Update at 3/23/20 — The number of meal distribution locations has been expanded to five.

Earlier: Arlington Public Schools will be offering free breakfasts and lunches to those who need them during the month-long school closure.

APS announced Friday evening that meals will be provided for pickup from Kenmore Middle School and Drew Elementary, starting Monday, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. The meals will be available to any child ages 2-18, but children must be present to receive the meals.

The program will help fill a need in the community, particularly among those eligible for free or reduced price lunches at school, as families hunker down during the worsening coronavirus outbreak. For some families, the outbreak will mean a loss of hourly wages for an extended period of time.

More from APS:

Beginning Mon, March 16, APS will provide free grab-and-go breakfasts and lunches at two school sites – Kenmore Middle School (200 S. Carlin Springs Road) and Dr. Charles R. Drew Elementary School (3500 S. 23rd Street). Meals will be set up on a table outside the building for distribution from 11 a.m.to 1 p.m. Monday-Friday.

APS will provide one (1) lunch for that day and one (1) breakfast to take home for the following day. These meals will be free to any child aged 2 to 18. Children must be present to receive the meals; no meals will be given to parents without their child or children present. We will continue to monitor the situation on a daily basis and make adjustments as needed.

Meals will be provided to all children without charge and are the same for all children regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability, and there will be no discrimination in the course of the meal service.

Meals will be provided Monday-Friday beginning 3/16/2020, at the sites and times as follows:

Kenmore Middle School
200 S. Carlin Springs Road
11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Dr. Charles R. Drew Elementary School
3500 S. 23rd Street
11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Also on Friday, APS announced that it would be offering instructional activities for students during the school closure, via a combination of hard copy materials and electronic means.

The school system provided the following guidance to families:

We have prepared to deliver instruction to our students during this period. Please note the last day of the third-quarter grading period has been altered due to the school closure. All teachers will now complete their grading of third-quarter content by March 20, and it will only include student work submitted by that date. Report cards will still be sent home to families at the end of April as previously scheduled.

  • For Early Childhood and Elementary students (PreK-Grade 5), instructional materials have been prepared and should have been distributed by individual schools either in hard copy or electronically. If you have questions about how to access the instructional materials for your child, please contact your student’s teacher.
  • Secondary students (Grades 6-12) will be able to access assignments using Canvas. Teachers will spend the week of March 16 fulfilling their normal duties and working to transition course content, assignments and activities online.
    We want to acknowledge that we can never replace the work our teachers do with students in our classrooms; no one expects learning to be as effective as what teachers accomplish directly with students. These activities are meant to help our students maintain their existing skills and knowledge, extend their learning, and prepare a foundation for topics and concepts to come in the fourth quarter.

During our school closure, teachers will provide instructional activities that both review previously taught information and introduce new topics and concepts. While teachers have been instructed not to grade assignments or quizzes of newly-introduced topics or concepts, they may offer assessments to inform their teaching. These formative assessments will be used to monitor student progress and evaluate the effectiveness of instructional activities.

Teachers will be able to grade assignments assigned prior to Friday, March 13, for use when calculating third-quarter grades. It is important to note that the last day for students to submit third-quarter assignments is Friday, March 20, unless otherwise arranged with the teacher.


(Updated at 12:15 p.m.) Arlington Public Schools are closing starting Monday and are expected to remain closed through the end of spring break in April.

The school system made the announcement shortly after noon on Friday. APS previously cancelled or postponed non-essential events due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Falls Church City Schools are also closing. Alexandria City Public Schools made a similar announcement around the same time.

Elsewhere, Fairfax County closed schools Friday and cancelled all school trips and extracurricular activities. Loudoun County closed its schools from Thursday until March 20. Schools in the District will be closed the remainder of the month starting March 16, and all public schools in Maryland are closing from March 16 through March 27.

APS and Falls Church City Schools sent the following announcement to parents.

Dear APS Families and Staff:

In response to growing concerns and anxiety in our community about the coronavirus (COVID-19), Arlington Public Schools and Falls Church City Public Schools have aligned, and in close collaboration with other Northern Virginia school divisions, will close beginning Monday, March 16, 2020. The present plans are to remain closed through Spring Break, with students scheduled to return on Tue, April 14, 2020. We will continue to evaluate and monitor the situation on a daily basis and will provide an update on our plans as new information is available.

Given all the information available now, including other closures throughout the National Capital Region that impact our staff and families, we believe this is the best decision to make at this time.

All of us, school administrators, staff, and parents, want the same outcome–keeping our kids and community safe.

Each of our divisions will send additional logistical details of the closure to our staff and families later today. Thank you for your continued understanding and patience.

Sincerely,

Cintia Z. Johnson
Interim Superintendent, Arlington County Public Schools

Peter J. Noonan Ed.D.
Superintendent, Falls Church City Public Schools


The timing could hardly be worse: during the coronavirus outbreak, as people are urged to frequently wash their hands, Wakefield High School is experiencing water pressure issues in bathrooms.

Emails sent to parents and staff report occasional but recurring water pressure problems that affect second and third floor bathrooms in particular. We’re told the issues cropped up again earlier this week.

As a result, school officials say they’ve propped open bathroom doors — so users don’t have to touch handles — and put hand sanitizer in place. The school is also awaiting delivery and installation of a “booster pump” to help solve the issue.

Arlington Public Schools spokesman Frank Bellavia suggested it’s an issue with water pressure from county pipes.

“We have identified the problem and are working on a solution,” Bellavia told ARLnow. “The problem is occurring because Wakefield sits at a high point at the end the line.”

Wakefield Principal Chris Willmore sent the following email to parents last night.

Good Evening Wakefield families,

I wanted to share with you recent steps we have taken to protect against the coronavirus.

We are aware of the urgent issue related to low and inconsistent water pressure on the second and third floors and are working closely with Facilities to address it as quickly as possible. Please note that this issue related to water pressure does occur on the first floor occasionally as well, but not as often as the upper floors. While there are no problems with the water pressure on many days, there are days in which it will disappear for 5-20 minute periods of time. This fall and winter, APS Facilities staff repaired or replaced all broken sinks, faucets, and dead batteries and looked closer into the water pressure situation. Facilities is expediting the purchase of a “pump booster” that will supplement the pressure when there is not enough when water enters the building from the county lines. We do not have an estimated delivery or installation date yet and will keep you informed.

In the meantime, we are continuing to work with the Facilities department to identify interim solutions to ensure students can practice good hand-washing hygiene while we await the installation of the booster pump. As an immediate first step, we have secured bottles of alcohol-based hand sanitizer that we will place outside the administrative offices on the second and third floors and at the welcome table in the Town Hall. If there is no water pressure, staff and students can go get hand sanitizer. While it is not convenient, since many times there is water pressure on the first floor, coming down to a bathroom is also an option.

We have also ordered additional door stops for all student bathrooms so that students will not need to touch door handles as they enter or exit.

I appreciate your patience and understanding as we work through this challenging time. Please let me know if you have any additional questions or concerns.

Best,

Chris


(Updated at 12:50 p.m.) Arlington County government and Arlington Public Schools are cancelling or postponing non-essential gatherings and events.

The county released a statement Thursday morning saying that it is “taking steps to help mitigate and contain the spread of COVID-19,” including re-examining public gatherings during the outbreak.

“While events and public gatherings are hallmarks of our community, they also are opportunities for a virus to spread quickly among event workers and participants,” Arlington County said in a statement. “Moving forward, many events or meetings will be cancelled, postponed, or modified to better protect our residents and County staff.”

Privately-organized events in Arlington, including races, conferences and street festivals, are also being cancelled in droves.

“This is a time for us to be proactive – and take the necessary precautions needed to slow and minimize Coronavirus from spreading across our community,” said County Board Chair Libby Garvey. “We are examining our activities to determine which are essential and which are non-essential. If they are non-essential, they will be cancelled or postponed. If they are essential, they will be modified to minimize physical contact among those attending. This is an important step for the health and well-being of our community.”

Arlington has created a set of guidelines for determining whether a given event is essential, including:

  • Does the gathering meet a statutory requirement? Is the work of the group required for business continuity?
  • Would not having the event cause undue hardship?
  • Is the meeting non-essential or does it pose a risk to likely attendees? Can the gathering be rescheduled, in whole or in part?
  • Can the experience be offered in a virtual format? Does the event’s target population include people in the high-risk categories? Are there accommodations that can effectively reduce risk?

In response to the new county guidelines, Arlington Public Schools says it is immediately cancelling “all non-essential APS sponsored events,” along with overnight field trips. Athletic competitions and fine arts performances with limited audiences will go on for now, APS says.

Per new Arlington County guidance for events and public gatherings, Arlington Public Schools is canceling all non-essential APS-sponsored events effective immediately, until further notice. Essential school events will continue in adjusted formats and participation. Additionally, APS is canceling all overnight field trips until further notice.

This decision is part of a coordinated Countywide response to help mitigate and contain the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in our community by reducing the number of occasions when people come together. Canceling non-essential events allows us to limit public gatherings, while also maintaining essential instructional activities, which aligns with the current decision to keep schools open. This situation is changing by the minute, and APS will communicate any decision to close or modify operations in any way to the community through our regular channels as soon as a decision is made.

Essential instructional activities may include day trips to the Outdoor Lab, Extended Day, limited-audience athletic competitions and fine arts performances, as well as events required for certifications or standards of learning.

Among schools cancelling or changes events today are Jamestown Elementary and Kenmore Middle School.

Also today, Arlington said its Public Health staff as been “contacting, assessing and monitoring any returning travelers from areas affected by the COVID-19 outbreak since early February 2020 and are continuing to do so.”

“They are also providing guidance to the hospital and healthcare communities, government, community partners to respond to this outbreak,” the county said.

File photo


(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) With the first confirmed coronavirus cases in the D.C. area, preparations for a possible local outbreak are stepping up.

Arlington Public Schools said in an email to parents today that it was “preparing for the possibility of school closures in the future, if necessary,” while monitoring student health and continuing to disinfect surfaces in schools. The full email is below.

Arlington’s health department, meanwhile, has been working on a public information campaign. Officials participated in an online Q&A session this week, during which the county’s director of public health encouraged frequent hand washing and other preventative measures, while dispelling some misconceptions about how the disease is spread.

Amid concerns that testing for the disease in the United States has been inadequate, a spokesman for Arlington’s Dept. of Human Services said that anyone who contacts the health department thinking they might have coronavirus are being told to contact a doctor.

“Call your healthcare professional if you feel sick with fever, cough, or have difficulty breathing, and have been in close contact with a person known to have COVID-19, or if you live in or have recently traveled from an area with ongoing spread of COVID-19,” Larrick said. “Your healthcare professional will work with your state’s public health department and [the Centers for Disease Control] to determine if you need to be tested for COVID-19.”

Virginia Hospital Center says that it is prepared and will follow CDC guidelines in the event of possible local coronavirus cases.

The hospital sent the following statement to ARLnow:

Virginia Hospital Center (VHC) is following the CDC guidelines with regard to testing for respiratory illness like COVID-19. Per CDC guidance, VHC would be screening for individuals who have fever or signs/symptoms of lower respiratory illness, requiring hospitalization, who have had close contact with a laboratory confirmed COVID-19 patient or have a history of travel from affected geographic areas (CDC designated Level 2 or 3) within 14 days of symptom onset.

The criteria is summarized in the VDH Interim Guidance for COVID-19 Testing on the VDH website.

If a patient does not meet this current criteria and he or she has a concern or question, they should first contact their primary care provider or their local health department for guidance.

At this time there are no reported cases in Virginia and, for the general American public, the immediate health risk from COVID-19 is considered low, according to the CDC. Members of our community are encouraged to follow the guidelines posted on the CDC’s websiteand provided by their local/county health departments. Currently those guidelines include:

  • Asymptomatic travelers who recently visited outbreak affected areas should monitor themselves for symptoms for 14 days after returning.
  • Travelers returning from affected geographic areas (CDC designated Level 2 or 3) should contact the Arlington County Public Health Department (ACPHD) to assess any possible exposure to COVID-19.
  • If you feel sick with fever, develop a cough or have shortness of breath (i.e., difficulty breathing), you should:
    • Seek medical care right away. If you can, please call your doctor or emergency department before seeking care and tell them about your travel and your symptoms.
    • Avoid contact with others.
    • Not travel while sick.

VHC has had experience dealing with H1N1 and other outbreaks that have prepared us to safely respond to coronavirus cases. We are actively engaged with state, federal, and local partners to prepare for the potential arrival and spread of COVID-19. VHC’s top priority is always the safety of patients and staff and healthy outcomes for patients and their families. VHC’s plan for treating potential COVID-19 cases is to remain consistent with CDC guidelines which include:

  • Following our hospital policies and practices to contain exposure to respiratory pathogens.
  • Following the CDC’s clinical criteria for evaluation of Persons Under Investigation (PUI) for possible COVID-19.
  • Ensuring rapid triage and isolation of patients with symptoms of suspected COVID-19 or other respiratory infection.
  • Informing local and state public health authorities.
  • Conducting testing and specimen collection in accordance with current CDC guidelines.
  • Testing is available and we will be appropriately testing when symptoms warrant per CDC guidelines.

The full email sent by Arlington Public Schools today is below, after the jump.

(more…)


As the global coronavirus outbreak spreads and the stock market sinks, both Arlington County and Arlington Public Schools are ramping up their public outreach on the disease.

While there are no confirmed cases locally, and only one “possible” case being investigated in Northern Virginia, local governments, agencies, hospitals and schools throughout the D.C. region are continuing to make emergency preparations.

This morning APS sent parents an update on its preps for a possible local outbreak of coronavirus, also known as COVID-19.

APS says it is “monitoring new developments and following the guidance of health officials,” as well as continuing “to monitor student health and absentee rates at all schools.” It is also encouraging students and staff to frequently wash their hands and to stay home when sick.

In the letter, school officials hint at plans to keep educating students in the event schools need to temporarily close.

“APS is reviewing our existing plans and procedures for communicable diseases and responding accordingly based on recommendations from health officials,” the letter says. “Our planning for COVID-19 is focused on specific steps necessary to maintain a safe environment for students and staff and to ensure we are well equipped and prepared to continue to educate students, in the event of a change in operations.”

Arlington County, meanwhile, has been updating its coronavirus information page and posting information on social media. Late last month county health officials said they were preparing for a worst-case scenario.

Arlington County Board Chair Libby Garvey said today that residents can expect to hear more public health information from the county next week. A disease outbreak on this scale is something the county has been preparing for, she said.

“This is something we’ve been looking at for a long time — what do you do when you have a pandemic,” Garvey told ARLnow. “Stay tuned.”

Garvey also passed along some initial advice for residents.

“If you have not signed up for Arlington Alerts, please do so,” she said, “and everyone should be washing their hands, a lot.”

The county website details steps Arlington’s health department is taking to prevent COVID-19 here:

What is ACPHD doing to prevent the COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus) in the community?

  • ACPHD staff are contacting, assessing and monitoring any returning travelers from areas affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
  • ACPHD is providing guidance to our government and community partners to respond to this outbreak.
  • ACPHD staff continue to update hospital and healthcare communities with guidance on how to identify and respond to possible cases.
  • ACPHD will arrange appropriate lab testing.
  • If there are any cases in Arlington, ACPHD staff will follow CDC guidance about identifying and monitoring close contacts of a case.
  • Staff are available 24/7 to provide this support.

At last check, there were 62 confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control.

File hoto by CDC on Unsplash


HQ2’s Employee Count Keeps Growing — “Amazon.com Inc.’s Arlington headquarters seems to get larger by the week. At latest count, there are just shy of 715 employees in leased office spaces in Crystal City and about 125 pending starts.” [Washington Business Journal]

MS-13 Members Plead Guilty to Shooting — “Two MS-13 members pleaded guilty today to their respective roles in a December 2018 shooting and stabbing that occurred in Four Mile Run Park on the border of Alexandria and Arlington. According to court documents, Juan Francisco Rivera-Pineda, 25, and Jefferson Noe Amaya, 24, both Alexandria residents… confronted the victim in the park, shooting him in the throat and arm, and stabbing him in the back. The victim was transported to the hospital where he underwent surgery and survived.” [USDOJ]

Pentagon Suspect Was Out on Bail — “Matthew Richardson, who is facing charges in Arlington, Va., after police say he tried to blow up a car in a Pentagon parking lot, was released from the Washington County jail in December after The Bail Project posted his bond.” [Arkansas Democrat Gazette]

Vaping Is Prevalent in Arlington Schools — “Sneaking doses from e-cigarettes or, ‘juuling,’ has emerged as ‘the No. 1 offender at Arlington Public Schools,’ according to substance abuse counselor Jenny Sexton, speaking at the Feb. 12 exploration of the hot topic at the Arlington Committee of 100… It’s a tricky discipline challenge, said Sexton, who is “stretched thin” counseling populations at 24 elementary schools and two Arlington middle schools.” [Falls Church News-Press]

Strong Primary Absentee Voting Turnout — “Former Arlington County, VA Treasurer Frank O’Leary: ‘A new record has been set in Arlington for absentee voting in a Presidential primary. In fact, over the last seven days an amazing 1,722 absentee votes have occurred – 61 percent in person.'” [Blue Virginia, Twitter]

Beyer Campaigning for Mayor Pete — “As Pete Buttigieg struggles for momentum going into the South Carolina Democratic primary and Super Tuesday, two members of Congress from the Washington region are traveling the country to promote his presidential campaign. Reps. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and Anthony G. Brown (D-Md.) were early endorsers of the 38-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Ind., who they say has the personal story and calm demeanor to unite a nation divided by Donald Trump’s presidency.” [Washington Post]


(Updated at 9:15 p.m.) Arlington Public Schools will close next Tuesday, March 3, due to the primary elections.

The Super Tuesday primary in Virginia is expected to draw large crowds to the polls, as voters cast ballots for the Democratic presidential nomination. With 23 schools serving as polling places, and citing the “safety and security of APS students,” the school system said it has decided to cancel classes and instead make Tuesday a teacher work day.

In a brief statement on its website, APS said “we understand that it may be difficult for some families to make alternative arrangements for the care of their children given the timing of this decision.”

The full statement:

Arlington Public Schools will be closed to students on Tue, March 3, 2020 which is Virginia’s Presidential Primaries Day (Super Tuesday). Currently, 23 APS buildings serve as polling places and the decision to close is in response to the anticipated challenges as a result of the increased accessibility to our buildings by the community on Primary Election day. All APS staff will be expected to report to work on March 3.

We understand that it may be difficult for some families to make alternative arrangements for the care of their children given the timing of this decision.

As always, the safety and security of APS students is our top priority.

Prior to the announcement, some questioned why APS was seemingly planning to remain open, when neighboring jurisdictions like Alexandria and Fairfax County already canceled classes.

“Having hundreds of people in and out of the schools all day goes against the safety protocols already in place,” said one concerned parent. “I can’t even pick up my own student without showing ID and wearing a tag, yet a large number of people will have to be in and out of their polling place (our school). Also, where are the students going to be when their gyms and cafeterias are used for polls?”


The Arlington Career Center is poised to change from drab, squat and Brutalist to taller, glassier and more modern, if new concept designs are approved by the School Board next month.

The designs were revealed at a meeting of two Arlington Public Schools committees on Wednesday. Created by the design firm Stantec, the concept renderings show the new planned look of what’s being called the “Jewel of the Pike.”

The career and technical education facility along the Columbia Pike corridor is set to add 250 seats next year and 800 new high school seats by September 2025, as APS works to accommodate rising enrollment across the school system. The School Board is expected to vote on the concept designs in March and the overall plan for the $185 million project in June.

The concept slides suggest that about 167,000 square feet of the existing structure will remain, with an additional 204,000 square feet built around it.

The first phase of the project, a two story building immediately adjacent to the career center, will be built on top of what’s currently a playground along S. Highland Street. It will include sufficient space for auto tech and animal science programs, as well as TV production and other uses.

As we reported in September, the expanded center will include a full-sized gym, a performing arts center, a new cafeteria, a new common area, a parking garage, a pool, and a multi-use outdoor synthetic turf field.

Despite the additions, the Arlington Career Center will remain an option school and not a comprehensive high school, though the concept renderings include notations of places where the facility can be expanded in the future.


HQ2 Employment Up 50% in Two Months — “Less than two months into the new year and Amazon.com Inc. says it has more than 600 employees at its second headquarters — a fairly significant staffing jump considering there were some 400 employees there as of late December.” [Washington Business Journal]

Construction Progress at DCA — “It’s happening: Reagan National’s nightmarish Gate 35X at Terminal C will soon be demolished. Construction is underway for Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s Project Journey, which will bring a new concourse to the north end of the airport and add new security checkpoints for Terminal B/C.” [NBC 4, DCist]

Fire Alarm Delays DCA Flights By 30 Minutes — “Flights have resumed and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) controllers have returned and continued tower operations after a control tower was evacuated to investigate a sprinkler alarm activation Wednesday.” [WJLA]

Food Delivery Driver Robbed in Claremont — “At approximately 11:04 a.m., the victim, who was operating as a food delivery driver at the time of the incident, exited his vehicle to make a delivery and was approached by three male suspects. The suspects demanded the victim provide them with the contents of the delivery, then attempted to assault him. The suspects stole the delivery and fled on foot.” [Arlington County]

Property Owner Goes 100% Renewable — “Brookfield Properties has added 100 percent clean, renewable power to six of its office buildings in Northern Virginia, with the new energy source going into effect this month… The changes are impacting three of the firm’s Arlington properties: Potomac Tower at 1001 19th St., 601 South 12th Street, and 701 South 12th Street.” [Commercial Observer]

Big Raise for Startup With Clarendon Office — “Carbon Relay and Insight Partners today announced a $63 million transaction to accelerate the growth of its Red Sky Ops solution for optimizing application performance in Kubernetes environments.” [Carbon Relay via Potomac Tech Wire]

‘Mr. Z’ Wins Award, Gets on TV — “The Virginia Department of Transportation has named an Arlington County crossing guard one of 2019’s Most Outstanding Crossing Guards. He’s one of only four in the state. Affectionately called Mister Z by faculty and students, Zeleke Taffesse says his smiling students make him feel younger every day. Taylor Elementary School is one of three schools he’s worked for.” [Local DVM]


Students who attend the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program and the Shriver Program, at the new Heights Building in Rosslyn, are staying home today.

The building is closed, Arlington Public Schools said in an email to families (below), after a contractor accidentally broke a sprinkler line, causing the library, gymnasium and some classrooms to flood. The closure may stretch into Wednesday if repairs and cleanup from the water damage are not completed in time.

APS plans to notify families by 6 p.m. tonight whether school will be back in session tomorrow.

The $100 million building opened just in time for the start of the school year this past September. More from APS:

The Heights Building, including H-B Woodlawn, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Program and administrative offices, will be closed Tuesday, February 18, due to an accidental break in a sprinkler line caused by a contractor performing work on Monday. The break caused water damage in the library, gymnasium and adjacent classrooms. Repairs and clean-up are in progress. Unless otherwise directed, essential personnel should report to work at their scheduled time on Tuesday, and custodians should report to work at 6 a.m. Extracurricular activities, games, team practices, field trips and other scheduled activities for H-B Woodlawn and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Program at The Heights Building are also cancelled. We apologize for the inconvenience and will keep families informed of the status. Families will be notified by 6 p.m. on Tuesday regarding the operating status for Wednesday, February 19.

Update at 4:30 p.m. — The building and the programs will remain closed on Wednesday, Arlington Public Schools just announced.

Hat tip to anonymous. Photo via Arlington County.


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