Photo by María Helena Carey. Magic by SWS.
This is a town of people who know how to oil the political machine. And yet, petitions are a far more wholesome approach than those favored by many of our elected officials. A group of parents seeking to keep School-Within-School (SWS) a true neighborhood school wants your signature on their petition.
This petition, begun in April, seeks to deliver 300 signatures to demand DCPS Chancellor Henderson and Mayor Vince Gray to restore neighborhood proximity preference for neighborhood children applying to School-Within-School (SWS). Presently, the only preference is given to students with siblings already attending the school.
This fall, SWS will move to the Goding Elementary School building that currently houses Prospect Learning Center at 10th & F Street NE. SWS has historically admitted a majority of neighborhood students through its local school boundaries. DCPS has dropped the school boundaries and no longer gives neighborhood preference any weight in the lottery. That makes a lot of people nutty, especially when they see the school steps from their door, hold a lottery number in the hundreds and hear the tax man knocking on the door.
Please note that if you are not within the very small proximity boundaries, this will effectively eliminate your chances of getting your child into SWS. Most of us on the Hill will be better served if SWS remains a citywide option.