Schools | ARLnow.com

School Board Chooses ‘Hybrid’ Option For New High School

Published June 30, 2017 at 11:00AM

Arlington Public Schools will add 1,300 high school seats across the Education Center and the Career Center after the School Board approved the so-called “hybrid option” at its meeting Thursday.

The option, put forward by Superintendent Patrick Murphy last month, would add 500-600 seats to a renovated Education Center (1426 N. Quincy Street) by 2022, then add another 700-800 at the Career Center (816 S. Walter Reed Drive), which would get a renovation and an addition. The County Board denied a request to designate the Education Center as a historic district last month.

Schools Secured Due to Fairfax County Robbery

By ARLnow.com

Published June 16, 2017 at 11:20AM | Updated June 16, 2017 at 12:16PM

File photo

(Updated at 12:15 p.m.) Swanson Middle School, McKinley Elementary and Ashlawn Elementary were placed in “secure the school” mode Friday morning due to an armed robbery in Fairfax County.

The robbery happened just before 10:30 a.m. in the Willston Center, on the 6100 block of Arlington Blvd. While each are about a mile or more away from the robbery scene, the schools were nonetheless secured as a precaution.

Wakefield High Students Re-Take SOL Exam After ‘Irregularity’

By Chris Teale

Published June 16, 2017 at 10:00AM | Updated June 16, 2017 at 11:31AM

A letter to parents from Wakefield principal Chris Willmore said that on May 30 and 31, students had to move examination rooms after two-and-a-half hours of taking a test that does not have a time limit.

But, Willmore said, some students began talking while moving to the new testing area. Willmore said staff immediately reported what happened to the Virginia Department of Education, but a VDOE spokesman challenged that assertion and said it was reported after regular business hours on June 8. VDOE decided earlier this week that students had to re-sit.

School Board To Consider New APS Superintendent Contract

By Chris Teale

Published June 15, 2017 at 11:45AM | Updated June 15, 2017 at 6:53PM

According to a memo sent to her colleagues on the School Board by chair Nancy Van Doren, Murphy has requested a new four-year contract, effective July 1.

At tonight’s meeting, the Board will vote on whether to advance a notice of intent to renew Murphy’s contract as part of its consent items. If it passes, the contract would then likely be debated at the Board’s June 29 meeting.

AHC Mentoring Program Celebrates Students’ College Acceptance

By Katherine Berko

Published June 13, 2017 at 2:30PM

Del. Alfonso Lopez (D) gathers with the graduates

All 15 high school graduates from the pilot year of AHC Inc.’s new college guidance program will progress into higher education.

This year, the seniors applied to 71 schools and were accepted into 54. Together, they received nearly $500,000 in scholarship money, including full rides to Georgetown University and the University of Pennsylvania. Many of the students are the first members of their family to attend college.

Graduations To Mark End of APS School Year

By Kalina Newman

Published June 13, 2017 at 11:45AM | Updated June 16, 2017 at 12:44PM

Arlington Public Schools will begin to mark the end of the 2017 school year over the next week with graduation and promotion ceremonies.

Graduation ceremonies are scheduled for the following times and places.

W-L High School Closes Due to A/C Issues

By ARLnow.com

Published June 12, 2017 at 10:55AM

The HVAC problems at W-L struck on one of the hottest days of the year so far.

Separately, the air conditioning system for the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program was down this morning, but workers were able to get the chiller “back up and running,” according to an Arlington Public Schools spokeswoman. Classes there remain in session.

Parents, Teachers Divided on APS Technology Initiative Ahead of Possible Plan Tweaks

By Brooke Giles

Published June 7, 2017 at 3:50PM | Updated June 7, 2017 at 4:10PM

A student looks at an iPad (file photo)

Arlington Public Schools parents and teachers remain divided over the county’s one-to-one technology initiative ahead of possible revisions to the school system’s strategic plan later this year.

The rollout of the program began during the 2014-2015 school year and provides iPads for elementary and middle school students, Macbook Air laptops for high school students. The hope was that every student attending an Arlington school would have a device by 2017.

Sparks Fly as School Board Debates Greater Diversity in APS

By Chris Teale

Published June 2, 2017 at 2:30PM | Updated June 2, 2017 at 2:54PM

School Board member Tannia Talento

School Board members clashed Thursday over an attempt to add language encouraging more diversity in Arlington Public Schools.

The Board was discussing the new enrollment and transfer policy around neighborhood and option schools. The policies have been rewritten to help APS keep up with steep growth.

ACPD: 18 Drug Arrests on Public School Grounds This Year

By ARLnow.com

Published June 1, 2017 at 9:55AM

Police cars (file photo)

That’s according to the Arlington County Police Department, in response to an inquiry from ARLnow.com. ACPD has thus far not provided additional details about the nature of the arrests, the suspects or the schools involved.

The new statistic comes as ACPD starts conducting K-9 drug searches after hours in Arlington public high schools.

JUST IN: Police Dogs to Search Schools As APS Addresses Drug Problem

By ARLnow.com

Published May 25, 2017 at 4:55PM

During the last few weeks of the school year and throughout the summer, the dogs will patrol secondary schools after hours to try to sniff out illegal drugs.

Described as a “proactive measure” in a letter to parents, sent today (Thursday), the searches come at a time when parents are becoming increasingly alarmed about the presence of drugs in middle and high schools.

Staff Recommends Denying Historic Designation for Potential High School Site

By Chris Teale

Published May 23, 2017 at 10:00AM

A plan to designate one of the potential sites for a new public high school as a historic district will be discussed by the County Board tonight (Tuesday).

But the proposal has drawn skepticism from county and Arlington Public Schools staff, who want the Board to deny the request and instead help preserve flexibility for APS as it solves its capacity issues.