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Alexandria City Council received a recommendation from the joint ad hoc committee on School Board election reforms Tuesday (Nov. 10), but it is unclear if and when the council will take up the proposed city charter amendment.

The committee recommended moving the Alexandria City School Board from three-year to four-year concurrent terms, with a targeted implementation date of 2033. All nine School Board members would be elected to three-year transitional terms in 2030, and future elections would implement four-year terms starting in 2033 to align with Virginia gubernatorial elections.


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Amid declining student enrollment numbers, an Alexandria city councilman is wondering whether Alexandria City Public Schools should shelve a costly conversion project to handle middle school capacity.

ACPS recently reported that its student population has fallen about 4% since the 2025-26 school year, descending from 15,928 to 15,295 students as of Sept. 30, 2026. The data follows Acting Superintendent Grace Taylor’s unveiling of a proposed $370.6 million Capital Improvement Program budget that exceeds the city’s budget guidance by more than $186 million.


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As winter gets closer, Alexandria City Public Schools officials indicated there will be four traditional snow days this school year and changes to how snow day decisions will be shared.

Julia Burgos, the ACPS chief of school and community relations, said the decision-making process isn’t changing, but communications will.


News

Alexandria City Public Schools has vastly exceeded a recommendation by the city to keep its 10-year capital improvement program budget capped at $184.4 million.

On Thursday, Acting Superintendent Grace Taylor unveiled her proposed $370.6 million Fiscal Year 2028-37 Capital Improvement Program budget, going over the city’s recommendation by $186.2 million. Taylor told the School Board that the funding is “essential to preventing further deterioration, address capacity challenges, and deliver learning environments that truly serve our students and community.”


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The Alexandria City School Board contends that a proposed salary increase will “likely lead to higher quality” candidates running for the board.

The School Board got an update from Alexandria City Public Schools staff on the proposed resolution, setting it up for a vote on Thursday, Dec. 3.


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Ahead of the next General Assembly session in January, Alexandria City Public Schools officials have some new and recurring priorities for state legislators on their minds.

Tonight (Thursday), the Alexandria City School Board will be asked to approve the legislative priorities for 2027. The item is on the board’s consent calendar for its 6 p.m. meeting.


News

The Alexandria City School Board is taking another look at options to relieve middle school capacity challenges.

The School Board’s Thursday (Oct. 29) work session compared the plan to convert Jefferson-Houston PreK-8 School into a middle school and Patrick Henry K-8 School into an elementary school with other alternatives. The School Board gave direction during the Capital Improvement Program process in December 2024 to convert the two K-8 schools.


News

Elected officials are considering major organizational changes for the Alexandria City School Board, including increasing pay for its members by 187% starting on Jan. 1, 2028.

Earlier this month, the School Board discussed increasing member pay from $15,000 to $28,000 on Jan. 1, 2028, and then by $5,000 every July 1 until members make $43,000 (a 187% total raise) in the 2031 fiscal year.


News

Alexandria City Public Schools faces a $17 million shortfall as it starts its 2028 fiscal year budget deliberations.

Dominic Turner, the school system’s chief financial officer, laid out a stark reality with rapidly rising expenditures on Wednesday night at Alexandria City High School’s Minnie Howard Campus.


News

The incoming superintendent of Alexandria City Public Schools has his work cut out for him.

Before starting work with ACPS on Feb. 1, 2027, Jharrett Bryantt will wrap up more than four years as superintendent for the Anchorage School District in Alaska by preparing a budget for his successor. In Alexandria, Bryantt will have had less than three weeks on the job before the Alexandria City School Board votes on the ACPS fiscal year 2028 combined funds budget, which will have been drawn up by Interim Superintendent Grace Taylor and ACPS staff.


News

The Alexandria City School Board voted tonight (Oct. 8) to appoint the school division’s next superintendent.

Jharrett Bryantt, superintendent of the Anchorage School District in Alaska, will become Alexandria City Public Schools’ superintendent, effective Feb. 1, 2027. The School Board announced the appointment following a closed session at its meeting.


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