News

NEW: Firings of federal workers begin as White House seeks to pressure Democrats in government shutdown

By The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House budget office said Friday that mass firings of federal workers have started in an attempt to exert more pressure on Democratic lawmakers as the government shutdown continues.

Russ Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, said on the social media site X that the “RIFs have begun,” referring to reduction-in-force plans aimed at reducing the size of the federal government.

A spokesperson for the budget office, said the reductions are “substantial” but did not offer more immediate details.

The White House previewed that it would pursue the aggressive layoff tactic shortly before the government shutdown began on Oct. 1, telling all federal agencies to submit their reduction-in-force plans to the budget office for its review. It said reduction-in-force could apply for federal programs whose funding would lapse in a government shutdown, are otherwise not funded and are “not consistent with the President’s priorities.”

This goes far beyond what usually happens in a government shutdown, which is that federal workers are furloughed but restored to their jobs once the shutdown ends.

Democrats have tried to call the administration’s bluff, arguing the firings could be illegal, and seemed bolstered by the fact that the White House had yet to carry out the firings.

But Trump had said earlier this week that he would soon have more information about how many federal jobs would be eliminated.

“I’ll be able to tell you that in four or five days if this keeps going on,” he said Tuesday in the Oval Office as he met with Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister. “If this keeps going on, it’ll be substantial, and a lot of those jobs will never come back.”

Meanwhile, the halls of the Capitol were quiet on Friday, then 10th day of the shutdown, with both the House and the Senate out of Washington and both sides digging in for a protracted shutdown fight. Senate Republicans have tried repeatedly to cajole Democratic holdouts to vote for a stopgap bill to reopen the government, but Democrats have refused as they hold out for a firm commitment to extend health care benefits.

There was no sign that the top Democratic and Republican Senate leaders were even talking about a way to solve the impasse. Instead, Senate Majority Leader John Thune continued to try to peel away centrist Democrats who may be willing to cross party lines as the shutdown pain dragged on.

“It’s time for them to get a backbone,” Thune, a South Dakota Republican, said during a news conference.

Schools

APS staff hope new “adopt-a-school” model will improve local partnerships

By Scott McCaffrey

Arlington Public Schools leaders hope that a new “adopt-a-school” partnership model will increase schools’ formal partnerships with business and civic groups.

Noting that 30% of Arlington’s public schools have no such partnerships, APS staff outlined plans to increase opportunities for volunteerism at a School Board meeting yesterday (Thursday). They focused primarily on relationships with the business community.

Partnerships “benefit above and beyond the work we can do within our four walls,” Superintendent Francisco Durán told School Board members.

“We need support, and we’re getting that support,” he said.

There is always room for improvement, school officials acknowledged.

“The majority of schools … reported they would benefit from dedicated partners to support school facilities needs, beautification and mentoring or after-school programming, particularly for low-income students and families,” school officials learned in a survey of principals presented to School Board members.

About 60% of respondents reported being “very interested” in the adopt-a-school initiative.

Currently, businesses, nonprofits, civic groups, faith-based organizations and institutions of higher learning work with individual schools, sometimes on an ad hoc basis. The new effort aims to formalize the partnership process.

At the School Board meeting, Board member Miranda Turner said she hopes new partnerships and volunteers will also spur creative thinking to “help us take ideas and see if they are worth running with, and then running with them more quickly.”

“We certainly have lots of highly educated people who want to contribute,” she said of the local community.

The adopt-a-school effort is among several proposals coming out of a working group set up by APS in October 2024, addressing concerns that not enough is being done to connect schools with those wanting to offer support.

According to school leadership, some of the concerns raised by members of the working group were:

  • Unclear definitions on how to engage and who to contact
  • Inconsistent screening requirements for volunteers and partners
  • A lack of clarity on how to donate money or supplies
  • The need for a standardized process and agreement forms
  • Needing improvement on school and system-wide needs to guide potential donors/partners
  • The lack of a clear measurement process and rubric for gauging partnerships’ success

Nearly all APS schools — 95% — have successfully recruited volunteers that support students and teachers, according to county data.

A survey of 38 schools found that 89% use volunteers to support events; 68% for beautification and facilities upgrades; 49% for classroom support; and 32% for mentoring and tutoring.

Currently, the school system has more than 11,700 active volunteers in its database, with more than 4,000 volunteer applications approved during the 2024-25 school year. Of those in the database, only about 15% volunteer on a recurring basis, based on sign-ins to the APS volunteer-management software.

“That’s the big gap we are working toward” closing, said Catherine Ashby, the school system’s director of school and community relations.

Ashby said restructuring the school system’s administration of volunteer programs will assist efforts.

“Our team is really excited about this work,” she said.

Volunteers seem eager to help when called upon for specific initiatives. More than 190 signed up in two weeks after the school system announced a new pilot program — called Readers Rise — being launched at Barrett, Long Branch and Hoffman-Boston elementary schools.

At the meeting, School Board Chair Bethany Zecher Sutton praised all volunteer efforts as benefiting the overall learning environment.

“We’re grateful for all of the volunteers and all of the partners and all that goes into enriching student learning,” she said.

Sponsored

Police investigating gunfire that damaged window in Green Valley

By ARLnow.com
Police car at night (file photo courtesy Kevin Wolf)

Arlington County police are investigating shots fired in the Green Valley neighborhood.

The gunfire rang out around 10 p.m. Friday night near The Shelton apartment complex. No injuries were reported but a bullet damaged a window in a nearby residential building.

More, below, from an ACPD crime report.

SHOTS FIRED, 2025-10100198, 3200 block of 24th Street S. At approximately 10:01 p.m. on October 10, police were dispatched to the report of possible shots heard in the area. During the course of the investigation, officers recovered evidence confirming shots had been fired in the area and property damage to the window of a residential building was located. No injuries were reported. There are no suspect(s) descriptions. The investigation is ongoing.

The same block was the scene of a shooting in November 2024. The teen victim of that shooting survived his serious injuries.

News

Arlington single-family home prices moving ever closer to an average of $2 million

By Scott McCaffrey

Arlington single-family homes continued to march closer to an average $2 million sales price in newly released data.

The average sales price of the 60 single-family detached properties that went to closing in September was $1,813,759 — up a whopping 23.5% year-over-year.

New figures were reported Oct. 10 by Bright MLS, using data from MarketStats by ShowingTime. For the month, single-family detached homes represented 33% of all sales, compared to 38.5% a year ago.

Increases in average single-family sales prices likely are a result of general housing inflation coupled with smaller, aging single-family homes in the county being torn down and replaced by larger ones.

The $2 million average sales price already has been surpassed among Arlington single-family homes with four or more bedrooms, which in September represented about 70% of all single-family homes sold.

In that segment of larger homes, the average sales price of $2,143,893 in September was up 20.2% from $1,784,024 a year before.

Late summer and early spring delivered an opportunity for buyers to get more for their money, if they financed purchases.

“Mortgage rates came down in August and early September, which brought some buyers into the market,” said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist for Bright MLS.

At the same time, the impact of federal government and contractor layoffs and buyouts are causing headwinds likely to be further intensified by impacts of the government shutdown.

The local region “is showing us how sensitive the market is to broader economic and political uncertainty,” Sturtevant said. “In places where the federal government has a strong presence … we’re already seeing the impact of the shutdown and job insecurity.”

Overall for the month, 184 homes went to closing countywide, up from 143 a year before.

The average sales price of all homes sold was $986,422, up 3.6%.

While average prices in the single-family segment were up, they declined in the other two market sectors:

  • The average sales price of attached homes — townhouses, rowhouses and condominiums — was $586,098, down 6.8% from a year ago
  • The average sales price in the condo-only segment was $400,467, down 6.9%

Those declines pushed the month’s median price down 10.7% to $686,388, despite the increase in average sales price. The median is the point at which half of homes sell for more, half for less.

Add up all the transactions, and the total market volume countywide in Arlington was $184.2 million, up 34.1% from a year before.

Prospective buyers have more to choose from, with the number of active listings rising from 313 in September 2024 to 465 in September 2025.

“Sellers are adjusting to a new market reality,” Sturtevant said. “Buyers now have more options and more negotiating power, and price trends are starting to reflect that shift.”

In part because of the higher inventory, the average number of days between listing and ratified contract has ballooned nearly 60%, from 23 a year before to 36 in September, while the sales-price-to-listing-price ratio declined slightly (from 98% to 97%) during the same period.

Arlington home-sellers received an average $500 per square foot in September, down 4% year-over-year. For the month, Arlington’s per-square-foot cost trailed Falls Church at $545 and D.C. at $509, and was tied with Alexandria.

Across the Washington metro area, Bright MLS recorded 3,894 closed sales in September. That was up 4.4% year over year, growth attributed to lower interest rates.

But new pending sales across the region fell 3.3% year-over-year even as mortgage rates stabilized, “a result of many home shoppers hitting pause in the face of the federal budget gridlock and job insecurity,” Sturtevant said.

Home-price growth has essentially stalled across much of the metro area, with the regional median sold price of $600,500 up just 0.3% from a year ago.

Price performance varied widely across the region, with some suburban markets seeing modest growth while urban areas show declines, Bright MLS said.

The median days on market regionally in September was 21, 10 days longer than last year. Inventory has grown 27% year-over-year, largely because of longer times for homes to sell. Showings for the month essentially were flat at 90,805.

Figures represent most, but not all, sales across the market. September 2025 figures are preliminary and are subject to revision.

Announcement

New VA General Assembly Legislation Targets Devastating Illness Hitting Young People

By Virginia Alliance for PANS/PANDAS Action (VA4PA)

Two new bills introduced on Jan 9, 2024, in the VA General Assembly by Delegate Patrick Hope (D-1) take aim at the debilitating post-infectious neuroimmune disorders, known as PANS and PANDAS, that are ravaging young people across the Commonwealth.

PANS and PANDAS are immune-mediated disorders triggered by common infections such as strep throat and the flu. Following infection, the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy brain tissue and results in life-altering brain inflammation and disabling physical and mental ailments. The illness typically hits young people. Left untreated, PANS and PANDAS can result in lifelong disability and can even lead to loss of life. Early diagnosis and treatment are essential to return patients to baseline.

Go to New VA General Assembly Legislation Targets Devastating Illness Hitting Young People Read more
Sports

O’Connell finds challenge, if not always success, in meeting nearby football rivals

By Dave Facinoli

They haven’t won any of the games, but Bishop O’Connell’s high-school football schedule the last three seasons has included the addition of a trio of nearby opponents.

The Knights have played the Flint Hill Huskies and Potomac School Panthers for the first time ever in private-school contests, and resumed an all-Arlington rivalry with the public-school Washington-Liberty Generals.

Until they met in their 2025 season openers, O’Connell and W-L had not played for more than 40 years.

Playing those opponents makes sense, as each is in close proximity to O’Connell. Potomac School in McLean is less than four miles to the west, W-L about the same distance to the east, and Flint Hill is located in relatively close-in Oakton.

Third-year O’Connell head coach Todd Sabatino was significantly involved in adding those opponents to the Knights’ schedule. He said the games make for natural rivalries and provide good competition for the Knights.

O’Connell lost to Potomac School by scores of 28-14 this year and 9-6 in 2024. In its recent 55-22 loss to Washington-Liberty, the Knights trailed just 27-22 in the third quarter. Five turnovers helped the Generals pad the score.

Flint Hill defeated O’Connell in an initial meeting between the two in 2023, and could meet again in the future.

O’Connell’s most recent game against its new opponents was a 28-14 loss to visiting Potomac School on Oct. 4. The Knights had leads of 7-0 in the first quarter and 14-13 at halftime, but didn’t score again and fell to 1-5.

Potomac School’s two second-half touchdowns were the result of a fumbled O’Connell punt that set up a TD, then a punt return for a score. Another costly second-half O’Connell mistake was a turnover coming on a fumble into the end zone at the Panthers’ one-yard line.

Penalties also proved costly for O’Connell.

“We just can’t afford to have mistakes like that,” Sabatino said. “We were leading and could have won this game.”

The Knights were significantly shorthanded at running back because of injuries to multiple players. The one running back who did play and was productive was junior Nick Morris. He ran for 176 yards on 21 carries, including an 11-yard touchdown run.

“Nick was about the only one we had, and Nick ran hard,” Sabatino said.

O’Connell quarterback Ryan Turpin completed his first nine passes and finished 10 of 16 for 96 yards and a touchdown pass of nine yards to Jacob Geisler. Mitch Czernia kicked two extra points.

Zander Schied caught three passes and Geisler, Xavier Reid and James Fatzinger caught two each.

On defense, Jayden Campbell made nine tackles (four for losses) and recovered a fumble. Kaiden Alt also had nine tackles and Eli Moran made seven. Ariston Kroeger caused a fumble and had a tackle for a loss, as did Fatzinger, Kai Molter and Tyler McManus.

Morris had four tackles.

Another nearby opponent O’Connell has scheduled in recent years are the St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes Saints of Alexandria. The Knights have defeated the Saints in the majority of those initial meetings, winning 38-12 this season.

Next up for O’Connell is its opening Washington Catholic Athletic Conference contest of 2025 against the visiting Bishop Ireton Cardinals (1-4) at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10. O’Connell defeated Ireton last season.

NOTE: In O’Connell’s previous game, Kian Kaboli had two interceptions.

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