FCPS approves suite of upgrades for schools countywide

Contracts cover wide array of schools, McLean not included

Zakareya Hamed, Editor-in-Chief • June 4, 2024

Newly elected Sully District school board representative Seema Dixit speaks during the May 23 school board meeting. Multiple renovations from the elementary to high school level were on covered during the meeting.

As the Fairfax County School Board gears up to adjourn until August, the board reviewed and awarded multiple renovation contracts for schools across the county. Most of the upgrades are limited in scope, similar to McLean High School’s now-complete retiling and bathroom renovation project.

Among the upcoming upgrades reviewed at the most recent May 23 school board meeting are repaving projects at Annandale High School and Robinson Secondary School. Other projects range in focus, with Chantilly High School set to receive multiple new classrooms and Madison High School bound to get a tennis court refurbishment.

“While McLean could certainly also use new facilities upgrades, I hope these projects can be valuable for the schools receiving these renovations,” junior David Sheng said.

None of the most recent projects exceed $1 million in cost, allowing for the school board to approve multiple at a time. The heftiest contract approved at the May 23 meeting cuts close however, with a price tag of $981,535 for restoring the asphalt on Robinson Secondary School’s parking lot.

Although the school division only awards contracts to the lowest bidders, some say that the school division can manage its expenses better than it currently does.

“I heard that [FCPS] is paying a lot of money to contractors to simply repave lots, but that money can be better spent elsewhere to support the students,” junior Yang Wu said. “The money can be used for better teaching materials and support to help the students succeed.”

FCPS has one of the most sizable annual expenses in the country, largely since the division serves 180,000 students, making it one of the largest school divisions in the United States. The expected budget for next school year is $3.8 billion.

“Introducing student advisors [to help form the budget] would be a good way to understand student needs,” Wu said. “It’s important to raise concerns over the spending habits of FCPS.”

FCPS awarded a contract for McLean’s recent upgrades in the spring of last year, with work beginning at the start of the 2023-24 school year. The work is now largely finished. No other upgrades are expected at McLean for the near future, despite McLean remaining over capacity.

“McLean should be included because it needs to be bigger—there are too many students in a school designed for far less,” Wu said.