Loudoun School Boundaries, a Lesson in Division

Three new plans were submitted hours before the start of a public hearing this past week for the creation of new attendance boundaries for the Ashburn and Dulles North areas, leaving residents scrambling to see whether the plans would help or hinder their neighborhoods’ efforts to stay together.

Because of the growth in eastern Loudoun, the school system has been steadily building schools, which requires adjustments to attendance boundaries. The addition of two new high schools (one in 2014 and one in 2015) and one new middle school in 2014 are also impacting existing middle schools and high schools.

Loudoun School Board Chairman Eric Hornberger (Ashburn) explained at the onset of the meeting that three new plans had been submitted, putting seven plans in the mix.

“Three new plans were submitted in the last couple of hours,” Hornberger explained. Maps of the new plans were unveiled during the public hearing and were posted on the Loudoun County Schools’ website sometime after the start of the hearing. 

With several communities facing the prospect of being divided between schools – including Ashburn Farm, Ashburn Village, Belmont Country Club, Brambleton and Broadlands – the introduction of new plans added increased the anxiety of residents trying to keep up with it all. A Brambleton resident complained during a recent Loudoun Board of Supervisors meeting that plans call for sending some Brambleton students by bus to HS-6 rather than send them at Briar Woods in their own community.

The New Schools

• Trailside Middle School, wedged between Claiborne and Gloucester parkways next to Newton-Lee Elementary School, is slated to open in the fall of 2014
• HS-6 opening in the fall of 2014 near Rose Lee Carter Elementary School in Loudoun Valley Estates
• HS-8 opening in the fall of 2015 next to Belmont Ridge Middle School in Lansdowne

To see the plans under consideration go to http://www.lcps.org/Page/104720.

Bill Fox (Leesburg) introduced Plan 4, calling it a variation of plan 3 that he said “does a better job of keeping the numbers where they need to be and keeping HOAs together.” 

Jill Turgeon (Blue Ridge) said she submitted Plan 5 on behalf of a group of Brambleton residents “who want to incorporate Brambleton as a whole at Briar Woods.” Turgeon explained.

At-large member Thomas Reed introduced Plan 6.

Hornberger said he wanted to see the rationales behind each plan during future discussions.

When asked if there was a deadline for submitting new plans, Reed said that there really is no deadline. He explained that often plans are tweaked up to the last minute.  

One hundred residents spoke at the three-and-a-half hour meeting, many organized by HOAs urging the board not to split up their neighborhoods.

Other concerns included busing children far from their homes and obstacles for walkers, such as paths that aren’t well lit, that run through wooded areas, or that are easily covered in ice or snow. Several residents said they thought the expansion of the school walk zones to 1 mile should not be considered as part of the attendance boundary rezoning and should be evaluated separately.

Residents from Ashburn Farm and Broadlands whose neighborhoods are completely or mostly done building argued that their neighborhoods had paid their dues in past school moves and urged the board to look at re-zoning their neighborhoods with longer-term stability in mind. Others said that the board should not use HOAs to determine boundaries but should give greater consideration to proximity to schools in order to reduce busing costs.

About a dozen Stone Bridge High School students from Ashburn Farm stood side-by-side and recited a poem. “We change schools more than shoes … We are people not numbers,” they said. 

The school board will review all seven plans at its April 9 meeting. A final public hearing is set for April 15, and the final vote is expected April 23. Check meeting schedules on the LCPS website.