Principal's Message
Dear TJHSST Parents and Guardians:
Summer is in full swing with many families reconnecting and soaking up vacation time together. We also have hundreds of TJ students enthusiastically engaged in summer school. Many are looking at academic enrichment opportunities to stay sharp for the upcoming year. We are pleased to be a leader among FCPS high schools as we no longer require summer assignments. Students interested in voluntary academic enrichment opportunities may find more information on our TJ website.
Thank you to the nearly 800 parents who completed our Challenge Success survey. We look forward to sharing results this fall. For those families new to TJ or interested in learning more, browse the parent resources on the Challenge Success website to see how you can partner with our school to bring balance to our children's lives with PDF (Playtime, Downtime, Family time).
This week we received nearly 1,800 laptops for TJ students as part of the FCPOn Learning Transformation initiative. Each student will be able to retain the laptop while at TJ, and the devices are compatible with technology needed for our classes. We look forward to distributing the new laptops at the end of August. More information will come from FCPS in the coming weeks.
Read further in this bulletin for important dates, staffing updates and news from Student Services. We are excited to welcome all Colonials back to school on Monday, August 26!
Sincerely,
Dr. Ann N. Bonitatibus
Principal
Save the Dates
August 19 (Mon.): Teachers and Staff report to TJ
August 22 (Thur.): Class of 2023 Freshman Orientation for parent and students. Typically held in the morning and concludes by noon. More details to follow.
August 26 (Mon.): First Day of Classes for Students
August 30 (Fri.) and September 2 (Mon.); Schools Closed for Labor Day
September 5 (Thur.): Back to School Night, 5:00-7:00 p.m. Grades 9, 12
September 11 (Wed.): Back to School Night, 5:00-7:00 p.m. Grades 10, 11
September 13 (Fri.): Back to School Bash. This is our 10th annual event where students stay after school for food, games and fun, followed by a football game. All are welcome.
September 27-28: Homecoming Weekend
Staff Updates
As we departed for the summer, we honored teacher retirees Tim Davis, John Dell, Lee Ann Hennig, Hadan Kauffman, Rick Monteverde, Jo-Ann Muir, and David Zack. A few other staff members decided to pursue individual professional and personal interests and we wished them well.
We look forward to welcoming several new staff members: Jordana Anderson Lodge (English), Keith Beale (Art), James Crockett (Geosystems), Jennifer Hitchcock (Social Studies), Melanie Morris (Social Studies), Kai Sam Ng (Mathematics), Scott Savran (Social Studies), Adam Smolinsky (Chemistry), Stephen Stern (Computer Science), Caroline Taylor (Physical Education) Laura Vinti Glaeser (German), and Wendy Wright (Social Studies).
Our College and Career Center coordinator has been selected, and we congratulate Samantha Wolf who previously managed TJ student transcripts.
We also are excited to announce an additional assistant principal will join our administrative team. Cynthia Hawkins comes to us from McLean High School where she taught Social Studies and received many accolades as a teacher leader. Cynthia brings high energy and enthusiasm to her new role at TJ. She looks forward to focusing on relationship-building, collaboration, and strong commitment to student learning and teacher support.
The counselors and many of the Department of Student Services staff are taking advantage of PDF with the opportunity to relax and recharge to get ready for another exciting start to the school year.
Even though counselors are not at the school daily, there are Student Services staff on hand throughout the summer to help with items such as general academic information and registration data, as well as the occasional schedule concern or question. With next year's academic schedule complete, we continue to reach out to students where there is a question or potential schedule conflict that needs attention to ensure that students have a full and accurate schedule before the start of school.
Please be aware the only schedule changes that will be accommodated in the opening weeks of schools will be those that are incomplete, contain errors or incorrect sequencing, do not reflect updates from summer school, or otherwise need to address a senior's requirement for graduation. Merely changing one's mind is not a basis for a schedule change.
If you have a question or concern that cannot wait until all counselors return on August 9, please feel free to contact the Department of Student Services at 703-750-8340 or dss@tjhsst.edu. A DSS staff member will be as helpful as possible until an assigned counselor is able to respond.
State Board of Education Recognition
TJHSST was among three FCPS schools and fifty-two schools statewide to receive the 2019 Virginia Board of Education Highest Achievement Award. The exemplar performance school recognition program is aligned with the Board of Education's revised accreditation standards and replaces the Virginia Index of Performance recognition program. Congratulations TJ!
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