[The Revised School Consolidation Plan Revised plans, which was announced Feb 1, call for consolidating Garnet-Patterson (Ward 1) students into Shaw (Ward 2) and Park View students into Bruce Monroe (both in Ward 1). These newly proposed closures require additional hearings. A “community hearing” – for these closures and two proposed for Ward 7 – is scheduled for 6:00 p.m., Feb. 27 at McKinley Technical High School in Ward 5.The following is an account of the community reaction to the original proposal which was held prior to the Feb. 1 announcement.  See article on School Restructuring in this issue.]

Under the original school reorganization plan announced in November, Shaw Middle School was one of 23 schools across the District slated for closure.  The plan proposed that Shaw, located at 925 Rhode Island Avenue NW, and Garnet-Patterson, located at 2001 10th St NW, be consolidated with students at Shaw to go to Garnet-Patterson located in Ward 1 and approximately 11 blocks north of Shaw Middle School. Declining enrollment was cited as the primary reason for the closing.

The Shaw community was prompt in mobilizing against this decision and has waged a campaign to save Shaw Middle School. Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans and three out of four of Shaw’s Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners (ANC) have advocated for the construction of a new Shaw school plus a community center, rather than consolidation of Shaw and Garnet-Patterson.

A hearing to address the closing of Shaw took place January 17 in the Garnet Patterson auditorium. Attendance was low with barely fifty attendees, many of whom were elected officials or staff, including Ward 2 Councilmember Evans, Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham, and an unexpected appearance by Chancellor Rhee towards the end of the meeting, after many attendees had departed.

Garnet Patterson faculty and parents who were present testified that they had received notification earlier the same day that Garnet Patterson would close instead of Shaw and asked why it was they hadn’t been notified with enough time to prepare testimony.

Rhee responded that that was not the case saying that she had received requests to flip the proposal such that Garnet Patterson would feed into Shaw Middle School, but no final decisions had been made.

“The proposal as it stands right now is not to shut down Garnet Patterson,” said Rhee. “The proposal as it stands right now is that Garnet Patterson will be a gifted and talented magnet mix as well as a neighborhood school.”

But advocates for Shaw Middle School oppose consolidation, saying the school is a historic part of the Shaw community, and declining enrollment is attributable to attendance boundaries that force students to attend school across town at Francis Junior High or at Garnet Patterson, though Shaw Middle School is physically closer to their home. They also note that despite the District’s claims otherwise, the District has invested heavily in Shaw Middle School in recent years.

“I know that over $5 million has been spent on repairs and upgrades at the school, including $1 million for the multimedia Millennium Center, $1 million in 2006 to overhaul the air conditioning system, and $1.6 million on five years of accumulated work orders during the summer/fall 2007 school repair ‘blitz.” said commissioner Alex Padro.
Others said it wasn’t a matter of Shaw versus Garnet, but were critical of the process itself in which the District announced school closings without seeking community input first.

“The community is not here just so we can catch the train as it is going by,” said one impassioned attendee.

Rhee accepted criticism but also presented her case. “There are far too many schools in this District for the number of children that we have,” she said. “If we can consolidate we can have more money to put into the schools.”

Long-time Shaw resident Virginia Lee said that there is a positive to be found. Whether she agrees with closings or not, Lee says it is important that Rhee has fueled interest in the issue of public education and communities are now taking action to save their neighborhood schools. “Public school is the core of democracy,” said Lee.

Rhee said she hoped to have final decisions on school closings made by the end of January. She emphasized that all facilities that close will be kept within the city inventory with the hope of being used again. “My hope is that over time we will be able to rebuild the enrollment in these schools.”  

United House of Prayer Requests to Purchase N Street Park From the District
The United House of Prayer (UHOP) at 601 M Street in Shaw has recently requested to purchase a neighboring park at N and 6th Street NW from its current owner, the District government. 

The announcement came at a January 14 public meeting at UHOP held by Ward 2 Council Member Jack Evans and Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) Director Clark Ray to discuss the community’s vision for renovating the N Street park which residents say has been neglected for years and is a hotspot for crime.

Currently, the property is a large, empty expanse of black asphalt surrounded by fencing. Some may say it is a stretch to call it a park.

“It’s in poor shape,” admits DPR Director Clark Ray, noting a homicide occurred in the park last year.

Under pressure from the community, Councilmember Evans pledged to secure about $150k to $200k for the design phase of the project and to seek $1 million for rebuilding the park. 

The January 14 meeting was the latest in a series of meetings discussing proposed renovations of the park. The ANC and other community groups dispersed a neighborhood survey to gain feedback on what to include in the park.
“I went to the meeting thinking we were discussing a survey we had put out as a result of the previous meeting talking about renovating the park,” said Ray in an interview with DC North. Instead, discussion centered around UHOP’s desire to purchase the property from the District government, “I think for affordable housing,” said Ray.

According to Ray, there were approximately 100 people in attendance at the meeting and over 15 speakers, most of whom identified themselves as local residents and members of UHOP.

“About 90-95 percent of folks there seemed to be in favor of the purchase option,” said Ray. “But at other meetings there are folks who do desire to have the park renovated.”

When DC North contacted UHOP, Church officials said that they did not have any information regarding the Church’s interest in purchasing the property. They stated that all matters regarding the purchase were being handled by their property manager who could not be reached for comment by press time.

Since its opening in 1929, UHOP has been an important part of the community and owns several properties in Shaw. UHOP has historically worked to build affordable housing in Shaw and throughout the District.

“If these people want something in the community, I think that the powers that be in the city should try and accommodate them,” said President of the Shaw East Central Civic Association, Mahdi Leroy J. Thorpe Jr., noting UHOP’s  history of social and economic contributions in the neighborhood. Thorpe also pointed out that Mayor Fenty has expressed a commitment to creating more affordable housing in the District.“United House of Prayer should have a right to produce what the city is saying we need more of: affordable housing.”

But according to comments on the neighborhood blog, Life in Mount Vernon Square, some community members feel UHOP owns a great deal of property in Shaw as it is.

“They are a relatively good landowners, but some diversity of ownership is called for and so the property should stay with the DC parks,” said one resident in a post.

Ray said he has forwarded a letter from Bishop Madison of UHOP expressing interest in purchasing the park to the city administrator and the deputy mayor for economic development.

In the meantime, DPR will wait to see what the community decides about the park.

“There are very strong feelings all around,” said Ray. “Once we are clear on direction the community wants, my department is ready to move forward with park renovation if that is the will of the people.”

As for Councilmember Evans plans for the park, Evans’ Community Liaison Windy Abdul-Rahim said, “He wants to hear more from the community.

For more info contact Windy Abdul-Rahim, Community Liaison for Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans at 202-724-8058.