WAMU 88.5 : News

Filed Under:

New School Site Selection Angering Many In Montgomery County

By: Matt Bush // July 26, 2011
Play associated audio
comments

The beginning of the problem dates back about 30 years, to a time when the number of students was declining, says James Sung of Montgomery County Public Schools.

"Back in the early and mid-'80s, we closed approximately 50 schools because of the downtrend in student enrollment," he says. "We pretty much surplussed all those properties to the county, which many of them became parks."

Some of those parks are now slated to have schools built right back on top of them. Rock Creek Hills Park in Kensington is one of them, but the decision to build a new middle school there has infuriated many neighbors.

Some, including Shannon Hamm, believe the park is too small to build a school that will give students the same education provided at the middle school that currently serves the area: Westland Middle School.

"If a school was opened at that site in 2015, it would be inadequate from day one," Hamm says.

Council members have expressed their disappointment that parks are being removed, and that school officials didn't include more public input in their decisions.

Arts & Culture

WAMU 88.5

Art Beat With Sean Rameswaram, May 25

National College Dance Festival, Bachelorette, and Blast Off!

Food

NPR

A Meat Mea Culpa: What Went Wrong With 'Pink Slime'

Meat processors blame social media and their own lack of transparency for the "pink slime" storm. . But will consumers ever trust the industry when it comes to understanding how the food processing system works?

Politics

NPR

N.C. Democrats Try To Shake Off Pre-Convention Blues

With the national convention just three months away, state Democrats are reeling from a series of setbacks, including passage of a gay marriage ban and a sex scandal within the organization. But party leaders say they're committed to making the convention a success and keeping the state "blue" in November.

Technology

NPR

Friend Your Students? New York City Schools Say No

This spring, the city's Department of Education issued its first guidelines about how teachers should navigate social media. The rules make it explicit: Teachers cannot friend or follow their students on Facebook or Twitter, but they can have professional accounts and pages for students to follow.

Leave a Comment

Help keep the conversation civil. Please refer to our Terms of Use and Code of Conduct before posting your comments.