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Dear Longfellow Families,
It’s hard to believe that today is my last day as principal at Longfellow Middle School! I want to reiterate some of the points I made in my retirement letter to you in May. I am also sending you information from Dr. Brabrand and the School Board about the reopening and the choices you have to make by July 10th.
I can guarantee you that no matter what choice you make for your family, you are in great hands at Longfellow. The staff at Longfellow will be prepared to deliver excellence in education virtually and face-to-face. The decisions you make will be individual based on your family circumstances. We all have the same goal: all students no matter what their needs, can and will learn. We establish tremendously caring relationships with our students; we are in their corner. We truly live our motto of “Inspiring Excellence” in all we do which is seen in every classroom, every space in our building, and in our virtual classrooms! We are all partners in our dedication to providing our children the best possible educational environment. Longfellow is described in such a positive light, but the feeling of being at Longfellow is apparent the moment you become part of it. I continue to be amazed by students’ acts of goodness and kindness that inspire all of us in our Longfellow community. We love your children!
Longfellow is thriving because so many people care so deeply in our mission of “inspiring excellence by supporting the growth and well-being of every member of our Longfellow community.” Even through this difficult time with Distance Learning you have reached out to me with great suggestions and examples of positive experiences your students were having with our teachers virtually.
The key to our future is to keep the core of what makes our school unique while moving forward in preparing our students for the future in which they will live and serve.
Retiring for me is truly a bittersweet decision. After twelve fantastic years in a position I have loved more than any other, I am sad to leave because I love experiencing the excitement at Longfellow. My husband and I have had many, many conversations about this decision, and in my heart, I know it’s the right time for my family.
To each of you, please accept my personal thanks for your sharing, openness, trustworthiness, and love. It is with heartfelt gratitude to each of you, that we celebrate our mutual successes.
Beginning tomorrow, July 1st, Wendy Eaton, Assistant Principal, will be Longfellow’s interim principal. Wendy has been at Longfellow for 10 years and is an outstanding leader. Her email information is: wleaton@fcps.edu. We have a fantastic administrative team, Counseling Department, and staff who will be there to support you in making decisions about your child’s individual needs.
The community information that has been sent out is posted here:
This past Tuesday, the School Board provided consensus regarding our plans to return to school in the fall. There are still many questions that have yet to be answered. When more clarity is provided, we will provide more information to you. For now, please see Dr. Brabrand’ s letter to the staff and community can be found here in case you missed it. The entire presentation to the school board can be found here.
Families will have the option of sending their students to school two days a week with two days a week of asynchronous instruction or opting to remain 100% virtual (4 days a week). In both cases, Monday’s are reserved for students who may need additional help/resources and teacher planning. Students who wish to come in for face-to-face instruction would be grouped so that each class meeting is within the guidelines and allows us to socially distance to the greatest extent possible in the classrooms. Facilities will be working with us to look at our current school footprint, to include changes for construction and our overcapacity status, to identify classroom spaces.
Families will be asked to select the type of learning option that best meets the needs of their family. These preferences must be collected by all families by July 10. This deadline is crucial, please be on the lookout for this from FCPS. Without it, we will be unable to plan accordingly. The number of students opting for face-to-face instruction vs. virtual will drive our staffing model and our ability to design appropriate schedules for students.
We understand that for many families this may present as a difficult decision to make. As a school, we will continue to provide as many details as we have available through communications to ensure that you feel you are able to make the most informed decision. We will be taking safety and health precautions very seriously, and I will share those measures as they unfold.
To create a master schedule for the 2020-2021 school year based on these preferences will be a huge undertaking, and one that we have not done before. The information from the community and staff will drive all of these decisions and we will work as fast as humanly possible to get you updates as it relates to your student’s schedule.
I thank you in advance for your continued patience and support as we navigate through these new developments.
“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead,” Nelson Mandela
With warmest regards,
Carole Kihm
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