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 Principal’s Message
Congratulations to the West Springfield Pyramid Orchestra ensembles for a wonderful Masquerade Concert Thursday night (pictured above)! 6th graders from our feeder elementary schools, WIMS ensembles, and two groups from the high school performed for a packed auditorium at West Springfield High School. The music was lovely and the costumes added to the fun of the evening. Congratulations to Ms. Pfiester and her students!
This week was another great spirit week - as we recognized Red Ribbon Week! Students showed great school spirit throughout the week dressing up as celebrities, wearing Red, different decades, and costumes. We also enjoyed special morning announcements from our newly elected SCA officers this week.
Today marks the end of the 1st quarter. I am so proud of the hard work of our students and the dedication of our staff during the 1st quarter and look forward to kicking off the 2nd quarter on Tuesday, November 1. Be on the lookout for an opportunity to share feedback about the 1st quarter with me soon.
Lastly, our Lost and Found cart is overflowing with sweatshirts, jackets, hoodies, water bottles, and lunch bags. If your child has lost something, please feel free to stop by Irving Middle on Monday, October 31 from 8:00 am-3:00 pm to take a look at the items; they will be displayed in the cafeteria. Because of the volume of items, we will hold these items until November 11 and then donate any unclaimed items to ECHO. We appreciate you taking a look and recovering your items!
I hope you all have a wonderful and safe weekend!
Take Care!
Cindy Conley
Principal
Veterans Day Wall of Fame
As Veterans Day approaches, we would like to honor those who have served and are serving in the Armed Forces. If you would like to recognize someone in your family, please fill out the form below and return it to the Main Office. All forms should be returned to the Main Office by Wednesday, November 9.
Please include a photograph (photocopy of the photograph is preferred since these will not be returned) of the person you would like to honor. These forms will be displayed in the Main Lobby to remind our students and visitors of the meaning and importance of recognizing our Veterans. If you would like to honor more than one family member, please feel free to make copies of this form: Wall of Heroes form.
Opportunity for Students to Help Inform FCPS’ Future
You may have heard FCPS is developing a Strategic Plan that will serve as the school division’s roadmap for the future. We encourage every parent/caregiver, student, employee, and community member to participate in this important work.
The first engagement opportunity will be an optional survey, which will be open to students in grades 3-12. Knowing what is important to students will be very helpful to Dr. Reid, as she leads the planning of FCPS’ future. All schools, including ours, will schedule a date and time during the school day to administer the survey between November 2-18. Please visit FCPS’ website for more information.
Substance Abuse Prevention
Important Upcoming Webinar
On Thursday, November 10, 10:00-11:30 am, (Adults Only)
Join us for this important webinar designed to inform and raise awareness about the dangers of children and adolescents using and overdosing on opioids. Webinar Highlights:
- How young people are getting drugs
- Opioid risk, misuse, withdrawal, and overdose symptoms
- The dangers of Fentanyl
- Naloxone and how it works
Presented by Tiffany Jones, FCPS Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist
Register online: https://bit.ly/3fxVCIU
For general questions about the FCPS Substance Abuse Prevention Program, please contact the Office of Student Safety & Wellness at: (571) 423-4270 and be sure to follow us on Twitter at @FCPSSAPS. For further Information & support - Ken Johnson, the West Springfield Pyramid Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist can be reached at Kwjohnson@fcps.edu.
Food For Neighbors Food Collection Sorters Needed
If you would like to be part of a local organization who gives directly to students at Irving and surrounding secondary schools, please consider volunteering to help sort food during the next Food For Neighbors collection day on October 29th at Irving. Volunteers must be at least 9 years old and there are different jobs available throughout the morning. If you have questions about this event, please reach out to Tahnee Blauser at teamblauser@gmail.com. Please click Sign Up if you would like to volunteer. Please visit here to learn more about Food For Neighbors.
Notification: Fairfax County Youth Survey to be administered November 17 to 8th graders
The Fairfax County School Board and the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors work together to administer the Fairfax County Youth Survey. The survey is given to all students in grades 6, 8, 10, and 12 each fall. It provides a wealth of information about a variety of topics related to our youth that influence their physical and mental well being, from sleep and nutritional habits to substance abuse behaviors to symptoms of depression and suicidal thoughts.
At Irving MS, we plan to administer this survey to all 8th graders during 3rd period on November 17. More information including an opt-out form will be mailed home soon. In the meantime, you can preview the official notification letter and the survey instrument itself on this FCPS webpage. Any questions you have can be directed to our School Test Coordinator, Leigh Arscott, at lbarscott@fcps.edu.
Fairfax Connector Free Student Bus Pass
Please see the video linked below for information regarding the free student bus pass program.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nycsQ6H-ql4
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Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology Admissions
TJHSST is an FCPS regional Governor’s high school (9-12th grades) for students interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). Please view this YouTube video with lots of important TJ information https://youtu.be/3JyLgzAoaqg
Eligibility to Apply:
(1) Residency requirement-FCPS is included
(2) Completed a full-year course of Algebra 1, OR be currently enrolled in a full-year course of honors-level Algebra 1 or higher
(3) Be enrolled in honors science
(4) Be enrolled in honors social studies OR English OR be identified as a “Young Scholar”
(5) Have a 3.5 or higher GPA in all cores academic courses (math, science, social studies, English, and if taken for high school credit, world language) at the time of application.
TJHSST Admissions: Contact Information
Admissions Office (general inquiries): Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Phone:571-423-3770 Email: tjadmissions@fcps.edu Website: www.tjadmissions.org
Parent Resource Center
The FCPS Parent Resource Center offers a welcoming and engaging environment for families, educators, and community members. It provides access to information and resources to support the success of all students, including those with learning challenges, special needs, and disabilities.
To join the PRC email list and receive notices of upcoming webinars, sign up for their News You Choose newsletter.
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Since all students have visited the library and most have borrowed a book for English class projects, they may be receiving some notices that their books are overdue. Students may renew their books to keep them until they finish their class projects.
Readers Unite Club is continuing to meet after school on Mondays. Students who like to read and talk about books are welcome to attend. We meet after school in the library during the first block on Mondays.
There are a lot of school holidays in the next few weeks. If you’d like to see your student spending some time reading on those days at home, encourage them to visit the library and to always have “their next book” ready to read!
Mary Ann Monk & Diane Gawalt, Librarians
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Program Structure & Club Sign Ups
We will offer late buses on Mondays, Tuesdays, SOME Wednesdays, and Thursdays, buses depart from Irving between 4:35pm and 5:00pm. The weekly sign-up regenerates weekly, the link will be available Fridays by 10am. Updates and changes will be shared via Schoology, lunch (cafeteria), Rock Block and the after school program board.
The After School Program will not meet the following days:
Wednesday, November 2
Wednesday, November 9
Monday, November 21 - Thursday, November 24
Coming Soon:
Art Club, will begin Monday, November 7, during the 1st block
- THANK YOU for the amazing response in support of the Staff Appreciation Day on 10/31. We still need one more runner and someone to help with set-up. Please join us – we’ll make it fun! Sign up is here (copy and paste – links do not work): https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090a4aafaf29abfb6-ourteachers.
- And if it’s easier you can always give through Headless Heroes: https://irvingms.memberhub.com/store/items/62509 (copy and paste – links inoperative).
- The Spirit wear Store will open between 11/3 and 11/17. We are told we will have the gear by 12/6. So if your child doesn’t have their Irving Spririt Wear yet, it’s JUST IN TIME for the holidays! Once the link is live, PTA members will get the link through MemberHub, and it will be posted in this newsletter and on the PTA Facebook page.
- The next Restaurant Spirit Night is Chipotle (Rolling Rd)! November 6, 5-9pm. The flyer is available on the PTA page https://irvingms.memberhub.com/ (copy and paste the link).
- Our next general PTA membership meeting will be November 15th. Principal Conley attends these meetings and it’s a great way to be better informed about Irving and ask questions. Meeting details will be posted in MemberHub and will be included in a future News You Choose. (and "all things PTA" are here - https://irvingms.memberhub.com/ (copy and paste the link)
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