Teachers at South County HS were all tied up for Twin Day. (Photo: Gary Morris, principal)
Congratulations to the FCPS Cares of the Month
recipients for September:
- Central: Steve Hotaling, Sideburn Support Center, Facilities Services
- Region 1: Kirk Treakle, Carson MS
- Region 2: Joan Swanson, Fairhill ES
- Region 3: Kelly Altman, Key Center
- Region 4: Nicole Falardeau-Ulrich, Cardinal Forest ES
- Region 5: Kevin Smith, HS
See what makes
the winners special. Acknowledge the
great work of an FCPS employee.
Benefits
staff, health plan vendors, and retirement savings plan vendors will be on hand
to answer questions about your FCPS benefits at the Benefits Open House
today, Tuesday, October 16, at Chantilly HS, from 4-7
p.m. The event will also include a mini-workshop for expecting parents
and a flu shot clinic. (Please register for the mini-workshop and flu shot clinic in advance.) Learn more about Open Enrollment.
At
yesterday’s School Board work session, a collaborative work group, led by
the Department of Human Resources and representatives from the three teachers associations, presented a
recommendation to mitigate the lost potential
earnings for teachers at the top of the bachelor’s lanes on the teacher salary
scale. The lost potential earnings were due to teacher salary scales that were redesigned in 2016, as part of an effort to provide market competitive salaries.
The
collaborative work group recommended that the School Board grant continued access to the FY17 bachelor’s lanes salary
scale for “grandfathered” employees—those at step 11 and greater on the
BA pay lanes (as of June 30, 2019). With the
recommendation, employees currently on steps 11-19 would remain on the current, higher paid scale
until step 19. After step 19, they will transition to
the next highest step on the FY17
grandfathered scale.
The
School Board provided a recommendation for Dr. Brabrand to include funding to
accommodate access to the grandfathered BA pay lanes in FCPS’ FY 2020 Proposed
Budget. No final decisions have been made. Implementation of this
recommendation is dependent upon adoption of
the Approved Budget in May 2019. Visit
BoardDocs for more information.
Photo of the Week
Island
Creek Principal Mike Macrina doesn’t just have spirit—he has the Spirit Stick!
Well, at least he did. As the story goes, Dr. Brabrand awarded the Spirit Stick
to Lane ES for having the most school spirit during the Hayfield Pyramid’s
annual K-12 Pyramid Kickoff. The Spirit Stick magically made its way to
different schools in the pyramid, and each school took a selfie with it.
Keeping the Stick safe (and taking a selfie with it) was so important, that Mike
even wrestled a crocodile for it! Mike prevailed. The Spirit Stick is safe and
has found its way back to Lane ES. The end. (Photo: Island Creek ES)
Teacher leaders and Schedule B & C staff (formerly US-20 and above): Would you like to
gain a better understanding of how offices, departments, and schools
within FCPS work together to support the mission of our division? Are you
interested in building your knowledge and skills around core leadership
competencies? If so, consider applying for the spring 2019 Cohort of Supporting the Mission!
Please fill out the Interest Form and have your supervisor complete the Supervisor Recommendation Form. Both forms are due by Friday, November 16. They will be shared with the FCPS Leadership Team members, who will forward nominations for the cohort. Contact Tiffany Lee, ttlee@fcps.edu, with
questions.
#OurFCPS Faces: Torey Diggs
Torey Diggs is a school-based technology specialist (SBTS) at Holmes MS. As an SBTS, Torey provides leadership in developing and implementing goals and strategies for the integration of technology within the school. He says, “I work with staff members to model, coach, and
teach technology skills. I create professional learning experiences for my
school to increase knowledge and awareness of technology resources and
instructional initiatives.”
Colleague Cara Bremer wrote, "This is my first year at Holmes MS, and Mr. Torey Diggs has had a large impact on my satisfaction at the school. I've been away from FCPS for a few years and a lot has changed! Torey has made every effort to make sure that ALL of us (not just the newbies like me) are up to speed on how to manage everything tech-related. I can't overstate how important it is for teachers to have those technology skills. [...] It's obvious how much work he has done behind the scenes so that we, the teachers, are able to be independent learners when we meet as a group."
Principal Margaret Barnes echoes Cara’s sentiment. “Torey is AWESOME. He has been instrumental in helping us to implement 1:1 in 8th grade at Holmes. [...] He has a good pulse of the school and how teachers are feeling, and really helps to guide me and our leadership team as we develop our professional development plan. He is one of the absolute best!“
Torey says, “I love that every day is different and that my work can influence the learning of many students.” In his spare time, Torey loves spending time with his wife, watching sports, playing golf, and trying different restaurants around the Metro DC area. Thank you for all you do for FCPS, Torey!
The Office of Professional Learning and Family
Engagement (OPLFE) would like to remind you that applications for the 2018-19 Apple
IMPACT School Grants are due Friday, October 19. Please complete the application online. For more information, visit OPLFE's
Grant Programs page on the intranet.
The Virginia
Department of Education, in collaboration with the Partnership for People with
Disabilities, supports the Inclusion
Project, a youth-led initiative to increase disability awareness in
schools. This year, the Inclusion Project
is pleased to announce it is offering up to 10 mini grants (maximum $2,000
each) to support schools interested in planning an Inclusion Project event.
Apply for an Inclusion Project
mini-grant to host an inclusion event at your school. Applications are due
by Thursday, November 15. Please visit the Inclusion
Project website for additional information.
Cardinal Forest ES staff members left to right: Public Health Training Assistant Horthensia Herencia, originally from Peru, and ESOL Teacher Daviana Greenberg Kye, originally
from Venezuela. (Photo: Karen Kenna, principal)
Staff at Cardinal Forest ES threw quite a celebration in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month which ended yesterday. The event included a “culinary tasting,” with homemade dishes from Bolivia, Chile, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, El Salvador, Peru,
Ecuador, and Mexico. See more photos of the celebration on Twitter. Thanks to Lucia Ortiz for emailing us!
 Each Tuesday, we highlight one of FCPS' amazing teachers on Instagram as part of our #TeacherTuesday series. So, hop on over to our Insta page and check out today's #TeacherTuesday profile!
FCPS has received two Communicator Awards for its podcast series, The Answer Key: Learning and Leadership in the K-12 World. The Communicator Awards are sponsored by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts. The podcast highlights the positive work educators are doing every day in FCPS. Make it Real: Project Based Learning (PBL) highlights student-centered learning across the curriculum, and Elementary Math: Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts takes a look at how students used to learn math and how they learn math today. Both podcasts won the distinguished Communicator Award. Read the news release.
In recognition of Digital Citizenship Week. #FCPSDigCit
Save
the Date: Office Personnel Professional Development Conference-April 5,
2019
The
Office Personnel Advisory Council (OPAC) is sponsoring the Office Personnel
Professional Development Conference on Friday, April 5, 2019, at Hayfield
SS, from 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Superintendent Brabrand will
provide the opening remarks. Participants at this conference will engage
in networking and will be able to choose from a wide variety of breakout
sessions. Resource tables will be available representing public and private
offices, and agencies that provide services to our schools and community. Stay tuned for more information. In the interim, please contact Joan Carboni, jecarboni@fcps.edu.
Each
year in the United States, more than 240,000 women get breast cancer, including
some under the age of 50. The third Friday of October is recognized as National
Mammography Day. When breast cancer is detected early and treated promptly,
survival rates increase. Guidance
Resources, FCPS' Employee Assistance Program, provides resources about screenings, risk factors, symptoms, treatment options, and how
to receive or give support. Log in to Guidance Resources and register with the Organization Web ID "FCPS" to access resources.
Additional support with trained clinicians is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Call our dedicated toll-free line at 1-855-355-9097.
Staff Staples
Note: Intranet access is required to open some of the links in this email. If you're using a mobile device or working remotely, you can connect to the intranet via the Pulse Secure VPN (Virtual Private Network). Email RequestIT@fcps.edu with questions.
Employee News is sent to all FCPS employees every Tuesday. Please email EmployeeNews@fcps.edu with potential submissions or questions. Submissions are due by 4:30 p.m. on Thursdays. Thank you!
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