Morning Notes

Star Wars Event at Library — Arlington Central Library hosted a Star Wars costuming event over the weekend, as the above photo (uploaded to the library’s Facebook page) demonstrates.

School Stats Released — The class of 2011 at Arlington Public Schools had an on-time graduation rate of more than 87 percent, just above the state average of 86.6 percent. Arlington’s drop-out rate is declining, meanwhile. The rate was 9.8 percent in 2011, compared to 12.5 percent in 2008. [Arlington Public Schools]

Alexandria Gets Bikeshare — The Alexandria City Council voted yesterday night to join the Capital Bikeshare program. For Bikeshare members in Arlington, that means point-to-point trips to Old Town will be possible, from CaBi stations in Crystal City, Pentagon City and along the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor. [Washington Post]

N. Va., Military Contractor Mecca –Why have military contractors been moving their headquarters to Northern Virginia? Because they want “to be where the action is,” writes Forbes. In general: “Whether they generate sizable revenues from the government or not, big companies seem to like northern Virginia a lot, despite being surrounded by some of the worst traffic jams in the nation.” [Forbes]

Last Day for ABBIE Nominations — Today is the last day to nominate local businesses for the annual Arlington’s Best Business Awards. The 15 categories include “Best Brunch,” “Best Customer Service,” and “Best New Business.” (Disclosure: The ABBIE Awards are an ARLnow.com advertiser.) [ABBIE Awards]

Photo via Arlington Public Library