August 23, 2004 - Taking Note

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Taking note . . .

Observations about public affairs in the nation’s capital
by the editor of The Common Denominator

SCHOOL BUILDING PLANS: Despite being just days away from the Sept. 14 primary election, a public hearing scheduled for Sept. 9 by the D.C. Board of Education is still sure to draw a crowd. With little fanfare, the school board is planning to reallocate D.C. Public Schools' fiscal 2005-2010 capital improvement plan budget and will be seeking comment on how to do so. Among projects the board needs to fund is a planned public-private partnership with George Washington University to rebuild School Without Walls. That project, approved by the board at its July meeting, calls for a $6 million contribution from the city. School officials continue to maintain a low profile about their facility plans, despite persistent rumors that a handful of schools are being slated to close.

Meanwhile, as public school officials continue to scrounge for maintenance and renovation money, Mayor Anthony Williams is preparing to start accepting applications for a new federally funded "City Build" program that is expected to provide $25 million over the next five years toward building new charter schools in the District.Despite shortfalls, the public school system will open two of its crown jewels when the school year gets underway Sept. 1. McKinley Technology High School, the long-touted "high-tech high" in Ward 5, and a brand spanking new Kelly Miller Middle School, retaining vestiges of the former school's art deco façade, in Ward 7 will throw open their doors to students. A ribbon cutting ceremony at Kelly Miller is planned for Aug. 31.

OPENING MASS: Catholic schools in the District will get a one-day head start on public schools this year, as students return to classes in the parochial institutions on Aug. 31. Nearly 3,000 principals, teachers and staff from the 110 schools in the Archdiocese of Washington will kick off the new school year Aug. 30 with a traditional mass at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Northeast Washington. The archdiocese's newest auxiliary bishop, Bishop Martin D. Holley, will celebrate the mass as one of his first events since assuming the new position.

Students at Immaculate Conception School, near the Washington Convention Center, will return to a completely renovated building this year after spending the past year in temporary quarters. The official dedication for the building is set for Oct. 7.