On September 16, the Virginia Department of Education released new model policies for school boards addressing the treatment of transgender students. The models mandated misgendering, outing, and sex-based bathrooms, alongside optional parental restrictions on student counseling services. Immediately, the policies sparked widespread reactions throughout social media. Twitter thrummed with thousands of opinions, calls to action, and profile picture changes as the country, state, and community weighed in on Governor Youngkin’s latest swing at student rights in the name of “empowering parents.”
In 2019, the former ACPS School Board approved Superintendent Dr. Gregory Hutchings to form what is called the High School Project, better known as The Connected High School Network. This program was designed to further integrate students at the Chance For Change, Satellite, Minnie Howard, and King Street campuses of Alexandria City High School as one whole high school in Alexandria. The recent developments of creating a more structured and versatile campus-based high school reflects the concerns of overcrowding in the King Street campus and lack of flexibility to a high school education.
The Ultimate Frisbee Club at Alexandria City High School endeavors to set itself apart from other school sports by focusing on both including and lifting up all their members while still staying competitive. The current ACHS team was started in spring of 2019, but it started gaining traction in the fall of 2020.