Schools | ARLnow.com

Last Day of School for APS Students

Published June 19, 2013 at 10:00AM

An early release is planned for Arlington’s high schools today, the start of students’ summer breaks. An early release will be held tomorrow (Thursday) for middle school students and on Friday for elementary school students, the end of their respective school years.

Commencement ceremonies will be held for APS high schools on Thursday, at DAR Constitution Hall in the District. The graduation for Washington-Lee will be held at 10:00 a.m., Yorktown at 3:00 p.m. and Wakefield at 8:00 p.m. Each ceremony will be broadcast live on the APS website, on Comcast channel 70 and Verizon FiOS channel 41.

Yorktown Teachers Receive Fake ‘Early Release’ Email

By ARLnow.com

Published May 23, 2013 at 11:45AM | Updated May 23, 2013 at 1:41PM

Yesterday, an email was sent from Superintendent Dr. Pat Murphy to Yorktown High School staff, informing them that classes had been cancelled for the remainder of the day.

The only problem? The email was a fake and was not actually sent by Dr. Murphy. According to a tipster, the email read:

New Boundaries Approved as County Board Considers Ashlawn Addition

By ARLnow.com

Published May 17, 2013 at 4:05PM | Updated May 17, 2013 at 5:00PM

The School Board unanimously adopted “Variation B” of Superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy’s recommended boundaries (left). The new boundaries will help distribute students to a new elementary school on the Williamsburg Middle School campus (see below) as well as to additions at Ashlawn and McKinley elementary schools.

The new schools and additions (there will also be a new choice elementary school near Kenmore Middle School and an addition to Arlington Traditional School) are being undertaken to provide an additional 1,875 seats of capacity by 2017 for Arlington burgeoning student population.

Soccer Parents vs. Neighbors in Latest Lighting Battle

By ARLnow.com

Published May 15, 2013 at 2:00PM | Updated June 11, 2015 at 11:20AM

The field and lighting proposal was floated as an optional part of the Arlington Public Schools plan to build a new elementary school on the Williamsburg Middle School campus. The design of the school was approved in February and construction is expected to begin next year.

The proposal involves the construction of two synthetic turf fields next to the school, with lighting installed for the field farthest from the surrounding neighborhood. Arlington Public Schools spokesman Frank Bellavia says the school system currently doesn’t have the money necessary for the synthetic fields and lighting — about $2 million — so supporters are hoping to convince Arlington County to pay for the project.

Sen. Leahy Visits Glebe Elementary

By ARLnow.com

Published May 13, 2013 at 2:30PM

Third graders from Glebe Elementary School in Arlington welcomed a special guest today: Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.).

Students at the school had written letters to the Vermont senator “about conservation and what the students are doing here at Glebe to help in conservation efforts,” according to school principal Jamie Borg. Leahy, the grandfather of a Glebe student, “decided to respond to their letters in person.”

Lander Wins Democratic School Board Endorsement

By ARLnow.com

Published May 12, 2013 at 12:20PM | Updated May 12, 2013 at 9:14PM

Lander won the Democratic endorsement by a caucus vote of 1,144 to 1,097. He will now run for reelection on Nov. 5. So far, no other candidates have announced for the race.

Via Facebook, Kanninen thanked her supporters.

Wednesday is Bike and Walk to School Day

By ARLnow.com

Published May 7, 2013 at 12:00PM | Updated May 7, 2013 at 3:52PM

Not to be confused with Walk and Bike to School Day in October, which has a similar name and a similar mission, Bike and Walk to School Day “encourages students to bike or walk to school while teaching them about the health and environmental benefits of biking and walking.”

“Bike and Walk to School Day also helps to raise community awareness about the importance of bicycle and pedestrian safety education, safe routes to schools, well-maintained walkways, and traffic calming in our neighborhoods and around our schools,” says Bike Arlington, on its website.

School Board Approves $523 Million Budget

By ARLnow.com

Published May 6, 2013 at 12:30PM

As expected, the School Board’s adopted budget restored funding to teen parenting staffing, elementary reading teachers, high school gifted teachers and other programs that were slated for cuts under superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy’s proposed $520.4 million budget. Proposed cuts to the school system’s minor construction/major maintenance fund were partially restored.

The budget also funds more buses to allow the school system’s transportation department to keep up with rising school enrollment. (A total of 23,725 students are expected to be enrolled at Arlington Public Schools next school year, an increase of 1,108 students — or nearly 5 percent — from 2012-2013.)

New W-L Softball Field to Open Monday

By ARLnow.com

Published May 3, 2013 at 4:30PM

The new Washington-Lee High School softball field will open for its first game on Monday.

The $1 million field, under construction since last summer, is located on the corner of Washington Blvd and N. Quincy Street. It was built after parents of softball players threatened to file a Title IX complaint if the school system did not upgrade the no-frills field they were using at the time to include the same amenities of the boys baseball field.

Kanninen, Lander Debate Ahead of School Board Caucus

By ARLnow.com

Published May 2, 2013 at 11:45AM

Building new schools may not be the only answer to overcrowding in Arlington Public Schools, School Board hopeful Barbara Kanninen said last night at the Arlington County Democratic Committee meeting.

Flexible scheduling, night classes in high school, and a school year that extends through the summer might ease crowding in middle and high schools without the expense and loss of open space associated building new facilities.

New Classroom Trailers at W-L, With More on the Way

By ARLnow.com

Published May 1, 2013 at 4:20PM | Updated May 1, 2013 at 5:17PM

The new trailers at Washington-Lee will be grouped together to form four classrooms, plus common spaces like bathrooms. They’re located in front of the W-L swimming pool, a short distance away from existing trailer classrooms at a nearby parking lot.

APS spent some $2.2 million to buy 20 additional relocatable classrooms this past fiscal year. The new FY 2014 budget, which is up for School Board approval Thursday night, is expected to include $1.9 million for 24 new trailers.

APS Seeing Rapid Rise in Students With Autism

By ARLnow.com

Published April 25, 2013 at 3:35PM | Updated May 17, 2013 at 3:39PM

There were 276 autistic special education students in 2008. By 2012, enrollment had increased to 421, a 52.5 percent jump.

“While it seems alarming, it actually reflects the growth we are seeing in autism nationally,” APS spokeswoman Linda Erdos said of the increase. According to a government study that was released last month, the number of school age children with autism has risen 72 percent since 2007, and now stands at about 1 in 50 children ages 6 to 17.