Better get the Slip ‘N Slide out of storage, because this year’s Alexandria City High School seniors are getting their diplomas a week early.
The commencement ceremony will be held on Wednesday, May 28, at George Mason University’s EagleBank Arena, instead of on the first Saturday in June. Here’s why.
As the Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) redistricting process nears its final stages, members of the ACPS Strategy and Accountability Committee: Kelly Carmichael Booz (District B), Christopher Harris (District C), and Ryan Reyna (District A), are providing an update on their progress, detailing how community feedback has been instrumental in refining new boundary proposals and shaping key policy decisions.
While acknowledging the complexities and tough trade-offs involved, the update emphasizes a more straightforward path forward to strengthen the school system with students at the center of every decision.
After a firestorm of criticism from city leaders and student journalists over proposed oversight changes to Alexandria City High School’s student newspaper, Theogony, this morning (May 2), the Alexandria School Board’s Governance Committee returned to the drawing board.
From reporting on a transportation controversy to investigations into the School Board, transgender policies, or even lampooning metal detectors in cartoons, Theogony student journalists take their roles seriously. Now, with City Council members warning of potential “censorship” and “authoritarian” behavior from the school system, student journalists are alleging a concerted effort from the administration of Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt to suppress touchy or controversial stories from appearing in the monthly publication.
It’s been an intense week in Alexandria.
Here’s a look back on this week’s top stories. Our most-read post was on the shooting of three men in Arlandria on Sunday night (April 27). Police found the victims with gunshot wounds shortly after being called at around 9 p.m. They were transported to area hospitals, and no arrests have been announced. Witnesses heard a barrage of gunfire, and the Alexandria Police Department is asking for help in the investigation.
Against a backdrop of political and economic uncertainty, Alexandria’s City Council unanimously adopted its $956.5 million operating budget.
City Manager Jim Parajon said it was challenging crafting a budget that keeps city services without increasing real estate or property taxes. The city’s budget grew 3.2% over the current fiscal year, with its largest line item being a fully-funded Alexandria City Public Schools, as well as significant stormwater management funding for the city’s $2.1 billion FY 2026 – 2035 Capital Improvement Program.
Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) and Oscar-nominated documentary director Nisha Pahuja are hosting a special screening and Q&A session at Alexandria City High School on Friday (May 2). This event is part of a nationwide campaign to end gender-based violence.
Starting at 7 p.m., the event will show a modified educational version of Pahuja’s film “To Kill a Tiger,” followed by a panel discussion. Dr. Atul Gawande, a surgeon, New York columnist, and author of “Being Mortal,” will moderate the discussion.
The Baltimore Ravens selected Robert Longerbeam, a 24-year-old cornerback from Alexandria, in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL draft on Saturday (April 26). Picked 212th overall, Longerbeam is a graduate of T.C. Williams High School (now Alexandria City High School) and played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights from 2020 to 2024.
At 5’11” and 175 pounds, Longerbeam is currently unsigned but shows promise as a draft pick for the Ravens. His college career demonstrates steady growth and improvement. In his first two seasons, he played 18 games, racking up 30 tackles, 10 pass deflections, and two forced fumbles.
Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) has released new redistricting maps for elementary and middle schools.
The plans, now called Square, Circle, and Triangle, were presented at a Redistricting Hybrid Community Meeting on Tuesday (April 22).
The Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) School Board held a public hearing on Monday, April 21, on the draft 2025-2030 Strategic Plan.
Despite encouraging the community to provide a final round of feedback on the plan, no community members signed up to speak, resulting in just a four-minute hearing.
Alexandria resident and Cameron Station mother Katie Bilek has submitted the following Letter to the Editor regarding the Alexandria City School Board’s proposed redistricting plans.
Bilek argues that the plans unfairly target her neighborhood, Cameron Station, by arbitrarily dividing the planned community and redirecting half of its children from their walkable neighborhood school, Tucker Elementary, to Patrick Henry K-8.
Citing potential plans to move a small number of students from the newly rebuilt Douglas MacArthur Elementary – a school with projected capacity – into a school slated for swing space, a group of “Scroggins Triangle” parents contends in the following letter to the editor that minimizing student upheaval should be prioritized in the current ACPS redistricting process.
The letter is in response to our ongoing coverage of the ACPS redistricting efforts and process.
