Dear Beech Tree Families,
It was so exciting to have our Open House on Friday. Having you all here filled us with so much energy and joy. Seeing you was just what we needed to celebrate the end of a very productive week! Our PTA President, Megan Laboy was busy welcoming families, inviting them to join the PTA and get their Spirit Wear. Our friend, FCPD Officer Eddy, gave away new books to our students, encouraging everyone to read, and reminding us all with his presence that Fairfax County may be large, but we are all one community, focused on keeping our children safe and happy. I hope you felt the positive energy and welcome, too.
I also want to thank you for remembering to wear your mask and have each of our students wear a mask. Masks are an essential tool in preventing the spread of COVID-19 and protecting those unable to be vaccinated. Research shows proper masking is the most effective mitigation strategy to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in schools where social distancing may not be possible and vaccination may not be available for all. Masking is adequate to prevent transmission in situations with less than three feet of social distance and on full-capacity buses.
Therefore, MASKS ARE REQUIRED FOR EVERYONE, regardless of vaccination status, inside FCPS buildings and on buses.
Everyone, regardless of vaccination status, will wear masks indoors, unless alone in an office or room. Outdoor masking is recommended for those who are unvaccinated in crowded settings. There are some situations in school when students and staff are permitted to remove their masks, including:
- When actively eating or drinking (if eating indoors, individuals are required to put their masks back on when not actually eating or drinking)
- When outside (e.g. outdoor recess, outdoor physical education, outdoor instructional groups; anyone not fully vaccinated is recommended, but not required, to wear a mask in crowded settings)
- Schools will use outdoor eating and instructional areas to increase opportunities for physical distancing as permitted by space, weather, and supervision. While FCPS is unable to implement full physical distancing in our schools with the return of 99.5% of our students, we will implement it to the best of our ability when space permits.
As I shared with you as I visited classrooms during Open House, I have no intention of being sent home. Our doors are open. Our staff have planned for face-to-face instruction. Our building is impeccable, even after the downpour during Open House. We are HERE TO STAY! Please help us have a wonderful, safe, fun-filled year of learning. When we each wear a mask, wash our hands, and keep our school clean, we are agreeing to keep each other safe so we can stay in our beautiful building together EVERY school day of 2021-2022. Let’s do this!
We are looking forward to our FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL on Monday, August 23rd.
As a reminder, our school day begins promptly at 9:15am and ends at 4:00pm. Students are allowed to enter the building and wait in the cafeteria at 8:50am, but NO EARLIER. Please understand that no staff are available to supervise students until 8:50am.
Arrival & Dismissal Procedures:
Kiss & Ride:
- In order to move our Kiss & Ride line swiftly and expeditiously, please plan on having your child exit the car from the right side of your vehicle.
-
You received a laminated pink “Kiss & Ride” card for each of your students at Open House. If you did not, you will receive it in your child’s Take Home Folder. Please keep these cards in your car and place on your window, so we can read them when you come pick up your students at Kiss & Ride and for doctor’s appointments or illness.
-
Should you need to pick up your child for an appointment, please remember we are limiting visitors into the building. Please pull up to the front of the building at Door #1, exit your car and ring the doorbell, and be ready to show your Driver’s License, Passport, or another form of official identification. Your identification will be matched with the parent/guardian name(s) on file. Your student will then be brought to you. Please plan for this process, as you decide on the time you will be arriving to pick up your student. We will not rush this process and risk the safety of our students.
Thank you for your partnership in keeping our students safe.
Please review, “Family Life Education Instructional Program Information” below:
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) provides a comprehensive, sequential Family Life Education (FLE) program for students in grades kindergarten through grade twelve. Instruction is seen as a partnership among parents and guardians, the school, and the community in supporting the learning essential to the development of strong families, positive relationships, and a healthy community.
Parents/guardians may choose to opt their child out of all or part of the Family Life Education program. Students who are opted out are provided with age-appropriate, nonpunitive alternative health instruction, and every effort is made to foster respect for family choices. If you wish to opt your child out of all or part of FLE for this school year, opt out forms will be included in your child’s back-to-school/orientation packets and are available online for Elementary (K-6) https://www.fcps.edu/academics/elementary-school-academics-k-6/elementary-family-life-education. Please fill in the opt-out form and return it to your child’s school prior to Family Life Education instruction.
Detailed grade-level program descriptions are available online at Elementary (K-6) . FLE grade level-specific lessons and media that FCPS has streaming rights for are available for parents online in Schoology. Parents/guardians login to Schoology using the same username and password as their Student Information System (SIS) Parent account. Grade level-specific lessons are also available at the City of Fairfax Regional Library (this location does not have media). Grade level-specific lessons and media that is not streamed online are available for review at your child’s school library. Due to copyright permissions, we are unable to stream all media online.
Program questions may be addressed at your child’s school or by contacting Instructional Services at 571-423-4550 or by contacting Carrie Reynolds, Health and Physical Education Coordinator at cfreynolds@fcps.edu.
I’d like to remind you of this week’s “Title I Parent Information Night.” It will be virtual and I will send you the Zoom link right before the event.
Thursday, August 26th, 6:30pm = Title I Parent Information Night
*The private link for this virtual event will be sent on the 26th
Also, if you have not had an opportunity to complete the permission slip for the use of digital resources for instruction, please access the link here: https://beechtreees.fcps.edu/adopteddigitalresources
As always, I thank you for your trust. Let me know if you ever have any questions or concerns. I look forward to seeing you soon!
Karim Daugherty
Principal
Beech Tree ES
703-531-2600
https://twitter.com/BeechTreeElem
https://beechtreees.fcps.edu/
“There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” – Colin Powell
|
Beech Tree Office Contacts
Spanish Speaking Parent Liaison: Stella O’Brien at msobrien@fcps.edu
School-Based Technology Specialist (logging on/using programs): Mike Meyer at mkmeyer@fcps.edu
Technology Specialist (laptop issues): Tom Kindregan at tpkindregan@fcps.edu
Registrar: Susan Do at sndo@fcps.edu
Attendance Secretary: Sheila Hudson at skhudson@fcps.edu
Principal’s Secretary: Esther Baca at ebaca@fcps.edu
Assistant Principal: Maureen Lopez at mmlopez1@fcps.edu
Advanced Academics Resource Teacher: Patty Settel at pasettel@fcps.edu
FCPS Calendar
The following link provides you with the 2021-2022 Calendar: https://www.fcps.edu/sites/default/files/media/forms/2021-22-standard-school-calendar.pdf
August 23, 2021 School Begins
September 3-6 Student Holiday (Labor Day Break)
October 11 Student Holiday (Professional Development Day - Indigenous Peoples’ Day)
October 29 End of First Quarter - 2-hour Early Release
November 1 Student Holiday (Teacher Workday)
November 2 Student Holiday (Teacher Workday)
November 11 2-hour Early Release (Veterans Day)
November 24-26 Holiday (Thanksgiving)
December 20 - 31 Holiday (Winter Break) - Classes Resume on January 3, 2022
January 17 Holiday (Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday)
January 20 End of Second Quarter - 2-hour Early Release
January 21 Student Holiday (Teacher Workday)
January 24 Student Holiday (Professional Development Day)
February 21 Holiday (George Washington’s Birthday and Presidents’ Day)
March 3 2-hour Early Release
March 4 Student Holiday (Professional Development Day)
March 31 End of Third Quarter - 2-hour Early Release
April 1 Student Holiday (Teacher Workday)
April 4-8 Holiday (Spring Break)
May 30 Holiday (Memorial Day)
June 10 Last Day of School (Early Release)
Visitors in the Building
Beech Tree visitors may enter by appointment only, with limited access to the building. All must have an ID, such a driver’s license or passport, and will be asked to respond to a Health Screening Questionnaire. Parents may drop off and pick up materials, as needed, by ringing the doorbell and communicating with office staff. Office staff will then bring the materials to you at the door or receive the materials from you at the door.
Water Fountain Use
Students should bring their own water bottle for use during the day. School staff will supervise the refilling of water bottles, as necessary. Water fountains should not be used as usual. Water fountains can be used to refill water bottles when practical, but students and staff should not drink directly from any water fountains or faucets, which could contribute to illness transmission; individual water bottles should be used instead.
Lunch Time
- Students will be required to wear masks in the cafeteria when not actively eating and drinking.
- They will need to wear their masks while going through the serving line.
- Students will put their mask back on when they finish their meal.
- Cafeteria spaces will be regularly and thoroughly cleaned with a sanitizing solution.
- It is recommended that students wash their hands with soap and water or use hand sanitizer before and after eating.
- FCPS Food Nutrition Services works closely with the Fairfax County Health Department to ensure proper food safety and sanitation.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture extended the offering of no-cost breakfast and lunch to all students through school year 2021-2022. Visit the FNS website.
CDC Requirements for Playground Areas
- Face masks are not required on the playground
- Handwashing and Hand Sanitizing
- Students are to wash hands before going to playground areas and immediately following with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
- Hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol is to be made easily accessible in playground areas for students and staff.
Daily Health Screening
- The CDC recommends that parents, caregivers or guardians, should be strongly encouraged to monitor their children for symptoms of infectious illness every day through home-based symptom screening and students who are sick should not attend in-person instruction.
- Parents/guardians are required to complete the daily health screening questionnaire prior to sending the student to school each morning. The required screening must be completed for all school-aged children in the household. In order to reduce the spread of communicable disease to student and staff, it is critical that parents/guardians accurately complete this screening daily and keep their student home from school when exhibiting any symptoms. The daily health screening questionnaire will be completed on an honor basis and will not be required to be submitted to the school.
- A daily health screening questionnaire is available in the following languages: English, Amharic, Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, Spanish, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
- Parents/guardians will receive frequent reminders from FCPS via multiple modes of communication, reminding them to complete their daily health screening questionnaire and to keep sick students at home. These communications will be developed in collaboration with the Office of Communications and Community Relations (OCCR), Office of Professional Learning and Family Engagement (OPLFE) and Language Services.
- All staff and visitors must complete the daily health screening questionnaire prior to arriving on campus. The daily health screening questionnaire will be completed on an honor basis and will not be required to be submitted to the school.
- Any student, staff or visitor demonstrating symptoms of illness should stay home to help “Stop the Spread” of COVID-19.
Care Rooms
- The predetermined care room is a designated location and must be separate from the health room. It may be necessary for schools to identify a second care room due to the requirement for physical distancing and room capacity.
- A designated staff member must be assigned to supervise students while in the predetermined care room should the need arise. The staff member will be provided with a gown or lab coat, gloves, and a face shield as appropriate. Staff will need to be available at various times throughout the day to supervise any student exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 while awaiting pick up by the parent or guardian.
*At Beech Tree, the designated Care Rooms, so as not to impact student instruction, are the principal’s conference room and the principal’s office. The designated staff, so as not to impact student instruction, are the assistant principal, Maureen Lopez, and the principal, Karim Daugherty.
Student Return to School After Illness
In order to return to school, the parent/guardian must provide to the school, a completed SICK STUDENT NOTIFICATION and RETURN to SCHOOL FORM.
- This form will be completed by the child’s healthcare provider and returned to the school.
- This form is to be filed in the student’s cumulative folder.
- Copies of FCHD clearance letters (SARA alert forms) provided by the FCHD or a healthcare provider note will also be accepted. These documents should be stapled to the Return to School Form and filed in the student’s cumulative folder.
- The Sick Student Notification and Return to School Form is available in English, Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, Spanish, Urdu and Vietnamese.
*FCPS will no longer require the SICK STUDENT NOTIFICATION and RETURN to SCHOOL FORM for students who are called in absent with COVID-like symptoms/illness.
Students who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, may not return until:
- It has been at least ten (10) days since my child first had symptoms AND
- My child has had no fever off anti-fever medicines (ex: Tylenol, Ibuprofen) for 24 hours AND
- My child’s symptoms are getting better
*If someone in the household has been diagnosed with COVID-19, or the student is exposed, the student must remain home for 14 days after their last exposure to the household member.
Protocols for Potential Temporary COVID-19 Closure
- VA public schools required under SB 1303 to provide five days a week of in-person instruction.
- FCPS is committed to continuity of learning during the 2021-22 school year and the school division is using layered prevention strategies to do everything possible to ensure our schools remain safe, healthy and open. Our plan is to remain open using these strategies unless directed otherwise by health officials or Executive Order.
- FCPS has plans in place to ensure continuity of learning in the event health authorities or an Executive Order require a temporary closure to protect the health of students, staff, and the community.
INDIVIDUAL STUDENTS
Threshold to Initiate Closure: If student is directed by healthcare provider or FCHD to quarantine or isolate, or FCPS is directed by FCHD to pause that student’s in-person learning as a matter of public health, but school and class remain open.
Support: Asynchronous assignments
INDIVIDUAL TEACHERS
Threshold to Initiate Closure: If teacher is directed by health provider or FCHD to quarantine or isolate, or FCPS is directed by FCHD to pause teacher’s in-person teaching, but the teacher’s school and class remain open for students.
Support: Schools will secure a substitute/alternate coverage.
CLASS
Threshold to Initiate Closure: FCPS is directed by FCHD to temporarily close the class as a matter of public health.
Support: All students/staff in the impacted class will transition to virtual learning for that class (period for secondary students) until the class can reopen. Students would access asynchronous assignments.
SCHOOL
Threshold to Initiate Closure: FCPS is directed by FCHD to temporarily close the entire class as a matter of public health.
Support: All students and staff at the school will transition to virtual learning.
DIVISION
Threshold to Initiate Closure: FCPS is directed by FCHD or VDH, or Executive Order to temporarily close the division as a matter of public health.
Support: All students and staff will transition to virtual learning until in-person instruction can resume.
HVAC System
FCPS designs and operates many different types of equipment to maintain an acceptable indoor air temperature and indoor air quality in buildings.
- FCPS operates 220 facilities every day of the year
- At 27 million square feet of covered space, FCPS is larger than 4 Pentagons
- There are nearly 37,000 pieces of HVAC equipment in FCPS
- Including over 5,000 different types and models of HVAC equipment
- There are more than 45,000 active air filters in FCPS
- Including nearly 800 different sizes and types
- Air filters are changed every 90 days
- FCPS replaces over 180,000 filters each year
All HVAC systems are maintained and operated efficiently and effectively using the latest procedures and technology. FCPS performs scheduled preventive maintenance to all HVAC systems. OFM uses a maintenance management system that documents HVAC maintenance requests and actions.
Portable air filters (based on HEPA or UV technology) have been considered and purchased. I purchased county approved, portable air filters for the two classrooms that do not have windows and the division purchased them for our two CARE rooms which Ms. Lopez and I have to monitor when we have students exhibiting COVID symptoms, since those students may not remain in the clinic.
|
