Superintendent’s May 4, 2022 Update: Change in COVID Protocols & Teacher Appreciation Week

En Español

Dear APS Families,

This is Teacher Appreciation Week (May 2-6), and I invite you to join us in thanking APS teachers. Students reach their full potential because of great teachers who support their growth and learning every step of the way, from kindergarten through graduation. Share your appreciation on social media using #ThankAPSTeachers.Here are additional updates for this week:

Change in COVID Protocols: Beginning May 5, APS will be moving to a 5-day isolation period for students who test positive for COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status. Previously, isolation for students was for a period of 10 days. This aligns with the APS 5-day isolation protocol for staff and follows the recommendations of the CDC and Virginia Department of Health.

• Students may return to in-person instruction on Day 6 if on day five the student:
  • has no symptoms (or symptoms are improving) AND
  • has been fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication, AND
  • is able to wear a well-fitting mask for days 6-10.
• View additional information.

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month: I invite you to join APS in celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in May. Throughout the month, APS will honor the heritage, history and contributions of Asian and Pacific Islanders who enrich our community. Additional resources are available online.

May Recognitions: Here are additional recognitions we are observing this month:

• School Lunch Hero Day – This Fri, May 6, is a day to thank our food service professionals and to highlight their dedication to serving our students healthy, delicious breakfasts and lunches during the school year.
• Better Hearing and Speech Month – Audiologists and speech-language pathologists assist in the development of communication skills for children and adults with hearing loss. Thank you to the APS Speech Language Pathologists and Audiologists who are committed to this work. To learn more, visit asha.org

The annual Celebration of Excellence takes place this evening at Washington-Liberty High School, with the ceremony starting at 6:30 p.m. We will honor our Principal of the Year, Teachers of the Year and Support Employees of the Year winners. I also want to thank the members of community who took time to nominate many outstanding teachers. I provided letters of appreciation to acknowledge their nominations.

Thank you for your partnership and support in this final stretch of the school year!

Sincerely,

Dr. Francisco Durán
Superintendent
Arlington Public Schools