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Dear McLean Community:
On behalf of the faculty and staff of McLean High School, I wish you all a wonderful Winter Break. Everyone definitely needs a break from all of their technology and have some time to relax. Upon return from the holiday, there will be no assessments/homework/projects due the first two days back. Everyone, including our teachers, needs some time to rejuvenate over the two week break.
Our PTSA put out a request for gift cards for McLean families who are in need of support during this difficult year. The McLean community stepped up and the amount of money that was raised is truly spectacular. Last week the gift cards kept coming in the mail and parents were continually coming into the main office to drop off gift cards. To date, we have collected over $12,000 for our families. This is such a wonderful and supportive community. We cannot thank you enough!
Presently, the plan is to start in-person learning for the students who chose this option on January 26. We will keep you informed and will have much more information this coming week and when the break is over.
Enjoy your Winter Break!
Important Upcoming Dates
December 14 - Parent Safe Driving Session
December 21-January 1 - Winter Break
January 18 - Martin Luther King Day Holiday
January 19 - Asynchronous day for students/PD for teachers
January 20 - Inauguration Day Holiday for students and staff
January 21 - Asynchronous day for students/PD for teachers
January 22 - End of 2nd quarter - 2 hour early release - all 7 class will meet
January 25 - Student Holiday/Teacher Workday
Important Links
Virtual Back to School Night
Teacher Office Hours
Bell Schedule
Red/Silver Calendar
Office and Support Staff
Attendance
Student Services
Student Activities
General Information
Holiday Tips from the McLean Clinical Team
Take care of your mind. Be kind to yourself. Holidays may bring up different feelings. Accept how you feel and find healthy ways to manage these emotions.
Take care of your body. Rest, eat well, stay active.
Engage in self-care. Meditate, journal, color, knit, sew, read. Take time to ground yourself and notice how you feel.
Accept. Accept that things will be different this year and try to be present and open to new experiences.
Give Back. Giving to others, through your time and resources, helps you and your family to recognize what they have and to be grateful.
Value human connection. Enjoy the moments you have with the people who are important to you.
When the dust settles, we realize how little we need, what we have, and the true value of human connection.
Wishing you peace this Holiday Season,
The McLean Clinical Team
Marly Jerome-Featherson, Social Worker; Beverly Parker-Lewis, School Psychologist, Carol Ann Forrest, School Psychologist, Kendall Hunter, School Social Work Intern
Please see below for mental health resources:
CrisisLink Regional Hotline: 703-527-4011
CrisisText: Text NEEDHELP to 85511
Suicide Hotline: 703-527-4071
Merrifield Mental Health Center: 703-536-2000
VA C.O.P.E.S. – 877-349-6428 (M-F 9am-9pm; Sa-Sun 5pm-9pm)
In case of a life-threatening emergency, Call 911.
PSAT Score Reports:
Scores for the 2020 PSAT/NMSQT are now available. Students can view scores via the College Board website at https://studentscores.collegeboard.org/home using their student ID or access code. Access codes were emailed to student fcpsschools.net Gmail accounts on December 8th. Students who do not currently have a College Board online account will need to create one to view scores. Please see this College Board video tutorial for help accessing scores.
Helping Students Who Can't Access Their Scores: After students log in to their College Board account, they should click "Add Scores". In the "Matching Tool", it is essential that the College Board account information matches what students entered on their PSAT answer sheet. For example, if a student bubbled "Elizabeth" on her PSAT answer sheet and created her College Board account using the name "Beth", her scores will not load. If students need to change their name, they must call College Board Customer Service at 866-433-7728. All other changes can be made right in their account. It is also important that students choose the correct test name and test year. All students should choose the 2020 as the test year (students took the exam in October 2020). If still unable to populate the score, the student will be prompted to indicate which test they're missing and enter the access code to assist the match. Students should check their fcpsschools.net Gmail account for their access codes, or email Sara Wheeler sewheeler@fcps.edu.
Blackboard Updates
Friday, December 18 at 5:00 to Monday, December 21 at 6:00 am ParentVue and StudentVue will not be available. Blackboard Learn will not be available due to an upgrade cycle during this time.
Student Parking Passes
Student parking fees will be waived for the school year 2021. Although no parking fees will be collected, McLean High School will still issue parking passes. Information on how to apply for a parking pass will be on the website by January 4th.
Behind the Wheel and PSTD Information
McLean High School will be offering Partners in Safe Teen Driving (PSTD) virtually through BBCU from 7:00-8:30 PM on Monday, December 14. Students must virtually attend with a parent or legal guardian and fill out an attendance form at the end in order to earn credit. Attendance of a PSTD seminar is a state requirement in order to pass classroom Driver Education as part of the Health and Physical Education 10 curriculum and obtain a DEC-8 (pink) card. While this seminar is intended for and free of charge for students currently enrolled in Health and Physical Education 10, any juniors who were unable to satisfy this requirement during the 2019-2020 school year are welcome to attend free of charge as well.
Students can register to attend with a parent or legal guardian HERE. Prior to the seminar date, the STUDENT will receive a BBCU invite to the virtual seminar that will be sent to their fcpsschools.net email account. The student must sign into the seminar before 7:00 PM and a parent or guardian must watch the seminar with them. Virtual Attendance after 7:00 PM will not be permitted. PSTD seminars are only available for attendance by students in grades 10-12. Any 9th graders who attend will not receive credit, as they are not enrolled in the Health and Physical Education 10 course.
If students or parents cannot virtually attend a PSTD seminar during the week, FCPS ACE (Adult and Community Education) will be offering Partners in Safe Teen Driving seminars on Saturdays. These seminars are only open to students grades 10-12. Students who attend these Saturday seminars regardless of grade, must register online through the ACE website and pay the $30.00 registration fee, as these seminars are held on the weekend.
Lastly, FCPS ACE is now accepting registration for behind-the-wheel (in-car portion) Driver Education classes. Registration is available on the ACE website.
The FCPS ACE website can be found here:
https://aceclasses.fcps.edu/CategorySubjectListing.aspx?ProgramID=28&ProgramName=Driver+Education&IsCourse=1.
Questions related to ACE classes ACE seminars may be directed to Jard Shoemake at: wcshoemake@fcps.edu.
Student Recognition
McLean’s yearbook staff has been named Crown Award Finalists by CSPA
The Columbia Scholastic Press Association announced their list of yearbook Crown finalists and The Caledonia yearbook staff is one of just 41 high school yearbooks nationwide to have been selected for this prestigious honor. Caledonia will receive either a Silver or Gold Crown at the award ceremony at Columbia University in March.
McLean’s yearbook has been on the CSPA Crown list consistently for quite a few years, but our teacher Meghan Percival is especially proud of our 2020 journalists and most especially, the three editors in chief: Mary Scalia, Lan-Anh Dang-Vu and Julia Raymond, because they had to finish the book during COVID. Because of earlier start dates to their school year, many books from around the country, especially those in Texas, Arizona, Colorado and California, had already submitted their final book when quarantine began. Our students were judged against those schools and still came up as one of the best of the best!
McLean is one of just 5 schools nationwide to have BOTH their yearbook and news publications represented on the Crown list!
Updates from Athletics
New Athlete Registration Site
Beginning Wednesday, November 4th, FCPS activities and athletic programs will transition to a new online student registration system. This new system offers a host of benefits for schools and community members including:
- One stop shop for registering your student for athletic programs and many common activities occurring throughout the school year
- Electronic submission of the emergency care card and weight room waiver- only have to fill these out once!
- A new home for the state-mandated concussion education program
Each family will create an account and from this account, can register their student(s) for various activity and athletic opportunities. While registering does not guarantee a spot on the team, this information will help to ensure your student is ready to go on the first day of tryouts. Students can be registered for one or more activities throughout the year and families can sign in as needed to update information.
The new registration site is available here: https://mclean-ar.rschooltoday.com/
Please contact Stefanie Evers with any questions about the new registration site: severs2@fcps.edu
Winter Sports
Winter Sports will be starting on December 7th (Boys & Girls Basketball) and December 14 (Gymnastics, Swim & Dive, Winter Track, Wrestling). Tryout schedules will be posted in the next couple of weeks. Please contact the Head Coach with any questions about a specific program. Coaches contact information can be found here
Weekly Reminders
Online Attendance Form
Parents can now report a student absence by using our online attendance form at https://mcleanhs.fcps.edu/about/attendance-form. The attendance phone line will also be available at 703-714-5725.
Library News: Curbside Pickup for library books every Monday
Starting Monday, Nov. 2, students will be able to pick up books they put on hold through the online catalog. The student will login to the catalog using their FCPS login credentials. When a book is available in the catalog, the student will see book, and be able to click the Hold option. Once a student places a hold, Mrs. Kong will email the student to sign up for a Curbside Pickup appointment on Mondays from 9:00-2:00. Curbside pickup will be available every Monday except holidays.
A masked library staff member will take the book(s) to the student’s car at the front entrance of the school (Door #1). All occupants of the car must wear a mask. The student’s Name and Student ID Number should be on a sheet of paper and placed on the passenger’s side dashboard. The library staff member will place the book(s) either in the trunk or the back seat.
Club Participation Information
- Go to Clubs-and-organizations for a list of all of our clubs.
- Each club will have a Google Classroom link
- If you are interested in that club, click on the Google Classroom Link to join the club classroom
- In the classroom, there will be a link to join club meetings during Highlander Flex Time(Only FCPS students can enter)
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9:45am-10:25am- Clubs that start with the letter A-L
10:25am-11:05am- Clubs that start with the letter M-Z
- If the Club says “Inactive” that means we have the club, but currently do not have a sponsor. If a student is interested in activating the club a teacher sponsor would need to be identified.
- To learn more about student clubs at MHS, as well as information on the process of starting new clubs, please join Mr. Hays’ MHS Clubs class in Google Classroom using class code: euwkxvv
McLean HS Tech Support for Students
If you are experiencing issues with your FCPS issued laptop, please use the link below to enter your information. The tech support team will then get back to you as soon as possible.
We will continue to support students remotely as much as possible. If a computer has been identified as needing hands-on repair, we will schedule an appointment for you to come to the school to exchange it.
Description: This form should be filled out by a student if they are experiencing issues with their FCPSOn laptop.
Please click on the link below to access the Tech Support Request Form.
Parent/Student Support Portal Link:
https://itweb.fcps.edu/itsupport/
FCPS Help Desk for Tech Support for Parents and Students
To support families who are working with their children during distance learning, FCPS has launched a new Parent Technology Help Desk, effective Monday, August 24. The help desk can be reached at 833-921-3277 (833-921-FCPS) and will be answered by staff members between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m., seven days a week.
Parents or guardians can call this number for basic tech support with parent accounts, help with FCPS student devices and technical assistance with other FCPS applications. If help desk staff members are unable to solve the issue, they will enter a support ticket on behalf of the parent/guardian to escalate the issue to the appropriate FCPS team. Parents who need help in a language other than English can inform the help desk staff when they call of their preferred language, and an interpreter will join in on the call.
FCPS has also set-up Parent and Student Technology Support portal at https://itweb.fcps.edu/itsupport/ to allow older students and parents/guardians to request technology help directly. When a support request ticket is entered through the portal, it is auto-routed to the TSSpec at the appropriate site to expedite service. text.
January Webinars Sponsored by FCPS
Zoomed Out? 5 Strategies to Get Even the Most Reluctant Kids Focused, Engaged, and Motivated: A Webinar for Families
What’s a parent to do when kids are already unfocused and unmotivated when it comes to virtual learning? Ann Dolin will help “right the ship” so that parenting doesn’t feel like a grind. In this webinar, Ann shares practical, easy-to-implement virtual learning strategies for:
- Tackling the daily power struggle of just getting started
- Helping children to focus during teacher-led instruction
- Dealing with social avoidance (not wanting to be seen and heard in front of peers)
- Keeping kids engaged by encouraging them to ask questions and advocate for themselves
- Opening the lines of communication to improve the parent/child relationship
Presented by Ann Dolin, M.Ed., educational consultant and award-winning author. Ann is the President and Director of Educational Connections, Inc.
January 7, 2021 6:30-8 p.m. January 8, 2021 10 – 11:30 a.m.
Register for Zoomed Out? 5 Strategies to Get Even the Most Reluctant Kids Focused, Engaged, and Motivated: A Webinar for Families
Exploring Post-Secondary Options through the College & Career Center: A Webinar for Students and Their Families
Preparing for life after high school requires research, exploration, and planning. Student success is individualized based on achieving goals and determining the best fit and match in postsecondary planning. Discover a student's potential by exploring options now!
This webinar will focus on:
- Higher Education Options
- Financing Your Plans
- Apprenticeships
- Military Opportunities (Enlistment vs. ROTC)
- Testing (SAT/ACT)
- Gap Year Experiences
Join Tisa Frederick and Carla Shaw, FCPS College and Career Specialists for this important webinar.
Thursday January 14, 2021 6:30-8 p.m.
Register for Exploring Post-Secondary Options through the College & Career Center: A Webinar for Students and Their Families
Transition IEP Workshop: A Webinar for Families
Join FCPS Career and Transition Services to learn the importance of the IEP Transition Plan for effective postsecondary planning in middle and high school. We answer questions such as these:
- What should parents be looking for?
- What questions should you ask the school team?
- What questions should you ask your student?
- What role does the IEP play in increasing self-advocacy?
- How do IEP goals support postsecondary planning?
Thursday, January 14, 2021 10 a.m. – noon.
Registration Opens 12/14/2020
SIBSHOPS: An Exciting, Virtual Workshop for Brothers and Sisters of Children with Special Needs
The Sibshop workshops are for children in grades 2-6 enrolled in Fairfax County Public Schools who have siblings with special needs to:
- Meet other siblings in a relaxed, virtual setting.
- Celebrate the many contributions made by brothers and sisters of children with special needs.
- Share sibling experiences and receive peer support.
- Play games and have fun!
Presented by FCPS School Social Work Services
Monday, January 25, 2021: *Teacher workday – students are not attending school
Two time slots are available: 10 a.m. or 1 p.m. Sessions run 1-1.5 hours
Register for SIBSHOPS: An Exciting, Virtual Workshop for Brothers and Sisters of Children with Special Needs
College 101: A Webinar for Families of Students with Disabilities
Discover questions you should ask to begin the college conversation. Explore the differences between high school and college experiences and crucial skills needed for college success.
This webinar will focus on:
- Learning about college options
- Navigating disability services
- Navigating college accommodations.
Presented by Beth Felson, Success Coach at Spectrum Transition Coaching LLC.
Friday January 29, 2021 10 -11:30 a.m.
Register for College 101: A Webinar for Families of Students with Disabilities
Social-Emotional Support Information
Mental Health and Wellness Support Services and Resources
McLean’s Clinical Staff are available to consult with parents and students regarding mental health related concerns and behaviors. They are also able to provide community resources as needed. Please see their contact information below:
Carol Ann Forrest, School Psychologist, CMForrest@fcps.edu
Beverly Parker-Lewis, School Psychologist, baparkerlewi@fcps.edu
Marly Jerome-Featherson, School Social Worker, mjeromefeath@fcps.edu
For more Mental Health and Wellness Information, please check out these Student Wellness Resources, FCPS’s Healthy Minds Blog and the FCPS’s Parent Resource Center.
Emergency Resources
Crisis Link Regional Hotline 703-527-4077
Crisis Text Text NEEDHELP to 85511
Dominion Hospital Emergency 703-536-2000
INOVA Emergency 703-289-7560
Merrifield Center Emergency 703-573-5979 TTY dial 711
Life Threatening 911
FCPS Cares
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Do you know a McLean High School or FCPS employee who does ordinary things in an extraordinary way or goes beyond what is expected? If so, then click here to share with everyone. |
My School Bucks
Learn more about this online payment portal for many school fees. Parents can set up an account which they link their student(s) to so there is one account per family. Course fees, lunch funds, some ticket events can be taken care of online. MySchoolBucks eliminates the need for students to carry cash to school and for multiple checks to be written. Learn more and sign up at https://www.myschoolbucks.com/ver2/login/getmain?requestAction=home
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