Coates Family Newsletter for 4/22

Coates Families,

As Dr. Brabrand shared in his message this week, we are all still processing the verdict from the Derek Chauvin trial.  We know this is compounded by ongoing societal issues like recent hate crimes against Asian Americans, recent mass shootings, and the continued dialogue around social injustices to name a few.  These are all significant events that carry emotional weight.

As a school community, we must unite in the ongoing work that needs to be done to broaden our perspectives and work actively against racism.  I’m always proud of the equity work the Coates staff has done and how it has positively impacted their work with our students and families.  We are far from perfect, and we’re not done working on ourselves.  Bias against others can be hard to detect.  We strive to form a habit of vigilant self-awareness, constant empathy for others, and fair & candid talk about racism and bias.

We’ll never be able to do this without insights from you and constant work from our staff. 

With this in mind, I share the following plans:

  1. Look for a flyer on Coates social media inviting families and staff to process current events and share stories and ideas. The more we learn about what our families experience, the better we can advocate for our kids.  You may recall our African American Parent Panel from last August and our Home-School Compact work from last year.   These meetings made us a better, more understanding school community.  Virtual meeting date TBA soon.
  2. Coates teachers will be using our class meeting times in the next two weeks to address current events and talk about bias, racism, and examples of social injustice (in an age-appropriate way). We have done this periodically throughout the year.  Our Positivity Project character strengths are PURPOSE next week and LEADERSHIP starting May 3.  Both traits lend themselves to teaching kids how to detect and self-detect bias and to stand up for what’s right.

If you have any questions about these plans, let me know.  If you ever have insights to share that would help us with the work outlined above, you do not need to wait for a formal meeting.  Let us know.

We appreciate you.

Jesse Kraft, Proud Principal (jkraft@fcps.edu )

Jessica King, Proud Ass’t Principal (jaking@fcps.edu )


Congratulations to Mr. Chierichella!

mike

As you’ve seen on Coates Facebook, Instagram & Twitter, 5th grade teacher Mr. C was awarded the First Class Award at the FCPS Special Education Conference this past weekend.  He earns this distinction for amazing teamwork with colleagues and his inclusive approach to teaching and holding ALL kids to high standards.  We’re proud of him (but not surprised that he’s been recognized for this)!


Office Assistants Appreciation Week

office

We’re so thankful for our fabulous office team – Mrs. Fran Peckham (admin assistant), Mrs. Amy Marney (registrar), & Mrs. Pat Schools, Mrs. Doris Velez, & Mrs. Ashya Otero (office assistants).  Working with Mrs. Solangie McPherson (parent liaison), they are the nerve center of the school, the front line for parents, and the workforce behind most operations.  For most of the pandemic, they’ve been onsite full-time, serving our community, and keeping us afloat – staying positive the whole time!  Feel free to send them note of appreciation!


Kindergarten Orientation

A virtual Kindergarten Orientation will take place on May 24 from 6-7:00 PM.  Rising Kindergarten parents will learn about Coates, the Kindergarten experience, and other important information.  The link to this virtual meeting will be transmitted via News You Choose email closer to the date.  New kindergarten parents must come to school to register, but they can get started here