So the school system has the money to pay the Superintendent over $280,000 a year plus $650 per month to lease a Mercedes but they don't have the funding to provide these educational services to our students? An increase from $25 to $160 per session is simply outrageous. I am unsure as to why the citizens of Alexandria are standing for this nonsense. There has been massive spending by this Superintendent to what result? Del Ray and other areas in our city have some very thoughtful and intelligent people who should be speaking out against what is taking place within our school system. If no one speaks out, then this spending and outrageous behavior is condoned.

Well, actually, rather than being cut, these funds are being repurposed to allow the 11 other elementary schools and the 2 middle schools the opportunity to design their own extended learning opportunities and apply for the funds. The change allows other schools access to an opportunity that until now, has been available only to Mt. Vernon and Tucker. In fact, I have long wondered why the taxpayers have not objected to subsidizing these 5 intersession weeks for parents who could well afford to pay more than $25, since the rest of Alexandria students do not have access to subsidized school sponsored programs during their school breaks. Low income families will not have to pay the increased fee, by the way, and $160 is a pretty good price when you consider what summer camps around here cost the rest of us.

Are we all of the sudden on Etsy? We are talking schools here, not someone's shabby chic end table which could serve a new use. The whole notion that tax dollars are somehow being effectively "repurposed" within ACPS is ridiculous. The school system is simply wasting more of our money on a huge amount of outrageous expenses. Believing that the public should pick up any additional costs due to the school system's mismanagement of funds only pits certain members of our community against others and does not address the waste, mismanagement, and poor decision making within our school system. (And by the way, we are subsidizing the costs for low income families, so it costs all of us thank you.) Since you bring up Mt. Vernon and Tucker, with the implementation and continued funding of the year round calendars at these schools, how has student achievement fared compared to the district's schools with traditional calendars? That is the real issue to address here, not the 3,4, or 5 week plans for intersessions. Other areas worth exploring are the multitude of programs and initiatives funded throughout ACPS which have gone by the wayside with little to no impact on student achievement. IB was on the chopping block, costs the school system major dollars, yet do you really believe that Jefferson Houston will one day be an IB school? Is IB what will make a difference in the lives of those students? Take a trip into the schools and see just what is taking place.

You make a good point about comparing the student achievement at modified calendar and traditional schools: test scores at Mt. Vernon -- after years of intercession -- are no better than test scores at schools without intercession. Even Ramsay, with more minorities and a higher percentage of free and reduced lunch children, scores higher than Mt. Vernon. It's time that all the elementary and middle schools have a crack at extended learning opportunities. Paying $160 for 2 full weeks all day seems fair to me and will enable Mt. Vernon to keep extended learning.