School Boundary Redistricting FAQs

Principals receive monthly updates on the process and share this information with their staff to ensure everyone is informed. Additionally, teachers and staff are encouraged to visit the designated web page regularly to stay up-to-date on the latest developments and information regarding the process. We value their engagement and want to make sure they have all the resources they need to stay informed.

As we get into the boundary scenarios we will have opportunities to receive feedback from the RAC.

We understand that redistricting can be a challenging process, and no matter what changes are made, it’s natural for some families to feel upset. We are committed to being transparent throughout the process, actively listening to community feedback, and addressing concerns as they arise. Our goal is to make decisions that best serve the needs of all students while balancing factors like equity, capacity, and efficiency. We will continue to provide regular updates and opportunities for families to share their thoughts and ask questions.

No. Mobility accounts for students leaving the school division. Areas of the school division that are more susceptible to this impact will be more likely to see a negative mobility factor applied in the projections. 

The iterations of the maps will be based on the guiding principles, which were voted on by the Board, and these principles will help drive the development and reiteration of the maps. The examples shared with the RAC during the meeting reflect these guiding principles, ensuring that the maps align with our core goals.

The RAC should work with school administrators, family engagement staff at the school and the PTA to engage families. ACPS will continue sharing communication with families through the weekly ACPS Express, ParentSquare and the ACPS School Boundary Redistricting webpage.

RAC members will have a final meeting on April 8, 2025. The RAC members should stay engaged in the process after the last RAC meeting through the community meetings and through the ACPS School Boundary Redistricting webpage.

Our Capital Programs, Planning, and Design office regularly collaborates with Planning and Zoning to discuss enrollment projections and student generation from new developments, which helps inform the CIP. When new housing projects exceed ACPS's capacity, we further engage in discussions during the CIP budget development process, where ACPS staff, the School Board, and City Council review enrollment projections, capacity data, and potential resource impacts. This collaborative approach helps identify solutions, such as infrastructure improvements or additional school facilities, to ensure we can effectively support growth.

This is a school-driven process, and while the City Council is not directly involved in the decision-making for this redistricting, we greatly value the collaborative relationship between ACPS and the City. The primary focus of this process is to address the needs of our students and schools, with the School Board and ACPS staff leading the discussions. However, we do recognize that the City’s involvement in broader community conversations, particularly around growth and development, can be helpful. While the City Council isn't part of the steering committee, we maintain open communication and will continue working together to ensure the process supports the needs of both the schools and the wider community.

The orientation and initial meetings were structured to provide the necessary information for the process. We understand that answering a long list of questions can be challenging, and we value the opportunity to hear directly from the community. Going forward, we will dedicate more time in future meetings to Q&A to ensure everyone has the chance to ask questions and share their thoughts. 

The next redistricting process will be determined by the School Board as the redistricting policy is being reviewed as part of this process.

The timeline for when the old Inova site will become housing is outside the scope of the data collected for the redistricting process. We recommend reaching out directly to the City for more information on their plans for that site. They will have the most up-to-date details regarding development timelines.

All demographic factors are considered in the guiding principles. For more information, please review the video at the School Board work session where the guiding principles were developed. See Guiding Principles Work Session. 

All factors related to students and families are considered.

Here is the current transfer policy JC/JCD and the related regulation  JC-R/JCD-R. This policy and regulation are being reviewed by the Board as part of the redistricting process.

School attendance will be based on the current address of each student based on the boundary lines voted on by the School Board and implemented during the 2026-27 school year.

The data presented to this point has not accounted for these factors. Demographic factors will be considered as during the drafting of boundary scenarios.

The dual language program will be considered as part of the redistricting process and policy review.

The current boundaries are reflected in the data that has been shared. The guiding principles will be applied to the current boundaries to develop the options for the RAC, Steering Committee, the public and ultimately the School Board to consider.

These programs are not reflected in the data and not considered in the current boundary lines. We will work to maintain programs but locations are to be determined.

ECE is included in John Adam’s utilization. Equality is measured by the optimal utilization of school spaces to support efficient use of facilities and maintain effective learning environments. Students register under one home address.

In MGT’s experience the best way to accurately project future students is to look at the number of students in existing units by unit type.

MGT studies the ratio between the number of reported births and the corresponding kindergarten classes that they produce and not just the total number of births.

See https://www.alexandriava.gov/Council website for this information. This data will be forthcoming in future presentations by MGT.

The new capacity for George Mason Elementary School will be 670 student seats. The information is shared on the Capital Improvement Webpage. MGT will define inter-district transfers.

MGT’s reference to inder-district or inter-division transfers can be defined as students enrolled in the division that report and address from outside of the division boundary.

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27. How do you account for the impact of Major Federal Policy changes on ACPS enrollment projections over the next 5 years, i.e., anti-immigrant policies resulting in deportations, Feds, etc.? The perception exists at the high schools, middle schools, and large elementary schools that while the schools may have the capacity for a large population, they are too big for students to thrive. How do you factor in the optimal size for learning versus how many kids can be crammed into a school?

Answer: The data that is informing our redistricting process is the September 30, 2024 data. The federal policy changes are outside the scope of redistricting. The Capital Improvement Webpage has additional information to inform capacity and utilization.

At this time, the seats designated for PK-5 students in the PK-8 programs are not being considered for use by 6th through 8th grade students. These seats are specifically allocated to support the primary grades (PK-5) within the program. Any changes to grade-level allocations would require further consideration and evaluation.

While we do not plan to provide maps of the current bus routes, our team will work closely with the consultant and internal staff to address any transportation concerns that arise from the redistricting process.

There is not a guide for demographic alignment.

Here is the transfer policy JC/JCD and the related regulation JC-R/JCD-R.

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32. I want to challenge the assumption that parents prefer neighborhood schools.  They also prefer school choice, and when presented with a choice between a STEM school, dual language school, or high-performance school, many may prefer the non-neighbor school. What is the assumption of neighbor school preference based on? 

Answer: According to the guiding principles, neighborhood schools are based on students attending school in their zoned boundary and take into account proximity, school utilization, walkability/bikeability to strengthen connections between schools and their surrounding neighborhoods.

All policies related to redistricting will be reviewed as part of the redistricting process.

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34. When will the next anticipated redistricting occur, and will it be before the addition of Jefferson Houston as a middle school? Will it be before or after the capacity expansion of George Mason? Will it be after the redevelopment of the current Inova Alexandria, which already has plans circulating that include a mix of single-family and Townhomes?

Answer: The prior redistricting policy and regulation JCE and JCE-R, were retired in April of 2024. As part of the current redistricting process a new policy will be developed. The Board will schedule the next redistricting according to the new policy. For reference, the retired policy can be found on ESB.

Our Capital Programs, Planning, and Design office regularly collaborates with Planning and Zoning on projects throughout the year.  In addition, the School Board and the City Council meet regularly to discuss school related topics.

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36. On page 14, does the striped orange box on Eisenhower Avenue reflect Victory Center, the townhomes, or both?  When looking at apartments, the apartments in Arlandria may house more students than, say, Carlyle Towers. Will we be given any documentation that reflects the current number of students in apartments around the City?

Answer: The stripped boxes represent future residential development sites. Yes information regarding student generation rates will be provided to APCS in the future.

Capacity and utilization information is presented annually as part of the CIP budget development process.  Utilization for ACHS-KS and ACHS-MH campuses was presented during the CIP Worksession #2 on November 19, 2024.  The presentation with those figures (located on slide 14) can be found here.

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38. Will we be seeing more on programmatic changes such as Dual Language and the Modified Calendar? This contributes to the opt-out issues.  Are there any discussions about making one nearby school the English Only Building within boundary families to opt out?  For example, if a family does not DL, their neighborhood school is Cora Kelly. Have there been discussions on making DL a Lottery Program considering more than 100 opt-outs? If I am reading it correctly, there are almost 300 opt-ins to the school.

Answer: All policies related to redistricting will be reviewed as part of the redistricting process including instructional programs.

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39. As we look at Middle School Boundaries, will multiple Middle schools continue to be Locations for Dual-Language Students? How many students are in the Dual-Language Programs at John Adams, Francis Hammond, George Washington, and Alexandria City High School?

Answer: Middle school boundaries are included in this redistricting process. The data provided by MGT provides students who are out of their boundary school.

Here is the transfer policy JC/JCD and the related regulation JC-R/JCD-R.

We understand the importance of having sufficient time for discussions during the RAC meetings. Moving forward, we will work to provide more time for future meetings to ensure all topics can be thoroughly addressed. We appreciate your feedback and will keep you informed about any adjustments to the meeting schedule.

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42. Community engagement is a key aspect of the redistricting process. We understand that answering a spreadsheet filled with questions can be challenging, but it's essential to take the time to address these concerns. Your participation in this process is vital to ensuring that the community's voices are heard and considered.

Answer: We have two community engagement meetings planned. All meetings are recorded and posted on the ACPS School Boundary Redistricting webpage for public viewing.

We understand the importance of having sufficient time for discussions during the RAC meetings. Moving forward, we will work to provide more time for future meetings to ensure all topics can be thoroughly addressed. We appreciate your feedback and will keep you informed about any adjustments to the meeting schedule.

Revisions to the study areas will be guided by the School Board approved guiding principles. Any changes or adjustments to the study areas will be led by MGT, who will ensure that all modifications align with these principles and the overall goals of the study.

Materials related to redistricting will be shared electronically with the RAC; however, to ensure the integrity of the data throughout the process, these materials will be provided in formats that cannot be manipulated, such as PDF. This approach will help maintain the accuracy and consistency of the information as we move forward.

The RAC should work with school administrators, family engagement staff at the school and the PTA to engage families. ACPS will continue sharing communication with families through the weekly ACPS Express, ParentSquare and the ACPS School Boundary Redistricting webpage.

The totals include city wide pre-k students for all schools.

As it relates to redistricting and the guiding principles, equality is interpreted as the optimal utilization of school spaces to support efficient use of facilities and maintain effective learning environments.

ACPS has made significant progress on the "Equity for All" plan since 2020, focusing on improving access to high-quality education and addressing resource disparities. However, the last redistricting effort did not fully integrate the "Equity for All" framework. While it aimed to balance enrollment and resources, equity considerations were not explicitly included in the process. Moving forward, ACPS is committed to ensuring future efforts, including redistricting, align more closely with equity goals to better support all students and communities.

Jefferson Houston’s conversion to a middle school will be modeled in scenarios. It is important to note that this change is not expected to take effect for 8 years and the Division’s demographics should be continually monitored into the future. 

The orientation and initial meetings were structured to provide the necessary information for the process. Future meetings will allow for more dialogue.

Thank you for the suggestion. The pros and cons of each boundary option will be discussed.

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53. I would be directed to the document listing current housing developments in the pipeline and student projections, but I cannot find it on the website. Was this the infographic referred to at the end of the meeting that could be found on the Budget page?

Answer: Here are webpages that may support the information you are seeking Capital Improvement Webpage and https://www.alexandriava.gov/Council. 

No. The modified calendar is not a part of redistricting. Responses to the RAC questions will be posted on the ACPS School Boundary Redistricting webpage.