ACPS School Redistricting Should Aim to Minimize Disruption

To the editor --

ACPS is working to redistrict our elementary schools, a process that will change boundary lines starting in the fall of 2026. Core principles of the process include focusing on neighborhood schools, demographic alignment, and minimizing bus dependency – all terrific goals.

But why is minimizing the number of students that will be dislocated from their current school not a core principle?

Some ACPS elementary schools are overcrowded and outdated and that rightly needs to be addressed. But if ACPS and the school board plan to repeat the redistricting process again in five years, and potentially reexamine the boundary lines annually, why are we moving students now from their current schools that still have capacity?

As an example, in our Rosemont neighborhood, many of our children started elementary school in a “swing space” as Douglas MacArthur was rebuilt. We are now in the beautiful new building, and the students and staff are just settling in. But several of the proposed maps would move just a small number of students from the “Scroggins Triangle” out of Douglas MacArthur into the George Mason boundary, while George Mason is also slated to be in a “swing space” for the next two years.

Under all proposed maps, there is still projected capacity for our kids to stay at Douglas MacArthur through 2034. Why disrupt them multiple times - with three to four different school buildings in just four to five years - if there is still space for them to complete elementary school at the school they know and love?

ACPS and the school board have a tough task with redistricting, and our neighborhood would like to thank those who have listened to our concerns, like our area school board representatives Ashley Simpson Baird and Kelly Carmichael Booz. Hopefully ACPS and those who will ultimately make the decisions will take seriously the profound personal impact on every single child that is moved from their current school community.

Sincerely,
“Scroggins Triangle” Parents