Summary of May 1, 2025 School Board Meeting
Meeting Open: Mary Kadera opened the meeting, which was followed by recognition of JROTC cadets and honored citizens (Maria Garcia Gaurachi, Jennifer Landis-Santos, Dr. Stephen Mamber, Claire Noakes).
Consent Agenda Unanimously Adopted
Approved new appointments at APS
Approved Special Education Annual Plan
Approved request for authorization to transfer funds to the Arlington County School Board Retiree Welfare Benefit Trust
Board Announcements:
The next policy subcommittee meeting will be on May 7th
Next School Board meeting is on May 15th
Superintendent’s Announcements and Updates
Every Student Counts video focused on School Safety Coordinators
Extended Day Registration opens on May 12th
APS recognizes Jewish American Heritage Month
Dr. Durán visited the Grace Hopper Center construction site, which has a grand opening scheduled for 2026-27
Dr. Durán and others attended an event for the book launch event of Emma Violand-Sánchez, an APS teacher and administrator for 40 years and the first Latina elected to the Arlington School Board. Her auto-biographical book is Dreams and Shadows: An Immigrant’s Journey.
Dr. Durán explained why APS signed the certification with the U.S. Department of Education that APS is complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard (all but 2 of 132 Virginia school districts signed it)
APS’ Business Officer Andy Hawkins explained that APS is keeping watch as to whether possible tariffs will cause budgetary effects with their procurement operations
Public Comment
An Arlington parent spoke in favor of the hiring of a certain staff member at Barrett Elementary School.
An Arlington Education Association member spoke in favor of revising its Collective Bargaining Agreement.
An APS middle school library assistant spoke in favor of not cutting the library assistant roles as part of the budget.
A former APS autistic student spoke about the need for APS to implement fully inclusive education for the disabled.
An Arlington Education Association member spoke about the need to focus on how the budget improves the lives of APS staff.
An APS high school teacher spoke about inequity in certain APS employee benefits.
An APS high school teacher spoke about the budget not properly funding employee compensation vs. neighboring districts.
A board member of Aspire (a nonprofit organization that provides supplementary learning to underprivileged Arlington students) thanked APS for its partnership with Aspire.
An Arlington Education Association member spoke in opposition to the cuts to Instructional Technology Consultants.
An Arlington high school parent spoke in favor of APS’ partnership with Aspire, especially for Hispanic families.
Monitoring Item – Office of Safety, Security & Emergency Management
91% of school-based staff reported feeling safe at their workplace
88% of students in Grades 4-5, and 85% of students in Grades 6-12 reported feeling safe at school
As part of its threat assessment review, APS noted a 34% increase in reported concerns, especially in middle schools
School Safety Coordinators are trained to respond to emergencies, monitor school buildings and grounds, and support the overall security of the school day
School Safety Coordinators work closely with school administrators, emergency responders, and community partners to prevent problems before they happen
School Safety Coordinators and Security Professionals have a 92% retention rate
School-based staff receive regular training on security protocols and emergency response procedures to ensure preparedness across all campuses
Each year, their department conducts a safety audit to assess current practices and identifies opportunities to enhance safety in our schools
Student ID checks are now in place upon arrival at Wakefield, Washington-Liberty, and Yorktown High Schools (launched in November 2024)
In the three years since the SRO program's removal, APS and the Arlington County Police Department (ACPD) have implemented several key initiatives to strengthen communication and coordination, and will continue to collaborate
Kadera directed the public, if interested in why SROs were removed from APS schools 3 years ago, to go to the APS website for the report of the joint committee from 4 years ago recommending the removal of SROs
Kathleen Clark commented on how she appreciated seeing how APS’ security policies worked in the demonstration that was given to her.
Zuraya Tapia-Hadley asked whether the partnership with law enforcement was with all middle schools. As an example, the APS staffer discussed how some schools (not just middle schools) have a self-defense program directed at female students. Tapia-Hadley responded that she hopes those types of programs are available across the county, and not just at certain schools.
Bethany Zucher-Sutton commented that APS sees “extremely prompt” response times from ACPD when there’s an event at a school, and how appreciative the APS community is for ACPD’s support.
Kadera asked how APS assessed data to see whether safety in APS is improving. The APS staffer explained how they review data and shift resources to address issues identified in such data.
Dr. Durán commented that he’s very proud of APS’ partnership with ACPS.
Kadera asked to what extent APS is dependent on grants, and to what extent could federal cuts to grants affect APS’ security procedures. The APS staffer answered that all of the grants have been supported by the Virginia Department of Education, which has been $600,000 in grants since 2023.
Kadera asked where can APS parents find definitions for the safety terms used. The APS staffer recommended parents see the APS Safety, Security & Emergency Management website.
In response to a comment from Kadera, the ACPD detailed how ACPD has programs in place to talk to APS students who have an interest in law enforcement with ACPD, such as a possible future cadet program. APS Chief Academic Officer Dr. Gerald Mann said he will have an update on this item in the fall at the School Board Work Session.
Information Items
The School Board will be acting on these items at the next School Board meeting on May 15th.
Proposed Revisions to Program of Studies for Secondary English Learners
APS is having problems with the abbreviation “ELD” (English Language Development) so that APS is more precise in identifying English Language Development courses.
APS is not proposing to change the name of the courses English Language Development 1-4.
APS is proposing to drop the tag “ELD” from several other courses.
These changes would take effect next school year.
Zecher-Sutton and Tapia-Hadley asked about outreach to affected students and families. The APS staffer said this rollout is planned for July 1, 2025.
Proposed Revision of Various School Board Policies
Financial Management-Debt Management Policy
This is a short policy about how APS deals with its long-term debt.
APS is making minor updates to this Policy and its related Policy Implementation Procedures (PIP).
Use of Animals In the Instructional Program Policy
APS is making minor updates to this Policy and its related PIP.
APS updated the animal dissection section of the Policy Implementation Procedures to only cover Human Anatomy and Physiology at the high school level.
Transportation Demand Management Policy
APS added to the Policy that the Board supports safe transportation modes to and from school and supports the County’s Master Transportation Plan.
APS clarified in the Policy that APS coordinates with the County to improve walk routes, the conditions and locations of bus routes and transit stops, and efficiencies between APS and County bus routes.
APS also made a number of changes to the PIP, like promotion of the Bike Facilities Management Plan and specify that I-ride cards and Capital Bikeshare discounts are the available subsidies.
viii.APS received 8 public comments regarding this policy.
Kadera asked for more information at the next meeting that APS uses to judge the success of its transportation system.
Clark commented that the option school transportation policy must be considered in conjunction with this policy.
