2016 Middle School Modernization & Prioritization Process · Duane Harver, CEO/Director, PK-12...

DRAFT

2016 Middle School Modernization

& Prioritization Process

Fauquier County Public Schools

Community Dialogue #1 Report Summary

7 September 2016

Prepared by

2

DRAFT Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the Fauquier County Public School’s students,

staff, School Board, Advisory Committee, and community for their

commitment and dedication to the Middle School Modernization &

Prioritization Process.

Senior Staff

Dr. David Jeck, Division Superintendent

Dr. Sandra Mitchell, Associate Superintendent for Instruction

Janice Bourne, Assistant Superintendent for Administration

Frank Finn, Assistant Superintendent for Special Education & Student

Services

Prashant Shrestha, Executive Director of Budget and Operations

Janelle Downes, Director of Human Resources

Louis McDonald, Director of Technology Services

School Board

Brian Gorg, Center District

Duke Bland, Marshall District

Donna Grove, Cedar Run District

Suzanne Sloane, Scott District

Don Mason, Lee District

RRMM

Duane Harver, CEO/Director, PK-12 Studio

Mark Probst, Project Director

Earsaline Anderson

Carol Arnold

Barbara Bannister

Rachel Beattie

Angela Castaldy

Blaire Conner

Randy Corpening

Christopher Coutts

Tony Dandrea

Joanne Duncan

Joyce D'Urso

Sarah Frye

Thelma Gaskins

Brian Gorg

Chris Granger

Donna Grove

Donna Guzman

Laura Henson

Laura Hoover

Madison Humphries

Michele James

Wes Kennedy

Bob Kravetz

Ben Maas

Susan Maharidge

Mark Marchinetti

Mary Leigh McDaniel

Erin Meadows

Larry Miller

Leah Morton

Sally Murray

Samuel F. Myers

Ruth Nelson

Jon Nuckles

Mark Ott

Nicole Polster

Conway Porter

Nancy B. Premen

Brandie Schaeffer

Robbie Settle

Stephen Starner

Walter Story

John Toler

Melissa Wiedenfeld

Becky Yates

DeJONG-RICHTER

David Sturtz, Project Director

Kerrianne Wolf, Project Director

Advisory Committee

3

DRAFT Table of Contents

Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................................ 2

Community Dialogue 1 Summary ..................................................................................................................... 4

Results .................................................................................................................................................................... 6

4

DRAFT Community Dialogue #1

In an effort to obtain community feedback prior to developing middle school facility options for Fauquier County Public

Schools, FCPS hosted a Community Dialogue on September 7, 2016. DeJONG-RICHTER presented a summary of the facility

and enrollment data that will be used when developing middle school options. Participants were invited to complete

individual and group questionnaires at the meeting, and the individual questionnaire was posted online for one week to

allow those who could not attend to lend their voice to the process.

All total, 66 questionnaires were completed at the Community Dialogue and 652 total questionnaires were completed online.

Prior to completing the survey, each questionnaire provided the “Fast Facts” below for respondents to consider (see italics),

as well as a historical/projected enrollment table and a table detailing the current and projected utilization of each middle

school (see following page). This report details the quantitative and narrative responses gathered for each question and will

be referenced by the Division and consultant team when creating the initial draft Facility Options.

FCPS commissioned condition and capacity studies for Taylor Middle School and Warrenton Middle School, completed

(August 2015)

FCPS believes it currently has the ability to raise money for the renovation or replacement of Taylor Middle School OR

Warrenton Middle School, at this time

Taylor Middle School was the first African American high school in Fauquier County, VA

Warrenton Middle School was a WPA (Work Projects Administration) building

All options are currently on the table for the Middle School prioritization process

New funds will need to be raised for construction, renovation, or consolidation. The budget will be determined based on

the preferred option

FCPS wants your feedback on how the Division can honor the legacy of all schools in the community while making a

decision about which school site will receive money first for major renovation or replacement

5

DRAFT Community Dialogue #1

2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19

Change by

cohort 2002-03

to 2018-19

K 758 831 795 834 860 768 793 813 802 748 753 734 714 743 654 737 -21

1 787 795 834 834 845 863 790 816 807 795 757 781 746 734 747 659 -128

2 717 786 829 850 852 845 861 786 819 782 807 773 796 741 730 746 29

3 728 777 810 848 869 860 859 863 780 811 775 824 778 753 736 726 -2

4 779 745 798 816 866 860 860 867 872 776 852 779 829 763 767 753 -26

5 747 800 773 822 852 871 874 876 872 856 789 855 782 821 765 772 25

6 819 778 831 796 829 856 878 875 894 888 887 781 874 807 840 783 -36

7 882 860 811 891 808 839 863 907 877 910 888 889 808 883 816 847 -35

8 848 916 850 817 900 828 851 867 910 884 919 891 919 819 890 822 -26

9 902 937 990 976 932 992 930 924 945 978 976 991 967 986 893 974 72

10 869 861 902 920 885 874 975 880 858 919 928 952 963 928 942 851 -18

11 719 814 804 833 853 810 777 901 801 811 864 899 878 889 866 877 158

12 704 773 832 821 844 891 863 837 926 840 857 912 948 908 936 912 208

TOTAL K-12 10,259 10,673 10,859 11,058 11,195 11,157 11,174 11,212 11,163 10,998 11,052 11,005 10,883 10,775 10,582 10,460 201

Historical Enrollment Projected Enrollment

6

DRAFT Question 1

Facility planning in K-12 school divisions often require trade-offs. Divisions can build and operate small schools, which have

their benefits, but cost more than fewer, larger schools. Larger schools too can have their benefits in terms of increased

resources and programs available to students at a relatively lower cost than smaller schools, but larger schools may find it a

challenge to provide as intimate a school atmosphere as smaller schools. Please select the two traits that are most

important to you when considering school planning and explain your answer in the textbox below.

Respondents generally prefer the idea of having small intimate schools with diverse

educational programs. The comments mainly reveal the belief that school size impacts

student education.

Response Summary

492

601

237

8 9 1

Small IntimateSchools

DiverseEducationalPrograms

Low OperationalCosts

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

General Priorities

Total Individual

CD1 Attendees: Group

Small Int imate

Schools

Diverse

Educational

Programs

Low

Operational

Costs

CD1 Attendees: Individual 46 56 26

Web 446 545 211

Total Individual 492 601 237

CD1 Attendees: Group 8 9 1

492

601

237

8 9 1

Small IntimateSchools

DiverseEducationalPrograms

Low OperationalCosts

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

General Priorities

Total Individual


7

DRAFT Question 2

Other than facility condition, which of the following areas are in most need of investment at the MIDDLE

SCHOOL level in your opinion? Pick your top two areas of focus for middle schools and explain your answer

below. (Please select a maximum of 2.)

Given the table, the need for investment in technology at the middle school level was most identified by respondents, followed by

elective course offerings, then fine arts programs. The comments follow this same trend, with many people saying that fine arts

programs should be included in elective course offerings.

Response Summary

Athlet ic

Programs

Elective

Course

Offerings

Fine Arts

Programs

Technology

Infrastructure

and Learning

Tools

Other

CD1 Attendees: Individual 7 46 12 58 5

Web 186 292 216 440 49

Total Individual 193 338 228 498 54

CD1 Attendees: Group 0 8 1 7 0

193

338

228

498

540 8 1 7 0

AthleticPrograms

Elective CourseOfferings

Fine ArtsPrograms

TechnologyInfrastructureand Learning

Tools

Other

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

Perceived Middle School Needs

Total Individual


8

DRAFT Question 3

FCPS commissioned a study for how much it would cost to renovate or replace Taylor and Warrenton Middle

Schools and to create building standards 21st Century Schools in Fauquier County. Taylor MS would cost $27.5

million to renovate and build additions to meet the standards while costing $33.6 million to replace with a new

facility. Though the Department of Education recommends building replacement when renovation costs

exceed 50% of the replacement costs, the Division has not yet made a decision about whether to renovate or

replace Taylor or Warrenton Middle Schools. Please select which of the following options you most support for

Taylor MS. Please explain your answer below.

The table above illustrates that 64% of individual respondents prefer the

idea of replacing Taylor Middle School as opposed to a renovation. The

general consensus is to replace Taylor Middle School but memorialize the

history of the school in some way.

Response Summary

252

449

Opinions |Renovate or Replace Taylor

Renovate

Replace / Build new

Renovate Replace / Build new

CD1 Attendees: Individual 23 39

Web 229 410

Total Individual 252 449

CD1 Attendees: Group 3 6

9

DRAFT

Question 3|Results based on responses affiliated with Taylor Middle School

The respondents who affiliate themselves with Taylor Middle School follow the same trend of preferring

a new building over renovations to the current building, with 64% selecting the replacement option.

Response Summary



Web 64 121


78

137

Opinions |Renovate or Replace Taylor

Renovate

Replace / Build new

10

DRAFT Question 4

FCPS commissioned a study for how much it would cost to renovate or replace Taylor and Warrenton Middle

Schools and to create building standards 21st Century Schools in Fauquier County. Warrenton MS would cost

$23.4 million to renovate and build additions to meet the standards while costing $33.6 million to replace with a

new facility. Though the Department of Education recommends building replacement when renovation costs

exceed 50% of the replacement costs, the Division has not yet made a decision about whether to renovate or

replace Taylor or Warrenton Middle Schools. Please select which of the following options you most support for

Warrenton MS. Please explain your answer below.

355331

Opinions |Renovate or Replace Warrenton

Renovate

Replace / Build new



Web 328 301


CD1 Attendees: Group 5 6

The graph to the right illustrates that 48% of respondents would rather see a

complete replacement at Warrenton Middle School over renovations. As is

suggested by the results above, the comments, too, are mixed in wanting

a new building as opposed to a renovated building. As before,

respondents generally felt like the history of the school needed to be

memorialized somehow, if the building is completely replaced.

Response Summary

11

DRAFT

Question 4 | Results based on responses affiliated with Warrenton Middle School

The table above illustrates that 56% of those who are in

some way affiliated with Warrenton Middle School

would prefer a new building rather than a renovation.

Response Summary



Web 85 113


92

118

Opinions |Renovate or Replace Warrenton

Renovate

Replace / Build new

12

DRAFT Question 5

Of all the respondents, 67% believe that the condition of building components are either important or very important when

considering which middle school to replace or renovate first.

Response Summary

Condit ion assessments determined the costs needed to renovate each facility. Building components were determined to be

in Very Good, Good, Fair or Poor condit ion. See pages 15 & 23 of the Background Report for further details.

Following are the percentages of the components considered in “poor” and “fair” condit ion at both schools:

In your opinion, how important is the above information when considering which middle school to replace or renovate first?

Poor Fair % Poor & Fair

Taylor 10% 34% 44%

Warrenton 3% 29% 31%

Building Components

Very

ImportantImportant

Moderately

ImportantNot Important No Opinion

CD1 Attendees: Individual 27 18 12 4 3

Web 263 170 137 33 44

Total Individual 290 188 149 37 47

CD1 Attendees: Group 4 4 1 0 1

290

188

149

37 474 4 1 0 1

Very Important Important ModeratelyImportant

Not Important No Opinion

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Perceived Middle School Needs

Total Individual


13

DRAFT Question 6

FCPS currently has five middle schools with capacity ranging from approximately 550 to 750 students (see "Fast Facts" sheet for current

middle school capacities). In considering renovation or replacement for Taylor and Warrenton middle schools, there are alternatives

such as:

Keeping both schools

Consolidating both schools into one (They are 1.5 miles apart)

Some benefits of consolidation are: increasing operational efficiency & increasing program opportunities.

Some challenges of consolidation are: combining two middle schools into one and the new middle school would be larger than the

current average middle school size.

Consolidating both schools would create the need for a larger school, possibly with the capacity of up to 900 students, and may create

the need to redraw some middle school boundary lines. Additionally, Auburn Middle School was built to allow for addition which could

add 200 seats to FCPS's middle school capacity. Please rate your level of support for the following options:

CD1 Attendees: Individual Support No opinion Do not support

Keeping both Taylor and Warrenton middle schools 48 5 5

Consolidating both programs into one larger middle school 19 3 28

Web Support No opinion Do not support



Total Individual Support No opinion Do not support



CD1 Attendees: Group Support No opinion Do not support



Charts on following page.

14

DRAFT Question 6

9

4

1

3

Keeping both Taylor and Warrenton middle schools Consolidating both programs into one larger middleschool

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

CD 1 Attendees: Group

Do no support

No opinion

Support

9

4

1

3

Keeping both Taylor and Warrenton middle schools Consolidating both programs into one larger middleschool

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

CD 1 Attendees: Group

Do no support

No opinion

Support

As seen in Table 1, when respondents were asked if they support the alternative of keeping both Taylor and Warrenton Middle

Schools, 66% answered that they do support this idea, while 21% do not support keeping both schools.

As seen in Table 2, when respondents were asked if they supported the alternative of consolidating the two schools, no clear

consensus was made with 47% in support of consolidation and 44% not supporting consolidation.

Response Summary

302

60

283

Consolidating both programs into one largermiddle school

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

CD 1 Attendees: Total Individual

414

86

129

Keeping both Taylor and Warrenton middleschools

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

CD 1 Attendees: Total Individual

Table 1. Table 2.

15

DRAFT Question 7

In the event one site is selected to consolidate both Taylor MS & Warrenton MS on one site, what factors should be

considered for a consolidated location?

A majority of the comments mentioned the importance of access to the site, safety, traffic, adequate parking, a central location, and

the availability of space. A handful of the comments suggested that they did not support the of consolidation of these schools, while

others specified a site that this consolidated school could be built.

Narrative Response Summary

16

DRAFT Question 8

What factors should FCPS consider to honor the historical significance of each site regardless of the

options selected?

Respondents seem to like the idea of creating a memorial for the schools, whether that be a plaque, mosaic, or a small “museum” for

memorabilia within the new building. If the schools were to be consolidated, many respondents believe that the name should be

some combination of the two current schools, either Taylor-Warrenton or Warrenton-Taylor. Many of the comments alluded to history

being very important, and respondents do not want that history to be forgotten.


17

DRAFT Question 9

What other academic or facility factors should be considered as the middle school prioritization process

progresses?

The main point made by respondents had to do with utilizing technology to its full potential. Other factors that respondents feel should

be considered include natural light in classrooms and small student to teacher ratios.


2016 Middle School Modernization & Prioritization Process · Duane Harver, CEO/Director, PK-12...

Documents

Transcript of 2016 Middle School Modernization & Prioritization Process · Duane Harver, CEO/Director, PK-12...