Loudoun County in Northern VA is ranked as the richest county in the nation. So you would think we would have state-of-the-art school buildings, while that is the case for some schools in the district, it, unfortunately, is not for Park View High School.

Park View High School was built in 1976, yet it has not had a single full renovation. The Sterling school is the only “title one” high school in Loudoun County. “Title one” is a federal funding stream that supplements state and local education funding for low-income students. According to the U.S. Department of Education, Title I was created “to ensure economically disadvantaged children receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education, by helping to close academic achievement gaps.” However, in Park View’s case, it seems to be doing the exact opposite. 

“I’m unsure, but I believe that because we get money from the government, the school system then spends less money on us because they think we don’t need it because we have that money from the [government]. The problem is, we do still need the money and resources,” said Park View alum Savannah Strope. 

LCPS School Board member Andrew Hoyler disagrees, “With so many new schools being built in Loudoun, I believe that we simply haven’t had the amount of cash necessary for a large-scale enhancement and renovation. A number of schools need large overhauls in certain areas, and I wish we had the cash to do all repairs this summer. Unfortunately, we don’t have the money or the manpower to do this.” Mr. Hoyler represents the Broad Run district which includes Park View High School and Broad Run High School. 

Like Savannah said, Park View definitely is still in need of the money and resources. Just a few weeks ago, there was water coming up out of the floor and into the hallways. “Water was coming up out of the floor and my daughter sent me the video and told me that kids are being told to just walk around it. That’s not acceptable. We don’t walk around a flood that’s in our school, because we don’t have the money to fix the problems in the richest county,” said Park View parent Dawn Jewell to the WUSA9. Others have gone to WUSA like Park View senior Angela Rivera who said, “we’re distracted by teachers trying to figure out leaking from the floor, you know, things just breaking around. I think it’s not a good environment for education. We’re too busy focusing on what’s happening around us instead of focusing on the actual academics.”

Park View’s principal sent a letter to the community stating that the flooding was a result of a maintenance issue involving the plumbing system.

It’s not only leaky hallways that are an issue for the Park View Patriots. Park View junior Farzana Tasnim describes her school to have mold and mice issues, as well as crumbling ceiling tiles and few working bathroom sinks. “It’s distracting, infuriating, and just all around makes learning demotivating,” she said. “All around the school is sorta just falling apart,” added Park View senior Hemi Cabral. 

“Broad Run has certain areas that are far nicer, and other areas that are more in line. Lightridge has far more space than any of our other schools, but that doesn’t mean that it is perfect. Park View is a very crowded school which makes many of its space issues more difficult to work with, ” said Hoyler.

With the school being nearly half a century old, the community is calling for a “Park View Redo.”

“We definitely rely on first hand perspectives from students and teachers. While I have taken a tour of Park View and seen firsthand the issues that are brought up, new issues pop up all the time and it is important to keep us in the loop,” said Hoyler. “everyone loves to trash on park view until they realize it’s actually messed up. Like the perspective is needed for everyone outside of Park View,” said Cabral. 

“Many of our schools need far more money allocated to them than what is currently allocated to repairs. Park View is certainly one of those schools,” said Hoyler. I agree with Mr. Hoyler, Park View definitely needs a lot more funding and renovations. I’m glad that Park View’s issues are getting the attention they need, and it makes me realize how lucky I am to be going to a school like Broad Run.