Arlington Public Schools leaders are seeking to help more students earn college degrees in tandem with high school diplomas.
In the spring, 19 students at Arlington Tech — the Governor’s STEM Academy at the Arlington Career Center — received associate’s degrees from Northern Virginia Community College through the program’s dual-enrollment effort.
Start-of-school enrollment in Arlington is down from a year before and below springtime projections, but could move higher by the time a final tally is compiled at the end of the month.
Arlington Public Schools counted 27,603 students in pre-kindergarten to 12th-grade classes on Sept. 4, Superintendent Francisco Durán reported to School Board members that evening.
Candidates seeking an open School Board seat are focusing on student achievement, the school system’s budget and the impact of the Trump administration.
“We deserve to get our money’s worth” from funds that support schools, said James “Vell” Rives IV at a Tuesday candidate forum sponsored by the Arlington County Civic Federation.
A new report from Arlington Public Schools’ internal auditor is raising concerns about how the school system handles student and staff tech equipment.
Inventory control is “unsatisfactory and requires improvement,” the report, detailed to School Board members on Aug. 21, says.
Seniors at Washington-Liberty High School kicked off the first day of school today (Monday) with an annual “Senior Sunrise” tradition on the school’s football field.
Students from the class of 2026 began shuffling onto the field around 6 a.m., and by sunrise, about 100 of them had gathered at War Memorial Stadium to celebrate. As they took pictures, lounged on blankets and enjoyed a free breakfast treat, some reflected on what it meant to begin their final year of high school.
Arlington Public Schools opens the 2025-26 school year with a 99.3% staffing rate, one of the highest in recent memory.
Only 34 staff positions out of more than 3,000 positions are unfilled, Superintendent Francisco Durán told School Board members on Aug. 21.
Changes to the online back-to-school packet, updated cellphone policies and planning for projects to support student well-being are coming to Arlington Public Schools this year.
School leaders hope that some of the changes will deliver a smoother process leading up to the first day of class, which begins one week from today on Monday, Aug. 25.
Defying demands from the U.S. Department of Education, Arlington Public Schools has announced plans to retain its current policy on transgender students’ access to facilities.
In a statement to parents and an accompanying letter to the federal agency, the school system argued that it cannot legally comply with federal attempts to stop letting transgender students use bathrooms and locker rooms corresponding with their gender identity.
Artificial-intelligence tools will play a larger role in Arlington Public Schools classrooms and operations in the coming school year.
After a pilot program last year that involved about 400 educators, the school system has selected SchoolAI as its primary artificial-intelligence tool. In addition, staff will have access to Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini and NotebookLM for professional use.
Arlington Public Schools is kicking off the school year with a more nuanced approach to curtailing athletic activity for hot and humid weather.
School Board members have adopted a new policy designating the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) as the benchmark covering athletic contests and practices.
Arlington Public Schools leaders are playing their cards close to their chests following the end of a federal investigation into the school system’s anti-discrimination policy.
In response to demands from the U.S. Department of Education, which targeted policies allowing transgender students to use facilities corresponding with their gender identities, Superintendent Francisco Durán said only that APS has received the findings and is formulating a response.
Construction is continuing at full tilt at Arlington Career Center’s new home, with a planned opening date at the start of the 2026-27 school year.
The forthcoming Grace Hopper Center, located adjacent to the existing Career Center building at 816 S. Walter Reed Drive, has been rapidly taking shape since the project broke ground in May 2024.
