SOL performance comparisons between FCCPS and other school districts have little to do with how well our teachers teach, how well our administrators administer, or how well our school board supervises the superintendent. The comparisons simply reflect what we already know: that the City of Falls Church is a very small municipality where the vast majority of its residents are at the upper end of the socioeconomic scale. The key to understanding this reality is simple and supported by countless studies conducted over the past 50 plus years – children who come from economically disadvantaged households generally perform poorer than classmates who do not. Accordingly,Read More →

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As per VA law, FCCPS has to provide preschool services to those Falls Church City children with disabilities between the ages 2 – 5.   All other preschool students must pay tuition.  The Per Pupil Expenditure for FY16 is $18,130 (pg 10 of the budget) so why is tuition only $5000?Read More →

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It is easy to understand why it costs more to educate students who are: Economically disadvantaged, Have limited English proficiency, Or have disabilities. Students within these federally-defined categories typically need intensive educational support, beyond that which other students require. State and federal regulations define minimal support requirements which school districts must follow; districts are permitted to exceed the minimum. A 2004 US Government Accounting Office (GAO) report says it costs between 20- to 100-percent more to educate economically disadvantaged students and 10- to 100-percent more to educated ESOL/LEP students then other students. It follows that educating students characterized by both poverty and ESOL/LEP up toRead More →

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