More Stories from the Week:
Vaccine Clinics for Students and Staff
The Alexandria Health Department will hold a vaccine clinic at Alexandria City High School (ACHS) on Saturday, Sept. 25:
COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic at Alexandria City High School, 3330 King St.
Saturday, Sept. 25, 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
- Moderna Vaccine (Third Dose Only, Ages 18+): Schedule your appointment
- Pfizer Vaccine (All Doses, Ages 12+): Schedule your appointment
Walk-ins are welcome for either vaccine. Have questions? Call 703-746-4988.
Additionally, there are vaccines available at the City of Alexandria’s Teen Wellness Center which is located at the ACHS King Street Campus. Community members can find additional vaccine clinics in Alexandria on the City of Alexandria COVID-19 Vaccines webpage.
Virtual Town Hall on Health & Safety
ACPS will host a virtual town hall with the Alexandria Health Department on Sept. 20 to discuss health and safety mitigation measures in schools, COVID-19 contact tracing, learning in quarantine, and return to school guidance.
Please join us at 12 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 20 on Zoom. You can also watch live on the ACPS Facebook page.
Interpretation in Amharic, Arabic and Spanish will be available on Zoom for this town hall.
See the recordings and slides from the Sept. 16 Town Hall.
Celebrating Our Diversity During National Hispanic Heritage Month and Beyond
Each year, we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (HHM), Sept. 15-Oct. 15, by honoring and recognizing the contributions of Hispanic Americans to our culture and the long and important presence of Hispanic and Latino Americans in America.
Hispanic Heritage Week was first proclaimed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968. The commemorative week was expanded to cover a 30-day period from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. It was enacted into law the same year.
Sept. 15 was selected as the start date because it is the anniversary of the declaration of independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Mexico, Chile and Belize celebrate their independence days on September 16, September 18, and September 21, respectively.
During HHM, communities celebrate the achievements and contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans with community festivals, government-sponsored activities and educational activities for students.
See a glimpse into Mount Vernon Community School kicking off the month-long celebration:
Video: Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
Alexandria City High School’s Parker-Gray Memorial Stadium Opens for 2021-22 Titan Football Season
It is Friday night lights as Alexandria City High School (ACHS) hosts the first home game of the Titan football season against Justice High School in the newly renovated Parker-Gray Memorial Stadium today at 7 p.m. The multi-use stadium awaits a few finishing touches, however, it is now open for fall sports and features new amenities, including an eight-lane running track, new scoreboard, new artificial turf, egress safety lighting, new concessions building and restrooms, ticket booth, and, most notably, lights for the first time in ACHS history.
On Saturday, Sept. 18, ACPS will host the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. The newest inductees will join the Hall of Fame and be recognized for their outstanding achievements as individual athletes, coaches, teams, and friends of ACPS. Members of the Hall of Fame have contributed to the integrity, promotion and growth of athletics at the high school level, and have represented ACPS with high standards of citizenship and character.
Join the Alexandria Soccer Association After School Leagues
It is time to fall back into soccer after-school for ACPS students.The Alexandria Soccer Association (ASA) in partnership with Amazon will be sponsoring Access4All After School Leagues for the coming year. ASA will be hosting free leagues this fall at Cora Kelly School for Math, Science and Technology, William Ramsay Elementary School, Francis C. Hammond and George Washington middle schools, and Alexandria City High School.
The After School Leagues will host more than 1,000 participants in 2021-22 and will help ensure that children get a daily hour of physical activity as recommended for five to 18-year-olds. Support from the ASA Community Fund, along with Amazon’s partnership will provide professional coaching, equipment, new jerseys, and league play at each school, provided to players and their families at no cost.
ASA remains committed to ensuring that all children have access to high-quality soccer programming regardless of their ability, education or socioeconomic status. These types of school programs help introduce children to soccer as a great way to get outdoors and exercise while removing the cost barrier that may prevent some children from participating.
Listed below are the schools and times for Access4All After School Leagues:
- George Washington Middle School: Mondays, 3:20-4:10 p.m.
- Cora Kelly: Tuesdays, 2:35-3:45 p.m.
- William Ramsay: Wednesdays 2:35-3:45 p.m.
- Francis C. Hammond Middle School: Thursdays, 3:20-4:10 p.m.
- Alexandria City High School: To be determined
Students who are interested in participating can contact Johnatan Nunez at jnunez@alexandria-soccer.org to get sign-up information (se habla español e inglés)!
Celebrating the Parker-Gray School
A virtual celebration of the legacy of the Parker-Gray School in Alexandria put the focus on the event theme, “How Far Have We Really Come?” 101 years later. The program showcased the school and how it came about as the Black community made its voice heard concerning their need for educational opportunities.
“We are not celebrating a building… but rather a generation of students, educators who changed the world in so many ways,” said Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson.
The program included Eugene Thompson, former director of the Alexandria Black History Museum, as the master of ceremonies, and featured reflections from Julian “Butch” Haley, Jr., chairman of the Alexandria African American Hall of Fame, Alexandria Libraries Executive Director Rose T. Dawson, as well as Parker-Gray alumni Frances Colbert Terrell (1961) and Cheryl Lewis Hawkins (1971) and Alexandria City High School student Abenaa Buabeng.
ACPS leaders who spoke as part of the program echoed comments made during the reflections about the inequities in education that exist in Alexandria today.
“We’ve moved the promise of integration forward, but haven’t dismantled the systems that continue to subjugate us, deny us and ignore us,” ACPS School Board Chair Meagan Alderton emphatically noted, adding, “That is our work moving forward.”
“Achievement and opportunity gaps stem from systemic racism… it is not the color of their skin,” added ACPS Superintendent Dr. Gregory C. Hutchings, Jr. in looking at education in the 21st century. He said that replacing two school names that had ties to a racist past is far from enough, and much more needs to be done to achieve Equity for All.