School Board Reviews 2016-17 Priorities

Framework Proposed for Refinement of High School Boundaries
Superintendent Reports on This Year’s School Opening 

Sept. 9, 2016 — At last night’s meeting, School Board members discussed their priorities for the 2016-17 school year. The School Board establishes annual priorities to assist in keeping the Board’s work focused, effective and aligned with its Strategic Plan goals. This year’s priorities place emphasis on initiatives that advance growth in academic achievement for all students and that meet the social and emotional needs of the whole child. Additional priorities include staff development efforts, school capacity expansion, and collaboration with County government on shared interests.

The School Board will initiate visioning processes to address instructional opportunities at Drew Model School and the redesign of high school and graduation requirements. Academic initiatives will focus on development of personalized learning experiences, growth of the Arlington Tech program, improved literacy for all students, and implementation of recommendations from the Whole Child Working Group. The Board is scheduled to adopt the priorities at its next meeting on September 22.  The complete list of priorities is available in BoardDocs.

Framework for Proposed Refinements to High School Attendance Zone Boundaries
Staff proposed a framework for developing refinements to high school boundaries to balance enrollment and better utilize instruction spaces at the three comprehensive high schools. The process will include a communication plan to reach stakeholders about the process and to offer an online boundary tool that will allow community members to provide individual suggestions for recommended refinements to the boundaries. Staff presented a schedule for the boundary process that will take place during the fall, with a final School Board decision in December, prior to the High School Information Night on Dec. 12. Implementation will begin with current eighth grade students who will be entering high school in September 2017 and then for the freshman classes in the next three school years. Boundary adjustments will not affect any current high school students and the adjustments will include recommendations for transportation options and sibling considerations. For more information, visit BoardDocs.

First Day of School Report
Superintendent Dr. Pat Murphy presented his annual report on the first day of school. He provided an overview of preparations that took place throughout the district to get ready to welcome students back to school. APS school leaders and teachers also shared their experiences in preparing for students’ return, and their plans for building relationships with their students and challenging and engaging them in the classroom during the next year.

ACTION ITEM:
Revision of School Plan Advisory Committee Policy 10-6.6: The School Board approved minor changes to the School Plan Advisory Committee policy. More information is available in BoardDocs.

OTHER INFORMATION ITEMS:
Revision of Select Information Services Policies: Staff proposed minor text changes to School Board policies 30 and 30.2-1, removing the reference to compliance with accreditation standards from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. More information is available in BoardDocs.

Stratford Middle School Project Architecture/Engineering Fees Change Order:
Staff proposed a change order to the fee structure, based on additional time that was necessary for the public engagement process and increased scope of the project.

For More Information
Citizens who want to comment on any of the items discussed at the School Board meeting should email the Board at school.board@apsva.us or call 703-228-6015. Citizens may call 703-228-2400 on the Monday after the School Board meetings to listen to a meeting summary. School Board meetings are also broadcast live on Comcast Cable Channel 70 and Verizon FiOS Channel 41; live-streamed on the APS website, and re-broadcast on Fridays at 9 p.m. and Mondays at 7:30 p.m. immediately following the meeting. All materials and minutes of the meeting will be posted to the website at aps2016.apsva.us/schoolboard upon School Board approval at a subsequent meeting.