1202.1 Public education in the District of Columbia is provided by DCPS and by public charter schools. DCPS is a traditional local education agency (LEA) headed by a chancellor appointed by the Mayor under the Public Education Reform Amendment Act of 2007. DCPS is responsible for educating Washington, DC's children and provides a school of right for every compulsory school-age child. DCPS also coordinates with DGS in planning, operating, maintaining, designing, and constructing public school facilities (see text box, Understanding the Relationship of DC Public Schools to District Government). Public charter LEAs are publicly funded and organized as nonprofit corporations, and each is managed by an independent Board of Trustees. DC PCSB, created in 1996 and governed by the School Reform Act of 1995, is the sole authorizer of public charter schools, and it provides comprehensive oversight, application review, and stakeholder engagement across all public charter schools.

1202.2 In school year 2017-2018 (SY2017-18), DCPS had 116 schools housed in 112 different facilities serving approximately 48,150 students. Other facilities include administrative buildings, swing space used for temporary relocation during campuses renovation, and facilities undergoing modernization. Map 12.1 shows the location of DCPS schools. Washington, DC has one of the most robust charter school sectors in the country. In SY2017-18, 66 public charter LEAs were operating 121 schools, serving approximately 43,350 students. The location of public charter schools as of SY2017-18 is shown on Map 12.2.

1202.3 DCPS and public charter school total enrollment, including PK-12th grade and adult and alternative schools, started to increase in 2008, driven by enrollment in public charter schools and also in DCPS in recent years. Between 2008 and 2017, total public school enrollment increased by 29 percent (see Figure 12.1). Public charter school enrollment has increased steadily since the School Reform Act authorizing charters was passed in 1997, with DCPS enrollment increasing after 2008. As of SY2017-18, DCPS enrolled 53 percent of all public school students, while public charters enrolled 47 percent. Total District-wide growth in enrollment between 2011 and 2017 was greatest in the elementary (K-5th) and early childhood grades (PK3 and PK4).

1202.4 These increases in public school enrollment mirror recent increases in population. The District added 122,000 residents between 2000 and 2017, driven mostly by an increase in adults. However, in the past five years, the number of children has substantially increased, surpassing the 2000 number—specifically, between 2010 and 2017, infants and toddlers under age five increased by 12,200. Forecasts from the OP State Data Center indicate that this trend will continue in 2017-2025, with an estimated net population increase of 91,000, of which 21,090 (23 percent) will

be school-age children. These figures, coupled with vigorous housing construction activity over the last 10 years and improved quality of schools, suggest there will be many new students, necessitating additional school facility space and financial resources. Not only are there likely to be more students, but the racial composition of students is changing to reflect broader District demographic trends. It is important to collect and use data disaggregated by race to provide equitable outcomes in school facility planning.

1202.5 Figure 12.1: Public School Enrollment Trends in the District 1996-2016

(Source: DME)

1202.6 The proposed 2018 Master Facilities Plan (MFP), for the first time, analyzed both the public charter school sector and DCPS schools. It used population forecasts, enrollment projections, utilization analyses, and facility data to better understand the current landscape of the District’s public school facilities (PK through adult provided by DCPS and public charter schools), as well as facility needs five and 10 years from now. The proposed MFP GAP analysis showed that as of SY17-8, capacity exceeded enrollment by over 22,000. Fully modernizing the DCPS inventory, addressing overcrowding in DCPS feeder schools where it has already become an issue, and already approved charter expansions will increase capacity in the coming years. The proposed MFP illustrated a key challenge confronting the District. The proposed 2018 MFP estimated that there would be sufficient facility capacity in aggregate within the educational sector taking enrollment patterns and market share into account. However, if the LEA’s growth plans are taken into account, the proposed 2018 MFP estimated that may be an overall

shortage of seats by SY2027-28. The analysis indicated that without coordinated planning the District could open more school capacity than required, driving up costs and diluting the ability to serve students, families, and communities.

1202.7 Through the proposed 2018 MFP, DME, in conjunction with DCPS, DGS, DC PCSB, and community stakeholders, provided (1) information about current public school facility conditions and needs, and (2) analyses of future facility needs based on estimated population growth and LEAs' aggregated enrollment growth plans. The proposed MFP included datasets and visualizations, which help the public, policymakers, LEAs, education support organizations, and other educational stakeholders in their work to improve public education.

1202.8 The District Council disapproved the proposed 2018 MFP submitted by the Mayor as the Council believed the information provided in the proposed MFP lacked critical elements that would inform the Mayor's and Council's decisions on school location, school building utilization, student enrollment, and potential charter school locations. The proposed MFP also lacked comprehensive information about the plan for six vacant public school facilities. Further, the proposed MFP failed to address school overcrowding, under-enrollment, or school buildings with poor utilization (below 50 percent), and it did not clearly define the Facility Condition Index (FCI) which identified ten schools with buildings in poor condition. An updated MFP that addresses Council interests, specifically providing a plan for the District to address over-crowding in over-utilized schools and increase enrollment in underutilized buildings, and plan for forecasted population growth to provide appropriate capacity, is a critical first step to advance a master plan. This MFP must be approved by Council. A Council-approved MFP would help inform strategic and sustainable long-term facilities planning for DCPS, charter LEAs, District agencies, and others. 1202.8

1202.9 Map 12.1: Location of DCPS Schools School Year 2018-2019

(Source: OP, 2018)

1202.10a Text Box: Understanding the Relationship of DC Public Schools to District Comprehensive Plan

Government

The District of Columbia Public Education Reform Amendment Act of 2007 (PERAA), effective June 12, 2007 (DC Law 17-9; 54 DCR 4102), created a new and reorganized structure of educational leadership. PERAA established that the Mayor has direct control of District public schools and DCPS as a cabinet-level agency. It also empowered the Mayor to appoint, after review and confirmation by the Council of the District of Columbia, a DME to plan, coordinate, and supervise public education in the District, a chancellor to lead DCPS as its chief executive officer, and a state superintendent of education. The Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) is the state education agency that requests, distributes, and monitors the use of federal grant monies, sets state policy and regulations, and collects and shares reliable and actionable data. The District's State Board of Education (SBOE) is responsible for advising the state superintendent on educational matters, including state standards, policies, and objectives. DGS oversees the maintenance, construction, and modernization of all DCPS facilities. All public charter schools are chartered under the authority of DC PCSB.

1202.10 Across Washington, DC, DCPS school facilities and grounds serve as community assets by providing recreational space, meeting space, and more. As part of the facility modernization planning process, DCPS will continue to engage communities on how modernized facilities and grounds could better serve the needs of the surrounding communities and improve quality of life.

1202.11 A School Improvement Team (SIT) is established at every DCPS school where a major capital project (to include modernization, school replacement, addition, renovation, or remodeling) is scheduled within the next one to two fiscal years. The SIT includes parents, neighbors, and community members, as well as DCPS and DGS staff. The SIT has several duties, including providing feedback during the development of education specifications and schematic design and assisting with disseminating information about the progress of the school improvement to constituencies and peers represented on the SIT. Team members are also expected to consult on issues that arise during construction, be available to receive updates, and serve on the SIT through the end of construction.

1202.12 Like many school districts in U.S. cities, DCPS is facing substantial social needs. Poverty, disrupted families, and neighborhood violence challenge school buildings (and grounds) to do more, such as stay open longer, expand their services, and adopt a broader constituency. Indeed, as school facilities are modernized, the opportunity is created to use those buildings to more fully serve the communities that surround them.

1202.13 The proposed 2018 MFP anticipated combined public charter school and DCPS growth in enrollment, from 91,484 students in SY2017-18 to between 109,000

and 122,000 students in SY2027-28, depending on the assumptions made. The upper end of the enrollment projection includes the aspirational growth plans of the public charter sector that would ultimately require DC PCSB approval and facility acquisition to actually reach that ambitious number. DCPS enrollment is based solely on school-level estimations that could reach 58,400 students in SY2027-28, up from 48,000 students in SY2017-18. When analyzed against available school capacity, the proposed 2018 MFP estimated that enrollment will outstrip DCPS’s current capacity in all wards except Wards 5, 7, and 8. The District has experienced overcrowding in certain schools. There are underutilized schools, particularly in Wards 7 and 8. While current and projected capacity are influenced by population growth, demographic trends, and the physical condition of facilities, the more difficult issue that must inform a revised MFP is significant disparities in school performance that lead students to enroll in higher performing schools, even if these schools are a considerable distance away.

1202.14 Map 12.2: Location of Public Charter Schools School Year 2018-2019

(Source: OP, 2018)

SOURCE: District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984, effective April 10, 1984 (D.C. Law 5-76; 31 DCR 1049 (March 9, 1984)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Element Amendment Act of 1984, effective March 16, 1985 (D.C. Law 5-187; 32 DCR 873 (February 15, 1985)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-129; 37 DCR 55 (January 5, 1990)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989 NCPC-Recommended Amendments, and Closing of Public Alleys in Square 669, S.O. 88-452, Act of 1990, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-132; 37 DCR 2213 (April 6, 1990)); as amended by District Government Land Use Temporary Amendment Act of 1994, effective October 1, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-190; 41 DCR 5360 (August 12, 1994)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1994, effective October 6, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-193; 41 DCR 5536 (August 19, 1994)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Amendment Act of 1994, effective March 21, 1995 (D.C. Law 10-235; 42 DCR 30 (January 6, 1995)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1996, effective April 18, 1996 (D.C. Law 11-110; 43 DCR 530 (February 9, 1996)); as amended by Second Technical Amendments Act of 1996, effective April 9, 1997 (D.C. Law 11-255; 44 DCR 1271 (March 7, 1997)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 1998, effective April 27, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-275; 46 DCR 1441 (February 19, 1999)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1999, effective April 12, 2000 (D.C. Law 13-91; 47 DCR 520 (January 28, 2000)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2006, effective March 8, 2007 (D.C. Law 16-300; 54 DCR 924 (February 2, 2007)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 2008, effective March 25, 2009 (D.C. Law 17-353; 56 DCR 1117 (February 6, 2009)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2010, effective April 8, 2011 (D.C. Law 18-361; 58 DCR 908 (February 4, 2011)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2021, effective August 21, 2021 (D.C. Law 24-20; 68 DCR 006918 (July 16, 2021)).