Barcroft Students Head Back to School on Thursday

Barcroft Elementary School students head back to school on Thursday.

"There's always a lot of excitement," Arlington Public Schools spokeswoman Linda Erdos told Patch.

Barcroft is the only Arlington public school on a modified school year calendar. All other Arlington Public Schools start the new year on Sept. 3, the day after Labor Day.

Barcroft has been on the modified calendar for going on a decade, Erdos said.

Students will start the year with a new principal at Barcroft. The Arlington School Board appointed Colette Bounet to that position earlier this year. Bounet had been assistant principal at Jamestown Elementary School. She started the Barcroft appointment on July 1.

“It is evident that Ms. Bounet’s support for students and families as well as her knowledge of students’ needs are in the forefront of her work," Superintendent Pat Murphy said in a statement following Bounet's appointment. "She is open to new ideas and possesses the professionalism, experience and dedication needed to work with all constituents at the school.”

Barcroft's projected enrollment this year is 542 students. Arlington Public Schools expects enrollment to be 23,586 systemwide.

Barcroft will host its back-to-school night at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 14.

Virginia's annual sales tax holiday weekend for school supplies starts Friday.

Click here for Barcroft's school supply list.