1. Explore and Support the Outdoor Lab This Weekend
Have you experienced the Outdoor Lab? This popular destination for APS student field trips and summer camp is hosting an Open House this Sat, May 21. Arlington families are invited to explore the mountain trails, streams and pond, and enjoy fishing, hiking and nature. Tickets are available from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. or 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. Additionally, tonight (Fri, May 20) OneMorePageBooks is hosting an online and outdoor fundraiser and will donate 15% of all sales to the Outdoor Lab. Proceeds support the lab and its wildlife, which rely on donations and volunteers. Learn more online.
2. Student Device Collection and Return
APS is collecting all student devices during the final week of school to provide students with a tech break and update the devices for use in the summer and next school year. Knowing that high school students use their devices for applications and other purposes, all students entering grades 9-12 in fall 2022-23 will receive their updated devices back beginning July 5 and throughout the summer during designated distribution days. Additionally, all students will continue to have access to their MyAccess account to work on instructional programs and applications. Students attending Summer School will also receive a device. More information about device collection and return dates will be communicated by your school. Learn more online.
3. Meals Update for Summer and Next School Year
APS has been offering free meals for all since the onset of the pandemic as part of a USDA waiver. Congress has not extended the waiver past June, meaning that meals will no longer be provided free of charge for all students in Summer School and for the upcoming school year. APS is awaiting details on the cost of meals and will send additional information when available. Families with children attending summer school, who believe they may qualify for free or reduced-price meals, are encouraged to apply online for meal benefits by June 30. Learn more online.
4. Inclusive Classroom: Drew Students Learn to Help Peers with Limited Verbal Capabilities
Fourth-grade students at Dr. Charles R. Drew Elementary have begun a project with the Office of Assistive Technology to learn about how Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) helps students and adults with language problems communicate effectively. The students are not only learning about AAC tools like gestures, symbols and drawings, but are also creating and printing the 3D symbols and giving them to Drew students who need language support.
5. Kudos! Space Force JROTC Program Activated at Arlington Career Center
This week, students in Arlington Career Center’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Program (JROTC), VA-821, officially activated as one of the first Space Force JROTC programs in the nation. Last year, VA-821 was one of the ten units selected worldwide from the almost 900 Air Force JROTC units to move to the Space Force. The activation ceremony this week featured keynote speakers Space Force Col Matthew Allen and Career Center Principal Margaret Chung, and culminated in Space Force leaders pinning the Space Force lapel pin on four cadets to symbolize the official activation.
Other News & Notes
