Washington-Liberty | ARLnow.com

Morning Notes

Published October 19, 2012 at 8:05AM

Glee Star to Visit W-L Today — Glee star Lauren Potter and Best Buddies founder Anthony Shriver will be visiting Washington-Lee High School’s Best Buddies chapter at 3:00 p.m. today (Friday). “The Washington-Lee chapter of Best Buddies was ranked number one among DC-MD-VA chapters based on the quality of friendships, student leadership and dedication to the Best Buddies mission,” according to Arlington Public Schools. Potter, who has Down syndrome, is best known for her role as Becky Jackson on the hit Fox TV series.

Chef Beats Out ‘Chief’ in Culinary Competition — Eventide Chef Adam Barnett emerged as the big winner in the Arlington Food Assistance Center’s “Chiefs vs. Chefs” cooking competition between professional restaurant chefs and amateur firehouse cooks. AFAC hopes to turn the fundraiser into an annual event. [Sun Gazette]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published October 10, 2012 at 9:05AM

Gun Confiscated at DCA — TSA agents confiscated a 9mm handgun from a 59-year-old Fairfax man who tried to bring it with him on his trip to Dallas. The TSA said the man, who was charged with a misdemeanor weapons offense, was “just a forgetful passenger” and not a terrorist. [Washington Post]

WAMU Offers Voter Guide — WAMU has built an interactive voter guide for D.C. area elections. Among the races where voters can compare and contrast positions are the Virginia Eighth District congressional race, the Arlington County Board race, and the non-competitive Arlington School Board race.

Schools

Anti-Abortion Protest Outside W-L High School

By ARLnow.com

Published October 5, 2012 at 2:45PM

An anti-abortion protest was held outside Washington-Lee High School this morning.

A group of anti-abortion protesters held signs and displayed graphic photos of aborted fetuses. This afternoon, W-L principal Gregg Robertson sent an email to parents filling in some details about the protests.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published September 25, 2012 at 8:30AM

County Offering Grants for Runoff Projects — Arlington County is seeking local residents, businesses and homeowners associations interested in reducing stormwater runoff and pollution from their property. Using $80,000 received from the Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund, the county will offer cost-sharing grants to those who want to embark on runoff-reducing projects, like green roofs, rain gardens, conservation landscaping, infiltration trenches, cisterns, and pervious walkways and driveways. [Washington Post]

Arlington Teen Named ‘National Student Poet’ — Washington-Lee senior Luisa Banchoff, 17, has been named one of five 2012 National Student Poets, the “country’s highest honor for youth poets presenting original work.” [Patch, Art & Writing Awards]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published August 17, 2012 at 9:10AM | Updated August 17, 2012 at 10:37AM

Parents Speak Out Against New Bus Policy — Some parents spoke out against Arlington Public Schools’ new voucher-based school bus policy at last night’s School Board meeting. The policy will result in some students no longer being able to ride the bus to school. School Board member Abby Raphael said the changes are necessary: “Our school system is growing,” she said. “We have to adapt and make changes. It’s very expensive to add a bus and a bus driver.” [Sun Gazette]

APAH Asks For School Supply Donations — The Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing is seeking donations of school supplies. APAH will fill backbacks with the supplies and give them to about 250 disadvantaged students ahead of the first day of school. [Arlington Mercury]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published August 15, 2012 at 10:00AM | Updated August 15, 2012 at 10:29AM

W-L Softball Field Price Tag Increases — The anticipated cost of a new softball field for Washington-Lee High School has increased from $1 million to $1.3 million, after contractor bids came in above expectations. [Sun Gazette]

APS Students Excel on Math Tests — Arlington students have performed significantly better on state mathematics tests than other Virginia students, across all grade levels. “These results reflect the hard work done in the past year by students to master the new, more challenging mathematics standards,” said Superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy. “We credit students and teachers for their abilities to meet the higher expectations set by the new standards.” [Arlington Public Schools]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 25, 2012 at 8:45AM

W-L Softball Field Approved — The Arlington County Board has unanimously approved use permits for a new softball field at Washington-Lee High School. The $1 million field will include lighting, grandstands, and a press box.

Comcast Doubling Internet Speeds — Arlington is one of the areas where Comcast is increasing its internet speeds this week. The company says it’s doubling the internet speeds of Arlington customers who currently have the Blast 25 Mbps or the Extreme 50 Mbps internet service, at no additional cost. “This is the seventh time since 2002 that Comcast has increased speeds for its customers,” Comcast spokeswoman Alisha Martin said.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 10, 2012 at 9:15AM

Undocumented W-L Valedictorian “Still Kind of Scared” — This year’s Washington-Lee High School valedictorian, 17-year-old Nataly Montano, is one of the young people impacted by President Obama’s recent policy decision to pull back on the deportation of undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. Montano, a 4.3 GPA student, says she is “still kind of scared sometimes because things could happen to get me deported.” [Sun Gazette]

New Washington Blvd Trail to Impact Trees — A new trail extension planned for Washington Boulevard between Columbia Pike and Route 50 will result in the removal of “about 350 trees.” The plan has, on some level, pitted bicycle advocates against tree huggers, according to a blog post. [Commuter Page Blog]

Schools

County Board to Consider New W-L Softball Field

By ARLnow.com

Published June 28, 2012 at 2:30PM

The Arlington School Board approved the $1 million softball field project at its Nov. 15, 2011 meeting. According to a project timeline published earlier this year, construction on the new field is expected to begin as soon as next month, and should wrap up by late winter or early spring 2013.

Arlington Public Schools spokesman Frank Bellavia confirmed that the new field is expected to be ready by the next softball season. The $1 million cost will be split between the school system and Arlington County, he said.

News

Police: Man Flashed Boy in W-L Parking Garage

By ARLnow.com

Published June 26, 2012 at 12:05PM | Updated June 26, 2012 at 12:47PM

The incident happened around 10:15 a.m. A white male in his 40s, wearing nothing but white athletic socks and white Nike shoes, jumped out and exposed himself to the boy in a secluded part of the parking garage, according to ACPD spokesman Dustin Sternbeck. There was also some incidental contact between the man and the boy, Sternbeck said.

The boy, who was at the school for an orientation session for rising freshmen, ran off and reported the incident to school staff, Sternbeck said. Numerous police officers and a K-9 unit searched for the suspect but were unable to locate him.

News

President Obama Visits Washington-Lee High School

By ARLnow.com

Published May 4, 2012 at 12:45PM | Updated May 4, 2012 at 11:54PM

(Updated at 7:35 p.m.) President Obama visited Washington-Lee High School in Arlington today, continuing his push to get Congress to act on legislation that would prevent federally subsidized student loan rates from doubling on July 1.

The president met for a private round table discussion with three students before addressing an enthusiastic crowd of more than a thousand Washington-Lee juniors, seniors, and parents in the school gymnasium.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published May 4, 2012 at 8:40AM

Obama to Visit W-L Today — President Obama will be making a lunchtime visit to Washington-Lee High School today. Expect heightened security in the area.

Bus Stop Improvements — The County has been making improvements to certain bus stops around Arlington. One recent stop to get a makeover — complete with a shelter and a Capital Bikeshare station — is at 15th and Hayes Streets in Pentagon City. [Arlington Transit]