May 22, 2026 Newsletter

Dear Patriot Families,

This week students completed end of course SOL exams and demonstrated their learning from this school year. Congratulations to our students and teachers on completing these important assessments!

Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend as we reflect on those who gave their lives for our country. A reminder that Tuesday and Wednesday are no school days for APS observation of Eid al Adha.

Sincerely,

Dr. Kevin Clark

Principal

In this message: 

• What’s Happening at Yorktown
• Counseling Corner
• Activities Updates
• Senior Updates
• Technology Corner
• Upcoming Dates

WHAT’S HAPPENING AT YORKTOWN

SOL Testing next Week

End-of-Course SOL Testing will take place Monday, May 18 – Thursday, May 21. Please see the schedule here.  Students taking an SOL exam will begin testing at 8:20 a.m.  Buses will run on a normal schedule. Students who are not testing may stay home in the morning and come to school later with their own transportation, classes will begin at 11:20.

Teachers who teach an SOL course will inform their students of their assigned testing date and room number.  On their assigned testing day, all students should bring with them:

• Fully charged APS-issued laptop
• Pen/pencil (for scratch paper only, tests are online)

Please do not schedule time out of school for your student on their testing dates. It will help your student to perform at his or her best if he/she has a good night’s rest, a healthy breakfast, and arrives at school on time.

It’s Playoff Time

Congratulations to the Boys Lacrosse Team, and Girls Soccer Team on winning the Liberty District Championship!  Softball will compete in the Liberty District Championship on Memorial day at Langley at 11:00 am.  Many of our teams will continue into the Northern Region tournament, beginning with a lacrosse double-header this evening at home – Girls at 5:30 vs. Oakton and Boys at 7:30 vs. Westfield. Check out this link for the most up to date playoff information for all spring sports teams.

Looking Ahead – Junior Class Assembly – June 3

Early in November 2022, Braylon Meade submitted all of his college essays, was poised to lead the Washington Liberty High School boys’ varsity basketball team as their point guard and was ready to cruise for the rest of his senior year with his friends and girlfriend, Christine Wilson.  Just after midnight on November 11, 2022, Braylon kissed his girlfriend good night and jumped into his car to drive home.  Braylon never made it home alive that night—an impaired student, driving 95 miles per hour, struck Braylon’s car and killed him upon impact.  Braylon’s family, friends, girlfriend, and the Arlington community were devastated by his unnecessary loss of life. The Meade family turned together with their shared grief and recognized that it was their duty to keep Braylon’s legacy alive.  Braylon showed courage, kindness, humor, and hard work in everything he did in his short almost 18 years of living.

The Meade family established four college scholarships in Braylon’s honor to help other WL and Arlington graduating seniors attend college.  Braylon’s friends, Charlie Taylor, and Jack Tsuchitani (YT class of 2023) created the annual Ginger Cup Golf Tournament in Braylon’s honor.  All proceeds from the 2023, 2024, 2025, and soon to be 2026 Ginger Cup, the Braylon Meade Basketball Classic, and donations from family and friends across the country fund these scholarships.

On June 3rd, 2026, the Parents of Braylon Meade–Rose and Kris will join Yorktown graduates Will Taylor and Karenna Wilson, friends of Braylon, to talk to our junior class about Braylon’s life, impaired driving, and strategies to stay safe.  Let’s keep a dialogue going among students, parents, teachers, and counselors to keep impaired driving out of our community- we can’t let this happen again.

Graduation is June 10, 2026, Asynchronous Day for Grades 9-11

Graduation is Wednesday, June 10th at 3:00 at DAR Constitution Hall. We encourage staff to participate. To accommodate Graduation, it is an asynchronous day for students in grades 9-11 with up to 1 hour of work per even day class and 30 minutes for 3rd period.

Congratulations Speech and Debate

Three members of the Yorktown Speech & Debate team qualified for the NCFL Nationals in Washington, D.C. Ronan Vora will be competing in Congressional debate, and Faris Kiame and Walter Shiu will be competing in Lincoln Douglas debate. Congratulations and good luck!

School Health Feedback Survey

School Health invites families, from May 18 to June 17, to complete a survey on the School Health Program (SHP).  All results are anonymous. If you wish to talk with someone about the School Health program, please contact 703-228-7444, option 7.  Link to choose your language:  https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8834174/School-Health-Survey Links to specific languages:English: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8814972/2025-2026-School-Health-Parent-SurveySpanish: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8814972/d451e0eccd84Arabic: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8814972/9bd03530eaafBengali: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8814972/5cbb5d6328c8Mongolian: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8814972/d4b94c0f59c0Amharic: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8814972/4e91176af895

COUNSELING CORNER

Advisory Information
There will be no advisory next week due to the long holiday weekend. We also resumed our regular Patriot Period schedule today, and our last advisory lesson/end of year wrap up will be on June 2.

Please also note the following assemblies are coming up during patriot period time:

• June 3rd- 11th Grade Meade Kehoe Family Presentation
• June 4th- 10th Grade College/Career Presentation
  • On Thursday, June 4th, 10th graders will learn more about how to use our platform, SchooLinks, to take interest inventories to match them with careers and colleges, which can help guide their post-secondary planning.  Current senior students will also share some of their experiences as an opportunity to learn from peers.

Looking for Students Ambassadors

The YHS Ambassadors are holding an interest meeting on Friday, May 29th during Patriot Period in the cafeteria. The Ambassadors group is a peer-to-peer program where members help new students feel connected and supported at Yorktown.  We are currently looking for students interested in being part of our team for the next school year. If your student is interested, please have them fill out this google form and/or join us at the interest meeting. There are leadership and volunteer opportunities within the group. We will need some students to help with our transfer student orientation that will take place on August 26th. Please direct questions to Ms. Rochard or Ms. Gilbert.

Leaving Yorktown? Let Us Know!

Families of rising 10th-12th graders, if you know that you will not be returning to APS for the 2026-27 school year, please complete this withdrawal form and email it to our registrar, Carol Thompson.  You may also reach out to Ms. Thompson with any questions about registering or withdrawing from school.  As we prepare for the next school year, this will ensure we have the most accurate numbers as we build next year’s schedule.

May Is Mental Health Awareness Month

This May, we are recognizing Mental Health Awareness Month by embracing the theme ‘More Good Days, Together.’ We know that mental health is foundational to our overall wellbeing, and that ‘good’ doesn’t have to mean happy or perfect—it means manageable and supported. At Yorktown, we are committed to fostering a culture where asking for help is seen as a sign of strength, and where we all play a role in supporting our colleagues, students, and families. Check on your neighbors, break the stigma, and know that you are not alone.  Resources are available at Mental Health America (MHA).  The counseling department, in cooperation with our Mental Health Matters club, has some fun activities planned during lunches on May 29th (new date due to rain on the 22nd). Everyone is encouraged to wear green on the 29th in support of the cause.

Requests for Early/Late Final Exams

The following is a friendly reminder about requests for early and late final exams: Students will not be permitted to take their final exams early, with the exception of families receiving military or foreign service orders.  Proof of these orders must be submitted to the counseling office.  Students may take late finals, and grades will be calculated with a zero for the final until they are taken, and then updated based upon the final exam results.  When possible, arrangements should be made in advance for any late finals. Please let your student’s teachers and counselor know if you’re making a request.

Summer School Credit Recovery Information

Registration for summer school continues to be open for credit recovery.  If your student is failing a course needed for graduation, your student has the opportunity to recover credits toward fulfilling graduation requirements by participating in the in-person summer school program. Only one credit recovery course may be taken during the 2026 summer session.Program Details:

• Dates: July 6 – July 31
• Location: Wakefield High School
• Time: 7:45AM – 12:15PM
• Cost: No cost

Registration Information:

Registration is open through June 1st via ParentVUE. Late registrations are NOT permitted, so if you are unsure if your student will pass a course, please go ahead and sign them up. They can be removed if they end up passing on the final report card. For directions on how to register, visit: Online Registrations for Pathways to Progress and Credit Recovery.You may reach out to your student’s counselor with any further questions. You can also review more information, including details about new work for credit, on the website.

ACTIVITIES UPDATES

Spring Sports – Playoff and Spectator Information

Playoff season is upon us. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for students.  A schedule of both playoff and regular season events is available on our athletic website. Games held in the stadium are available online on the NFHS network. Tickets for events in the gym are available online at GoFan and at the ticket booth.

Fall Schedules and Website

Fall schedules for sports are beginning to be populated on our athletic website.  We have been informed that sometime this summer, the back end of our website will be changing which will require all schedules to be transitioned to a new platform.  This should occur seamlessly, but as with any technology transfer, there might be some issues to work through.  For families involved in fall sports, we suggest making note of the schedule at the end of this school year in case any questions arise over the summer when the website scheduling function might be offline for a period of time.

Fall 2026 Sports Tryout Schedule Announced

Fall 2026 sports tryout dates have been posted and will continue to be updated throughout the summer.  Reminder most sports start as early as August 3 and require full commitment for the month of August.   Sign up for www.teamapp.com under YHS – ‘sport name’ (i.e., – YHS – field hockey or YHS – football) for potential optional off-season opportunities this spring and summer.

Please note students who make fall athletic teams are expected to be present daily for practices and games throughout the month of August.

Reminder: All students must pass five credit-earning courses for the 2025-26 school year to be eligible for Fall 2026 sports.

Looking Ahead – Homecoming Fall 2026 – October 2 and 3

Homecoming weekend will be held October 2 and 3, 2026 with the football game on Friday, October 2 at 7 pm against Marshall and the dance on Saturday night.

Club of the Week – The Jewish Student Union

The YHS Club of the Week is The Jewish Student Union. The Jewish Student Union was established as a community for Jewish students, no matter their religious observance or connection to Judaism. While the club is aimed at Jewish students, it is open to all who want to learn about Jewish culture and religion or discuss any related topics. In the upcoming years, we plan to foster and grow the Jewish community at Yorktown, organizing events such as Shabbat dinners, conversations with speakers, and continuing the fight against antisemitism. See Mr. Barkan in Room 268 for more information.

Upcoming Home Events

Where to find Athletics Information

Athletic Website – www.yorktownsports.org

Athletic Twitter – @yhssports

Athletic Instagram – @yhssports

Athletic Specific Sport Information – www.teamapp.com

Athletic Registration – https://yorktownhs-ar.rschooltoday.com/

SENIOR UPDATES

Be sure to bookmark the Seniors website, which is linked on the Yorktown HS home page under Quicklinks and loaded with information for senior year.

Senior Dues

We are still missing some Senior Dues! Senior class dues are $85. Senior families can pay their class dues using this link. All students are expected to contribute to class dues. Students will be unable to participate in Senior activities such as Senior Experience, Prom, Senior Picnic, and Graduation if they do not pay their class dues.

Senior Experience

Seniors Experience is now closed. Seniors not participating in Senior Experience will need to report to school for regular attendance through the end of the year.

Important Dates for Seniors Participating in Senior Experience:

Monday, May 18 – Monday, June 8th

• Senior Experience

Monday, May 25 – Wednesday, May 27

• APS Holidays. Seniors participating in Senior Experience are welcome to work at their internship, but it is not required.

Tuesday, June 9th

• Mandatory Final Seminar for Senior Experience during Patriot Period in Seniors’ Patriot Period classroom. Report time is 10:45 AM.

Prom – May 29   

Prom will be held on Friday, May 29, at the Westin in Ballston.  Tickets will be on sale beginning May 11 online and during lunches. Tickets cost $40 per person and will be sold in person during the lunches May 11-15 as well as online from May 11-29.  Seniors must pay senior dues and satisfy any outstanding obligations (i.e., sports uniforms, computer accessories, Yondr pouch, etc.) prior to purchasing a Prom ticket or departing on Senior Experience.  Guests will need to complete a guest pass in order to purchase tickets online or in person.

Class of 2026 Graduation and Rehearsal

Yorktown’s graduation will take place at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, June 10th at 3:00 p.m. Graduation rehearsal will take place that morning at 9:00 am at Yorktown in the auditorium. Graduates will receive your cap and gown and guest tickets (5) after rehearsal.

Graduation Name Pronunciation 

For those with names (first or last) which are commonly mispronounced, please email [email protected] with a phonetic spelling.

Graduation Livestream

Graduation will be broadcast on the AETV Vimeo Page and the AETV YouTube channel (both with closed captions). They will also be live on our Comcast Xfinity Channels in both HD (Ch. 1070) and SD (Ch. 70), and Verizon FiOS in SD (Ch. 41). The videos will be available at the same links after the event has ended to watch later.

Vimeo Showcase Link: https://vimeo.com/showcase/12195191

YouTube – Yorktown – Wednesday, June 10, 2026, at 3:00 pm ET: https://youtube.com/live/LAKl146jYRQ

Class of 2027 Senior Portraits 

Yorktown will have a new photography vendor for the 2026-27 school year.   CADY should have reached out to all Class of 2027 families by now to offer options for Senior portraits.  CADY uses a model where they emphasize the studio experience and supplement with onsite picture appointments.  Their studio is in Chantilly.  Onsite dates will be June 11 and 12.  You can select an onsite date or in studio date – both will allow your picture to be in the yearbook, posted in the main hall and the opportunity to purchase pictures.

TECHNOLOGY CORNER

Senior Device Collection

Senior device collection will take place on the following dates and times:

• Thursday, 5/14: 8:00 AM – 3:30 PM
• Friday, 5/15: 8:00 AM – 11:30 AM

Please make sure you bring the following items with you:

• Your APS-issued MacBook
• Your APS-issued charger

Important reminders:

• Students who do not return a charger with their computer will be charged $58 at the collection booth. Student obligations will not be cleared until the charge has been paid or waived.
• Please make sure your device is cleaned prior to turn-in and is free of excessive crumbs, stains, or debris.
• If there are any files or documents you would like to keep after graduation, please make sure to upload them to your personal Google Drive before turning in your device. If you need assistance with this process, please see your ITC: Mr. Opperhauser in Room 279 (Last Names A-K), Ms. Moten in Room 287 (Last Names L-Z).

See YHS Calendar or the APS Calendar for more information.

• Monday, May 25 – Tuesday, May 26 – No School – Memorial Day Holiday
• Wednesday, May 26 – No School – Eid al Adha
• June 10, Graduation – Asynchronous Day for Grades 9-11