Arlington Public Schools is a public school division in Arlington County, Virginia. In 2019, student enrollment was 28,020 students, with students coming from more than 146 countries. In 2015, there were 2,166 teachers. There are 24 elementary schools, 6 middle schools, 4 high schools, 1 secondary institution and 4 other educational programs within the school district.
Forbes magazine named the Washington, D.C., and Arlington area as the top place in the nation to educate one's child in 2007.
In fiscal year 2019, close to $637.1 million was budgeted for the school district.
Contents
History
The first public schools in Arlington County, Virginia (then known as Alexandria County) were established in 1870: the Columbia and Walker schools, which were for whites only, and the Arlington School for Negroes in Freedman's Village, which was located on land seized from Robert E. Lee's plantation. In 1932, Hoffman-Boston Junior High School, opened, allowing black students to pursue education past primary school in Arlington for the first time. However, since Hoffman-Boston was not accredited until the 1950s, many black Arlingtonians commuted to Washington, D.C. to pursue secondary education. In 1947, the NAACP sued the Arlington School Board for not providing equal educational facilities to black students in Constance Carter v. The School Board of Arlington County, Virginia. In 1950, the courts ruled in the NAACP's favor. As a result, increased funding was earmarked to the segregated schools for black students and black teachers began receiving equal pay.
In 1949, after advocacy from a local citizen's group, Arlingtonians for a Better County, Arlington's school board became the first in Virginia to be democratically elected rather than appointed.
In 1954, after the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, all public schools in the United States were required to desegregate. The political leaders of Virginia and the Virginia General Assembly, led by United States Senator Harry F. Byrd, adopted a policy of "massive resistance" to desegregation. Under massive resistance, schools that desegregated would be closed and students would be given money to attend private schools until the schools could be resegregated. Ten days after the Brown ruling, the Arlington County School board began a committee to research how to comply with the ruling. In January 1956, a plan to gradually desegregate Arlington's public schools was released by the committee. Less than a month later, the Virginia General Assembly voted to remove Arlington of its democratically elected school board, which the more conservative Arlington County Board replaced with officials more sympathetic to segregation. The integration plan was overturned by the new school board. That same year, the NAACP, on behalf of black and white students and their families, sued the new school board in an attempt to compel them to integrate in Clarissa Thompson v. the County School Board of Arlington, which was filed concurrently with other integration lawsuits around Virginia.
Many white racial moderates feared that the Board would close public schools rather than allow them to be desegregated. On May 1, 1958, the Arlington Committee to Preserve Public Schools, an all-white group which was neutral on segregation, and dedicated to preventing the closure of public schools, was formed.
Students
In 2019, there was a total student enrollment of 28,020 students, with students coming from more than 146 countries and speaking 107 different languages. Arlington Public Schools has a 95% graduation rate.
In 2009, the student body was 48% white, 26% Latino, 13% black and 11% Asian.
In 2019, the student body was 46% white, 28% Hispanic, 10% black and 9% Asian, with American Indian, Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Multiple backgrounds comprising the remaining 7%.
Teachers
As of 2019, teachers are paid an average salary of $74,554 per year.
In 2009, there were 2,166 teachers, of which 78% were white, 10% were black, 8% were Hispanic and 3% were Asian.
Arlington County School Board
Reid Goldstein, Chair
Cristina Diaz-Torres, Vice Chair
Mary Kadera, Member
Bethany Sutton, Member
David Priddy, Member
Arlington County School Board Staff
Melanie Elliott, Clerk of the School Board
Claudia Mercado, Deputy Clerk and Communications Liaison
Julieanne Jones, Administrative Assistant
John Mickevice, Internal Auditor Director
Special facilities
The David M. Brown Planetarium is operated by Arlington Schools Planetarium for both Arlington school field trips and public multimedia programs. It offers shows for the general public Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays during the school year. The planetarium is named for astronaut David M. Brown, a graduate of Arlington's Yorktown High School who was killed in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003.
The Arlington Outdoor Lab is a 225-acre outdoor facility operated by Arlington Schools and located in Fauquier County. In addition to a large classroom building, the lab facility has a pond, streams, small mountains, and forested areas.
Schools
High schools
Wakefield High School
Washington-Liberty High School
Yorktown High School
Arlington Tech
Middle schools
Dorothy Hamm Middle School is located at 4100 Vacation Lane. The principal is Ellen Smith. The school is named after civil rights activist Dorothy Hamm. From 1951 to 1978, this building was the location of Stratford Junior High School. From 1978 to 2019, the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program was located here, along with the former Stratford Program (now the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Program). Dorothy Hamm was first opened for the 2019–2020 school year. Students graduating Dorothy Hamm will either attend Washington-Liberty or Yorktown High Schools.
Dorothy Hamm's mascot is the Phoenix. Their colors are red, gold, and white.
Gunston Middle School is located at 2700 South Lang Street, in Arlington Ridge. The principal is Carolyn Ruth Jackson. In 2012–13, there were over 800 students enrolled and more than 80 teachers (41 of whom have their Master's Degree). It is accredited through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The school was originally called Brandon Junior High. In 1957 the school was renamed Gunston Junior High, named after Gunston Hall, the home of George Mason, the estate is nearby in Fairfax County, Virginia.
Gunston's mascot is the Hornet. The school colors are purple and teal. Sports teams include basketball, soccer, wrestling, swimming, track, tennis, cheerleading and ultimate frisbee.
Gunston's curriculum includes the continuation program for students who attended the Key Elementary or the Claremont Elementary Spanish Immersion program. Students in this program take three classes each day taught entirely in Spanish: Science, Social Studies and Spanish Language Arts. About 1/3 of the incoming 6th graders come from the Key or Claremont programs. Gunston also offers the Montessori Middle School program. Most students attending Gunston will attend Wakefield High School after graduating from 8th grade. Except for those students in the other programs who are not in the Wakefield district or immersion program.
The school, at the time, called Gunston Junior High School and encompassing grades 7, 8, and 9, closed in 1978 after a major decline in enrollments. At the time of its closure, the school mascot was the Falcon, and the school colors were black and gold. Gunston reopened in 1994 to address overcrowding in other area schools. After the re-opening in 1994, it subsequently went through a 3-phase major renovation, funded by the 2000 bond package. Construction was completed in 2003. It was built as a two-story building with a public recreation center and public auditorium.
Alternative programs
Arlington Community High School – A fully accredited alternative high school for students whose life circumstances have interrupted their schooling; formerly known as Arlington Mill High School.
Arlington Tech – A high school program with project-based learning.
H-B Woodlawn – An alternative secondary program where students control much of their education and do not have "continuous adult supervision".
Langston High School Continuation Program – Offers students flexibility in the way and timeframe in which students can earn a high school diploma.
New Directions – A program designed for 30-35 students with behavioral difficulties that provides support for responsible decision making and on-time graduation.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver Program (formerly the Stratford Program) – A secondary school for students in special education.
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST)
Elementary schools
Abingdon Elementary School
Alice West Fleet Elementary School
Arlington Science Focus Elementary School
Arlington Traditional Elementary School
Ashlawn Elementary School
Barcroft Elementary School
K.W. Barrett Elementary School
Campbell Elementary School (formerly Glencarlyn)
Carlin Springs Elementary School
Claremont Immersion Elementary School
Discovery Elementary School
Dr. Charles R. Drew Elementary School
Glebe Elementary School
Hoffman-Boston Elementary School
Jamestown Elementary School
Francis Scott Key Immersion Elementary School
Long Branch Elementary School
Cardinal Elementary School
Montessori Public School of Arlington (formerly Patrick Henry Elementary School)
Nottingham Elementary School
Oakridge Elementary School
Former schools
Fairlington Elementary School (1944-1979)
McKinley Elementary School (closed in 2021)
Nellie Custis Elementary School
Dolley Madison Junior High School (approx. 1947-1960)