Good Friday morning, Alexandria!
🌤 Today’s weather: Clear throughout the day. High of 42 and low of 33.
⛅ Tomorrow: Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 52 and low of 33. Sunrise at 7:19 am and sunset at 5:25 pm.
🚨 You need to know
Earlier this week, Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) sent out an alert to parents saying that confidential student contact information was made temporarily accessible by a vendor, ACPS said in a message to parents.
The vendor handled BlackBoard Connect services and, while the contract ended last June, months later the vendor made family email addresses, phone numbers, student grade levels, gender and local identifiers public.
“This disclosure came as a surprise to us since our relationship with the vendor ended for BlackBoard Connect services on June 30, 2022, and we had been assured by that vendor that all data and access to our information would be disconnected,” ACPS said in the message. “At our request, this information was removed from public access immediately and the vendor, FinalSite (now the owner of BlackBoard), conducted an investigation to determine how this happened, the information involved and whether the data had been accessed.”
ACPS said a report from the vendor said the information was made public by mistake by an engineer.
According to the release:
We are dismayed and disappointed to learn that this ACPS student information was temporarily made publicly available by our vendor, as we recognize the importance of keeping student information private, per Board Policy JRCA.
We apologize for this incident and will continue working closely with all ACPS vendors whose systems contain student data. We take our role protecting student information seriously and are committed to ensuring that our vendors take all necessary steps to enhance their protection of student data as well.
📈 Thursday’s most read
The following are the most-read ALXnow articles for Jan 26, 2023.
- No arrest after woman robbed at gunpoint in Old Town Saturday night (2077 views)
- JUST IN: Visit Alexandria unveils new city branding (1369 views)
- Village Brauhaus in Old Town aims to open rooftop expansion before summer (579 views)
- Smallest and largest homes sold in Alexandria (Dec-Jan 2023) (577 views)
🗞 Other local coverage
- New Businesses, Developments, Experiences: What’s New In Alexandria
Patch (Thursday @ 4:54 pm)
- Poor Robert’s Ruminations with Rob Whittle: New BIZ-ness
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 4:07 pm)
- My View with Frank Putzu: Duke Street denialism
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 4:02 pm)
- My View with Denise Dunbar: Gary Oelze – An appreciation
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 3:48 pm)
- Real Talk: The basics of borrowing
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 3:43 pm)
- Unrivaled excellence and unsullied fame
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 3:33 pm)
- Community Fire Academy applications open
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 3:15 pm)
- Shooting suspect mistakenly released
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 3:00 pm)
- Second bargaining agreement reached
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 2:57 pm)
- Birchmere owner Gary Oelze dies at 80
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 2:51 pm)
- Home profile: From the ground up
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 2:33 pm)
- Resident Spotlight: Afghan refugee finds solace through helping fellow immigrants
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 2:04 pm)
- Alexandria Pet Of The Week: Boscoe The Gentle Giant
Patch (Thursday @ 1:59 pm)
- Alexandria’s GW Birthday Parade To Highlight 100 Years of Masonic Memorial
Zebra (Thursday @ 1:41 pm)
- City Council approves King Street apartment conversion
Alexandria Times (Thursday @ 1:15 pm)
- Lady Camellia Tea Room Finds New Life On Alexandria Waterfront
Patch (Thursday @ 12:02 pm)
- Alexandria Man With Loaded Handgun Caught At Reagan National Airport
Patch (Thursday @ 9:12 am)
🐦 Tweets of note
ACHS PTSA's letter to the ACPS School Board. @james_libresco @yahneymarie pic.twitter.com/9HjzE32lS9
— Katy Matthews (@KDGrossman) January 26, 2023
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on today and this weekend in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
- 8:30 am Saturday: Fit Party — Free Classes & Open House at Zweet Sport Total Fitness
- 9:30 am Saturday: Condominium and Community Association Trainings: Board Meetings
Recent Stories
It’s been another week bookended with violence in Alexandria’s West End. On Saturday, a man was shot in the Landmark area during a suspected carjacking. The victim suffered non-life-threatening injuries….
Alexandrians should brace for a stormy weekend. Rain is likely to kick off tonight after 11 p.m. and there’s a good chance it will continue through the weekend as a…
There were no injuries or arrests after gunfire was reported in the West End early Friday morning — a separate incident from the other West End shooting this morning where…
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Made in Alexandria Fall Makers’ Market
The Made in ALX Fall Makers’ Market at Port City Brewing Co. in Alexandria is set for Sunday, Sept. 24!
This is the fall’s most fun sip-and-shop, featuring craft beer from the award-winning Port City Brewing Co. along with food,
2023 Alexandria Fall Festival
Food trucks, bounce houses, pony rides, magic shows and more at the 2023 Alexandria Fall Festival, an Alexandria Living event presented by The Patterson Group. Join us at River Farm on Sunday, Nov. 5 from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
