Last night, the Fairfax County School Board approved the Middle School AAP Center Expansion Plan, a motion I was proud to lead. This plan creates a path for students to access rigorous advanced academic coursework in their neighborhood middle schools, reducing the need for students to travel outside their communities to participate in AAP programming.

Keeping students in their base schools also allows them to remain connected to their friends, teachers, families, and school activities while reducing transportation time and costs.

Implementation is slated to occur in phases, after a community input process. This thoughtful approach will give FCPS time to build strong student cohorts, prepare school leaders, provide additional teacher training and certification, and monitor capacity and program quality. Expanding access does not mean lowering expectations, but ensuring that more students have the opportunity to meet high expectations. You can read the approved implementation plan here.

I want to thank Superintendent Reid and her staff for developing a concrete implementation plan in response to the direction the Board provided last year. I also appreciate the families, educators, and community members who have engaged in this important conversation. I look forward to continuing that dialogue as the plan moves forward.