Friends of Community Schools...
Dear Fairfax County Residents
and Taxpayers,
Friends of Community Schools is encouraging you to support, protect and preserve the community-centered school in your neighborhood.
We realize that not all residents have children in the public school system, but the efforts to strengthen community-centered schools benefit all residents.
What is a 'community-centered school'?
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has developed some fundamental qualities that comprise a school which has as a role of a key anchor.
Generally, a community-centered school:
- Is located near the families it serves, allowing students to walk or bike to school and frequent interactions between students, teachers, and parents.
- Uses, expands, or adapts centrally-located schools or other types of buildings to provide a 21st century education.
- Is accessible via multiple modes of transportation.
- Is included in the school district's master facilities plan and is integrated with other land uses through a broad community planning process.
- Uses existing roads and sewers and avoids extending infrastructure when possible.
- Shares space with other entities and allows after-hours access to school facilities.
- Is broadly supported by the community – including passage of bonds for upgrading school facilities – because the facilities are used by residents of all ages.
- Is relatively small – based on reasonable enrollment sizes and draws from catchment areas – so that it fits well within the neighborhood.
- Reflects good civic design that generates public pride and allows it to be centrally-located.
We look forward to your support of community schools in Fairfax County!
Directors, Executive Board
Friends of Community Schools
Schools aren't buildings...
Community-centered schools are:
- a reflection of their community
- essential anchors for students, families and all residents of the surrounding neighborhoods.
- supportive of strong parental involvement, economic investment, particularly from local businesses, strong neighborhoods, stable real estate values and are an irreplaceable tie of a community’s past to its present and into the future.
People cherish community schools
as integral parts of their community in
that they impart an essential sense of belonging.
that they impart an essential sense of belonging.
Strong community schools
are centered around YOU!
Fairfax County NEEDS 'Smart Growth schools'...
In the face of ever-increasing sprawl, the children of Fairfax County deserve Smart Growth principles which:
- involve the community in school facility planning
- make good use of existing resources, such as historic buildings
- be located in neighborhoods and fit their scale & design
- act as a community anchor
- are usually small in size
Friends of Community Schools
