Arlington Public Schools | ARLnow.com

Morning Notes

Published August 13, 2021 at 7:30AM

Vax Mandade for County, APS Employees — “Arlington County Government and Arlington Public Schools (APS) will implement a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for employees. This joint action, effective August 30, is a necessary step to help keep the community safe and is consistent with COVID-19 public health guidance. This policy will also apply to interns, volunteers, substitutes, and contractors… All unvaccinated employees will be required to be tested at least weekly for COVID-19 to limit the potential spread in the workforce and in the community. Testing will be provided at no cost to the employee.” [Arlington County]

Mask Mandate for Va. Schools — “Virginia will require all students, teachers and staff in K-12 schools to wear masks indoors this fall, even if they are vaccinated, Gov. Ralph Northam (D) announced Thursday. The mandate, set forth in a public health emergency order, is sure to stir controversy and anger amid an already fractious debate over education in the state.” [Washington Post, Gov. Ralph Northam]

Schools

Federal Court Rules in Favor of APS in Drawn-Out Education Dispute

By Jo DeVoe

Published July 30, 2021 at 2:15PM | Updated July 30, 2021 at 2:56PM

The Arlington Public Schools Syphax Education Center (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 2:50 p.m.) A multi-year legal battle between a family and Arlington Public Schools over the appropriateness of their child’s special education support ended this summer with a decision in APS’s favor, handed down by federal court.

While the avenues for dispute resolution dead-end there for the family, the decision provides an insight into how fraught the special education system can be. What is supposed to be a collaborative effort among schools and parents can turn into a grueling legal process if the parents and the school system disagree over aspects of the child’s disability or which setting best meets their needs.

Schools

JUST IN: APS Announces Universal Mask Mandate for Return to School

By Jo DeVoe

Published July 30, 2021 at 11:00AM

Arlington Public Schools will require universal masking at the start of the school year, regardless of vaccination status, according to an email to families this morning.

The order applies to all students, staff and visitors inside APS buildings and on school buses, Superintendent Francisco Durán said in the announcement. Masks will not be required when eating or during outside recess, P.E. class, athletics and other outdoor activities.

Schools

Divide Over School-Issued Devices Remains After Year of Online Learning

By Anuj Khemka

Published July 29, 2021 at 3:45PM

Arlington Public Schools students learning on their devices while in-person during the pandemic (via APS/X)

Seven years after the initial rollout of Arlington Public Schools’ digital learning initiative, and after a year of heavier use due to distance-learning, opinions on tech in schools remain divided.

For today’s students and parents, virtual learning during the pandemic only highlighted the benefits of and exacerbated the drawbacks to iPads and laptops. Parents say their kids struggle to focus, navigate programs and engage with the material. Students tell ARLnow that the devices can make their learning easier, more efficient and more interesting, but some have also outsmarted controls to watch TV and play games.

Schools

APS Encourages More Parents to Enroll As It Prepares for Full-Time In-Person School

By Jo DeVoe

Published July 23, 2021 at 3:35PM

With one month to go before school starts, parents are being urged to enroll their kids in some Arlington public schools amid a continued drop in enrollment.

Screenshots and emails provided to ARLnow indicate some elementary schools, including Discovery and Jamestown, need just a few more kindergarteners before they can officially get one more kindergarten class. The correspondences say the extra class would reduce class sizes and keep teachers at the school they were teaching at last year.

News

County to Remove Barriers on S. Carlin Springs Road This Weekend

By Dana Munro

Published July 23, 2021 at 11:15AM

Right lane of S. Carlin Springs Road opens to traffic again on Saturday (via Department of Environmental Services/Twitter)

Temporary bollards and wheel stops along a segment of S. Carlin Springs Road are set to come down this weekend.

Since March, these barriers — closing off the northbound right travel lane from 8th Place S. to 5th Road S. — have been up to give more room to kids walking to their neighborhood schools. On Saturday (July 24), S. Carlin Springs Road will fully reopen to traffic, according to a tweet from Arlington’s Department of Environmental Services.

Opinion

Morning Poll: School in an Office Building?

By ARLnow.com

Published July 23, 2021 at 9:00AM

Office buildings in Crystal City (Staff photo by Jay Westcott)

The capacity crunch at Arlington Public Schools is not as dire as it once was, particularly after the pandemic, but there is still a need for more school seats in certain areas.

One place where a school might be needed: the National Landing area, where hundreds of new apartments are planned and where the nearest elementary school — Oakridge, in the Arlington Ridge neighborhood — is getting increasingly overcrowded, according to APS projections.

News

Morning Poll: Should Kids Wear Masks in Elementary Schools?

By ARLnow.com

Published July 22, 2021 at 9:00AM | Updated July 22, 2021 at 9:22AM

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam sits in on a lesson in Mr. Foster's class at Barcroft Elementary School during a visit Monday morning (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Virginia is “strongly” recommending that all elementary students, staff and teachers wear masks indoors this fall.

The guidance from the state health and education departments, which is not binding, recommends requiring masks until “there has been sufficient time to allow for children [under 12] to be fully vaccinated,” the Washington Post reported.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 22, 2021 at 7:30AM | Updated July 22, 2021 at 9:04AM

A family cycling through the intersection of S. Eads Street and 15th Street S. in Crystal City near HQ2 construction (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Pentagon City Suspect Charged With Murder — “Taya Ashton, 20, was found shot to death at an apartment in the 2300 block of Brooks Drive in Suitland on Saturday night, Prince George’s County police said. A day after her slaying, Arlington County police arrested DeAllen Price, of District Heights, for running from officers and going on the Metro tracks at the Pentagon City station, police said… Metro Transit Police and a K9 officer searched the tracks and found a weapon they later linked to Ashton’s murder, police said.” [NBC 4]

Gunston Bubble Going Bye-Bye — “The iconic, yet temperamental, sports ‘bubble’ adjacent to Gunston Middle School will soon be replaced by a barn-like framed structure that will provide more reliability and accessibility, Arlington government officials said. County Board members have approved a contract worth up to $866,800 for installation of the new Clear Span frame-supported fabric structure, which had been purchased previously.” [Sun Gazette]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 21, 2021 at 7:30AM

The hot sun beats down on a local sign (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Jan. 6 First Responders Recognized — “The Arlington County Board today gave special honors and recognition to members of Arlington County Police Department, Fire Department and Sheriff’s Office for their efforts to respond to the Capitol riot on January 6. Approximately 60 personnel were honored during the event today at the County Board Recessed meeting.” [Arlington County]

Fmr. APS Students Staying in Private School — “Ten-year-old Jonah Kaufman of Arlington is proud of his 4th grade report card from the private school he attends in northern Virginia… it was a far different story in 2020 when Jonah and his 8-year-old brother, Noah, were in a public school, trying to learn from home during COVID-19. ‘They weren’t learning,’ Jena Kotler, the boy’s mother says. ‘They were sad, they felt isolated. It was just crazy.'” [WJLA]

Schools

Gov. Ralph Northam Visits Barcroft Elementary

By Jo DeVoe

Published July 19, 2021 at 2:20PM

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam sits in on a lesson in Mr. Foster's class at Barcroft Elementary School during a visit Monday morning (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Gov. Ralph Northam and Virginia Secretary of Education Atif Qarni visited Barcroft Elementary School today (Monday) to get a glimpse of summer learning opportunities in Arlington Public Schools.

The visit is part of a tour of Virginia schools offering summer learning to select students in most need of academic support after a year of virtual learning. In Arlington, more than 4,600 students are enrolled in summer learning, of whom nearly 3,500 are attending in person.

News

Arlington PTA Leaders Consider Ways to Distribute Funding More Equitably

By Jo DeVoe

Published July 15, 2021 at 3:45PM | Updated July 15, 2021 at 5:52PM

Arlington PTA budgets for the 2018-19 school year, by region (by Hannah Foley)

Parent-Teacher Associations are how students get new spirit wear or go ice skating with their class. They host staff luncheons during Teacher Appreciation Week and help to pay for classroom supplies.

These independent organizations play a pivotal role in the kinds of enrichment opportunities to which students, primarily elementary schoolers, and teachers in Arlington Public Schools have access.