Friday, January 20, 2012
Class sizes were a major issue in last year's tough school board race.
The proposed Fairfax County schools budget contains $2 million to shrink elementary school class sizes in McLean and Great Falls, the Dranesville school board representative told a citizens committee this week. Jane Strauss, Dranesville school board member and chair of the school board, joined Dranesville Supervisor John Foust at the annual joint meeting of the Education Committee and the Budget and Taxation Committee of the McLean Citizens Association to discuss the proposed budget. Foust reiterated his belief that the Board of Supervisors will not approve the school superintendent's request for a nine percent increase in the schools proposed budget of $2.4 billion. "I don’t see them going to 9 percent," Foust said. "I think that’s very…
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Unveils state schools budget
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has endorsed repeal of the requirement that school districts must begin their school year after Labor Day unless they have a waiver from the Board of Education to start the school year earlier. Fairfax County has long sought permission open school before Labor Day. Del. Barbara Comstock (R-McLean, Great Falls, Loudoun) told a McLean Citizens Association committee in November that she's "fairly optimistic" that the Virginia state legislature will finally allow Fairfax to decide when to open its schools. “We have a good shot at this this year,” she told the Education Committee at its November meeting. "I do feel that we have some significant leadership support for this." Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) also unveiled his …
Friday, January 6, 2012
Lots of News in Town Last Year
Below are the Top 10 most read articles that appeared in McLean Patch in 2011. Lots of news in town in 2011. 1. Grandmother Guilty Of First-Degree Murder In Toddler Death Case Carmela dela Rosa, who was found guilty in October of throwing her granddaughter from a pedestrian bridge at Tysons Corner Mall will be sentenced today by a Fairfax County judge. 2. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Accosted in McLean Grocery Store 3. Sources Say Duesterhaus' Teaching Contract Not Renewed, Could Have Led To Disappearance 4. Update: Pair Arrested in McLean Home Invasion Burglar 5. McLean Businessman Pays $8.2 million for Hickory Hill, Then Starts Total Renovation 6. Strauss, Foust, Comstock, Favola Win 7. Langley's David Adams: Quietly Leading by Example 8…
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Class size big issue in the election
School Board member Jane Strauss won a new term Tuesday night in a squeaker of an election that pitted her against school advocate Louise Epstein whose pitch to the voters was that it’s time for a change. Strauss, who has been on the school board for 18 years and currently is chairman of the board, won on a platform promising to deal with large class sizes and on her successful record for nearly two decades. Strauss won 52 percent of the vote, or 13,122 votes, to Epstein’s 48 percent – 12,128 votes. “I will make good on my promise to address unusually large class sizes,” Strauss told the McLean Patch the day after the election. “I do believe that for the people I represent, they are concerned about the increase in class size first.” The …
Friday, October 28, 2011
Jane Strauss vs. Louise Epstein
Sharp differences and words erupted during a forum this week with the school board candidates running for the Dranesville school board seat — incumbent Jane Strauss and challenger Louise Epstein, a long-time parent advocate. The two clashed most directly over how the school board should allocate teachers between the schools in the richest part of the county and the rest of the county. Epstein also had sharp words about Strauss' 18-year tenure on the board. "This year you have a choice between two very different candidates," Epstein told the crowd of nearly 100 gathered in The Grange, the meeting hall in Great Falls. The Fairfax County School Board allocates teachers based on a needs formula. That formula starts with 26.25 students per …
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Thursday, October 27, 2011
Foust raises nearly $40,000 in September.
The incumbent Dranesville supervisor running for re-election far outdistances his opponent in campaign contributions, according to the latest finance reports filed by the candidates. The fundraising is a little more complicated in the Dranesville School Board race between incumbent Jane Strauss and challenger Louise Epstein, which has become one of the most watched races in the county. Strauss has lent her campaign nearly $50,000, while Epstein's media consultant has given nearly $60,000 in services as an in-kind contribution. John Foust, a Democrat who is running for his second four-year term on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, raised nearly nearly $28,000 in cash in September. The cash plus in-kind contributions gave Foust nearly…
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
An issue in the Dranesville School Board Race
The Washington Post published a story Friday that very simply explains how and why class sizes vary in Fairfax County. Class size has become an issue in the hotly contested Dranesville school board race because the campaign manager of challenger Louise Epstein opposes the current formula used to determine class size, according to the Post. Incumbent School Board member Jane Strauss supports the formula. The Post school said, "In a nutshell, schools with high proportions of poor children and non-native English speakers get more teachers and thus lower class sizes than their more affluent counterparts. "This is called “needs-based staffing,” and its proponents say it’s an efficient, flexible way to make sure that extra resources are finding …
Monday, October 17, 2011
Campaign manager for GOP-backed school candidates
The Washington Post wrote two stories centered on McLean school issues last week. In case you missed it, the first one was a front-page profile of McLean neighbor Catherine Lorenze, a GOP strategist. "Her name won’t appear on the ballot. Most voters have no idea who she is. But Catherine Lorenze, a sharp-tongued parent activist and Republican strategist, wields uncommon influence in the race for the Fairfax County School Board," the Post story said. Half of the board’s 12 members are retiring, ensuring high turnover among those who set the direction of one of the country’s largest, highest-performing school systems. "Much of Lorenze’s work is behind the scenes: writing campaign plans, analyzing election records, organizing volunteers. But …
Thursday, September 29, 2011
School Board race
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Thursday, September 29, 2011
Dear Editor, I would like to respond to School Board member Brad Center’s recent comments about remarks candidate Louise Epstein made at the School Board debate with Jane Strauss on Sept. 26th. (http://mclean.patch.com/articles/letter-to-the-editor-school-board-member-says-epstein-statements-are-incorrect) Louise Epstein stands by her remarks that Jane Strauss was not providing leadership on the FAIRGRADE issue with her fellow School Board members. As FAIRGRADE’s Director of Communications, I have made available to the press the email communications from 2008-09 that summarize the in-depth discussions Louise had during that time with School Board member Brad Center. These emails clearly contradict Jane Strauss’ claims that it was …
Strauss, Epstein debate Dale's replacement, Fairgrade's effect and discipline policies.
The debate between the school board candidates running to represent Dranesville was punctuated by sharp differences Monday night, on Superintendent Jack Dale's replacement, Fairgrade and discipline issues. Fairfax County's school board races have been among the most spirited because control of the 12-member board is up for grabs. The school board spends $2.2 billion in county funds and consists of members representing each of the county's nine districts and three at-large members. Six incumbents decided not to seek re-election. The race is ostensibly nonpartisan but each party backs candidates. The Democrats endorsed Jane Strauss, who has served for the board for 18 years. The Republicans endorsed Louise Epstein, a parent advocate and …
Kathy Keith
8:34 am on Friday, January 20, 2012
Has anyone been able to do a true audit of the FCPS central staff? I am under the impression that some of them are identified as "school-based" because they are "instructional support". If this is the case, are these people used in the ratio of teacher to student for the county? Also, is class size available on FCPS website? All I can find is the number of students per grade the number of … more ›