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Morning Notes

Published August 3, 2020 at 6:00AM

Work on the Memorial Bridge in August (Flickr pool photo by John Sonderman)

Dozens March for Racial Justice — “A group of about 100 people marched more than three miles on a hot August afternoon through Arlington demanding justice for victims of police brutality and calling on the county’s elected officials to bring police reform to the county.” [Patch]

Police Investigating More KKK Stickers — “Stickers that appear to promote the Ku Klux Klan have been found on traffic signs and utility boxes in Arlington over the past month, Arlington police said… They were found between July 2 and 28 in four locations, mostly in the Yorktown neighborhood, on the back of traffic signs and on a utility box.” [Washington Post]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 30, 2020 at 7:30AM

I-66 and the Metro tracks near East Falls Church (staff photo)

Trash Collection Delays — “Due to truck breakdowns, some residential trash/recycling routes were not completed yesterday and today. If your trash and/or recycling carts have not been emptied, please leave them at the curb for collection.” [Arlington County]

BLM Event Planned on Saturday — The group Arlington for Justice is holding a March for Black Lives on Saturday from 4-6 p.m. The event will start at the Charles Drew Community Center in Green Valley (3500 23rd Street S.). [Facebook]

Schools

Petition Asks Arlington Schools to Ditch Microsoft Teams and Use Zoom Instead

By Vernon Miles

Published July 27, 2020 at 2:10PM | Updated July 27, 2020 at 2:49PM

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

(Updated at 2:45 p.m.) Arlington Public Schools is using Microsoft Teams to facilitate its online learning and some users dislike it so much they’ve started a Change.org petition to try to get APS to use Zoom instead.

“The foundation of any good virtual program rests on the video conferencing platform(s) used,” the petition organizers said. “From our experience this past spring, Microsoft Teams was not an accessible or user-friendly solution for successful remote learning. We would like to bring your attention to the issues many of us had with Microsoft Teams and implore you to make a change.”

News

Arlington NAACP Calls for Removal of Police Stationed at Schools

By ARLnow.com

Published July 24, 2020 at 3:55PM | Updated July 24, 2020 at 4:24PM

Arlington police officer interacts with kids (photo via ACPD)

(Updated at 4:25 p.m.) The Arlington branch of the NAACP says School Resource Officers should be removed by Arlington Public Schools.

SROs are sworn Arlington County Police officers who are stationed in schools. In addition to providing added security, an SRO “mentors, educators and coaches” for students, the police department says.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 22, 2020 at 7:30AM

County Launches COVID Dashboard — “Just launched: Arlington’s COVID Data Dashboard with comprehensive information on cases by age, race and zip code; trends in % pos testing; date of symptom onset; and more. Track the course of the pandemic with us, here. And stay safe and mask up!” [Twitter, Arlington County]

Shirlington Parking Challenges — “Shirlington has significant amounts of surface and garage parking, but much of it is restricted during working hours to ensure employees have a place to park. (Many, though not all, of those spaces become available to the general public after 5 p.m.) ‘There’s lots of parking – [but] what’s there isn’t allocated very well,’ County Board Chairman Libby Garvey said.” [InsideNova]

Schools

School Start Pushed to September With Online-Only Classes

By Vernon Miles

Published July 17, 2020 at 1:45PM

It’s official: Arlington Public Schools will now open on Sept. 8, and classes will be held entirely online.

Superintendent Francisco Durán announced his decision to host online-only classes on Tuesday, at least for the first half of the fall semester, and spoke in more detail about the plan at a School Board meeting yesterday (Thursday).

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 15, 2020 at 7:30AM | Updated September 23, 2020 at 11:09AM

Va. to Step Up Restaurant Enforcement — “Recognizing an increase in COVID-19 cases in parts of the state, particularly in the Hampton Roads area, Gov. Ralph Northam is increasing enforcement of the state’s rules around the coronavirus… State licensing agencies will be conducting unannounced visits to establishments, as needed, and the state health department is shifting an additional 100 staff members to its existing team of 500 inspectors.” [InsideNova]

Barrels Fail to Stop Rogue I-395 Driver — Someone stopped their car on a highway, got out, and moved an orange barrel in order to avoid a slight delay while driving from Arlington to D.C. on I-395. [Twitter]

Schools

BREAKING: Superintendent to Propose Online-Only Start to School Year

By ARLnow.com

Published July 14, 2020 at 2:25PM | Updated July 14, 2020 at 2:52PM

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

(Updated at 2:50 p.m.) Arlington Public Schools would start the new school year a week later than originally planned, and with full time distance learning, under a new plan being proposed by new Superintendent Francisco Durán.

That’s according to a School Talk email just sent to APS families.

Schools

Teachers Call for Online-Only Return to School

By ARLnow.com

Published July 13, 2020 at 3:30PM | Updated September 23, 2020 at 11:14AM

Arlington Public Schools headquarters (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 5:15 p.m.) An increasingly vocal group of parents and teachers are calling on Arlington Public Schools to scrap plans to have most students return to classrooms twice per week.

The current APS “hybrid” plan calls for two cohorts of students each going into school two days per week, while wearing masks and practicing physical distancing. It also allows parents and students to opt for online-only learning.

Opinion

Morning Poll: Should APS Students Go Back to Class Full-Time in the Fall?

By ARLnow.com

Published July 9, 2020 at 10:00AM | Updated September 23, 2020 at 11:14AM

Arlington Public Schools is planning to start the fall semester with most students spending just two days a week in classrooms.

The “hybrid” model would see students spending the other three days a week leaning remotely, from home, a plan similar to that just announced by the country’s largest school system.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 8, 2020 at 8:30AM

Deadline Set for Back to School Choice — “APS will provide two instructional delivery methods for families to choose from – hybrid in-person with physical distancing or full-time distance learning – when school resumes. Families will have until July 20 at 5 p.m. to select one of the two instructional delivery methods. If families do not select one of the two options by the deadline, their selection will automatically default to the hybrid instructional delivery model.” [Arlington Public Schools]

HS Athletes Understanding of Cancellations — “Senior track and field stars Isaiah Mefford of Wakefield High and Rebecca Stewart of Washington-Liberty could have won state crowns during the outdoor spring season. ‘It was disappointing for all of us, but people were getting sick. So something had to be done,’ Mefford said. Said Stewart: ‘With all that was happening with that virus, we couldn’t think about ourselves.'” [InsideNova]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 7, 2020 at 9:00AM

Special Election Voting Today — Voting is underway in the three-way special election to fill the late Erik Gutshall’s County Board seat. Polls are open from 6 a.m.-7 p.m. The candidates are Takis Karantonis, Susan Cunningham and Bob Cambridge. “Don’t forget your photo ID, ballpoint pen, and face mask,” Arlington’s election office said this morning in a tweet. [Twitter]

No Incentive Payments for Amazon This Year — “Amazon.com Inc. won’t receive any direct cash payments from Arlington County, this year at least, for its HQ2 office leases… because Amazon’s incentive payments are tied to Arlington’s tourism industry. And many rooms remain empty to this day.” [Washington Business Journal]