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Important Upcoming Dates
6/29-7/31 Continuity of Learning (Optional)
8/3 Return all Grade 6 Laptops
8/4 NEW - Return all Grade 5 Laptops; return any other laptops that are not working or laptops that are no longer needed
9/8 First Day of School - NEW DATE
10/12 School Planning Day / Student Holiday
Greetings Fairfax Villa Families! IN THIS ISSUE
- Staff Changes
- PTA Message
- Yearbook Update, They’ve Arrived!
- Return of 5th and 6th Grade Student Laptops - CHANGE
- Fairfax Villa Building Renovations
- Student Registration (Kindergarten Registration/ 1-6 New Student Registration)
- Not Returning to Fairfax Villa Next School Year?
- Summer Continuity of Learning and Student Resources
- Summer Reading Adventures from the Fairfax County Public Library
1. Staff Changes
As we have more staff changes over the summer, we want to keep you informed of those. This week, we are sad to announce the departure of two highly valued staff members and happy to announce the return of a teacher!
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For the last 4 years, we have been fortunate to have Dr. Nickie Jones at Fairfax Villa. After her first year here as a 2nd grade teacher, she then became our Elementary Math Resource Teacher for three years and served as a valuable member of every grade level team as she advised teachers and taught students while sharing her love of and expertise in math. Dr. Jones is transferring to London Towne ES where she will teach 5th grade. We thank Dr. Jones for her years of dedication to Fairfax Villa and for instilling a love of math in so many students. Dr. Jones has really enjoyed getting to work with so many students and teachers at the Villa. Her daughter Maggie attended Fairfax Villa for three years and absolutely loved it. The Villa is a very special place that the Joneses will remember fondly! |
Lori DeSantes has served as the administrative assistant (AA II) to Mr. Gerstner and as the finance tech and office manager for all the staff since January of 2018. In her 11th year with FCPS, she is starting her next adventure by moving to West Potomac High School where she will serve as the administrative assistant to the principal there (AA III). In the last 2 ½ years, she has made many memories and forged many friendships at Fairfax Villa. As anyone in the front office of a school will tell you, every day brings something new and Ms. DeSantes was part of both the office team and administrative team that celebrated many successes and managed many challenging situations, especially over the past few months. She appreciates the unconditional support given by Mr. Gerstner and Ms. An as well as the many collegial friendships made with the staff. Whether it was “Lori, do your magic” or “Lori and KJ – you take the lead on that,” she knew that the administrative team was prepared to work together to ensure the success of the students and staff at Fairfax Villa. We wish Ms. DeSantes all the best as she moves up to her next position. |
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For our new 3rd grade position that has opened up, we welcome Ms. Kathryn Marchesini Bussenger back to the Villa! After teaching in FCPS and at Fairfax Villa for 5 years, Ms. Bussenger continued to teach third grade for Arlington Public Schools. Mr. and Ms. Bussenger welcomed their first child, Isabella Caroline Bussenger, on February 10th of this year. Recently relocating from Arlington back to Fairfax County, Ms. Bussenger is very excited to continue her teaching career at Fairfax Villa. She is looking forward to meeting her new students, continuing to teach third grade, and rejoining the great Villa family and community. We are excited to welcome Ms. Bussenger back to the 3rd grade team and back to Fairfax Villa. |
2. PTA News
NEW LEADERSHIP FOR 2020-2021
We are thrilled to introduce your 2020-2021 PTA Board!
CO-PRESIDENTS: Jessie Crain & Simon Bowyer
CO VICE-PRESIDENTS: Prachi Lotlikar & Shilpa Prasad
Returning board members: Morgan Crump (Treasurer) & Jessica Sabatino (Secretary)
 [Photo from L to R: Simon Bowyer, Jessie Crain, Morgan Crump, Jessica Sabatino, Shilpa Prasad, and Prachi Lotlikar]
Our school is in GREAT HANDS with this group. SHOW SUPPORT BY JOINING THE PTA FOR 2020-2021 early! https://fairfaxvilla.memberhub.store/
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
DON’T FORGET to order from our vendor to get this great bag for your student and take the burden of finding sanitizing items off your list! They deliver directly to the school and restock mid-year! Plus the PTA gets a small donation ($1-$2) included in EACH supply set purchased. So.much.winning.
ORDER ONLINE: DEADLINE EXTENDED! https://www.campussurvivalkits.com/fairfaxvilla
3. Yearbook Update: They’ve Arrived!!!
The yearbooks have finally arrived! We are working on preparing the yearbooks and hope to ship them in the coming week.
If you pre-ordered a yearbook online for your child, your yearbook will be mailed home to the address listed in our school database system. If for some reason you need it mailed to an alternate address, please email Lori DeSantes at lldesanteswa@fcps.edu as soon as possible.
If you reserved a yearbook via email; please make a check out to Fairfax Villa ES and mail it to the school address (10900 Santa Clara Drive, Fairfax, VA 22030). Yours will be mailed home to the address listed in our school database system.
4. Return of 5th and 6th Grade Student Laptops
CHANGE: We now need our Rising 6th Graders (were 5th graders) to return their laptops on Tuesday, August 4 from 8am - 11am. These will be reimaged and ready for other students to use. Our rising 6th graders will be getting new laptops. Stay tuned for the details coming on the distribution of these in August.
Please return the following laptops:
- ALL 6th grade laptops by Monday, August 3 from 8am-11am: Grade 6 Laptops
- ALL 5th grade laptops and any laptops that are not working or laptops that are no longer needed must be returned by Tuesday, August 4 from 8am-11am.
- If something is not working on it, please put a sticky note on the laptop bag as to the specific problem (for example: not turning on, cracked screen, audio not working).
- Any laptop that was borrowed but is now not needed (Family purchased their own.)
Please follow these guidelines:
- Leave all name tags on the laptop and the bag.
- Put the power cord that came with the laptop in the zipper pocket. The barcode on it should match the barcode of the laptop.
- Put the laptop in the main part of the bag and zip it shut.
- Check to make sure that any personal items are taken out of the bag. If any are found, they cannot be returned.
- If you have lost the power cord, you may pay for it with a check made out to FVES for $38.
- If your student has lost the laptop, please email Ms. Payne and Ms. Schmidt now at tjpayne@fcps.edu and bdschmidt@fcps.edu.
- You will drive through the Kiss and Ride Lane on the days listed below. There, you will see a staff member under a green tent who will take the bag (with the laptop and power cord in it) from you and who will also check off your student’s name. This will be done with safe distancing. Please wear your mask when coming by.
Except for 5th and 6th graders, if your student has a Fairfax Villa laptop that is working, it should be kept for this coming school year.
Thank you for your cooperation as we get our technology ready for the next school year.
5. Fairfax Villa Building Renovations
For the past eight months, we had David Bennett (Coordinator III, Facilities & Transportation Services), John Russell (Facilities & Transportation Services), and Angel Perez (Environmental Compliance Specialist) work hand in hand with us to ensure that our building is in the best condition for our students and staff. After extensive dialogue, FCPS has approved the carpet removal and tile installation for the projects listed below:
- In November 2019, Facilities Management removed the carpet on the stage/music room and replaced it with tile.
- In December 2019, Facilities Management removed the carpet in rooms 2, 17, 23, 24, and 25 and replaced it with tile. Currently, these are the 5th grade classrooms and our lower and mid ID classrooms.
- During the summer break and beginning this week, carpet will be removed and replaced with tile in rooms 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27, 28, as well as our reading book room. Currently, these include classrooms for our 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 6th grade students, and upper ID classroom.
We are thrilled to have these renovations completed for our students and staff who will be returning in August and sincerely thank the FCPS office of Facilities & Transportation Services. Lastly, as a result of these projects, 27 of our school rooms will be renovated and all of our student classrooms will now have tile.
6. Student Registration (Kindergarten/ Grades 1-6 New Students)
Kindergarten Registration for 2020-2021
If your upcoming kindergarten student does fall in the Fairfax Villa ES boundary, please complete the form on the link below. Your form will be submitted to Jose Flores, our school registrar, who will be able to assist you with the registration process.
https://fairfaxvillaes.fcps.edu/new-student-registration-2020-21
Registration for Students in Grades 1-6 New to Fairfax Villa
If you need to register a new student in grades 1-6, please contact Jose Flores, our school registrar, at jlflores@fcps.edu. Please provide the student's first and last name, enrolling parent's first and last name, student mailing address, enrolling parent's email address, and the enrolling parent's phone number. Mr. Flores will be in contact with you via email.
7. Not Returning to Fairfax Villa Next School Year?
In planning for both staffing and materials for the coming 2020-2021 school year, it is extremely important that we have a reasonable projection on the number of students who will be returning to Fairfax Villa ES next school year.
Please complete the Student Intention form for next school year, 2020-2021 Student Intention Form if your student is transferring to:
- Another FCPS school other than Fairfax Villa ES
- A private school in Virginia or out of Virginia
- Another Virginia public school division outside FCPS
- Another state public school outside of Virginia
- Out of the United States
Only those families whose students are transferring need to return the completed form to our Registrar, Jose Flores at jlflores@fcps.edu. Please complete and email this form as soon as possible. If you are unsure what your intentions are for the next school year, please note this on the form.
Visit the FCPS general registration page.
8. Summer Continuity of Learning and Student Resources
Check out the updated Fairfax Villa Virtual Summer of Learning Opportunities page on our website.
Due to school closures, FCPS will offer free resources for all students and families who wish to continue distance learning throughout the summer. Virtual resources will be available on Blackboard 24-7. Additionally, two Essentials Summer Practice Books – one for Language Arts and one for Mathematics – will be mailed home to students.
Selected teachers at each school will hold weekly office hours from Monday, June 29, 2020 through Friday, July 31, 2020, to address student questions and review content from the Essentials Summer Practice Books prepared by FCPS central office.
Students have been sent a link to their FCPS Gmail for the office hour sessions that apply to them.
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Kindergarten: Mondays from 1:00 - 2:00 with Ms. Romano
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Grade 1: Mondays from 10:00 - 11:00 with Ms. VonAncken
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Grade 2: Wednesdays from 10:00 - 11:00 with Ms. Nicole Lee
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Grade 3: Mondays from 9:00 - 10:00 with Ms. Davis
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Grade 4: Wednesdays from 1:00 - 2:00 with Ms. Kelsey Lee
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Grade 5: Thursdays from 10:00 - 11:00 with Ms. McCracken
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Grade 6: Tuesdays from 9:00 - 10:00 with Ms. Gates
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Special Education: Wednesdays from 2:00 - 3:00 with Ms. Moore
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English Language Development: Tuesday from 10:00 - 11:00 with Ms. Quinn
All students in each grade level should have received a link to their new BBC session in their FCPS Google email. After logging in to the student’s FCPS gmail, do a search for “invitee” and find the most recent email from Blackboard Collaborate.
- Click the star to the left of the email to “STAR” this link.
- Later, you can find it easily by clicking on “STARRED” in the menu on the left side of the mail.
If you have any questions, please contact the teacher for your grade level who is doing the office hour.
Students are reminded to always use good digital citizenship when accessing the internet. Remember that anything you do with an FCPS laptop or account is monitored.
G Suite for Education: Students will be able to access their FCPS Google accounts over the summer. If they are leaving FCPS and want to download any files to keep, use the information in this link: Student Guide to FCPS G Suite Account & Data
Blackboard 24/7: Will be unavailable from June 12 to June 17; Students will still be able to access resources in their current Blackboard course after June 17.
Blackboard Collaborate: Will be available all summer for the Continuity of Learning that is offered to all students from June 29 to July 31.
myON: Students will continue to have access to myOn over the summer. For tech support just for myOn, parents may contact their live tech support at 888-728-1266 from 9:00 - 6:00 Monday- Friday. Their email is support@myon.com. The recently free feature, myON News, will not be available after the school year.
For students enrolled in a separate summer program through onCourse, they will be moved to a separate myOn course. Information will come from those ESY teachers.
Student Passwords will not have to be changed at the beginning of the new school year. Students will continue to use their current password with all FCPS accounts.
Wixie - Wixie will continue to be available to current students until August 7. After August 7, FCPS will be working to update rosters in Clever for the new year and Wixie will not be accessible for students for a short time. It should be back up and available no later than August 17.
iReady: NEW - iReady instruction is available for use by K-6 elementary school students during June and July of 2020. This is being turned on to provide optional individual practice to students. Lessons will be curated based on the student’s most recent test score in reading or mathematics during the fall or winter test windows.
Reading and math instruction is available to students in grades K-6. Access to iReady will be turned off August 1, 2020.
Students will access iReady instruction through the FCPS public Universal Screener website, where they will enter their FCPS login credentials.
Click here to see the directions for using iReady this summer.
9. Summer Reading Adventures from the Fairfax County Public Library
This year’s Fairfax County Public Library summer reading program will be all virtual and will run from June 12 - August 14. Our theme will be “Imagine Your Story.” All participants will need to sign up online using our Summer Reading App before they download their gameboard. There will be contacts listed there if you need help.
This summer, readers of all ages will have the opportunity to play a gameboard where they can complete a series of challenges, read books of their choice, or a mix of both depending on their interests and preferences. Youth game boards will be available in English and Spanish. These will go live on June 12;
- All game board PDFs are clickable and every challenge piece will link back to a page on our website with additional details, resources, and related enrichment activities for participants who want to go the extra mile;
- As participants play the game and hit their milestones, they will be entered into prize drawings for one of two Amazon gift cards in each age category (preschool, school-age, teen, and adult). The 1st milestone prize is $50, the 2nd is $100, and the 3rd is $150. They will submit their information to us via a Survey Monkey form for each milestone. Links to the surveys are embedded into each milestone piece in the game and also available on our website;
- Readers who sign up on the first day of the program (June 12) will be entered into a drawing for a $25 e-gift card from Scrawl Books;
- Participants who complete all three challenges by August 14 will be entered into a grand-prize drawing for Washington Nationals ticket prize pack for them and their family to enjoy once games resume;
- Since we weren’t able to make it into your classrooms this year for booktalks, we have a Summer Reading Adventure 2020 playlist on YouTube that features promo videos with basic information about the program (in English and Spanish) as well as short booktalks for preschoolers, school-age kids, and teens. We will be adding additional booktalks on Instagram throughout the summer;
- Social media is a great place to find us these days. We’re @FairfaxLibrary on Instagram and Twitter and Fairfax County Library on Facebook;
- The Teen Cover Art Contest, Teen Film Festival, and For Love of Country Essay and Poetry contest will accept only digital submissions this summer and will run concurrently with the Summer Reading Adventure. Any awards ceremonies associated with these contests are TBD;
- Our virtual programs will continue all summer long and information about those can be found on our events calendar;
- Additional information can be found here
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