Arlington Life & Style

New School Year, Same Old School Issues

Even with all the new technology, some things never change.

Most Arlington County students return to school today and for many parents, myself included, this means rebooting your schedule and preparing for the many email alerts and texts coming from your child, his or her teachers, the school, the county, the PTA, coaches and activity sponsors. The world is so wired these days and schools are trying to keep up. But for all the new technology, parents still have some of the same old school problems. Parental Involvement No matter whether we text or Skype to get the word out, there always seem to be a handful of parents doing most of the work. My son attended band camp this summer. One day when I was dropping him off for camp, a concerned mother ran to my car with a large green poster board.  With my…

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Arlington Launches 'Second Chance' Program for Teens

Arlington County announced today that the Second Chance program will launch in September, giving middle school and high school students who are caught with alcohol or marijuana for the first time, a second chance.

Arlington County teenagers caught using drugs or alcohol have a new program designed to avoid school suspension or the juvenile justice system. Called Second Chance, the program offers a three-day early intervention program for first-time offenders. “I think it really encourages families, kids, staff, the police and local authorities to work together and to find these kids early and get them the help they need,” Linda Erdos, Assistant Superintendent, School and Community Relations told Patch on Wednesday. “So that it’s really not a court date, it really is a counseling date. Getting it early and involving the families so that we can hopefully build a better understanding of what’s going on and what needs to be done with kids.” The …

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