APS Accepting Applications for Admission to Secondary Programs

Waiver Available for Transfers to some Middle and High Schools
75 Sixth-Grade Slots Available at H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program

Arlington Public Schools is now accepting applications for middle and high school countywide schools and programs through Mon, Jan. 23, 2017 for middle school, and Tue, Jan. 31, 2017 for high school, by 4 p.m. The process for applying to countywide programs is available on the school options webpage.

Waiver to Transfer to Some Middle Schools and High Schools*
To address overcrowding and provide an interim solution to balance over-capacity, the School Board approved a waiver of Policy 25-2.2 for the 2017-18 School Year. The waiver provides a short-term solution to manage increased enrollment during the 2017-18 school year and will be reevaluated annually.

During 2017-18, voluntary transfers into Kenmore and Thomas Jefferson Middle Schools; as well as transfers into Wakefield and Yorktown High Schools, will be allowed, provided that the utilization for each school does not exceed 120% over the next three years for middle school, and over the next four years for high school. Transportation will be provided for these students.

Countywide Secondary School & Program Options
Middle and high school programs accepting applications for the 2017-18 school year include:

Middle School Options*

• H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program grades-6th grade lottery
• Jefferson Middle School Middle Years International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme
• Kenmore Middle School-Arts and Technology
• Gunston Middle School—Dual Language Immersion Program and Montessori Middle Years Program (Through Course Selection)

High School Options*

• Arlington Tech at the Career Center
• H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program-9th grade lottery
• Wakefield High School Advanced Placement (AP) Network
• Wakefield Dual Language Immersion Program (Through Course Selection)
• Washington-Lee High School International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme

*APS will determine the number of available slots based on November projections and will announce those numbers at that time.

Transfer applications are available at all local schools, the Department of School and
Community Relations, and online. Applications may only be accepted for schools that meet the established transfer guidelines.

H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program
Under the school system’s admissions policy, slots in the sixth grade class at H-B Woodlawn will be assigned based on the number of APS fifth grade students residing in each neighborhood attendance area. For this reason, when applying to H-B Woodlawn, any Arlington fifth-graders enrolled in schools other than their neighborhood schools must indicate the neighborhood attendance area in which they live.

A total of 75 sixth-grade slots are available for the 2017-18 school year. The slots will be assigned to Arlington’s 18 elementary attendance areas as follows:

• Abingdon – 4
• Ashlawn – 5
• Barcroft – 3
• Barrett – 4
• Carlin Springs – 4
• Discovery – 4
• Glebe – 4
• Henry – 4
• Hoffman–Boston/Drew – 3**
• Jamestown – 4
• Key/Science Focus – 5**
• Long Branch – 4
• McKinley – 5
• Nottingham – 4
• Oakridge – 6
• Randolph – 3
• Taylor – 5
• Tuckahoe – 4

** The assigned slots reflect the number of fifth-grade students who live in the Hoffman-Boston/Drew and the Arlington Science Focus/Key attendance area. The calculations do not include fifth-graders from other neighborhood attendance areas enrolled in those schools.

H-B Sixth Grade Lottery
A countywide, random, double-blind lottery will be held to determine which fifth-grade students are selected. Students not selected during the random, double-blind lottery for sixth grade admission will have their names automatically placed on their neighborhood attendance area’s wait list, as well as on a countywide wait list. If a student declines admission or transfers out of H-B Woodlawn during grades 6-8, the resulting empty slot will go to the next student on the departing student’s neighborhood attendance area wait list. If there are no applicants on the area wait list, the slot will be offered to the next student on the countywide wait list, regardless of neighborhood attendance area. The admissions policy for countywide schools and programs (25-2.2) can be viewed on the APS website.

Arlington Tech Ninth Grade Lottery
A countywide, random, double-blind lottery will be held for approximately 100 (TBD) available slots in the Arlington Tech ninth grade class. All students interested in applying to Arlington Tech for the high school years must submit an application for the ninth-grade lottery and meet academic requirements. Admission will be offered based on lottery results and available spaces.  The online application is available at:  careercenter.apsva.us/arlington-tech/application-process/

H-B Ninth Grade Lottery
A countywide, random, double-blind lottery also will be held for approximately 10-15 (TBD) available slots in the H-B Woodlawn ninth grade class. All students interested in applying to H-B Woodlawn for the high school years, including those on the middle school wait list from the sixth grade admission lottery, must submit a new application for the ninth-grade lottery. Admission will be offered based on lottery results and available spaces.

Change for High School Application & Transfer Timeline
Due to the current School Board deliberations about high school boundaries which will be decided on December 1, this year’s High School Information Night will be held on Monday, December 12, 2016 at Washington-Lee High School. The deadline to apply for a countywide high school program or transfer has been extended to Tuesday, January 31, 2017.