June 2019

Cardozo Feeder Pattern Community,

From January through April, DCPS conducted a public engagement process on middle school planning in the Cardozo feeder pattern with parents, staff, community members, and other stakeholders. The goal of this process was to determine whether a new middle school was needed in the feeder pattern. This process included four public meetings, two focus groups, and an online survey. During this process, it was clear that families want quality school feeder pathway options, that the options should reflect the communities, and there is a sense of urgency.

As you may know, the DC Council approved funding for a feasibility study on potential location options for a standalone middle school in the Cardozo feeder pattern in the city’s Fiscal Year 2020 Budget. DCPS is committed to keeping this group updated on the progress of this initiative and engagement opportunities. As funds for the feasibility study will not be received until October 2019, we anticipate that we will have more to share with you next winter.

The planning for the Banneker HS modernization at the Shaw site will continue in partnership with community members as part of the School Improvement Team (SIT) process. For more information on the SIT process please visit: https://sites.google.com/a/dc.gov/dcps-school-modernizations/home/banneker-high-school.

Over the next several months, DCPS will continue to weigh the feedback received and recent budget developments, as we consider middle school options. We look forward to continued engagement in a shared vision for the Cardozo feeder pattern.

If you have any questions, please email dcps.planning@k12.dc.gov.

Thank you,

DCPS School Planning Team

On Thursday, April 25, DCPS hosted a citywide meeting for all parents, staff, community members, and other stakeholders on middle school planning in the Cardozo feeder pattern. The meeting was held at Garrison Elementary School.

During this meeting, DCPS reviewed highlights and takeaways from the online survey and the engagement process. DCPS reviewed updated criteria and considerations for opening a new middle school and discussed next steps.

• You can view the presentation from the meeting here.
• You can download a copy of the raw data from the online survey here.

DCPS will share the feedback from this engagement process with the Chancellor and the Mayor for review. No deadline has been set for when a final decision will be made. DCPS will provide an update on the timeline and process before the end of the school year.

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If you are interested in learning more about current and planned improvements at Cardozo Education Campus, you may attend Cardozo’s upcoming Principal’s Coffee Chat on May 7^th from 9:30 – 10:30am. Please review this flyer in English and Spanish for more information.

Please join us on Thursday, April 25 from 6 – 8pm at Garrison Elementary School (1200 S Street NW) for a citywide meeting for all parents, staff, community members, and other stakeholders to:

• REVIEW the results of the survey and feedback from past meetings
• DISCUSS feedback on the criteria and considerations to open a new middle school

Interpretation and Childcare Services Available. Please RSVP for this meeting at bit.ly/GarrisonCommunityMeetingRSVP

If you would like to download flyers for this meeting, you can find them here in English and Spanish.

DCPS is conducting a public engagement process to determine if and when a new standalone middle school is needed for the Cardozo feeder pattern. Currently, Cardozo EC is a secondary school serving grades 6-12. If a new middle school were opened, the middle grades would phase out of Cardozo EC and Cardozo would become a 9-12 high school. The new middle school would feed Cardozo for high school.

The purpose of this survey is to solicit citywide feedback on the draft criteria and considerations to determine whether to open the school, location characteristics, and secondary program planning.

To review more information on the planning process, including relevant data and community feedback, please see: https://dcpsplanning.wordpress.com/category/cardozo-feeder-pattern/.

The feedback from this survey will be used to inform a final draft of criteria and considerations for the opening of the middle school. This proposal and a summary of survey feedback will be shared at the next Cardozo Feeder Pattern Middle School Planning Community Meeting on April 25 scheduled for 6PM-8PM at Garrison ES (1200 S St NW, Washington, DC 20009). Please contact dcps.planning@k12.dc.gov with any questions.

The survey should take around 15 minutes to complete and is due Friday, April 19, 2019.

Please proceed here to complete this survey. – English

Please proceed here to complete this survey. – Español

Please proceed here to complete this survey. – 中文 (Chinese)

On February 26th and March 6th, DCPS hosted two meetings at Seaton ES and Cleveland ES respectively for all current parents and school staff from Thomson ES, Ross ES, Garrison ES, Seaton ES, and Cleveland ES on middle school planning in the Cardozo feeder pattern.

During this meeting, participants explored current population and enrollment data trends in the Cardozo feeder pattern. They also reviewed, discussed, and shared feedback on a draft of criteria that will be used to inform the decision on whether or not to open a new middle school for the Cardozo feeder pattern.

You can view the presentation from the meeting here in English and Spanish.

You can view a summary of the small group discussions here.

DCPS is hosting two school-level meetings to hear your thoughts regarding middle school planning in the Cardozo feeder pattern. These meeting are for parents and staff of Cardozo EC, Cleveland ES, Garrison ES, Ross ES, Seaton ES, and Thomson ES.

The meetings will be held on February 26, 2019 from 6-8PM at Seaton Elementary School (1503 10th St NW) and on March 6, 2019 from 6-8PM at Cleveland Elementary School (1825 8th St NW).

The content of these meetings will be the same. Attend the meeting at the date and location most convenient for you. Interpretation and child care services will be made available.

• Please RSVP here and see the attached flyers in English, Spanish and Chinese. You can also find the data preview for these meetings here.
• Additionally, please see here for additional context and information on the decision and planning for the re-location and expansion of Banneker HS.

There is also a meeting on February 28, 2019 from 6-7:30pm at the Phyllis Wheatley YWCA which will be hosted by the DCPS facilities team. The purpose of this meeting will be to discuss the Banneker HS modernization.

• Please see and share this flyer for more information.

On January 24^th, DCPS hosted  a citywide meeting for all parents, staff, community members, and other stakeholders on middle school planning in the Cardozo feeder pattern. The meeting was held at Cardozo Education Campus.

During this meeting participants explored current population and enrollment trend data in the Cardozo feeder pattern and discussed the approach to middle school planning and considerations to determine if and when a new middle school is needed in the Cardozo feeder pattern.

You can view the presentation from the meeting here. 

You can view the summary of the small group discussions here.

Additional data can be found here.

Over the next several months, DCPS and the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education (DME) will host a series of meetings with stakeholders in the Cardozo feeder pattern to discuss middle school planning.

The summary of the engagement process can be reviewed here, along with some key data and information to inform these discussions here.  Meeting details will be posted here in early January, along with meeting materials and notes.