News

While County Board members have agreed to save gymnastics programming, advocates now fear that a proposed hike in participation fees may still make the programs inaccessible for many families.

At last week’s budget-markup session, Board members settled on a proposal that would increase participation fees for the Arlington Aerials and Arlington Tigers gymnastics programs 44% in the coming year.


Around Town

A youth production combining the worlds of Sherlock Holmes and Alice in Wonderland is debuting at Arlington’s Encore Stage & Studio.

Sherlock in Wonderland” opened last Friday at Thomas Jefferson Community Center (3501 S. 2nd Street), marking the second collaboration between Encore and playwright Lynne Streeter Childress.


Schools

A rally in support of after-school programming in Arlington will take place later this week at Kenmore Middle School.

Organizers plan to ask leaders to “work with us over the next year to ensure that what has been called a pilot program will become permanent, with ongoing funding and a path toward expansion to meet the needs of children in our community,” said Marjorie Green of Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement (VOICE).


News

Supporters of Arlington youth gymnastics turned out last night (Tuesday) to press county leaders on planned cuts to local programs.

A $1.7 billion budget proposal from County Manager Mark Schwartz calls for shuttering the Arlington Aerials and Arlington Tigers, along with community gymnastics programs, at Barcroft Sports & Fitness Center. The programs, operated by the Department of Parks and Recreation, do not recoup costs through user fees, Schwartz and staff have said.


Around Town

Mid-winter is a good time for Arlington families to start thinking about summer camps, and a new guide aims to ease the decision-making process this year.

CampARL.com launched last fall, and founder Anne Lyons Knapp has been tweaking it as parents begin thinking about camp opportunities during spring break, teacher workdays and the summer season.


News

Staff and volunteers at Virginia Cooperative Extension put on a showcase of the year gone by and plans for the future last week.

From healthier meals to more energy-efficient living, those serving Arlington out of the Fairlington Community Center shared their experience helping thousands of local residents this year and every year.


Around Town

A holiday toy drive born out of pandemic-era restrictions returned last weekend to the Yorktown neighborhood.

Knights of Columbus Arlington Council 2473 once again hosted a drop-off collection site for Toys for Tots, continuing a tradition of spreading cheer to local children.


Around Town

They entered as a typical group of Arlington teens and tweens. Within 90 minutes, they had been transformed into, among others, a monster, princess, a pumpkin and a unicorn.

The metamorphosis came courtesy of Encore Stage & Studio, which on Oct. 25 hosted its first-ever Halloween-makeup workshop at Cherrydale United Methodist Church.


Schools

A record number of fifth graders from Germany have come to Arlington this year through the county’s sister city program.

Students, parents and civic leaders from the city of Aachen arrived in the United States on Oct. 8 and will stay through Oct. 16. They are being hosted by Arlington families representing 16 public and four private schools, in a quarter-century collaboration sponsored by the Arlington Sister City Association.


News

A new restorative justice program for youth has scored some success but continues to grapple with layered challenges around juvenile offenses in Arlington, leaders say.

“What stands out most is the complexity of needs among the young people we serve,” said Devanshi Patel, CEO of the nonprofit Center for Youth and Family Advocacy (CYFA).


News

Ensuring access to affordable, high-quality daycare and early-childhood education has landed near the top of the Arlington County Board’s 2025 legislative wish list.

The cost of child care in Northern Virginia is “more expensive than college,” Board member Takis Karantonis said at the body’s Tuesday (Dec. 3) work session with members of the county’s delegation to the General Assembly.


News

A new program diverting teens from the criminal justice system has seen 27 referrals for a variety of criminal offenses, largely related to theft, assault and drug and alcohol violations.

Shoplifting and physical disagreements with peers are exactly the kinds of crimes Devanshi Patel expects to see go through the program, run by the nonprofit she leads called the Center for Youth and Family Advocacy (CYFA).


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