The Truth About One Fairfax

One Fairfax "equity lens" has been the excuse and top priority of this board to change the boundary policy in preparation for county-wide boundary changes. Policy that gives them more power to move children without public vote (from 5% to 15%) and power to select which children move based on their income and race (see proposed changes here). The board refuses to help any overcrowded schools until they get their power and mock hard-working families for worrying about it. Since releasing this video Aug 1, 2019, the school board has backpedalled, avoiding the term "One Fairfax" (candidates are removing it from their websites), and are scrambling for votes by pretending to care about overcrowded schools with a last minute CIP amendment they vehemently opposed just last January. This board doesn't represent you. Vote in a new board Nov 5!

We Fact Checked the FCSB Fact Sheet

According to slide 12 in the July 22, 2019 meeting agenda, a vote on the proposed policy changes was clearly planned for this September. Right before elections. Without a comprehensive review by the board. Without any community input.  After this video was released Aug 20, 2019, the school board did not put the policy changes to a vote and pretends that it was never planned. 

Setting the Record Straight

Thur Sep 19, 2019 Superintendent Scott Brabrand emailed a video about the current boundary policy discussions to all FCPS across the county.   Both the email and the video are misleading and disingenuous.   

During each of the four school board work sessions where policy 8130 has been discussed, both Brabrand and the school board members use the terms “One Fairfax”, “equity lens”, “One Fairfax equity lens”, and “socio-economic equity” many, many, many times.   Interestingly,  Brabrand does not mention any of these terms AT ALL in this memo or video.    

The precipitating cause for this 8130 policy to be reviewed at all was the adoption of the One Fairfax policy in November 2017 by both the Board of Supervisors and the School Board.  “This joint policy commits both boards to consider equity in decision-making and in the development and delivery of future policies, programs, and services” (source: https://www.fcps.edu/onefairfax).   

The fact that the superintendent felt the need to produce and send out a video/email that seemingly obfuscates the role that One Fairfax is playing in this discussion should be a cause for ALARM for us all.