Escuela Key Elementary School, 855 N. Edison St.: pre-K to grade 5, 540 K-5 students on Sept. 30, 2026, framework score 95. Office: 703-228-4210.
Last checked Oct. 19, 2026. Sources: Escuela Key, Arlington Public Schools, the Virginia Department of Education’s School Quality Profile and the federal NCES school directory.
Escuela Key Elementary School is an Arlington Public Schools (APS) dual language immersion school. It sits at 855 N. Edison St. and serves pre-K through fifth grade. It runs APS’s Spanish-English dual language immersion program for the northern part of the county.
Who to call
- Main office: 703-228-4210 (fax 703-228-8495)
- Applications, the lottery and registration: APS Welcome Center, 703-228-8000, option 1; 2110 Washington Blvd., first floor
- Buses and general questions: APS main line, 703-228-8000
- Which school serves an address: School and Community Relations, 703-228-6005
| Address | 855 N. Edison St., Arlington, VA 22205 |
| Grades | Pre-K to 5 |
| School day | 9 a.m. to 3:50 p.m. (early release 1:30 p.m.) |
| Website | key.apsva.us |
| Division | Arlington Public Schools |
Principal
Principal Frances Lee, according to the school’s website.
Enrollment and teachers
- APS count: 540 students in kindergarten through fifth grade on Sept. 30, 2026, plus 32 in preschool programs, in APS’s official membership summary (PDF).
- State count: 574 students in fall 2025, including 31 in pre-K, after 572 in 2024 and 579 in 2023, in the School Quality Profile.
- Federal count: 579 students in the 2023-24 school year, with 41 full-time-equivalent teachers, according to the NCES directory. That works out to about 14 students per teacher.
The program and admission
The Spanish-English dual language program aims “to develop bilingualism, biliteracy, and cross-cultural understanding,” and serves native Spanish speakers and native English speakers together, according to APS’s schools and programs page. Families can apply only to the immersion school designated for their address. Kindergarten and first-grade applicants whose main home language is Spanish are scheduled for a Spanish oral language assessment, and applicants for grades 2 to 5 must pass a Spanish language assessment. Students continue in the immersion program at Gunston Middle School and then Wakefield High School.
For the 2027-28 school year, lottery applications open Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, on SchoolMint and close at 4 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22, 2027. The live lottery is Friday, Feb. 12, 2027, and families have until 8 p.m. Feb. 26 to accept a first-round seat, according to APS’s option schools page. There is no paper application; the APS Welcome Center helps families who need it.
State report card
Virginia’s School Performance and Support Framework scores each school on mastery on state tests, growth, readiness and graduation, according to APS’s framework page. Schools scoring 90 or more are Distinguished, 80 to 89 Meets Expectations, 65 to 79 Approaching Expectations and below 65 Needs Intensive Support.
- 2026-27 framework score: 95, rated Distinguished, with no federal identification, in the division summary (PDF).
- Accreditation: Fully Accredited
Standards of Learning pass rates (grades 3 to 5, share of tested students who passed), from the School Quality Profile:
| Subject | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 |
|---|---|---|---|
| English reading | 82% | 79% | 84% |
| Math | 77% | 83% | 89% |
| Science | 66% | 71% | 77% |
Attendance zone
Escuela Key draws from an immersion attendance area instead of a neighborhood zone. On APS’s boundary maps, that area covers the northern part of the county and overlaps five middle school zones; students who stay in immersion move on to Gunston Middle. Check whether an address falls in the Key or Claremont immersion area in the APS boundary locator.
Calendar and bell times
From the APS 2026-27 calendar:
- Wednesday, Oct. 28: early release, all schools
- Monday, Nov. 2: end of first quarter
- Tuesday, Nov. 3: no school for students (Election Day)
- Wednesday, Nov. 11: Veterans Day, no school
- Nov. 25-27: Thanksgiving break
- Dec. 23 to Jan. 1: winter break
- Thursday, March 18, 2027: early release; Friday, March 19: no school (parent-teacher conferences)
- March 22-26, 2027: spring break
- Thursday, June 17, 2027: last day of school, early release
The school day runs 9 a.m. to 3:50 p.m., with early release at 1:30 p.m., according to APS. Each elementary school holds a family information session between November and January; see the schedule.
More on Arlington schools
- Escuela Key’s website and the APS schools and programs page
- Every public school in Arlington, with zones and state ratings
Frequently asked questions
What grades does Escuela Key serve?
Pre-K through fifth grade. APS counted 540 students in kindergarten through fifth grade on Sept. 30, 2026, plus 32 in preschool programs.
How is Escuela Key rated by the state?
It is fully accredited. In Virginia’s 2026-27 School Performance and Support Framework it scored 95 and is rated Distinguished, with no federal identification.
How do you get into Escuela Key?
Through the APS option-school lottery. Applications for 2027-28 open Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, and close at 4 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22, 2027, on APS’s SchoolMint portal. Families can apply only to the immersion school designated for their address.
Which middle and high school does Escuela Key feed into?
Students who stay in the immersion program move on to Gunston Middle School and then Wakefield High. Others go to the neighborhood middle school for their home address.
What time does Escuela Key start?
9 a.m. to 3:50 p.m., with early release at 1:30 p.m., according to Arlington Public Schools.
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