INSIDE
Arlington’s jobless rate again lowest in commonwealth – Page 3
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SIGNATURE GETS HELPING HAND FROM GOVERNMENT
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CHAMBER SALUTES SUCCESS OF 2014
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FOOTBALL PLAYERS PICKED ALL-REGION
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EXPERIENCE THE DIFFERENCE! Superior Service, Outstanding Results
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SunGazette kellyandderrick.com
VOLUME 80 NO. 4
ARLINGTON’S SOURCE FOR HOMETOWN NEWS SINCE 1935
Kelly Tierney
703-477-0055
KellyTierney@remax.net
DECEMBER 18, 2014
Raphael Decision Leaves School Bd. Seat Up for Grabs
BASKETBALL KICKS INTO HIGH GEAR
Incumbent Opts Against Seeking New Term, Running for Co. Board SCOTT McCAFFREY Staff Writer
School Board member Abby Raphael will not seek re-election in 2015, and does not plan to run for County Board or any other elected office in the coming year. “It is good for organizations to have new people come on,” said Raphael, who said her two-term, eight-year tenure seems “just about right.” “I have a year left in my term; I plan to be fully en-
gaged,” Raphael told the Sun Gazette. She also will stay active in the coming year as chair of the Washington Area Boards of Education and a member of the Governor’s Task Force on Combating Campus Sexual Violence, among other posts. “I’m not ‘retiring’ – I don’t care for that term,” Continued on Page 18
Wilson School Supporters Pressing for Historic Status SCOTT McCAFFREY Staff Writer
Yorktown High School junior guard Alison Criswell drives to the basket with Oakton’s Lindsey Abed defending during last week’s game in Arlington. Yorktown lost to Oakton, then the next night defeated the Annandale Atoms. Both were non-conference games. See Sports PHOTO BY DEB KOLT for details.
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Could the 104-year-old Wilson School building still be saved from the wrecking ball? At least one civic leader isn’t going down without a fight. Stan Karson, president of the Radnor/Fort Myer Heights Civic Association, recently blasted county and school officials for not even considering retention of the building as part of
a plan to redevelop its site on Wilson Boulevard for a new middle school. “I am led to believe that history is a required course in Arlington County schools,” Karson told School Board members. “If you tear down Wilson School, you are saying to Arlington students history is important only in the classroom, not in the board room.”