Metro unveiled the new lockers Nov. 21, saying they would give cyclists cheaper and more secure options.

The lockers are part of Metro’s effort to make stations more accessible for riders arriving on foot, by bus, by car or by bike, said Jordan Pascale, media relations manager for WMATA. 

But even as cyclists embrace the new system, Pascale said Metro does not have a schedule for when additional stations will receive lockers.

In its Nov. 21 announcement, Metro said over the coming months it would install 450 bike lockers, 50 oversized lockers for cargo bikes, and 100 at 73 rail stations across the region. In addition, Metro said it would add 75 bike repair stations and 600 new u-racks to the stations. 

Pascale said the agency will update the table on its as new facilities come online through 2027, though he did not provide a detailed rollout timeline.

Cyclists can reserve lockers through the BikeLink app for five cents an hour, capped at $1 per day. Regular units fit standard bikes, while oversized lockers can accommodate larger cargo bikes. 

Riders end their rental by closing the locker door and confirming through the app.

The program is intended to give cyclists a safer and more secure option than outdoor racks, which many riders describe as vulnerable to theft.

���t definitely feels safer than locking my bike to a pole,” said Andrew Frank, a cyclist who uses the new locker at Foggy Bottom. ���’ve had my lock cut before. Paying a dollar to keep it secure all day is cheap.”

For riders at the two stations, the new lockers are useful but not without frustrations. 

Several cyclists at Foggy Bottom said the setup process — downloading the BikeLink app, creating an account and linking a credit card — felt inconvenient, especially in the cold.

“You can’t just walk up and use it right away,” said a cyclist who asked not to be named. ��� had to stand here in the cold setting everything up, and it gets annoying.”

Others said the lockers are difficult to check without walking directly up to them.

“You have to stand right in front of it to see how many are free,” said Kelly Moll, a cyclist who uses the new locker at Foggy Bottom. “That feels a little silly.”

Moll said she expects usage to grow as more people learn about the system, but she questioned whether 10 lockers at each station would be enough.

���t’s new, so not many people are using it yet,” Moll said. “But 10 seems too few once it gets popular.”

Not everyone passing by saw the lockers as useful. One pedestrian said the program does not fit her habits and is unlikely to affect riders who do not bike.

���t doesn’t help me,” said Lauren Wilson, who usually rents scooters instead. ���t’s a good idea, but if you don’t bike, it doesn’t change anything.”

The new system replaces Metro’s older annual-rental lockers, which cost about $120 a year and often required waitlists. The pay-as-you-go model is designed to give cyclists more flexibility and lower the cost for occasional riders.

For now, Foggy Bottom and Eastern Market will serve as early test sites for the new system. Until Metro releases a more detailed rollout schedule, riders say they are waiting to see how quickly the lockers spread to the rest of the network.

��� really hope more stations get lockers soon,” Frank said. ���t would make biking to Metro a lot easier.”

The post Metro debuts new bike lockers at two stations, with more expected through 2027 first appeared on 91����.

��� honestly didn’t know there was a marathon this weekend,” said Mary Lopez, a West End resident. “No one told us anything, so I’m not even sure what to say about it.”

The race, one of Washington’s largest annual events, is organized by the U.S. Marine Corps and expected to draw tens of thousands of runners. It begins near the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., winds past major landmarks and finishes at the Marine Corps War Memorial. Runners will pass through Georgetown, the West End and downtown D.C. streets.

While many D.C. residents celebrate it as a patriotic tradition, neighborhoods along the route face adjustments as streets such as Virginia Avenue NW and Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway close from early morning until midafternoon on the day of the race. For many residents and businesses in the affected areas, news of the closures—and even the event itself—has come as a surprise.

��� didn’t even know the parkway would be closed,” said Daniel Reyes, who drives on it daily to get to work. “You’re actually the first person to tell me that.”

The communication gap extends to local businesses as well. A Shell gas station near P and 22nd streets NW sits just off one of the small streets near an entrance to Rock Creek Parkway. Several station employees, who asked not to be identified, said they were unaware of the marathon.

“We didn’t know anything about it until you mentioned it,” one employee said. ���f the streets close, I don’t even know how people will get here.”

Confusion extended to other businesses along the route as well. An employee at The Baron Hotel on 22nd Street, who declined to give his name, said he had not heard about the marathon. Management at the hotel did not respond to a request for comment.

The advisory neighborhood commissions for the area, ANC 2A02 and 2A09, and the Marine Corps Marathon Organization did not respond to requests for comment.

Adding to the uncertainty is the ongoing federal government shutdown. Although the D.C. government remains open, some residents worried about how the event’s federal partners would operate.

On Oct. 16, the Marine Corps Marathon’s official Facebook page posted a video and statement confirming the race will proceed as scheduled. The post also drew supportive comments from runners and spectators thanking organizers and expressing excitement for the 50th anniversary race.

On the r/Marathon_Training subreddit, registered runners expressed relief and excitement about the confirmation, with one participant praising the race’s “best finish I’ve ever experienced” at the Marine Corps War Memorial. The contrast highlights what some residents describe as a communication divide between race organizers and the neighborhoods affected.

Even residents participating in the race had to seek out information themselves.

Edwin Todd, a Foggy Bottom resident running in the marathon, said he learned about road closures from the Marine Corps Marathon website, not from D.C. officials.

��� had to go looking for it myself,” he said. ��� never got any notification from local officials.”

Despite the communication gap and inconvenience, some residents say they still plan to watch or cheer from the sidewalks.

���t’s noisy, inconvenient, but kind of beautiful,” said Elvis Barrett, a Foggy Bottom resident. “You see thousands of people running past monuments—it reminds you why people love this city.”

For the full course map and more details, visit .

The post West End, Foggy Bottom prepare for 50th Marine Corps Marathon first appeared on 91����.

The ANC — one of D.C.’s smallest units of government — plays an outsized role in neighborhood decisions, from approving liquor licenses to reviewing zoning and construction plans. But with only six of nine seats currently filled, ANC 2A is barely meeting quorum, leaving little room for absence or turnover.

“When seats remain unfilled, the workload inevitably increases for the remaining commissioners,” said Kent Boese, executive director of the Office of Advisory Neighborhood Commissions. Boese’s office provides technical support to D.C. ‘s 40 ANCs but has no power to supervise them.

“Even with vacancies, ANCs can still function,” Boese said. “But outreach — especially to younger residents and students — remains insufficient.”

That shortage has real consequences in Foggy Bottom and the West End, where the remaining commissioners are covering vacant districts. Sean Youngstone, who represents ANC 2A09 and serves as the ANC 2A’s treasurer, said commissioners now handle requests and reports for neighborhoods beyond their own.

“With only five out of nine seats filled earlier this year, we were just at the minimum to function,” said Youngstone. ���f we lose one more person, we can’t hold official meetings.”

He added that the ANC 2A once fell below quorum and could only hold informal gatherings, unable to pass resolutions or take formal action.

The commissioner said vacancies not only increase workloads but also shrink the range of perspectives in neighborhood debates. “The more seats are filled, the more voices are heard — and that’s what makes local government work,” Youngstone said.��

In a neighborhood where George Washington University occupies a large portion of ANC 2A’s area, he said the absence of student or faculty representatives leaves a major gap in understanding campus-related concerns.

“Having a student or faculty member on the commission would help us better understand how the university and the neighborhood interact,” Youngstone said.

Some residents, however, said the vacancies feel distant compared to other neighborhood problems.

“When things like homelessness or drug issues reach the point of an investigation or a crime scene, those vacancies stop mattering,” said Christian Ravenwind, a resident of ANC 2A. “At that point, both sides — the community and the city — are just trying to manage the consequences.”

Ravenwind said that while he is aware of the ANC 2A, the body’s influence often feels limited when broader social issues dominate public concern.

That awareness gap is even wider among students. One George Washington University student, Justin Chen, said he had never heard of the ANC before.

��� honestly didn’t know we even had one,” Chen said. ��� never heard anyone talk about it.”

Ethan Lynne, president of the George Washington University Student Government Association, said that for most students, the ANC barely registers on their radar.

“Most students don’t really know what the ANC does,” he said. “That means we lose one more opportunity to have our voices heard in local decisions.”

He said student representation could improve outcomes on issues like housing, safety, and nightlife.

Lynne said the university and the ANC could promote collaboration by mentioning ANC opportunities in campus newsletters and reviving joint town halls, which ANC held in the past but have faded in recent years.

The university’s Office of Communications and Marketing declined to comment on the matter.

Boese agreed that awareness is part of the solution. He said some ANCs, like ANC 8D, had faced similar vacancy problems but later resolved them through consistent community engagement.

His office can help provide technical guidance and promote ANC visibility but cannot intervene directly in local appointments or elections, he added.

Other commissioners from ANC 2A didn’t  to respond to requests for comment before deadline.

The vacancies in the Foggy Bottom and West End’s ANC reveal more than an administrative gap — they expose a fragile system of local governance that relies on volunteers and limited outreach.

For now, the commission remains functional, but its stability feels precarious.

���f we lose even one more commissioner, the lights go out — at least officially” Youngstone said.

The post “We’re just at the minimum to function”: Foggy Bottom/West End’s strained ANC first appeared on 91����.

Recent attacks in the Northwest D.C. area were perceived by many as an uptick in bias-related crimes. The Metro Police Department reported that’s simply not the case.��

Local police report a decrease in bias-related crimes pertaining to sexual orientation, despite recent investigations.��

in October, showing bias-related crimes related to sexual orientation have actually decreased since 2022. There have been 22 crimes through October 31, 2024.��

“[The department] is seeing a decrease in all crime,” Tom Lynch, supervisory public affairs specialist for MPD, said. “We’ve seen crime come down in nearly every category.” 

One case that MPD is still investigating as “potentially being motivated by hate or bias” occurred earlier in October, according to MPD. Sebastian Thomas Robles Lascarro stopped at a McDonald’s located on the corner of 14th Street and U Street and was confronted by a woman in line behind him for not saying “excuse me.” 

When Lascarro tried to leave the restaurant, multiple people blocked the door and insisted he apologize to the woman. According to a police report, multiple people then started assaulting Lascarro and screaming homophobic slurs at him. One suspect reportedly said, ���’m going to teach you how to say sorry, f- – – – -.”

On November 5, and charged with assault with significant bodily injury. Multiple suspects were caught by nearby surveillance cameras and are still being searched for by MPD.��

The case is still being investigated as a potential hate crime. However, Lynch said the designation can “be changed at any point as an investigation proceeds and more information is gathered.”

“A designation as a hate crime by MPD does not mean prosecutors will prosecute it as a hate crime,” Lynch said.��

In August, local police investigated an attack outside of a Shake Shack in Dupont Circle. According to police reports obtained by 91����, Christian Dingus was attacked by multiple people and received EMS care for injuries to his jaw and face.��

the incident started after one of the restaurant employees aggressively responded to him asking where his food was. His partner, an unidentified male, pulled himself aside and gave Dingus a kiss to diffuse the situation.��

Both Dingus and his partner were escorted out of the restaurant by employees. Employees wearing Shake Shack uniforms were also seen hitting Dingus outside, as previously reported by NBC Washington.��

While the incident was intially suspected as an “anti-gay” hate crime, according to a previous police report, it is no longer being investigated as a bias-related crime. Lynch said findings of the investigation did not find the offense was motivated by bias.��

There have not been any arrests made in the case.��

As previously reported by 91����, the number of hate crimes in the District reached a new high in 2018. Based on mid-year data, 2019 was on track to meet or exceed those numbers.��

Aside from law enforcement, several other government agencies are attempting to prevent hate crimes across the District. The DC Office of Human Rights, as also previously reported by 91����, has been working to respond to hate crimes since 2017.��

James Yu, associate director of communications and equity for the office, said the Office of Human Rights cannot disclose details regarding individual complaints.��

“We continually work with the Mayor’s Office Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Affairs, local LGBTQIA+ organizations and partners to provide OHR’s training on the 23 Protected Traits in the District,” Yu said.��

A number of LGBTQIA+ organizations and advocacy groups contacted by 91���� declined to comment regarding D.C. hate crime numbers.

The post D.C. police report decline in anti-gay hate crimes first appeared on 91����.

Dozens of voters wrapped around the West End Neighborhood Library earlier this afternoon, many of whom were young voters casting their ballots for the first time ever in the 2024 presidential election.��

���t’s a little nerve-wracking,” Nicholas Fabian, an undergraduate student at George Washington University, said. “There’s no pressure to vote, but it’s a meaningful experience.”

According to the , roughly 160 million people will vote in the 2024 presidential election. 91���� 8 million of those voters will be first-time voters.��

Originally from Connecticut, Fabian voted for the first time at the neighborhood library. He said he registered to vote in D.C. because it is a “simpler” process than voting by absentee ballot.��

“Something about being in-person to vote, instead of mailing in your ballot…there’s something very patriotic about it,” Fabian said.��

Sophia Pan, another undergraduate student at G.W., also voted in her first election. She said the voting process is a little worrisome because she is fully “immersed” now.��

���t gets more real,” she said. ���t’s a lot more important when you’re actually voting, instead of just watching it happen around you.”

Both students cast their vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, stating they agree with her policies more than former President Donald Trump.

Fabian described Trump as a “complete threat to our democracy,” and Harris would be better for the position after the Capitol attack on January 6, 2021.��

��� just think Kamala Harris’s policies will benefit the middle class much better and more effectively than Donald Trump’s policies,” he said.��

As for Pan, she said Harris’s positions on significant issues such as abortion and environmental issues make her more qualified for the position.��

Olivia Morris, a graduate student at G.W., said she came out to vote because she is passionate about politics. Identifying as a “pretty dedicated conservative,” she felt it was her “civic duty and honor” to be able to vote.

��� love my country, and I love thinking about these deeper questions,” she said. “There’s a lot of moral weight to a lot of things surrounding this election.”

She said she voted for Trump because of his international policies, such as imposing tariffs on other countries “to support growth with the United States.” This is her third time voting for the former president, and she “supports everything he stands for.” 

While many individuals have clear stances on who they support, some potential voters have previously voiced their concerns for both candidates.they will not vote for Harris unless the Democratic nominee commits to stop sending weapons to Israel.��

Avery Archer, a West End resident, felt conflicted on the issue because of his pro-Palestinian beliefs toward the Israel-Hamas war. Nevertheless, he decided to vote for Harris because she seemed more “persuasive” in taking a stance on the conflict.��

“Even though she isn’t where I want to be on [the war,] I think she’s more receptive to pressure,” Archer said.��

Fabian said it is important for other undecided voters to still vote in this “historic election.”

“Even if neither of the candidates really represent your beliefs, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t do it,” he said.

The post Young voters turnout near George Washington University, West End first appeared on 91����.

The beginning of November officially marks hypothermia season, meaning more people will look for city resources to stay out of the cold. With more homeless people across the DMV than the previous year, city officials were gearing to the Aston shelter in West End earlier this month – until problems struck.��

With failed inspections and residents complaints getting in the way, it is still unknown as to when the shelter will be ready to open its doors.��

The West End housing project to convert the Aston into a housing shelter has been further delayed due to repair needs and pending litigation from West End residents.��

A recent facility condition assessment performed by the D.C. The Department of General Services revealed the building failed its final housing code inspection. Officials concluded the building still lacks sufficient fire exits and other repairs throughout the building.��

As  a 2023 building condition assessment performed by the same agency revealed substantial is needed for the building to remain up to code. The building is also estimated to cost the city about $8 million in repairs over the coming years.

As plans for the remodel of the former George Washington University dorm are continuously met with backlash, residents grow concerned for safety concerns regarding building conditions and surrounding issues.��

Following the news of the assessment, the West End DC Community Association (WEDCCA) filed another lawsuit against the city’s Board of Zoning office. The group calls for the Aston permit to be revoked and that it was issued on “incomplete, stale, and inaccurate information,” regarding the building’s safety standards.��

“You’re putting lives at risk when you can’t pass a fire code inspection,” attorney Scott Morrison, on behalf of WEDCCA, said. “You’re talking about whether the building itself meets the very minimal building code standards for life safety.” 

This is the third lawsuit the group has filed to halt construction of the project, as the filing claims the temporary shelter with medical support services would violate the area’s zoning regulations. The group claims the area only permits residential buildings, and the Aston’s special exception permit was “fundamentally defective.” 

“The district’s conduct has been deplorable,” Morrison said. “They’re trying to downplay everything.” 

The community group previously filed lawsuits last year regarding the approval process the city used, but voluntarily withdrew their first lawsuits, as .��

A spokesperson for the Department of Building did not respond to requests for comment. The office of Mayor Muriel Bowser has declined to comment on pending litigation and maintenance issues surrounding the Aston.��

While the building was slated to open in early October, the Aston is expected “to begin serving clients in the upcoming hypothermia season.” The season begins on November 1.��

Jim Malec, the ANC 2A Chairperson, said he expected the needed repairs on the building are expected to take “weeks, not months.”

��� wish we would have been able to address this sooner, but this is a process,” Malec said. “…We conducted ourselves in accordance with the timeline set forth by the law.” 

Malec also expressed frustration that the members of WEDCCA have continued to remain anonymous under the litigation proceedings. He said the group that opposes the construction should “take a long look in the mirror and think about their priorities.”

In a declaration to the court, the association’s members include residents from the 22 West Condo association, as well as other neighborhood residents and “multiple businesses that own or occupy properties in the immediate vicinity of, including properties on the same block as, the Aston.”

The shelter, located at 1133 New Hampshire Avenue NW, is near businesses such as Casta’s Rum Bar, Rasika West End and a Call Your Mother deli location.�� 

91���� reached out to the Department of Human Services to get the latest update on the delays. Kevin Carpenter, director of communications for the department, said in an emailed statement the city “has continually engaged with neighbors, nearby businesses, and community representatives throughout the development process.”

The next Board of Zoning meeting is set for Wednesday, November 6, where it will be determined as to whether the Aston deserved a special permit for opening.��

As the fight to open its door to tenants continues, Morrison said WEDCCA will continue to fight against the city’s lack of transparency to residents on the “dangers” of the Aston.��

“The district has manipulated the system to its advantage to try to get the Aston open for a homeless shelter, and [the district is] doing everything they can to keep this quiet,” Morrison said.

The post West End housing project still faces facility issues, pending litigation ahead of hypothermia season first appeared on 91����.

George Washington University resident doctors Maryssa Miller and Jason Robart, among others, led efforts to form a union among other students. With almost 90% of the residents signed on, they are still negotiating with the university for a fair contract one year later.��

“We want the university to know that we are taking this seriously,” Robart, an anesthesiologist resident physician, said. “We are united as a group, and we can mobilize as a group.” 

Over 200 unionized resident doctors at George Washington University gathered last week to picket for new contract negotiations, including pay and other benefits.��

Residents claim they work up to 80-hour weeks during the academic year and earn as little as $15 an hour. The union is asking for higher wages and better mental healthcare benefits, among other non-economic things such as lactation accommodations.��

Hospital residents also claim 51-52% of their take-home pay goes to rent on average, and the university has not helped with increasing costs.��

After completing his master’s degree and medical residency at the University of Virginia, Robart began his studies at GW in 2022.

He, along with other residents, decided to form a union because of the extreme working conditions of the program. Residents also argue the impact of their health and well-being could potentially affect patient care.��

“We are not asking for the world,” Robart said. “We just want a little bit more to help us take care of ourselves so we can better take care of our patients.” 

Nearly 500 medical residents are employed by George Washington University’s School of Medicine and Health Sciences and work in the Foggy Bottom area hospital. The union first set out to organize in March 2023 with the Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR), an organization part of the D.C.-based Service Employees International Union (SEIU).��

The union and the university started contract negotiations last fall.

The union voted to officially form in March 2023 and worked with CIR to start contract negotiations.��

“Each time we proposed something, [the university] would propose something back that we thought was woefully inadequate,” Robart said.��

Union members said the contract negotiations have been taking longer than expected because the university’s bargaining team has not been acting “in good faith.” Residents claim university decision makers do not attend negotiation meetings, only sending their appointed lawyer.��

��� feel so morally defeated because I just had to listen to someone who’s never taken care of a patient in their life and never gone through what we go through on a daily basis, tell me why I don’t deserve a higher salary to be able to afford groceries,” Dr. Maryssa Miller, an internal medicine resident physician, said.��

Miller, a first-generation college student, also began her residency at GW in 2022. She said the university garnered her interest because of its HIV medicine track and working for “a diverse and underserved population that really needs care.” 

She feels as though the university takes advantage of how she and other residents care about their jobs and their patients. However, she continues to fight for a fair contract because she believes it is in the best interest of future residents and patients.

“We still show up, and we still have a job,” she said. “The university capitalizes on that. I will always make the conscious decision to choose my patients over myself.” 

Residents say the built-up tension with the university resulted in a planned picketing last week. Many community members showed up to spread their support to the union and learn more about the cause.��

���t was a really cool opportunity to be able to educate the public because there are a lot of misconceptions about residency training,” Miller said. ��� think a part of that is the healthcare institution continues to treat us and call us students.” 

The GWU Hospital has declined to comment on this story. The university did not respond to multiple requests for comment.��

Union members said they have not heard back from the university following Wednesday’s demonstration.��

As the next meeting for contract negotiations is set for October 17, residents said they hope the fight does not lead to a strike. Nevertheless, they said they will keep fighting for themselves and the well-being of their patients.��

“We have a strong voice and a strong leverage that we can use to make medicine as a career more affordable, more diverse and essentially to look more like the people we’re taking care of in this community,” Miller said.��

The post George Washington University resident doctors picket for pay, benefits first appeared on 91����.

Tatum Oliver, a fourth-year student at George Washington University, is one of many students who sought off-campus housing for the academic year. After spending thousands of dollars every month on a dorm, she had a plan to find an alternative.

However, she said, the already competitive housing market has made it much more difficult to find property in the Foggy Bottom area.

“We definitely toured and talked to umpteen realtors without response,” she said. ��� have a spreadsheet where we probably reached out to 100 different properties.”

Housing and Residence Life officials dropped the on-campus housing requirement for the academic year. As of last year, approximately 2,500 students chose to live off-campus per year, with 25 to 35% of the third-year class requesting a housing exemption annually.

“Typically, pricing with on-campus and off-campus housing is comparable if you’re pretty good about it,” Tatum Oliver, a fourth-year student at G.W., said.

Oliver spent last year studying abroad, so she is now living off-campus for the first time. She and a roommate started looking for off-campus housing in May, but were not able to find anything in the Foggy Bottom area.

She said her original budget was between $1,500 and $1,800 per month, compared to about $1,600 per month in an on-campus dorm. Because of the lack of responses from realtors and affordable options in the area, Oliver chose to live in a townhouse in Georgetown instead for about $2,000 per month, not including utility costs.

According to the university’s housing and residence life, students following their second-year were not required to file a housing exemption to live off-campus for the 2024-2025 academic year. Third and fourth-year students who wanted to cancel their housing could before the June 30 deadline.

After the deadline, students would be charged a $1,000 cancellation fee, according to the university’s housing guidelines.

Sophia Johnson, also a fourth-year student at G.W., wanted to live off-campus because of the expenses of on-campus housing and dining plans. In her first year living in an on-campus dorm, Johnson paid about $7,000 per semester. She described her experience finding off-campus housing as a “huge pain.”

���’m not from D.C., and I go back home to the West Coast for summers,” she said. ��� did all of my apartment searching online and couldn’t do any in-person touring. I think the difficulty was finding a convenient, affordable option.”

Johnson said many of the bigger student apartment buildings charged more than her budget allowed. After searching, she found a studio apartment in the Foggy Bottom area for $1,650 per month plus electric and WiFi expenses.

���t’s very hard to find property,” Samer Kuraishi, real estate agent and president of The ONE Street Company, said. “We’re in a low inventory market, and demand is super high.”

Kuraishi launched the real estate company in 2017, focusing on residential and commercial real estate and developments. He said because of increasing homeownership prices, there is a need for more housing opportunities in the area.

“There is going to be competition across the board that could put a lot of pressure on student housing,” he said.

Kuraishi said the company consistently works with G.W. students to find housing rentals in the area. The application process for rentals is the same for students, but he said they typically include a co-signer because of a student’s lack of income.

The company is also developing a 48-unit apartment building at 2121 Ward Place NW. Kuraishi said the building will be marketed toward G.W. students, as well as other young professionals and families in the area.

As for other future housing options, Kuraishi said there will constantly be a need for more options for both residents and students in the area.

“D.C. ‘s like the Vatican,” Kuraishi said. “The prices are going to keep going through the roof.”

The post George Washington University housing rules create competition for residents, students first appeared on 91����.

Francis Stevens, which houses elementary and middle school students, is in its final year of a three-year modernization process. The $57 million project is slated to be completed for the start of the 2024-2025 school year.��

���’m confident that D.C. Public Schools will tell us that our building is ready for next year, I do not know if the building will actually be ready or ready to a degree of quality,” said Zach Carroll, a middle school social studies teacher at Francis Stevens, as well as the Washington Teachers Union representative for the school.

Another DCPS school is expected to relocate to the temporary facility that Francis Stevens is currently using in the next school year, he said, so Francis Stevens staff and students will likely have to move back into the school’s 2425 N St. NW location whether the modernizations are satisfactory or even completed.

Parents also expressed a lack of faith in the quality of the modernization and in the city actually listening to feedback.��

Leah Shoval, the parent of three children at the school, said, “They’re still not necessarily listening to the needs of the community, per se, in terms of things we care the most about. There are obvious budgetary constraints.”

Parents and teachers also expressed concerns that the school community has received about the modernization is heavily filtered and infrequent, leading to a lack of confidence in the project.

��� think we get fed information from the architecture firm a lot and from the [Department of General Service] project managers that is self-serving to some extent, and so it’s hard to know what’s actually getting communicated to the community,” Shoval said.

The DCPS facility planning and design point person on the project, Matthew Dela Cuesta, said he has no concerns and the modernization is on track to be completed on time and ready for the upcoming school year.

“By all accounts, we will be opening up in time to open the school and welcome students for school year 2024-2025,” Dela Cuesta said.

He also said the brunt of the requested feedback from the community was during the design phase of the project, back in 2021. However, economics have changed since the budget for the project was last decided, and the allocated funding has not.

���t doesn’t feel like our voices are being heard and/or that budgets are being changed with inflation, with material costs, anything like that,” Shoval said.

After two years in a temporary facility–the old Benjamin Banneker school two miles away–people are ready for a new building but hesitant that they will have the quality, modernized building promised by the city.��

Already, some students have transferred due to the modernization, whether families don’t want to deal with children being bussed across town or for other reasons.

“A lot of people kind of jumped ship because they didn’t want to go across the city and get bussed across the city during the modernization, so the student body has sort of changed as well,” Shoval said.

Laura Frazier moved her elementary-aged son to another nearby public school at the start of the 2022-2023 school year before students were moved to the temporary site at Banneker.

“We chose to send him to the new school because of number one, communication not being great, the length of time they were going to be displaced, and then the convenience,” Frazier said. “We had another option available in our neighborhood that was an equally good school.”

Another family moved their daughters to the same school that Frazier moved her son to, she said.

“They did the same thing we did,” Frazier said. “They came to the same conclusion and switched both of their daughters to the other school.”

Communication was a key factor in the decision for Frazier to move her son.

“They didn’t really tell us any information, which motivated us to change schools, because they weren’t really keeping everyone up to date and clear on the modernization project. Plus the school that we sent him too was already renovated so we knew that there would be no chance of him having to re-locate or re-shuffle to a different place.”

According to data from DCPS and the National Center for Education Statistics, enrollment at the school has dropped from the 2019-2020 school year, which was before the modernization construction began, from 540 to 479 students last year.

Additionally, Carroll said the temporary facility that Francis Stevens currently inhabits, this past week has had temperatures of over 90 degrees in a few elementary classrooms, Shoval and Carroll both said they have seen flooding as well as rats and mice in the building.

Shoval said her children have told her about heat issues at Banneker and continue to wear shorts and short-sleeved shirts to school, even in the winter, to deal with the high temperatures in the building.

“They’ve said things like, ‘it’s so hot don’t make me go to school with pants on, don’t make me go to school with long-sleeve shirts on, I never have enough water during the day,’ ” she said. “So all of those things to me create a learning environment that’s not exactly conducive to optimal learning spaces.”

Carroll also said he’s noticed disengaged students and attributed some of the lack of interest to the heat.

���t’s really difficult to lead effective instruction for young people and for young people to feel motivated coming to school when the school building is that hot and they don’t see anything being done to fix the issues,” he said.��

Students feel undervalued and are more cognizant of the city’s lack of upkeep of their school building than many people realize, he said. They also appear tired and sleepy, and the heat in the building is likely a contributing factor.

“They have the feeling that they’re uncared for,” Carroll said. “They don’t see care for their personal well-being and basic needs.”

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All inauguration events scheduled today through Saturday would either be canceled or held online, with select people invited to attend in person, according to an email set by the university last night.

���n light of ongoing global tensions and their impact on our community, some of this week’s activities to celebrate the installation of President Granberg will be modified, postponed, or canceled. While we looked forward to these events as originally planned, it is important for the university to focus on supporting our community,” the email said.

Most students said the canceled events do not affect the student body, as many don’t care. Additionally, some mentioned that the sudden cancellation added to a slew of recent bad press that GW President Ellen Granberg received, specifically regarding the rhetoric she used regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict and how she has handled related events on campus.��

“The president is going to antagonize people no matter what side she takes. Honestly, her wording based on her first few responses weren’t good,” said Syed Fatmi, a GW senior. At one point she’s insinuating some people are terrorists, at some other points she’s taking that back and also insinuating that the other side is bad.” 

“Honestly, the inauguration being canceled does not affect students very much. I’m pretty sure the major student opinion is no one cares,” he said.

Other students said that the president and the university may have been concerned that there would be protests during the events, especially since much of the temporary infrastructure for the events was erected in Kogan Plaza, where many protests are held.

Aya Khanji, a GW junior said, ��� feel like they’re scared that students will speak up or do something because I feel like that would’ve been a huge possibility. I could so see people in the crowd yelling or protesting or saying something, so maybe that’s why they canceled them.”

Since Granberg received significant backlash from students for her response to a Palestinian student group projecting images on the Gelman Library on campus, communication from her office has been quiet, Khanji said.��

Granberg sent an email immediately after the situation saying, “we don’t condone the celebration of terrorism,” which indirectly called the actions of the Palestinian student group a celebration for terrorism, Khanji said.

On Tuesday, Granberg issued a announcing the increase of police presence on campus and security guards in residences as well as additional outdoor space monitoring in response to reported increased casual bigotry and direct identity-based mistreatment on campus regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict.

“In past statements, I have made it clear that I condemn the terrorist attack on Israel and all forms of antisemitism and Islamophobia. Protecting and preserving our shared community, however, must go beyond making statements. I want to share the steps we are taking to support our students, faculty, and staff during this increasingly complex time,” the statement said.

��� think she’s just avoiding things; she doesn’t want to talk about stuff,” Khanji said.

Another student, Mary Catherine Kamerbeake, said, ���t may be a safety issue, I know we have a lot of protests right [on Kogan Plaza]. I know this is the main protest area.”

Additionally, the inauguration events cost a significant amount of money. Construction crews installed temporary structures around campus, and the university publicized a community block party on Saturday to celebrate the official inauguration. The block party was supposed to have food for the hundreds of people attending, and there was even training promoted for students to assist in donating any of the extra food.��

“They spent a lot of money on all this infrastructure around campus for the inauguration,” Kamerbeake said. ��� think it really shows how important it is.”

Prior to the cancellation of the inauguration events, GW promoted the event online and at various community meetings, including ANC and Foggy Bottom Association meetings, for months. Kevin Days, the GW director of community relations appeared at many of these meetings to personally invite community members.

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