Photos of the Week
In this week’s photos students are
actively enjoying physical education class, expressing appreciation to their
bus drivers, taking a field trip to Capitol Hill, and celebrating graduation.
This past week also marked the 100th
day of school! See what students and staff members did to celebrate by checking out the FCPS
Facebook page.
Hot Topic: No Snow - Can We Start Summer Early?
With this year’s warm weather and lack of snow many people
have been asking if the school year will end earlier. The short is answer is
no.
Why? As a learning organization, FCPS values the importance
of as much instructional time as possible for our students. Virginia law
requires school districts to provide 180 days or 990 hours of classroom
instruction each school year. FCPS reverts to the 990 hour calendar only if the
180-day requirement is not met because of severe weather conditions or other
emergency situations.
Since the 2014-15 school year, the School Board has approved a
180-day calendar. Prior to this, FCPS adopted a 183-day school year calendar
with the three extra days to be used for snow and other emergencies. Under this calendar, once FCPS used the three snow days, additional days had to
be added to the end of the school year to meet the state requirement.
The current FCPS planned school year exceeds the 990 hour
state requirement because of the length of the student day. The additional time
(hours) is converted to “days” that can be used in the event of inclement
weather. An advantage of the built in hours is that days do not need to
be added on at the end of the year, as was done in years past, when too many
snow days were used. Last year, our area had a very significant storm which
required the use of most of the additional time built in since FCPS had eight
days closed due to weather and a number of late openings.
There is no means for days to be given back at the end of
the year because those additional “days” are simply the excess time beyond 990
hours and, if the days were given back, FCPS would fall short of the required
180-day school year. In addition, teacher contracts (mostly 194 days in
length) are based on a 7.5 hour day and are tied to the number of school days
per year with teacher workdays included.
While we are hopeful for continued good weather, winter is
not over yet, and some years we have had severe spring weather.
FCPS Cares of the Month
Winners for January
FCPS
Cares is an opportunity for parents, staff, and community members to recognize
FCPS employees for going above and beyond to help others and show they care. For the first time, all FCPS Cares
submissions were reviewed and six winners were selected for the month of January—one
for each region and the central office—to receive extra recognition for their
work. They are:
- Central Office: Laverne
Holland, transportation supervisor, Stonecroft Area 4 Transportation.
- Region 1: Emily
Texdahl, chemistry teacher, South Lakes High School.
- Region 2: Jennifer
Barrer-Gall, history and social studies teacher, Stuart High School.
- Region 3: Terence
Yarborough, principal, and staff, Sandburg Middle School.
- Region 4: Reggie
Delaney, building supervisor, Fairview Elementary.
- Region 5: Ayako Dolen, special
education instructional assistant, Brookfield Elementary.
Get more information about the winners and learn how you can acknowledge the great work of an FCPS employee.
Important Immunization
Requirement: Do You Have a Student Entering Sixth Grade Next Year?
If yes, he or she may
need a booster dose of Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis). Sixth
grade students cannot begin school in August without documentation of the Tdap
booster. Parents or guardians should ask their private
healthcare provider, or the health department, to review their child’s
immunization record if they are unsure if their child has received the Tdap
booster.
Documentation
must be provided to the school student information assistant (SIA) or registrar
as soon as possible. This documentation can be a copy of your
child’s immunization record, or a note on letterhead from your healthcare
provider listing the date, month, and year of his or her most recent Tdap
booster.
Get more information on the Tdap booster.
FCPS High School
Students Invited to 2017 Teen Job Fairs
Fairfax
County high school students looking for their first part-time job, summer and seasonal
job opportunities, or who want more information about potential career pathways
are invited to attend one of four upcoming teen job fairs in Fairfax County. Local businesses and agencies will be
on hand to offer a range of opportunities including part-time employment,
internships, and volunteer work for prospective students. Free booth spaces are
provided to local businesses. The first
two job fairs will be held on March 18 at Chantilly High School and Oakton High
School.
Learn
more about the teen job fairs.
2017-18 Kindergarten
Registration
Will
your child turn five years old by September 30? If so, contact your child’s
school to make arrangements for kindergarten enrollment. Most schools begin
getting information together in late March or early April for parents of
incoming kindergartners, and many host an orientation or open house. All kindergarten
programs are full-day and located in FCPS elementary schools.
Check
your school’s webpage or contact the school directly for specific enrollment
information and dates of orientation that typically occur between mid-March and
the end of June.
Get
more information about kindergarten registration.
McLean High School
Student Named 2017 Virginia Journalist of the Year
Melanie Pincus of McLean High School has been named the
Virginia Journalist of the Year by the Virginia Association of Journalism
Teachers and Advisers (VAJTA). Pincus, who is in her second year as
editor-in-chief of “The Highlander” newsmagazine, works with teacher and
adviser Lindsay Benedict. Pincus will compete for the Journalism
Education Association’s national award this spring.
Winners of second and third place honors in the
competition are also Fairfax County Public Schools students. Teagan Foti
of Annandale High School (adviser Alan Weintraut) won second place honors in
the statewide competition and Nina Raneses of West Potomac High School (adviser
Whitney Huntington) won third place.
Video: Inclusion Week at Bush Hill Elementary
Bush
Hill Elementary School promoted Inclusion Week by hosting a variety of
activities aimed at teaching students about kindness, acceptance, and
tolerance. Watch the video.
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2017-18 First Grade World Language and Two-Way Immersion
Program Registration Deadline Is March 1
Fairfax County Public Schools’ online registration for
the county-wide lottery for the first grade world language immersion program is
closing soon. Current kindergarten students not yet enrolled in an immersion
program may apply for the first grade immersion programs for the 2017-18 school
year. First grade immersion programs are available at 12 elementary schools and
are offered in French, German, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish. The deadline to
apply for the first grade immersion program is March 1.
Kindergarten immersion programs are available in Korean
and Spanish. Korean is available at Powell Elementary School and Spanish is
available at Bailey’s, Lake Anne, Laurel Ridge, London Towne, and Rose Hill
Elementary Schools. April 7 is the
deadline to apply for the kindergarten immersion program. Current
prekindergarten students may apply for the kindergarten immersion program.
Learn more about the world language program.
If you have questions, call 571-423-4602 or send an
email to immersioninfo@fcps.edu.
#OurFCPS:
Together It’s Possible
Excellent teachers make an excellent education possible. By working together—parents, employees, students, and
community members—we can shape a thriving future for our students and
everyone who works and lives in Fairfax County.
It’s
not my FCPS, it’s not your FCPS, together, it’s #OurFCPS.
Elementary Magnet School Application Opens February 27; Deadline Is March 27
Fairfax
County Public Schools will be accepting applications for its elementary magnet
school programs beginning February 27. Bailey’s Elementary School for the Arts and Sciences will accept
lottery applications for students in grades K-2 in the 2017-18 school year;
Bailey’s Upper School for the Arts
and Sciences will also be accepting applications for students in grades 3 and
4.
Hunters Woods Elementary School for the Arts and Sciences will accept
lottery applications for students who will enter grades K-6 during the 2017-18
school year. Selection for available magnet school spaces is based on a
lottery; registration for the lottery closes on March 27. New this year, the lottery process is online and parents will be
notified of their child’s application status via email.
Get
more information about the magnet school lottery.
Quick
Links:
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