October 28, 2026
In This Edition:
1. APS Revised Its Homework PIP - Next Up is the Policy
2. Parent's Corner: Why Would APS Close Its Gold-Standard PreK Program?
3. APS Enrollment Comes In Under Projections
4. Happening Soon
APS Revised Its Homework PIP - Next Up is the Policy:
What Parents Should Know
According to APS’ September 2026 posting on its School Board Policies for Revision/Amendment webpage, the division had scheduled a review of its Homework Policy, which applies to all K–12 students. Work began this past summer with important changes to the associated Policy Implementation Procedure (PIP). We support these changes and believe students should receive nightly literacy and numeracy practice outside of school. As a reminder, the School Board votes on policies, but not on their associated PIPs. Regular practice is critical to building foundational literacy and numeracy skills.
While revising the PIP was an excellent start, we call on APS to go farther.
I: Homework and Executive Functioning
APS should note homework’s role in fostering executive functioning skills in updates to its Homework Policy. These skills are critical to student success in school and life. Prior to 2022, APS' Homework Policy explicitly noted homework can:
“Encourage a student’s sense of responsibility, develop a sense of personal accountability, promote learning, and improve study habits.”
Inexplicably, APS removed all mentions of homework’s role in developing executive functioning in its Homework Policy revision in 2022. APS should bring back these mentions; Fairfax County Public Schools notes homework’s association with executive functioning skills in its Homework Regulation.
II: Restore pre-2022 Maximum Homework Guidance
APS should restore its maximum homework guidance from the pre-2022 Homework PIP. In 2022, APS effectively halved nightly maximum homework times to just 11 min/night for MS and 15 min/night for HS for regular courses. AP/IB/DE courses were exempted from these limits.
While likely a well-intentioned response to covid disruptions, these homework reductions were counter-productive and undermined students’ ability to recoup learning loss and make academic gains. By exempting advanced coursework, APS is showing that time spent on homework does produce academic benefits. Limiting homework in regular courses while allowing additional homework in advanced courses will only widen achievement gaps.
What You Can Do
We encourage you to share your views with APS on the upcoming Homework Policy revision by emailing the Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs, Steven Marku.
Read more on Arlnow.
Read our memo on our proposal for homework policy changes.
Parent's Corner:
Integration Station; Why in the World Would APS Close Its Gold-Standard PreK Program?
(Editor's Note: From time to time we publish op-eds, which are the unedited perspectives of APS parents, teachers, or community members on a topic of interest or concern to APS. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of APE.)
Over the past several weeks, Board members and administrators have spoken about their commitment to the co-teaching model, the gold standard for special education preschool instruction. Integration Station, located at (and in partnership with) The Children's School, is the only such model in APS. Its inclusive classrooms are co-taught by a general education teacher and aide, as well as a special education teacher and aide. Despite this stated “commitment", the School Board has announced that it has allocated no funding to Integration Station for next year and has absolutely no plan for what will happen to the students it serves.
APS’ Community Peer Program (CPP), the only other APS program which provides inclusive classrooms for preschoolers with disabilities, does not follow the gold-standard co-teaching model. Instead, it is staffed with a lead teacher and two aides, which legally requires the lead teacher to be dual certified in special education and general education. However, a review of publicly available licensing information shows that nearly half of the current CPP teachers are not dual certified. Many of the CPP classrooms operating today are NOT in compliance with the law. Furthermore, five out of ten schools with CPP programs (Fleet, Barcroft, Carlin Springs, Hoffman-Boston, Innovation) have been identified by VDOE as needing targeted improvement based on the students with disabilities category. It is unacceptable for half of these classrooms to have non-compliant staffing, nor for half of these schools to be performing below state standards for students with disabilities.
Four of these elementary schools are located in south Arlington. Outside of Integration Station, APS has an inadequate, inequitable system in place for SPED preschool students. IS is the only Pre-K program that provides both north and south Arlington students high-quality special education. It is unethical to shut down a successful program while the only alternative in APS is currently failing students with disabilities. A working group organized to address this issue recommended expanding the IS model into south Arlington by opening a second location in an APS-owned building, which would reduce costs to APS.
Instead of closing programs that follow the gold standard, why isn't APS fixing special education compliance problems in CPP classrooms or expanding the IS model, which has been proven to work? If the School Board is dedicated to both legal compliance and the co-taught model, why is APS not hiring general education teachers to staff CPP classrooms right now? The Children’s School is also more successful at recruiting Gen Ed peers since it offers full-time hours and summer care which is more conducive to working parents' schedules.
School Board, just admit that you made a mistake and let's work together to create a responsible solution that provides the gold standard of care, is legally compliant, and TRULY supports Arlington’s special needs preschool students.
Ask the School Board to Vote Yes on IS by emailing the School Board
APS Enrollment Declines More Than Projected
APS enrollment in grades PK-12 fell to 27,168 students this fall, with losses concentrated in elementary schools. This decline reflects roughly 2% fewer students than APS assumed in its FY2027 Budget last spring.
FCPS also saw an enrollment decline this year. Superintendent Reid provided the following context for FCPS’s shortfall: “For over a decade, we’ve had fewer kindergartners than we’ve had seniors graduating,” Reid said. “What’s mitigated that traditionally are students moving in, often from out of the country … which is not what we’re seeing this year or last year.”
Why It Matters
APS has not offered any spending offsets in response to this fall’s projection miss. While APS cut roughly 28 FTE in its FY27 budget, this was based on the lower enrollment projections as of last spring. However, actual September enrollment came in still under these spring budget projections by 2%. No spending offsets have been announced for this latest enrollment shortfall.
APE warned last year that APS enrollment projections appeared rosy in light of ongoing demographic shifts. The factors which have brought down APS’ enrollment in the last two years remain in place. We urge APS to take this reality into account when it formulates its enrollment projections this fall.
Happening Now
Wednesday, October 28, 8:30–10:00 AM – School Board Policy Subcommittee Meeting. Syphax, Suite 260. Meeting information. Agenda/materials portal.
Wednesday, October 28 – Early release for elementary, middle and high schools for school-based staff professional learning. Check your school’s dismissal time. APS calendar.
Thursday, October 29, 6:30–8:00 PM – APS Belonging and Respect Summit. Washington-Liberty High School Little Theatre, 1301 N. Stafford St. Join conversations about hate speech, identity-based harm and APS’ response. Details and registration.
Monday, November 2 – End of the first quarter. APS calendar.
Monday, November 2, 7:00–9:00 PM – ADHD Parenting Series: What Parents Need to Know. Virtual via Zoom. First of five weekly sessions; participants are asked to commit to the full series. Details and registration.
Tuesday, November 3, All Day – No school for students: Grade Preparation Day. APS calendar.
Wednesday, November 4, 5:00 PM – School Board Committee of the Whole Meeting. Syphax, School Board Room, Suites 254–258. Meeting information. Agenda/materials portal.
Wednesday, November 4, 7:00–8:30 PM – Academic Advisory Council Meeting. Syphax, Rooms 452/454/456. Advisory details.
Don’t forget! You can subscribe to APS School Calendars!Click the "Subscribe to Calendar" in the bottom right section of the page.
