Parents in Arlington Heights have many good options when the time comes to send their children to school, including both neighborhood schools and magnet schools. By default, children from Arlington Heights go to Alice West Fleet Elementary School, Thomas Jefferson Middle School, and Wakefield High School.
- Elementary Schools
- Middle Schools
- High Schools
The AHCA webmaster encourages parents with experience with these schools are encouraged to send updated or expanded information about schools available to Arlington Heights residents so that AHCA can expand and revise these listings.
Elementary Schools
Neighborhood School: Alice West Fleet Elementary School
Fleet's motto is "Do your personal best today and all life long." Our neighborhood school offers a diverse set of programs to serve the diverse population, including: gifted programs; English as a Second Language and High Intensity Language Training; and special education, including related services such as physical and occupational therapy. Alice West Fleet has a record of high academic performance, making Acceptable Yearly Progress under the No Child Left Behind Act since measurement began.
APS Brochure: Alice West Fleet Elementary School
Alternative and Cluster Schools (transportation provided)
While Arlington maintains strong neighborhood elementary schools, it also offers magnet programs that provide alternative approaches to education. For Arlington Heights residents, the school system will provide free bus transportation to these schools. To apply for a transfer to a school other than the neighborhood school, parents must attend orientations for both the neighborhood school AND the other school, and have both principals sign an orientation form. Arlington Public Schools provides more information about school options and the transfer process on their web site.
Arlington Traditional School
This county-wide magnet school provides a traditional learning environment: teacher-led instruction in self-containd classrooms; high standards for dress, discipline, and grooming; promotion on grade-level mastery; and regular homework assignemnts. The application process for ATS involves a lottery and a special transfer form.
APS Brochure: Arlington Traditional School
Campbell Elementary School
Campbell offers a natural learning environment for children, including: inclusive classrooms; an environment of respect for individuals; outdoor learning opportunities; a non-competitive environment; a multi-cultural, thematically-integrated, collaborative curriculum; and integration of multiple ages into K-1 classrooms, plus 2-year looping with the same teacher in later grades. Campbell offers an extended day program covers most holidays, a boon for working parents. Campbell runs an admissions lottery if the number of applications exceeds the available number of openings.
APS Brochure: Campbell Elementary School
Montessori Public School of Arlington
Montessori Public School of Arlington's county-wide magnet program focuses on encouraging the natural learning drive children have by providing an environment that encourages them to grow and explore learning materials spontaneously. MPSA offers a Montessori multi-age track track. Admissions to MPSA are by lottery. The Montessori program has an admissions preference for students with previous Montessori experience, either at Arlington County's public Montessori preschool programs or elsewhere.
APS Brochure: Montessori Public School of Arlington
Escuala Key Elementary
Key offers a Spanish-English immersion program where both Spanish and English play prominent educational roles. Native and non-native speakers of each tongue support each other's learning and build bi-lingual proficiency. Key teaches math and science in Spanish, social studies in English, and language arts in both languages. Key has an admissions preference for some eastern Arlington elementary school districts, including students having Fleet as a base school. Key runs an admissions lottery for new applicants.
APS Brochure: Escuela Key Elementary
Other Notable Elementary Schools
While Arlington County will not provide transportation to these schools for Arlington Heights residents, parents may request to transfer a student to these schools. Admissions policies differ from school to school.
Arlington has a wealth of alternative programs for elementary education. Many of the programs have admissions preferences linked to neighborhood boundaries. Many of the nearby elementary schools also have special programs, although Arlington Heights residents get no special transfer preferences regarding these programs. The schools listed below are notable because of their proximity, reputation, or special programs; Arlington Public schools maintains a complete list of schools.
- Arlington Science Focus concentrates on science education.
- Barrett has a NASA Explorer science and math program.
- Randolph has an International Baccalareate primary education program.
Middle Schools
Neighborhood School: Thomas Jefferson Middle School
Jefferson offers a Middle Years International Baccalareate program. Students take an Integrated Technology class to fulfill the Technology education component of the IB middle years program. Jefferson serves a diverse student population.
APS Brochure: Thomas Jefferson Middle School
The H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program
H-B Woodlawn offers a program that gives students more responsibility and freedom regarding their own education than is usual in other high schools. Independent study and student-designed courses feature prominently in the Woodlawn program. Students address teachers by their first names, and help to govern the school through a democratic process.
APS Brochure: H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program
Kenmore Middle School
Kenmore offers a special Arts and Communications Technology Focus program open to all Arlington County middle school students. The school system provides free bus transportation for these students. Howard Gardiner's theory of multiple intelligences informs the Kenmore curriculum. Multi-sensory approaches to learning that include verbal, mathematical, visual, kinesthetic, musical, intrapersonal, interpersonal, and naturalistic intelligences guide the learning activities at Kenmore.
High Schools
Base School: Wakefield High School
Wakefield is the proud recipient of the College Board 2006 Inspiration Award for the outstanding work being done through its Advanced Placement Network in preparing its students for college. Wakefield includes many programs in its curriculum to meet the needs and interests of its diverse student body — the Foundation Program for 9th graders, the continuation of the Spanish Immersion program, the Academic Cohort group to support high achieving minority males, the Wakefield Academy for Careers in Medicine, and the Senior Project requirement for seniors.
APS Brochure: Wakefield High School
The Career Center
The Career Center provides vocational and technical classes to interested high school students from other Arlington high schools, and hosts the CRAM program, an alternative academic program that integrates academics and vocational and technical instruction. The Career Center provides real-world experiences for its students through a variety of internship, mentoring, and co-curricular activities.
APS Brochure: The Career Center
The H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program
H-B Woodlawn offers a program that gives students more responsibility and freedom regarding their own education than is usual in other high schools. Independent study and student-designed courses feature prominently in the Woodlawn program. Students address teachers by their first names, and help to govern the school through a democratic process.