School Board | ALXnow

School Board District B candidate Ashley Simpson Baird says ACPS needs to focus on English-language learners

Published November 1, 2021 at 3:45PM | Updated November 3, 2021 at 10:15AM

Ashley Simpson Baird says widespread unfinished learning within the Latino community is a result of the pandemic, and the District B candidate for the Alexandria School Board wants the city’s school system to refocus its attention to get kids back on the ball.

“We are still very much living in schooling in a pandemic, and so I would really like to see ACPS have a stronger plan for how we’re addressing unfinished learning,” Baird told ALXnow. “We need to make sure that we are giving school leaders and educators the resources to implement that plan.”

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District A School Board candidate Ish Boyle says ACPS needs leaders who can handle a crisis

By James Cullum

Published November 1, 2021 at 1:10PM

District A School Board candidate Aloysius “Ish” Boyle says he’s a proven leader, and that Alexandria City Public Schools is still in crisis mode.

Boyle, a retired Marine Corps captain with combat tours in Iraq, has two young children in ACPS and gives the school system a four out of 10 for its COVID-19 response. He says students should have gone back to full-time in-person learning sooner than the beginning of this school year, and criticized Superintendent Gregory Hutchings for putting his own kids in private school.

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Alexandria School Board Candidate Bridget Shea Westfall says son was her hero during pandemic

By James Cullum

Published October 20, 2021 at 2:30PM | Updated October 21, 2021 at 12:29PM

Bridget Shea Westfall says she’s not a status quo kind of person. Westfall, the parent of a second grader at Naomi L. Brooks Elementary School, also calls her son her hero.

“My son was my hero during the pandemic, and he just had to do a lot of adult things,” Westfall told ALXnow, fighting back tears. “He had to be very resilient, brave and strong and use executive functioning skills that most adults haven’t mastered in their professional and personal lives. But my son said to me, ‘Mom, you should do it. You should. You should run.'”

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ALXnow’s top stories this week in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles

Published October 15, 2021 at 3:30PM

This week saw possibly the most contentious meeting between the City Council and School Board in years for a debate over School Resources Officers that ultimately culminated in the Council voting to temporarily restore the program. The reversal has been advocated by school officials and some parents, but was lamented by advocacy group Tenants and Workers United that saw it as a step-backward for racial justice.

The following day, ACPS was also hit with lockdowns at Alexandria City High School’s King Street and Minnie Howard campuses and Hammond Middle School, though police later said initial calls about a school shooting were unfounded. At the same time, a gas leak near Potomac Yard led to two homes being evacuated and the temporary closure of Richmond Highway.

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Morning Notes

By Vernon Miles

Published October 14, 2021 at 5:00AM

School Board forum yields big turnout from District B constituents — “Alexandria City School Board candidates gathered in the second of two virtual forums last weekend to prepare for the Nov. 2 general election.” [Alexandria Times]

The Chamber ALX is hosting a wine and chocolate get-together for local businesswomen — “We’re excited to be back in person for our annual Evening of Perfect Pairings: Wine + Chocolate, Women + Business event! Join us in the beautiful back (heated) garden of Sonoma Cellar for a curated wine tasting/food pairing, networking and celebration of the year.” [The Chamber ALX]

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In dramatic reversal, City Council brings back school resource officers to Alexandria City Public Schools

By James Cullum

Published October 13, 2021 at 11:10AM | Updated October 13, 2021 at 6:07PM

ACPS Superintendent Gregory Hutchings Jr. (on right) speaks to City Council on bringing back school resource officers alongside School Board Chair Meagan Alderton and acting Police Chief Don Hayes, on Tuesday, October 12, 2021. (staff photo by James Cullum)

After significant outcry from a school system concerned about weapons in schools, the Alexandria City Council took a dramatic 4-3 vote around 1 a.m. this morning (Wednesday) to temporarily return school resource officers (SROs) to two middle schools and Alexandria City High School until the end of this school year.

Councilman John Taylor Chapman was the lone vote to reverse course, going against Vice Mayor Elizabeth Bennett-Parker and Councilmen Canek Aguirre and Mo Seifeldein, who voted to keep away SROs.

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Morning Notes

By Vernon Miles

Published October 13, 2021 at 5:00AM

A fall wreath on a door in Old Town (staff photo by James Cullum)

New gift shop in Old Town helps people with disabilities — “B.E.S.T stands for ‘Building Employment Solutions Together’ and is a collaboration between the Joey Pizzano Memorial Fund (JPMF) and ServiceSource to provide meaningful employment for people with disabilities.” [Alexandria Living Magazine]

Alexandria wins housing policy leadership awards — “Affordable and workforce housing policies and programs put in place by the governments of Alexandria, Virginia, and Minneapolis, Minnesota, have been selected as joint winners of the 2021 Urban Land Institute Robert C. Larson Housing Policy Leadership Awards.” [Urbanland]

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Kelly Carmichael Booz seeks to reclaim District B seat on Alexandria School Board

By James Cullum

Published October 12, 2021 at 3:30PM | Updated October 12, 2021 at 4:21PM

Kelly Carmichael Booz says experience matters, as the former Alexandria School Board member has thrown her hat in the ring to reclaim her former District B seat.

“I don’t think we can afford as a school district after this last year-and-a-half to have a board that doesn’t have experience coming to the table,” Booz told ALXnow in an interview. “If I’m elected and if the Alexandria citizens from District B support me, I can start on day one running with and understanding of the process.”

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ALXnow’s top stories this week in Alexandria

By James Cullum

Published October 1, 2021 at 3:30PM | Updated October 1, 2021 at 4:01PM

It was a busy fall week in Alexandria. Here’s the rundown.

Our top story this week was on a plan to completely close off the 100 block of King Street as a pedestrian-only zone. The plan has been in the works since 2019, and was put into action last year. ALXnow’s poll on the subject had very one-sided results, showing 91% (791 votes) in favor of a permanent change.

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Last year’s Alexandria City High School class had the highest graduation rate and the lowest student dropout rate ever

By James Cullum

Published October 1, 2021 at 10:06AM | Updated October 1, 2021 at 10:45AM

The Alexandria City High School marquee (staff photo by James Cullum)

(Updated at 10:40 a.m. Alexandria City High School’s rates increased to their highest levels ever, not the highest in Virginia) Alexandria City High School has a lot more than just a new name to be proud of. This week, the school system announced that its recent graduating class saw the highest on-time graduation rate and the lowest student dropout rate in the school’s history.

“ACPS saw a nine-percentage point increase in the on-time graduation rate, from 82% in 2020 to 91% in 2021, and a nine-percentage point decrease in the overall student dropout rate, from 14% in 2020 to 5% in 2021,” ACPS reported. “The previous highest on-time graduation rate for ACPS was 86% in 2013 and the previous lowest dropout rate was 8% in 2019.”

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Upcoming Alexandria City Council and School Board election forums announced

By Vernon Miles

Published September 29, 2021 at 3:45PM | Updated September 30, 2021 at 2:20PM

Voters line up to vote early in Old Town (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated 9/30) Alexandria’s incumbents running for re-election managed to hold on through the Democratic primary, but they face Republican and Independent challengers in the upcoming November election.

The Seminary Ridge Civic Association recently announced that it will be hosting two election forums throughout October, one for the City Council candidates and one for Mayoral candidates.