Exciting Changes at Alexandria Country Day School

PHOTOS: A generous gift of $3 million in 2014 is coming to fruition at Alexandria Country Day School where physical improvements can be seen here. Photos courtesy of ACDS. (Click on photos to enlarge.)

_______________

ALEXANDRIA, VA -- Driving past Alexandria Country Day School, located at 2400 Russell Road in Alexandria, you may have noticed the school has been making some improvements.

Scott Baytosh, Head of School, says the coed Kindergarten-8th grade school is adding a new playing field surface, a Sport Court and is also making improvements to the front property.

Founded in 1983, the school moved into its present facility, the former site of St. Mary’s Academy, in 1991. The school was accredited by the Virginia Association of Independent Schools (VAIS) in 1993. In September 2010, the school celebrated the addition of 14,000 square feet of space including a new regulation-sized gymnasium, cafeteria, and dedicated performing arts center. On July 1, 2012, Baytosh became ACDS’s fourth Head of School.

Baytosh graciously answered a few questions this week about the exciting upgrades to the school.

Patch: It looks like there is some construction going on at your school. What's happening?

ACDS: "We are very excited about the campus improvements we have been able to make in the last year. In the spring of 2014, we received an anonymous gift of $3,000,000 to be used to support physical improvements, program enhancement and endowment. ​For our exterior improvements, we retained Rhodeside & Harwell, an internationally recognized local landscape architect, to develop a landscape master plan for our school. What you see now is Phase I of this plan, which includes a new playing field surface, improvements to our front property along Russell Road and the addition of a Sport Court.

All of these improvements have been designed to expand play and learning space for our students, in addition to creating a physical presentation that reflects the high quality academic program we offer. By building a retaining wall along Russell Road, we were able to level the playing area in front of the school, which expands the usable space for children. We were also able to add a playground that is appropriate for our population of students in Kindergarten through eighth grade. Beyond making the space more useful and effective for children, we wanted to create a space that would be notable for its beauty and design.

Construction on the playing field began and was completed in the Spring of 2015. Work on the Phase 1 improvements to the front of our property began in November 2015 and will be completed before the end of the current school year."

Patch: What is being added to the school?

​ACDS: "We have added a retaining wall that creates a safe and level playing area in the front of our school for students. We have also added a Sport Court that creates outdoor space for basketball, foursquare, and other court games. We also added a new field surface that enables use of the field year-round regardless of weather conditions. The design also includes extensive additions of perennials, shrubs, and trees to our property."

Patch: How did you prioritize the upgrades?

​ACDS: "Our goal has been to maximize the use of our property for play and learning for our students. Enhancing the students learning experience is always our first priority. We have also long desired to create a campus space that has the same beauty and sophistication of our historic building and that reflects the quality of our school and the program that we offer.​"

Patch: How many students attend the school?

ACDS: ​"Currently, there are 204 students attending ACDS in grades K-8.​ For the past few years, ACDS has maintained its student enrollment numbers to stay just above 200."

Patch: How much are construction costs and how is the school paying for it?

ACDS: "The improvements to our exterior property will cost approximately $1.5M and are being paid for entirely by the anonymous gift we received in 2014.​"

Patch: For readers who think they can't afford an education at your school, how would you respond to that?

ACDS: ​"Alexandria Country Day School serves a population that is diverse socio-economically. Approximately 20% of our students receive need-based financial aid, a ratio that is consistent with independent schools across the Washington, D.C. area. The school allocates over half a million dollars in tuition assistance, and awards range from a few thousand dollars to upwards of 85% of tuition. We are also a partner with Emerging Scholars, a local program that helps disadvantaged students prepare for admission to independent schools. ​There are currently three Emerging Scholars attending ACDS.​"