Letters to the Editor: June 10 – 16, 2021
Don’t Accept A Low Bar For Falls Church City Students
Editor,
In response to Julie Lockwood’s letter in the May 20 edition, we also have an “Open Falls Church Schools” sign in our yard. We feel compelled to convey the reality that has been glossed over in this paper and by our city’s leaders.
FCCPS schools have not been and are not open “full time,” despite the accolades and glowing stories about our children’s return to FCCPS. Wednesdays remained “asynchronous” days for our middle and high schoolers (meaning: students work independently without teacher instruction) with most students back at home, maybe with a few assignments they knock out in an hour or so, isolated in their bedroom, then it’s out the door and away from any school work for the rest of the day. One-fifth of their educational opportunity, squandered every week.
While we’ve been told we’ll open five days a week in the fall, the fact is Superintendent Noonan and our school board have walked back from previous plans to open multiple times.
We will continue to advocate for our children and the students in FCCPS. While private schools in and around Falls Church and even some public schools around the country successfully remained open throughout the pandemic, our children suffered through over a year of “virtual learning,” which adversely affected our students’ quality and quantity of education, extracurricular activities, and social development. It can never be replaced. The result? Generational education, social, and mental crises which deserve much more acknowledgement and attention. It didn’t have to be this way.
Regarding FCCPS being open more days a week than neighboring school districts? Comparing our 80 percent re-opening to dismal efforts in Arlington and Fairfax is just lowering the bar for everyone. We should strive for excellence rather than mediocrity. Our students deserved better over the past year. They also deserve better moving forward, something I’m sure we can all agree on.
Matt & Lora Ries
Falls Church
We Can Still Rename High School After The Late John Warner
Editor,
It’s not too late to rename our high school after a truly distinguished Virginia statesman, recently deceased: Senator John W. Warner. He was a Sailor, then a Marine, a Secretary of the Navy, Commissioner of the American Bicentennial and Senator. His accomplishments for our Commonwealth are too numerous to mention. Let’s give him this important honor from the City!
Charles D. Connor,
Falls Church
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