Schools

Arlington School Board candidates nab endorsements from sitting chair, former administrator

By Jo DeVoe
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Outgoing Arlington School Board chair Reid Goldstein has endorsed School Board candidate Angelo Cocchiaro in the race to replace him.

While Goldstein is the first sitting School Board member to endorse a candidate thus far, his opponent Miranda Turner was endorsed by a former top-level administrator for Arlington Public Schools.

Cocchiaro announced news of the endorsement today (Monday), less than a week after quieting talk that he was pulling out of the race. He will be going up against Turner, a second-time candidate, to gain the endorsement of the Arlington County Democratic Committee.

Goldstein said Cocchiaro’s youth and lived experience will be an asset to the School Board as it tackles issues plaguing students, including drug use and mental health.

We have seen critical student issues recently surrounding mental health, safety and security, and substance abuse — with many calls for our response to include student voices. With the distinct advantage of his youth, Angelo Cocchiaro is the candidate best positioned to listen, understand, and bring student solutions to student issues. Achievement will never progress until the issues impeding learning are resolved. He will uphold, defend, and advance the progress this School Board has achieved. Angelo has my full and complete endorsement to serve as my successor on the School Board.

Cocchiaro thanked Goldstein for his endorsement in a statement. He said he supports the progressive policy stances the Goldstein and the School Board have taken on grading for equity and removing School Resource Officers.

“I stand behind the progress that has been achieved,” he said. “I have also supported this School Board’s leadership in other areas, such as when they protected school communities from a premature pandemic reopening, and resisted calls to go the other way… And yet, I will differ from this School Board in bringing my unique lived experiences to the table, and I will push progress even further.”

APS closed in March 2020 and started to reopen on a two-day-a-week hybrid basis one year later, mandated by the state and then-Gov. Ralph Northam (D) and, added more days later at the urging of the School Board. Dueling parent groups formed to advocate for a faster return and greater caution.

Turner, a parent who has been involved with local PTAs and a superintendent’s advisory committee, made a name for herself calling for a quicker return to school. One of her top priorities now is learning loss attributed to pandemic-era educational disruptions.

She was endorsed by Brian Stockton, the former Chief of Staff for Arlington Public Schools.

“In every interaction I had with her, it was clear that she was committed to the notion that every student deserves the opportunity to achieve their full potential,” he said in a statement Turner’s campaign shared with ARLnow. “She has and will continue to be a highly-involved parent and community member who puts the needs of Arlington County children first and foremost.”

His endorsement continues as follows.

Miranda has shown dedication to children at all levels that was fair and equitable, and she has continually fought to ensure APS is seeking to maintain high standards for academic achievement for every student. Her display of love for the community demonstrates a genuine concern and kindness for the well-being of the children of Arlington. It is clear to me that she possesses the mastery and skills required for effective Board management and governance.

Furthermore, Miranda possesses the temperament, knowledge and commitment to Arlington County that is required for today and the future. I believe she will be a strong asset for Arlington County parents and students, and as such she has my unfettered endorsement.

Arlington School Board candidate Angelo Cocchiaro quells ‘rumor’ he is dropping out of race

By Jo DeVoe
Angelo Cocchiaro (courtesy photo)

Arlington School Board candidate Angelo Cocchiaro is not dropping out of the race, despite a statement to that effect that briefly appeared on his website Friday.

In it, Cocchiaro implied that he was experiencing challenges raising money and could not afford an effective campaign. He pledged to continue advocating for students using the network of advisory boards within Arlington Public Schools.

Sources within the local Democratic party say he might have been talked out of the decision to drop out, as one of only two candidates in the race — but only after the statement appeared on his website.

In a statement this morning to ARLnow, Cocchiaro called the idea that he was dropping out a “rumor” and added that his campaign is just heating up.

I look forward to participating in the Civic Federation candidate forum this Tuesday, announcing my candidacy to the assembled Arlington Democrats this Wednesday evening, and participating in their candidate forum on Saturday.

This should be considered a comprehensive response to the rumor of a withdrawal on my part. I did not get into this race to play gossip or rumor-monger. I got in this race to do what I’ve always done, and what I do best: advocate on behalf of youth. I am focused on bringing Arlingtonians together — and never, ever, being a divider — and delivering the change that’s overdue.

This should be considered a final comment on the matter. Neither I, nor my campaign, will be making any further statement on the matter in writing or at any public events.

A local parent preserved the initial statement, since removed, in a series of screenshots on Twitter.

“When I got into this race, I had no interest whatsoever in walking away with a moral victory,” his statement read. “My intent from Day One was to win outright. The reality is that it is a common pitfall of young candidates to experience fundraising challenges.”

The statement noted this can be an “insurmountable hurdle” for a “historically young candidate” like himself.

“After a frank assessment, it has become apparent to me that I cannot run the kind of [the] race I want to run, need to run, and that Arlington deserves without a dramatic change on this front. As such, the path to victory I once saw now appears foreclosed,” the statement continued.

While he would not be a candidate “in the near future,” Cocchiaro said in the statement that he would participate in advisory boards to promote generational change within Arlington Public Schools on his top priorities, including addressing hunger, adding a student voice on the School Board and ensuring equal treatment for LGBT students.

“I’ll be back,” he said in conclusion, quoting Arnold Schwarzenegger in “The Terminator.”

Cocchiaro will be going up against second-time candidate Miranda Turner to gain the endorsement of the Arlington County Democratic Committee (ACDC).

The local Democratic party does not officially nominate a School Board candidate, but its members can choose who runs in the November general election with the party’s endorsement. The endorsement process includes an expectation that unsuccessful candidates do not then try to run in the general election.

The voting for the endorsement will be held at three different locations on the following dates.

  • May 7, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Drew Elementary School
  • May 10, from 7-9 p.m. at Campbell Elementary School
  • May 13, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Washington-Liberty High School

After student overdose, local addiction treatment facility to resume working with youth

By Jo DeVoe
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Seven years after ending its substance use treatment options for youth, a local facility is poised to resume providing some outpatient services.

National Capital Treatment & Recovery CEO Debby Taylor tells ARLnow that Arlington County approached the center about providing therapeutic services to youth in the county after 14-year-old Sergio Flores fatally overdosed at Wakefield High School. The center has since obtained licensure to provide intensive outpatient and outpatient services and could be ready to debut its programming this spring.

“We had always hoped to get back in adolescent treatment, but we felt that we needed to do just the outpatient services at this point,” she said.

Since Flores died in late January, the county and Arlington Public Schools have mounted a “full court press” to address this issue, Dept. of Human Services Deputy Director Deborah Warren told the Arlington County Board during a joint work session with Arlington Public Schools this past Friday.

“The tragic loss of the 14-year-old has knitted the county and APS in a way we weren’t before,” Warren said. “I’m really impressed with the rapid response and the alignment on the urgency of the problem. We are developing all kinds of innovative ideas for how to help children and adolescents to address the emotional mental health crisis.”

In addition to the forthcoming contract with National Capital Treatment & Recovery, the county is looking to put DHS clinicians in high schools and work with neighboring jurisdictions to open a medicated withdrawal and treatment facility for adolescents. Arlington Addiction Recovery Initiative has ramped up training in the opioid reversal drug naloxone and the distribution of Narcan and fentanyl test strips.

“All staff members will be trained in the use of naloxone by the end of April,” APS Executive Director of Student Services Darrell Sampson told the County Boar. “Naloxone is available on all floors in secondary schools and we are exploring additional mental health education for school staff and high school students.”

Warren said fatalities from overdoses have reduced 40% through AARI’s training and distribution efforts.

“This is literally saving lives,” she said.

The number of fatal overdoses peaked in 2021 and has since decreased dramatically, Suzanne Somerville, the county’s bureau director of residential and specialized clinical services, tells ARLnow.

“AARI believes that it is related to the distribution and accessibility of harm reduction services,” she said. “The county has made a strong push to get Naloxone and Fentanyl Test Strips to anyone who is interested. We tracked the distribution of harm reduction tools and number of overdoses and extrapolate that there is a correlation between the two.”

Fatal overdoses versus harm reduction (courtesy of AARI)

That said, AARI has noticed “a significant increase in younger people overdosing” related to pressed pills, she noted. There have been seven juvenile overdoses, of which one was fatal, seven juvenile Narcan uses and 17 total opioid incidents involving minors.

That is why DHS is focused on filling the gaps in substance use treatment for youth, beginning with National Capital Treatment & Recovery, with which Warren said her department is “on the cusp” of a contract.

“We have significant gaps in our system of care for substance use disorders in kids,” Warren said. “We have really developed these services for adults in the last five to six years, in response to the opioid crisis. We are working hard to develop contracts with vendors to fill in these gaps.”

Taylor anticipates opening in about a month, after finalizing the paperwork and hiring clinicians, preferably those who are bilingual. The county has offered to cover operating costs until the program is accredited and can take insurance reimbursements.

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Arlington School Board settles on proposed budget, but has concerns about using reserve funds

By Jo DeVoe
The Arlington School Board on Thursday, March 30, 2023 (via APS)

With a few minor revisions, the Arlington School Board adopted the superintendent’s budget recommendation as its own proposed budget last week.

Their approval came with the caveat that the $803.7 million budget could change between now and the final approval, which is set for a future School Board meeting on May 11.

The changes last week added more funding for virtual tutoring and uniforms for bus drivers and reduced funding for trailers and a compensation study by a total of $300,000.

Revisions to the proposed 2024 Arlington Public Schools budget (via Arlington Public Schools)

Board Chair Reid Goldstein signaled that members have the next month to smooth over “many items that we were not able to come to a consensus on.”

“In many past years, the School Board’s proposed budget gave a good indication of what the final budget will look like. That may not be the case this year,” he said. “I cannot say there will be radical changes between this proposed and the final on May 11, but I also can’t say there will be minimal changes. I just have to say we are continuing to work on it.”

He is concerned that Superintendent Francisco Durán’s budget relies on $40 million in reserve funds, an emerging trend giving other board members and school staff pause, too.

“Besides the concern that those reserve buckets may not be able to be refilled, there’s the fact that that puts us in a $40 million hole when we start the budget process next year,” Goldstein said.

Next fiscal year, APS could use years of savings from a number of sources, including unfilled positions, to fund cost-of-living adjustments and salary increases for all staff.

Durán told the Arlington County Board on Friday this aligns APS with Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed budget and makes the school system’s compensation scale more competitive with nearby districts.

County Board Chair Christian Dorsey said it is “a reasonable choice to use savings in personnel on personnel that you actually have.”

“I can tell you, anecdotally, [Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Management Services] Leslie Peterson is worried, if that tells you anything,” Board Vice-Chair Cristina Diaz-Torres replied.

“This has been an ongoing discussion for many, many years, in the sense that we have had a habit of needing to use reserves in order to cover for core instruction in the past,” she added, noting the proposal leaves APS with $17 million in reserves “to sustain us for any ongoing overages for next year.”

Durán pointed out more than 55% of the reserves used comes from compensation reserves, which are replenished annually with savings from unfilled positions or new hires, who earn less than the longer-tenured staff they replaced. That money is earmarked for future compensation spending.

“It’s been a practice for us to separate that out and show the public and show our staff that all the money coming from lapse and turnover at closeout is going to be dedicated toward compensation reserves,” he said.

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Arlington Public Schools promotes Gunston, Wakefield principals to new posts

By Jo DeVoe
Gunston Middle School Principal Lori Wiggins (left) and Wakefield High School Principal Chris Willmore (right)

Last Thursday, the Arlington School Board promoted two veteran secondary school principals to new positions.

Wakefield High School Principal Chris Willmore will become Director of Secondary Education while Gunston Middle School Principal Lori Wiggins will lead Arlington Community High School.

Their appointments are effective July 1.

Willmore began his career at APS in 1995 as a teacher at the Spanish immersion school Escuela Key. After briefly leaving the school system, he returned in 1999 as a teacher in the Gunston’s immersion program. Willmore became an assistant principal at Wakefield High School in 2002 and eight years later, was named principal.

“I have loved my time at Wakefield and I am very proud of what the Wakefield community has accomplished and what the Wakefield student body and community represents,” Willmore told the School Board during last Thursday’s meeting. “As I hear time and time again, Wakefield is what the world will look like and our students at Wakefield get to experience that now, every day that they come to school.”

In an email to the school community, shared with ARLnow, Willmore said he poured his heart and soul into his work “because I feel strongly that that is the bare minimum of what our incredible students and staff deserve.”

After a 13-year tenure, which he described as an anomaly, he said he asked Superintendent Francisco Durán about changing jobs.

“This was a difficult decision for me to come to, but I feel that this is the right path forward for me and ultimately for Wakefield,” he continued.

The high school experienced difficult times earlier this year after a 14-year-old overdosed in a school bathroom and later died at the hospital, prompting the School Board to act and teachers to voice their fears this could happen again if protocols did not change. In late February, the school launched a confidential online form for people to report unsafe situations concerning a student.

Wiggins, meanwhile, has been with APS since 2012, serving as the principal of Gunston Middle School for the last 11 years.

Before coming to Arlington Public Schools, Wiggins worked in West Virginia as the executive director of the Office of Professional Preparation in the state Department of Education. In West Virginia, she also served as a middle school principal and assistant high school principal. She got her start teaching Spanish in East New York, Brooklyn.

Wiggins earned her bachelor’s degree from Messiah College, her master’s from California State University, Northridge, and her doctorate from West Virginia University.

“I am excited about this opportunity,” she told the School Board. “I’m looking forward to being able to grow, being able to bring lessons learned from my 11 years at Gunston, a passion for school leadership, a relentless drive to improve outcomes… and to work with a community that is highly mission driven.”

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Arlington teachers blast decision to remove outside locks from staff bathrooms

By Jo DeVoe
Men’s restroom sign at Sequoia Plaza (staff photo)

A controversial decision by Arlington Public Schools to change staff bathrooms so they do not lock from the outside has incited backlash from a number of teachers.

APS is embarking on a “lock and key” project to maintain the safety and security of buildings and “improve the key inventory process” at its 42 school buildings, per an email sent from Washington-Liberty High School Principal Antonio Hall to staff, shared with ARLnow.

As part of that work, single-occupancy staff bathrooms would be changed to only lock from the inside, granting access to students and staff who previously could not use these facilities.

Bathrooms within classrooms and clinics would have no locking mechanism at all, and for these facilities, “it is encouraged that signage be created if desired,” per an FAQ document prepared for staff, also shared with ARLnow.

The changes will “ensure all staff including maintenance, bus drivers, etc. have access without access to a key. In addition, this conversion ensures that all students have access to a single use bathroom regardless of the reason,” the document said.

Staff were informed of these changes on Wednesday and told they would be happening over spring break, which starts after school lets out today (Friday), teachers say. APS was not able to return a request for comment before deadline.

Teachers, some of whom shared comments to ARLnow under the condition of anonymity, say they feel disrespected by administrators. They are also frustrated that administrators made the decision without consulting any of the three teacher committees, according to Josh Folb, a leader within the teachers union Arlington Education Association.

The teachers who spoke to ARLnow said a number of staff restrooms have already been converted into single-use restrooms accessible to all students, prompting concerns that this will give students another place to use drugs.

Here is what one high school teacher had to say:

It is dumbfounding that less than two months after the death of a student due to overdose and countless more incidents of drug usage and risk assessments, the school district [is] determined to apply an overwhelming mandate that increases student risk (not safety) without any input, thought of execution, within a minimal timeline, and what would be assumed as an astronomical cost. All of this on top of the fact that it would now wholly remove any location for teachers to access a private restroom consistently during the already limited time that we do have.

My imagination runs wild at this notion considering we find new Instagram accounts every year created by students where pictures of teachers are unknowingly taken and posted on social media. This move would allow students to do so with literally our pants down.

A Washington-Liberty High School teacher with 25 years of experience told the School Board in a letter, shared with ARLnow, that he was “surprised and dismayed” by the decision.

“The currently shared single-use restrooms are already busy, and teachers have limited time for access, mainly between classes,” he said. “This decision represents a major change in my working conditions and environment… As a professional, do I also have reasonable access to a single-use restroom without having to use a group restroom with high school boys?”

During a speech to the School Board last night, Folb said the safe and orderly operation of the schools depends on teachers having a private place to respond to nature’s call and students not having a lockable space to consume drugs.

“Have we learned nothing?” he asked.

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Arlington School Board candidate says the Board needs a non-voting student representative

By Jo DeVoe
School Board candidate Angelo Cocchiaro (photos via Angelo Cocchiaro/Facebook, edited by ARLnow)

(Updated at 11:00 a.m.) Should the Arlington School Board have a sixth, non-voting student representative?

One candidate for School Board thinks so. Angelo Cocchiaro argues it would give students a stronger voice and align Arlington with neighboring jurisdictions, including the cities of Falls Church, Fairfax and Alexandria, Prince George’s County in Maryland and D.C.

“So many of the challenges we face as we emerge from this pandemic center around student wellbeing. Especially given the scale of this moment, we need this generation of youth at the table in school policymaking,” says Cocchiaro in a recent statement published on his website. “Arlington should be leading the way on this, especially as we emerge as one of the ‘trendiest Gen Z hubs‘ in the country.”

The issue has come up in previous School Board candidate forums and second-time candidate Miranda Turner told ARLnow she generally is in favor of the addition. She and Cocchiaro are vying for the endorsement of the Arlington County Democratic Committee this May to determine who will run as the defacto Democratic candidate in the November general election. (There are no partisan primaries for School Board elections, but parties can endorse candidates.)

“I’d start with seeking feedback from districts that have already implemented it both from the student and board perspective, and with feedback from students currently serving on our SAB as to whether that provides an effective and meaningful way to advance that student perspective,” Turner told ARLnow, shortly after publication.

In Virginia, having a student representative is left to local practice, similar to 30 other states, according to a 2020 survey by the National School Boards Association. A study it published in 2021 found 14% of the 495 largest school districts in the U.S. have at least one student member.

This past legislative session, Del. Alfonso Lopez introducing a bill that would have made a student representative to school boards a requirement in the Commonwealth, an idea he said came from student political advocacy groups Coalition for Virginia’s Future and the Virginia chapter of Voters of Tomorrow.

This was his first pass at such legislation and it failed in committee, despite, he says, the bill providing deferrance to localities for deciding if students would vote and how they are selected.

“Localities and their advocacy organizations expressed concerns about mandating the participation of a student representative, even with all of the flexibility we included in the legislation,” Lopez tells ARLnow. “Localities preferred to have the option to manage student input however they wished.”

The School Board has never had a non-voting student representative but, for 40 years, has solicited feedback from students through the Student Advisory Board (SAB), says Frank Bellavia, spokesman for Arlington Public Schools.

This is made of eight students from every high school, including H-B Woodlawn sophomore Naya Chopra. She says the SAB also meets with APS staff and other advisory councils to provide feedback on their priorities, such as screen time.

Students decide their top issues and form subcommittees annually that dig into these topics, such as the budget, mental health and sexual assault and harassment, and make recommendations to the School Board at the end of each school year. They do branch out to other topics, recently meeting about drug use, Chopra says.

“We have a direct line of communication and can give feedback on and discuss issues that affect us, and while I can’t speak for the School Board, the hope is that our advice is taken into account as at the end of the day, we are the ones who are directly impacted by the Board’s decisions,” she said.

Chopra says there would be interest in a non-voting position on the board, because “there are still some topics that we have no say in, and are not offered to give our input.”

The current School Board and a former member, however, say the SAB is sufficient.

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APS staff to vote on making Arlington Education Association their official union

By Jo DeVoe
Arlington Education Association members wearing red in the May 26, 2022 School Board meeting, when a collective bargaining resolution was passed (courtesy of Virginia Education Association/Olivia Geho)

Local teachers union Arlington Education Association is vying to become the exclusive collective bargaining representative for public school staff.

Arlington Public Schools educators, led by AEA, will hold an election to certify AEA as the official union for teachers and support staff. Currently, the membership-based organization advocates for employees but cannot guarantee benefits through legally binding contracts.

The forthcoming election would reinstate collective bargaining after more than 40 years without it, according to a press release from the AEA sent yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon.

“The time has come,” said AEA president June Prakash in a statement. “No more decisions about us, without us.”

The Arlington School Board unanimously approved collective bargaining last May, becoming the second school system in Virginia, behind Richmond, to do so. The Virginia General Assembly repealed a ban on unionizing in 2020.

The road since has been rocky. Last fall, some AEA members said they were taking more time to review language in the resolution and were stymied by a communication breakdown between staff and administrators. At the time, only school administrators had elected a bargaining unit.

The next step forward for AEA will be providing APS with its 20-day notice for a union election.

In a statement, AEA Collective Bargaining Committee Chair Juan Andres Otal said collective bargaining will make a positive difference for students and employees of APS.

“Collective bargaining is our opportunity to have a voice in improving our working conditions, compensation, and benefits. We can’t wait any longer for more planning time,” Otal said. “We can’t wait for a wage that keeps up with the cost of living.”

AEA said in its release that it is grateful to the educators and community leaders who “show up and fight for” school employees and students.

“While there is still much work to do before securing a contract, educators acknowledge and celebrate this achievement for the historic moment it is,” the union said.

The statement added:

We know we will ultimately prevail with your ongoing support, leadership, and commitment to what is right. Our schools must acknowledge that to recruit and retain the best, the division must offer better conditions to all employees. We will continue to press forward and ensure our schools remain strong for our community, our educators, and most importantly, our students.

AEA is itself recovering from recent controversies. Earlier this year, former president Ingrid Gant was arrested for embezzling approximately $400,000 in funds from the organization she led for six years, before she and her executive board were ousted. AEA’s national affiliate, the National Education Association, temporarily took the helm.

Prakash became president last year after working as a kindergarten teacher in APS for six years. Since then, she has advocated for better pay and working conditions for employees and more respect from the School Board.

Earlier this month, she called out APS for telling bus drivers to pick up trash. She has also advocated for more equality in raises in the proposed 2023-24 schools operating budget.

“Two things can be true: We can love our jobs and our students, but also, we can demand to be paid what we’re worth,” Prakash said at the March 2 School Board meeting.

Local PTAs and panelists emphasize role of parents in combating student opioid use

By Jo DeVoe
Panelists at the Arlington County Council of PTAs event on drug use on Monday, March 13, 2023 (via CCPTA)

(Updated at 4:15 p.m.) As more parents and caregivers grapple with substance use addiction among youth, they are increasingly turning to the juvenile justice system as a last resort.

Over the past year, there has been upwards of a 100% increase in the number of petitions being made for court-ordered services, such as drug treatment, according to Hon. W. Michael Chick, Jr., a judge with the Arlington County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.

He noted “a dramatic increase” in Child in Need of Services or Supervision petitions, “CHINs” for short, filed by parents. These days, most are related to fentanyl.

“They are coming to the court to say, ‘We’re desperate, please save my child,'” he said in a video message to parents shared during a panel discussion on drugs last night (Monday) hosted by three high school Parent-Teacher Associations and the Arlington County Council of PTAs.

“They are children with severe substance addictions and they’re desperate,” said Chick.

“To have kids come in front of you, asking for a treatment program and you’re not able to provide it — to have a kid beg you to put them in detention to save them from themselves — it’s heartbreaking,” he continued, reinforcing reports that youth are effectively detoxing in the Northern Virginia Juvenile Detention Center in Alexandria.

There have been at least seven juvenile overdoses in Arlington County this year, including the death of 14-year-old student Sergio Flores after a fatal overdose at Wakefield High School. Following his death, teachers, parents and School Board members have called on Arlington Public Schools and all of county government to do more for children.

A slew of school– and community-sponsored panels have brought together first responders, counselors and addiction specialists and prosecutors to educate parents. The most recent was held last night at Thomas Jefferson Middle School, featuring a live panel discussion as well as pre-recorded messages, drawing some 200 virtual and in-person attendees.

An emerging theme at these meetings is the role of parents. The panel was as an outlet for a handful who shared first-hand observations as well as obstacles they face obtaining resources for their kids and getting through to them, with some panelists suggesting different ways parents can step up.

Some attendees from the Arlington County Council of PTAs event on drug use on Monday, March 13, 2023 (staff photo)

One mother shared how her daughter recently attempted suicide twice, part of a mini-rash of student deaths and attempted suicides this school year, and how long it took to schedule meetings with the right school officials to obtain accommodations to keep up with her schooling.

Michelle Best, who co-facilitates a parent support group through the local branch of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, empathized with how hard it can be for parents to receive services from the public schools in these situations.

“There’s a lot of information that could be better given to parents, out there in a better way,” she said.

A few panelists put the onus on parents, including Deputy Chief Wayne Vincent, the leader of the ACPD Community Engagement Division, who encouraged parents to tip the police to known drug dealers.

“I can’t tell you how many times, when I’m in our community, I hear, ‘Wayne, how do you not know who’s dealing? Everybody knows,'” he said. “Here’s a flash. No, not everybody knows. The police don’t know. There are so many ways you can help identifying who they are.”

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Gunston Middle School locked down due to “written threat”

By ARLnow.com
Gunston Middle School (file photo)

(Updated at 8:40 p.m.) Gunston Middle School was locked down this afternoon due to a threat.

Arlington County police said the discovery of a “written threat” prompted the lockdown and investigation. The exact nature of the threat was not given.

The school at 2700 S. Lang Street had a “controlled dismissal,” assisted by police, according to ACPD.

The department issued the following press release about the incident Friday evening.

The Arlington County Police Department is investigating a written threat at Gunston Middle School, located at 2700 S. Lang Street.

At approximately 1:07 p.m. on March 10, police were dispatched to the report of a threat after school administration located a message written inside a restroom stall referencing gun violence. Prior to police arrival, the school was placed on lockdown. The investigation did not reveal an active threat to the safety of students or staff. Police assisted with a controlled dismissal of students and the lockdown was lifted. No injuries were reported during the incident.

This remains an active investigation and anyone with information related to this incident is asked to contact the Arlington County Police Department’s Tip Line at 703-228-4180 or [email protected]. Information may also be reported anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

Arlington Public Schools will launch a redesigned website this summer

By Jo DeVoe
A screenshot of the current APS website (via APS)

Arlington Public Schools is giving its website a facelift.

A redesigned website is set to go live on July 1. It culminates more than a year of work to revamp a website last redesigned seven years ago, which is well beyond the industry standard of 3-5 years, says Assistant Superintendent of School & Community Relations Catherine Ashby.

“The redesign aims primarily to address a common complaint about the current website, that it is difficult to find information because there is so much available,” she said. “The new design also shifts to a more graphics-oriented, intuitive layout which should make navigation easier for all audiences.”

The navigation scheme, she continued will be “centered on student and family needs, to make it easier to find the most-requested information like registration processes, school boundary zones, and student health and wellness information.”

Indeed, last month, an ARLnow reader reached out to highlight difficulty she experienced when trying to find information about the elementary school options.

“It just seems a little strange that out of the five option schools, three have broken links for their school profiles, and the other two link to press releases, not profiles,” the reader wrote. “One of the press releases is a story about a reading carnival held at the school. It is oddly difficult to get information about the schools.”

Since then, some of the pages have been updated. Another problem she identified — a broken link on a webpage about requesting a transfer — remains.

Ashby says work began with an internal committee of school-based and central office staff, who reviewed feedback and website use statistics and reviewed current best practices and trends in K-12 education websites. Last summer, an outside consultant reviewed the school system’s plans and tested out navigating the website.

This month, Ashby says, the visual design has been completed and the technical development is well underway. APS will invite staff, parents, students and community members to form a robust testing panel to try out the website in mid-April.

There will be various page layout options to make it easier for staff editors to present information that gets uploaded to the website clearly and accessibly. It will continue to feature instantaneous translation, compliance with web content accessibility standards, interactive calendars and quick access to common tools.

After the APS website launches on July 1, the school system will start rolling out the new design to the sites for individual schools.

The division webmaster will work with each school web liaison to prepare their site for the new design and to communicate with school staff and families, Ashby said. All 39 school sites should get upgraded to the new design by the end of the 2023-24 school year.

Progress on the information architecture, visual design and technical development has been reported to the Superintendent’s Cabinet and to the School Board, most recently in January of this year.

“I’m very excited about the website redesign this has been a long time coming,” Ashby said during that School Board meeting. “We’ve wanted to do this for a long time.”

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