Justice Junction - Community News & Updates - August 29, 2021

August 29, 2021

 

Hello Justice HS Students, Families, and Community Members,

 

We’ve had an incredible opening week!  Thank you once again for supporting our strong return to school.  This past week, there have been many opportunities for our students to experience this feeling again: athletic practices, club meetings, our first football game and WIN on Friday night/Saturday afternoon, hanging out with friends in the hallways and classrooms, or even just being together again at school. 

 

Moving forward, we know that we face challenges.  We are doing everything we can to ensure our mitigation strategies are robust.  Students are doing a great job of wearing their masks and we will continue to enforce this policy for as long as necessary to keep everyone safe.  In addition, to support social distancing at lunch, more outdoor seating has been added outside the cafeteria and the student commons will be available beginning tomorrow.

At home, please continue to screen your student daily for any signs of illness prior to leaving home for school. Working together, these layered prevention strategies will help keep schools safe places for all students to learn.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions.

 

Tiffany I. Narcisse, Principal

Justice High School

703-824-3900 | https://justicehs.fcps.edu/

Empower our school, embrace our community, and educate to build positive futures as global citizens together.

 

 

TRANSPORTATION

Student Bus Route Assignments: FCPS Office of Transportation Services emailed student bus route assignments on Friday, August 20^th. Please note that the provided times are estimates and that buses may be delayed due to weather, traffic conditions, and a national and regional driver shortage.  Please check the Here Comes the Bus app or FCPS School Bus Delays website for potential delays. Students are expected to be at their bus stop at least five minutes before the scheduled pickup time. A double back route assignment may require your bus schedule to be adjusted earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon.

Please note that a national bus driver shortage is impacting FCPS and some routes may be longer or occasionally delayed as we work through the situation. Your patience and understanding as we make adjustments is appreciated. FCPS is working hard to address the need for drivers and plan for transportation in a way that has the least impact on students. Students should consider driving, walking, or biking to school while we work through the driver shortage and adjust routes. Carpools or group walks and bikes are also encouraged for those who are able to help relieve pressure on buses.

 

Kiss and Ride: Student drop off/pick up (aka Kiss and Ride) is conducted at the back entrance/parking lot. Parents should drop off their student(s) no earlier than 7:45am. Students are dismissed from school at 2:55pm. If you have any questions, please email Luther Ivery, Safety and Security Specialist, at lkivery@fcps.edu. 

 

Student Parking Information: At this time, we have sold out of all student parking passes. If you have any questions, please email Luther Ivery, Safety and Security Specialist, at lkivery@fcps.edu. 

 

OTHER INFORMATION

Student Attendance: In order for our students to get the most out of their education, students must be in school and on time to class every day. Absenteeism in the first month of school can predict poor attendance throughout the school year. Half the students who miss 2-4 days in September go on to miss nearly a month of school. If your student must be absent from school, you should always inform the school. The attendance line is 703-824-3920.

 

Labor Day Holiday - September 3-6: Virginia legislation requires that schools opening prior to Labor Day must be closed the Friday immediately preceding Labor Day. As a result, Friday, September 3, is a holiday for students and staff members in addition to the Labor Day holiday, Monday, September 6. See the complete 2021-22 school year calendar.

 

PSAT/NMSQT (10th and 11th Graders) - October 13: On Wednesday, October 13, Justice High School will host both the PSAT/NMSQT for all students in grades 10 & 11. Students are automatically registered and no further action by families is needed. The test is offered at no cost to families. All FCPS students have access to Khan Academy’s free online test preparation, whether they are taking the PSAT for the first time or preparing for eleventh grade National Merit Scholarship Qualification. The Khan Academy online curriculum is customized for students based on any previous PSAT or SAT scores. In addition, the website offers general test preparation tips for students. Students will receive their testing locations in early October.

 

SAT School Day (12th Graders) - October 13: On Wednesday, October 13, Justice High School 12^th  graders will have the opportunity to take the SAT School Day. FCPS will cover the cost for any twelfth grade student to take this test. General information about the SAT School Day test format is available on the College Board webpage. We will share exam day schedules and additional details in the coming weeks. If you have questions about the SAT School Day administration at Justice High School, please contact our Director of Student Services, Christy Hanlon, at cihanlon@fcps.edu.

 

HELPFUL RESOURCES

FCPS 2021-2022 Standard School Calendar

Map of Justice HS

 

FCPS Multilingual Family Podcasts: Listen and subscribe to a FCPS Multilingual Family Podcast to hear timely, important information related to school news. The podcasts are produced in conjunction with the Office for ESOL Services and the Office of Professional Learning and Family Engagement. The goal of every podcast is to help families access key resources and understand how to best support their children’s education.  

Listen and Subscribe:

Spanish Podcast: https://anchor.fm/enpocaspalabrasfcps Arabic Podcast:  https://anchor.fm/inafewwordsarabicfcps Korean Podcast: https://anchor.fm/inafewwordskoreanfcps

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Clean Recyclables Needed

Our ESOL department is in need of your recyclable food boxes, yogurt cups, bottles, and dome-shaped plastic covers. These can be dropped off in the main office or your student may drop them off in J209 (the ESOL workroom) or E94 (the Social Studies workroom). Students will use the materials to construct models of buildings in Washington, DC, and assemble them into a giant map in our school library.

 

UPCOMING DATES

 

Tuesday, Augu^st 31^st 

• Freshman/JV/Varsity Volleyball @ Hayfield HS | 5:00 PM
• Freshman/JV/Varsity Field Hockey @ Justice HS versus Yorktown | 6:15 PM

 

Wednesday, September 1^st

• Freshman/JV Football @ Mt. Vernon HS | 5:30 PM
• PTSA Meeting | 7:00 PM
• Location/Virtual Access Information TBA

 

Thursday, September 2^nd 

• Freshman/JV/Varsity Volleyball @ Justice HS versus Lewis | 5:00 PM
• Varsity Football @ Justice HS versus Mt. Vernon | 7:00 PM 

 

Friday, September 3^rd – Monday, September 6^th

• Labor Day Holiday – NO SCHOOL

 

Tuesday, September 7^th

• Religious Observance - Rosh Hashanah

 

Wednesday, September 22^nd

• Back to School Night 2021 (more information forthcoming)

 

October 4^th – 8^th

• Homecoming Week

 

Saturday, October 9^th

• Homecoming Dance

 

Wednesday, October 13^th

• PSAT/SAT Day