Important Upcoming Events
9/14 - Virtual Back To School Night
9/23 - Parent Coffee - Details coming soon!
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RCMS will hold our Virtual Back to School Night on Tuesday, Sept. 14. The evening will feature a live, virtual session led by the RCMS Administrative Team. This streaming event will begin at 6:30PM. The Zoom meeting link will be provided to parents through an e-Notify message by this Friday. Parents will be able to log into this session to hear information about the RCMS academic program and other facets of our learning environment. Parents – you are invited to submit a question in advance of the presentation. Please use this Google form to submit questions that are on your mind: https://forms.gle/ANPjPGWp4uyV4JDh7
Following the presentation, parents will be able to view recorded presentations from all of our teachers. Those presentations will be uploaded to the RCMS website on the evening of Sept. 14. We look forward to your presence.
https://carsonms.fcps.edu/node/6332
New Process to Speed Up the Return of Fully Vaccinated Students to the Classroom
FCPS heard from many of you about your concerns regarding the amount of time fully vaccinated students are being paused from in-person instruction when identified as a potential close contact to a COVID-19 positive case.
FCPS collaborated with the Fairfax County Health Department to adjust this process and speed up the return to the classroom for fully vaccinated, asymptomatic students. We all share the goal of ensuring our students are in the classroom as much as possible, while also keeping our schools safe and healthy for everyone—staff, students, and visitors.
The new process benefits all students, including those of elementary school age who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated. Because contact tracers will no longer have to contact families of students who are fully vaccinated and asymptomatic, they will now be able to focus more resources on elementary school investigations. This will allow elementary school students, among others, to return to the classroom quicker.
More information is available online.
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COVID-19 Vaccines Available
Fairfax County Health Department is coming back to Coates ES on Thursday, September 9th from 5 to 8pm to give COVID 19 vaccines first and second doses. Walk-in appointments are available.
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Greetings from the Health Room |
Clinic Volunteers Welcome
Rachel Carson Middle School is excited to welcome volunteers back into our school clinic this year! Volunteers must submit a completed Volunteer Application Form to the school and be fingerprinted at the Gatehouse Administration Center. Read more about the application and background check process.
All volunteers must also adhere to FCPS’ layered prevention strategies, including universal indoor masking.
If you are interested in volunteering in our clinic, please contact us at ajtawil@fcps.edu We look forward to welcoming you to our school.
Our goal is to ensure that your student enjoys a healthful, safe school year. If you have any questions, feel free to call either your health room aide, Jackie Plunkett, at 703-925-3610 or your school public health nurse, Minjung Ellenburg, RN, at 703-925-3611.
Click here
For Information regarding your student's use of digital tools in the learning environment.
ParentVue and StudentVue
The Student Information System (SIS) Parent Account Access allows parents and students access to teacher grade books, attendance information, course history and other useful information.
ParentVue:
Student Services Updates
Parents will be able to view student grades in SIS ParentVUE beginning September 7th. While we have allowed some schedule changes as students may have realized an elective wasn’t quite what they thought or a core class level was too easy or challenging, at this time we will not be making any additional schedule changes. The classes have begun to build culture and community with teachers and students, and teachers have begun entering grades. Students (and parents) can connect with their teachers and counselor if they need support in a class
Quarterly Student Services Newsletter
Welcome Back Panther Families! We are so excited to be back in person with our students and staff. Please take a look at our first newsletter of the 2021-2022 school year. In this quarter’s issue, we provide information on Social Emotional Learning, schedule changes, reviewing our month’s programs and upcoming events, and parent resources.
Contact Information
If you have any questions or concerns throughout the school year, please do not hesitate to reach out to student services staff. Email is the best way to contact us during school hours (7am-2:30pm). Please allow 24 hours for a response to your email or phone message.
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Order Your Yearbook!
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2021-2022 Yearbooks are available for purchase at www.MySchoolBucks.com. or access through this link. https://www.myschoolbucks.com/ver2/prdembd?ref=ZZI5ZQWBKS04NJ8_ZZJ6XQQIV50UTTM
We have a limited number of surplus, once we reach our sales limit yearbooks will be sold out. Sales are on a first come first serve basis. Make payments online to avoid the handling of cash and check. Reserve your copy today by purchasing through MySchoolBucks! The base price of the yearbook price is $30.00.
To help ensure the health and safety of all our students and staff, we ask that parents please consider paying for their student’s school fee online through MySchoolBucks. This will help minimize the amount of cash and checks that need to be handled throughout the day, which allows us to focus on keeping your student safe. Accounts may be set up with a credit card or linked directly to your checking account.
With MySchoolBucks you can:
- Pay online or on-the-go
- Browse items & fees in our School Store
- Know when fees are due
Don’t have an account yet? Visit MySchoolBucks.com to sign up today! www.MySchoolBucks.com
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Transportation News |
Here Comes the Bus Mobile App
As a result of the Transportation Services' strategic plan, Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) has made available a Here Comes the Bus® mobile app. Know when your bus is approaching your stop! Here Comes the Bus® app is a school bus tracking app that can simplify morning and afternoon routines for parents and students by giving them real-time bus location and text or email notification alerts, helping them get to the bus stop on time. Here Comes the Bus® utilizes our GPS data and an easy to use customizable map that works on one or multiple devices, such as a tablet or smartphone.
Using the app is EASY! You will need the FCPS school district code 28982 and a SIS Parent Account (contact your child's school if you do not have an SIS Parent Account). Please be sure to follow the detailed instructions here to set up your account.
Please remember the first few weeks of school can be very hectic as morning routines are re-established, students should arrive at their bus stop 15 minutes early. This will help make sure your student does not miss the bus. It usually takes transportation a couple of weeks to get routes adjusted as changes arise. This will help alleviate the stress of students missing the bus. If you have any transportation concerns, please feel free to contact Ms. Terry at sdterry3@fcps.edu
All students riding the bus must wear a mask!
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On Reporting Absences
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If a student will be absent or arriving late to school, parents or guardians should always report the details of the absence to the RCMS Attendance Office. Teachers do not have access to mark a student excused for an absence, which is why it is imperative that parents contact the attendance office (instead of, or in addition to, the teacher) when their child is absent so we can mark them correctly.
To report an absence, parents have these options:
- Use the link to our online attendance form (preferred) from the main page of the RCMS website:
- Send an email with full details to: CarsonMiddle.Attendance@fcps.edu, or
- Call the attendance line at 703-925-3636 being sure to include the spelling of your student’s last name and reason for the absence.
If your student will be picked up early for an appointment:
Please send them to the front office in the morning with a note stating the time of the dismissal. Students will be given a pass to leave class and meet parents in the office. Parents should come to entrance #1, to the main office, with a photo ID to pick up their student for early dismissals.
For more information on the attendance policies, please visit the RCMS Attendance page.
FCPS Cares Program
The FCPS CARES Program is an opportunity for parents, staff, and community members to recognize FCPS employees for going above and beyond to help others and show they care. We invite you to submit your story so we can acknowledge the good work of FCPS employees.
Watch this video to learn more
 At Rachel Carson Middle School
The RCMS After School Programs will begin on Monday, September 20th, with most after school programs being offered on Monday’s, Wednesday’s and Thursday’s and program hours running from 2:30-4:30. Late buses will be available on these days and will typically depart Carson around 4:50-5:00.
I am currently in the process of putting the after school program together. The program will offer a variety of programs including STEAM, athletics, Knitting, Special Olympics, academic programs and other opportunities.
If you have experience with any of these please programs or have any questions about After School, email Adam Pawlowski at ajpawlowski@fcps.edu
More Information will be provided over the next couple weeks.
New Daily Bell Schedule
https://carsonms.fcps.edu/about/bell-schedule
Who to Contact
If you have a question or concern, please visit our website for a full listing of Who to Contact. This listing includes all of our administrators, our counselors, and who to speak to regarding a specific content area or class. Contact information for all staff members is listed on our website - just click on the name of the person you wish to contact to be redirected to their email address: RCMS Staff Directory.
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