Northern Virginia's largest high school, Alexandria City High School, formerly known as TC Williams, announced the cancellation of the last two days of school in 2024.
School Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt said in a letter Wednesday to families that classes would be canceled Thursday and Friday because fights at the school resulted in injuries to students and staff.
Kay-Wyatt said the closures were implemented amid concerns that additional fights were possible on Thursday and Friday.
The school has about 4,000 students, the largest student body of any public high school in the state, according to the Virginia High School League.
With the high school closed, students were being transferred to what the school system called “asynchronous instruction,” meaning students were expected to log in online and pick up assignments and educational materials.
Kay-Wyatt did not specify in her letter the extent of injuries suffered by students and staff. A spokesperson for the school system declined Thursday to comment beyond the superintendent's letter.
Alexandria police said two students were charged with assault and battery after school resource officers responded to multiple altercations Wednesday around noon in the school hallways and cafeteria.
Police said they are aware of a student who left school with a parent to receive treatment at a clinic. They said a woman seen on the ground in a video shared on social media refused medical attention at the scene and refused to file a police report.
The city's police chief, Tarrick McGuire, said in a written statement that “inciting violence and disorder within a school is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.”
Kay-Wyatt called the incidents “heartbreaking” and said, “Our school community deserves better and is counting on us to provide a safe place for teaching and learning.”
Schools have been the center of debate in recent years over whether police officers should be deployed in schools. In 2021, the city council voted to end funding for school resource offerings, but changed course later that year after a series of fights and a lockdown in which a student brought a gun to school.
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