elementary School for swing space, the 2023 Middle School Boundary Process, and the relocation of the Spanish Immersion Program to Kenmore from Gunston.

The goal is to make these community engagement sessions as collaborative as possible with the community. The emphasis will be to ensure the community is aware of these recommendations by confirming that the proposals are not final at this time and are still under review.

The following are the materials from the community table sessions:

Community Table Session One

• Meeting Presentation
• Meeting Recordings
  • General Session
  • Swing Space Project Report Breakout Session
  • Middle School Boundaries & Spanish Immersion Program Move Breakout Session
  • Long-Range Renovation Plan for Existing School Facilities

Community Table Session Two (Held in person at Kenmore)

• Meeting Presentation

Community Table Session Three – Proposal to Relocate the Spanish Immersion Program

• Meeting Presentation
• Meeting Recording

View the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for the Pre-CIP Report, which includes general information on the report, balancing middle school enrollment, and relocating the Spanish Immersion Program. As new information becomes available, the questions will be updated and the date they were updated will be listed.

View the Pre-CIP Report FAQ
View the MS Boundaries/Spanish Immersion Move FAQ