Alexandria City School Board members are asking the public to help push for reforms to the nine-member board, including staggered elections, higher salaries and more.
The clock is ticking, School Board Members Ashley Simpson Baird and Kelly Carmichael Booz wrote in a recent blog post. The pair wrote that City Council must act this year by beginning a process to amend the City Charter — a change that would need to go to the Virginia General Assembly’s 2027 session for approval.
Alexandria City Public Schools is preparing to move hundreds of students and reassign staff as part of its redistricting process beginning in July.
The school system has been working on the transition since the Alexandria City School Board approved the plan last June. On Thursday (March 26), ACPS staff will update the board on the plan, which will shift 860 students to new schools in the coming school year.
City Council ignored a plea from the School Board Tuesday night, unanimously approving a resolution to change how the city appropriates funding to Alexandria City Public Schools.
City Council’s resolution directs ACPS, in preparation for the Fiscal Year 2028 budget, to submit estimates for funds needed through major classifications instead of a lump sum. The School Board asked that the move, which was introduced at a March 4 joint work session with City Council, be postponed as it restricts the school system from redirecting budgeted funds to pay for programs and services.
The Alexandria City School Board is asking City Council to postpone voting on a resolution this week that would change how the city appropriates funding to the school system.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins introduced the proposal at City Council’s joint work session with the School Board on March 4. The new system would authorize Council to approve funding allocations by major classification, instead of an annual lump sum. School Board Chair Michelle Rief says that more discussion is needed.
Alexandria City Public Schools saw a 40% reduction in the number of incidents requiring a police response during the first two quarters of this school year compared to last year, according to a school safety report recently presented to the Alexandria City School Board.
During the first semester this year, ACPS reported 167 total incidents requiring a police response across the school system and 27 student referrals or arrests. The recent incident count represents a 40% drop from the first semester last school year, which saw 279 reported incidents.
Alexandria City School Board member Kelly Carmichael Booz visited Minnesota last week as part of a project to inform educators on how to respond to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity.
Booz, who is from Minneapolis, visited the Twin Cities from Feb. 9-13, in the wake of the fatal ICE shootings of U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good and the widely reported drawdown of ICE agents there. Her project, a report for the American Federation of Teachers, aims to offer “resources and trainings” for school districts and unions on what to do when ICE enters their communities, she told ALXnow.
After a now-fired Alexandria City Public Schools administrator was found with a second job, the Alexandria City School Board is considering updates to its second job policy.
On Thursday, the School Board will review a policy update for employees' additional jobs beyond their school district employment. The proposed addition calls for no second jobs for ACPS chiefs, executive directors or directors unless the superintendent gives approval. It would apply for second jobs with an average of 10 hours per week for at least a month.
A proposal to create a new City Council/School Board subcommittee focused on Alexandria City Public Schools’ capacity challenges has won the support of a local advocacy group.
Save Jefferson-Houston (Save JH), which opposes the Alexandria City School Board’s plans to convert two K-8 schools into a middle school and elementary school, has voiced support for the proposal, which was offered by ACSB members Ryan Reyna and Kelly Carmichael Booz during a Capital Improvement Program work session last week.
What a day for a parade it was in Old Town on Saturday, Dec. 6.
The wailing of bagpipes sailed through Alexandria’s historic streets as thousands of community members gathered to watch the 54th annual Scottish Christmas Walk Parade.
Welcome to Friday, Alexandria. Here’s a look at the top stories of the week.
ALXnow’s top story this week is on the man who was struck by a train at the Potomac Yard Metro station on September 22 and later died at George Washington University Hospital. Metro Transit Police stated at the time that the man had trespassed onto the tracks, and an investigation revealed that he was being chased by two alleged fare evaders: a 17-year-old female and an 18-year-old female, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.
The Alexandria School Board will hold a budget planning session Thursday evening to begin crafting the fiscal 2027 spending plan amid uncertainty over potential federal funding cuts.
The meeting, scheduled from 6 to 10 p.m., will feature ACPS Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt launching the budget process with the School Board. The session will lay the groundwork for releasing her proposed 2027-2036 Capital Improvement Program budget in November, the draft Combined Funds Budget in January, and final budget adoption in June.
