Annandale Community Insider - February 4

Annandale Students, Families, and Community:

What an exciting week in Atom Nation! We are so proud of Annie Ray, 2024 GRAMMY Music Educator of the Year. Last night, Annie was honored at the GRAMMY Special Merit Awards in Los Angeles alongside Gladys Knight, Ice Cube and other fellow artists. Check out Annie being interviewed on the red carpet before the event. Be sure to watch the GRAMMY Awards tonight at 8:00pm, with Red Carpet events beginning at 6:00pm. See below for viewing details.

It was great to see so many students displaying Atom Pride during spirit week and at Friday’s pep rally, where we celebrated our winter athletes. As part of this event, teachers and members of our admin team participated in a pie eating contest. While I did not win, I did get pied in the face by a few enthusiastic staff members. After several showers, I think I still have whipped cream in my ear. A big congratulations to all of our winter athletes, and a huge thank you to our Leadership students and Activities Office for organizing this fun event!

On Thursday, I hosted a virtual Principal Check-In where I shared the ways we are working together through our systems and structures to ensure that our students can achieve their full potential. Thank you to families who were able to attend. You asked such thoughtful questions and shared important perspectives. I appreciate our school and family partnership.

To that end, families and students should have received emails with new ASAP assignments. Our next round of PRIDE Time and ASAP begin. As always, our instructional coaches and teams have worked together over the past few weeks to re-identify students who need additional academic support during the school day and after school. Students can find their updated PRIDE Time assignments in StudentVue no later than tomorrow evening. If you have any questions about your students’ PRIDE Time or ASAP assignment, please reach out to your students’ teachers. 

Finally, this week is National School Counseling Week, when we celebrate the tremendous impact school counselors have in helping students achieve academic success and planning for college or a career. Our counselors focus on positive ways to enhance students’ academic, career, and social/emotional development, work with our teachers to provide an environment where students can realize their potential, and partner with parents to support the needs of our students. We cannot thank our counseling team enough for all of their hard work and dedication to the welfare of our students! 

Have a great week, Atom Nation! As always, reach out with any questions you have.

Shawn DeRose, Principal

Watch the 2024 GRAMMY Awards Tonight!

The 2024 GRAMMY Awards is tonight at 8:00pm on CBS. In addition, you can also watch the event online at live.GRAMMY.com beginning at 6:00pm. This dynamic, expansive online experience will feature a multi-screen livestream you can control. You can watch all the highlights from the 2024 GRAMMYs in one place before, during and even after the telecast. Catch GRAMMY performances, acceptance speeches, the GRAMMY Live From The Red Carpet livestream special, the full Premiere Ceremony livestream, behind-the-scenes backstage moments, and so much more.

Annandale Celebrates Black History Month

February is Black History Month. This year’s theme, “African Americans and the Arts,” explores the key influence African Americans have had in the fields of “visual and performing arts, literature, fashion, folklore, language, film, music, architecture, culinary and other forms of cultural expression.” Throughout the month, we will celebrate and honor the experiences, achievements, and contributions made by African Americans and their central role in US History.

Students deserve meaningful, sustained opportunities to learn about the experiences and contributions of Black and African American people year-round, and Black History Month is one opportunity to honor these diverse and important stories. Guided by resources curated by the FCPS Socials Studies Office, teachers are providing students opportunities to reflect on and celebrate the role of African Americans in US History. In addition, our African American History students have created school-wide lessons that will be shared during W4. These lessons are a wonderful opportunity for all of us to learn from and with each other.

Important Dates

February 5 - Report Cards & Transcripts Available in SIS

February 5-9 - National School Counseling Week

February 6 - PRIDE Time 3.0 Begins

February 11 - AHS Hosts Special Olympics Basketball

February 12 - W4 Activities Day

February 13 - PTSA Meeting, 7pm

February 14 - PTSA Pantry Distribution

February 19 - President’s Day (No School)

February 19 - Spring Sports Begin

February 24 - PTSA MONOPOLY® Tournament

March 5 - School Planning Day (No School)

Now through February 14 - W4 Check-ins: The social and emotional wellness of our students continue to be a priority at Annandale. Once again this semester, teachers have been conducting one-on-one check-ins with students in their advisory (W4) class. These conversations are another opportunity to build a caring and trusting environment for all students, cultivate positive relationships, and identify student needs.

Now through March 1 - Summer Camps Pre-Registration: Annandale Summer Camps are now accepting pre-registration. Summer Youth Sports Camps are held at Annandale High School and run 8:30am-3pm. The cost is $120. Sign up before March 1 and receive the $100 early bird rate. Multi Sport Camp: June 17,18, 20,21 (No camp on June 19), Olympics Camp: June 24-27 (No camp Friday). Pre-Register Here!

February 5 - Report Cards & Transcripts Available in SIS: Students and parents can now access the Grade Book and Report Card modules in ParentVUE and StudentVUE to view grades. In addition, transcripts will be uploaded and available by the end of the week.

February 5-9 - National School Counseling Week: This week is National School Counseling Week, and highlights the tremendous impact school counselors have in helping students achieve academic success and planning for college and career. School counselors work with students in a variety of different capacities, whether it is through classroom lessons, group sessions, or individual counseling. Learn more about the role of school counselors in FCPS.

Our counselors focus on positive ways to enhance students’ academic, career and social/emotional development, work with our teachers to provide an environment where students can realize their potential, and work in a partnership with parents to support the needs of our students. We cannot thank our counseling team enough for all of their hard work and dedication to the welfare of our students!

February 11 - AHS Hosts Special Olympics Basketball: Annandale High School will host our annual Special Olympics basketball tournament from 9am to 1pm! Come out and support the team as they take on other teams in and around the district.

February 12 - W4 Activities Day: Our next W4 Activities Day is on Monday, February 12. W4 Activities Day is a time set aside for students to explore clubs and activities and connect with classmates and staff over shared interests. If you have any questions, please contact Bryan Harris.

February 19 - Presidents Day (No School): As a reminder, all schools and offices will be closed on Monday, February 19, for the Presidents Day holiday. Classes will resume on Tuesday, February 20. See the complete 2023-24 School Year Calendar.

School-Family Partnership

Families recently received a personalized student progress report email which includes students’ grades as well as any academic interventions or supports the student is receiving.

Research shows that the single most impactful thing parents can do to support their student’s education is to talk with them about school. We encourage you to talk with your student about their classes and how they are taking advantage of PRIDE Time. Here is a question to help get the conversation started...

"This week is School Counselor Appreciation Week. How will you show your appreciation for your counselor?"

Thank you for everything you do to support us and your student - we truly work together to support our students’ needs!

Academic Support

Sign up for a writing conference with the AWC: The trained peer tutors of the Atoms Writing Center will continue to provide support for students with writing in any class. Use this link to sign up for a writing conference. If you haven’t already, you should also join our Schoology group to get important updates and announcements from the AWC all year by going to “Groups” > ”My Groups” > ”Join Group” then putting in this code: 9MSF-KSDM-B7HCP. You can also follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Contact Mrs. Crowley with any questions.

Need Help in Your Class? Stay With Your Teacher After School! Annandale High School offers late bus transportation three (3) days per week: Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. All teachers stay after school at least one day a week to provide academic support for students. Please refer to this list to see which day your student’s teacher is available after school.

Annandale Tutoring Center Open Mondays: Students can now get tutoring from AVID and honor society members, every Monday in Room 287 from 3:00-4:00pm. Tutors will be available to help in math, science and social studies. Contact Ms. Michelle Lukacs, AVID and History teacher, with questions.

Work with Live Tutors for Free! Does your student need help getting up to speed in math, science, or English? Tutor.com offers diagnostic quizzes to help students test their knowledge and find areas where they may need help. Quizzes can be taken anytime, and students can connect immediately to a tutor. Find out more here.

Awesome Atoms

Annandale Theater Company Performs for Future Atoms: The Annandale Theatre 1 class took their adapted play of "The Day the Crayons Quit" to Annandale Terrace Elementary School. In the audience were Kindergartners, First and Second graders. The performance was followed by a Q&A. A wonderful time was had by all! Congratulations Theatre Arts 1 students on a job well done! Check it out on the ATC Instagram page.

Theater Students Perform at National District One Acts Competition: Theatre 3 & 4 students performed ‘Things That Fly’ this past Friday during the National District One Acts Competition, under the direction of Miss Bustamante. Led by Liam Kessler (Robert) and Kaya Thomas (Sally) Annandale took the audience on a flight back to their childhood where it all began, with playing pretend. The judges were amazed by Sally’s sense of wonder and the relationship between the sibling duo, along with the children who contributed to their world of wonder and reality. They called the performance, “A strong story with ridiculous amount of fun!” Our very own Kaya Thomas was also one of 8 performers recognized with the ‘All-Star Performer Award.’ Congratulations to the cast of ‘Things That Fly’ on a job well done!

Scholastic Bowl Team Participates in Tournament Debut: The newly formed Scholastic Bowl team at AHS made their debut in Scholastic Bowl Tournament competition this past Saturday, January 27. They competed in the Occoquan Sectional and Regional Scholastic Bowl Tournament against five other schools. They competed well and are looking forward to being regulars on the Scholastic Bowl competition circuit.

Students Visit NOVA STEM Fab Lab: On Tuesday, 40 AHS students visited the Fabrication Lab, a maker space on the campus of NOVA Manassas. Students toured the Fab Lab and learned about design thinking by collaboratively designing a solution to help an unsighted Lego sculptor sort his Legos before building his creations. Students also learned about STEM programs that NOVA offers, both summer programs and paid internships for high school students and college degree programs for after they graduate. Huge thank you to Educate Fairfax for funding this opportunity for our students!

Everybody Scores at Special Olympics Basketball! This past weekend the Special Olympics team took part in the first basketball tournament of the year against the Justice Wolves and Yorktown Patriots. The team had great team play as they came out with every member of the team scoring a point!

Ten Annandale Students Advance to Regional Science Fair: Nineteen Annandale Students Advance to Regional Science Fair: A huge shout-out to all of the teachers who guided students through the science fair project process. Over the last few months our science teams have been working to support students as they prepare their Science Fair Projects. On Wednesday, January 31, Annandale held our in-school science fair. From there, Annandale will send 19 projects to the Regional Science Fair that will take place the weekend of March 15-17. A big thank you to all of our students and staff members who participated in making this year’s science fair a success!

Important Information

Now thru February 13 - Academic Advising: Our counselors began meeting one-on-one with students through their English classes. We began with our rising seniors and then will work through the other grade levels over the next several weeks. Students will be sent an email with their appointment time the weekend before they are scheduled to meet with their counselor. As always, students and families can get more information about course selection on our Academic Advising website.

Social Studies Performance Based Assessments: The Virginia Department of Education has approved the use of Performance Based Assessments (PBAs) as a replacement for the SOL Exam for students to earn locally awarded verified credit (LAVC) in Social Studies. This means that, instead of taking a traditional SOL test at the end of the year, students will be completing performance based assessments throughout the remainder of the school year. These assessments will be part of students’ course grades, as well as how they earn verified credit. Students must earn 1 verified credit in Social Studies to be awarded either the Advanced or Standard Diploma. In order to earn the verified credit for their course, students will need to:

1. Earn a minimum rubric score of 1 (out of 4) on each Performance Based Assessment, and
2. Receive a passing grade for the course by the end of the school year.

VDoE has created the assessments and rubrics that Social Studies teachers will use this year. These assessments are aligned with the Virginia State Standards and integrated into our course. For questions, please reach out to your student’s Social Studies teacher or email Meg Anderson. More information about this program can be found on the Virginia Department of Education website.

WiDA Testing: WiDA testing began on Wednesday, January 31. Over the next few weeks more than 720 students at Annandale will be scheduled to complete the four-part WiDA exam. Federal law requires that all Level 1-5 English Learners (ELs) participate annually in an English language proficiency assessment. WiDA ACCESS for ELs consists of the following parts: Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking. Students will take the four parts of WiDA over multiple test sessions. This assessment determines a student’s English language proficiency level, eligibility for ESOL services and testing accommodations. It also provides teachers with information they can use to plan for and support their students’ learning. Students enrolled in ELD courses will be testing during their ELD courses. All other students have received an email with their individual test schedules. 

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires an annual English Language Proficiency (ELP) assessment to be administered to all English Learners in grades K-12 (ELP levels 1-5 and 9), including ELs whose parents/guardians have refused ESOL services. The purpose of the assessment is to determine a current ELP level and measure progress towards English language proficiency. If you have any questions about the WIDA testing window, please contact Meg Anderson.

Opportunities

February 5, 8 & 17 - Career Exploration Events for Students: In February, school divisions across the region will team up with Virginia Ed Strategies to host the annual Instruction 2 Industry Career Expo. This Northern Virginia regional event invites high school students to connect virtually and in person, with more than 60 local industry professionals from in-demand career fields. Virtual sessions will be held Monday, February 5, through Thursday, February 8, 4-7 p.m., and the in-person Career Expo and Job Fair will be held Saturday, February 17, 1-4 p.m., in the North Hall of the Dulles Expo Center. Register here!.

February 6 - All Night Grad Pampered Chef Fundraiser Orders Due: Hosted by the PTSA, you’re invited to the Annual All Night Grad's Pampered Chef FUN'draiser! 25% of your order will be donated to ANGC... and the FREE products will be donated to ANGC! Don’t miss out. Get a free gift with $90 purchase, free shipping on orders $150+. Order here! Share the link, share the love! Products may be shipped anywhere in the US.

February 17 - Family Bootcamp, 9am: Annandale Football’s strength and conditioning coach, Matthew Stevens is going to put on a 1 hour workout for the whole family. The bootcamp will be held in the Upstairs Gym. Recommended ages 6-14. Support the Atoms and take a step toward your fitness goals. $20 suggested donation. All proceeds go towards Annandale Football. Sign up here!

February 18 - Annandale Baseball Winter Clinic: Annandale Baseball is hosting their final Sunday Skills camps. The camp focuses on fundamentals and is instructed by the coaching staff and players. The camp will be held in the main and auxiliary gyms at Annandale High School. Information and sign up for the Sunday Baseball Camp here. Cost is $25.

February 24 - Annual MONOPOLY® Tournament: Join us for the 2024 MONOPOLY® Tournament sponsored by the Annandale HS PTSA on February 24, 2024 in Clausen Hall. This is an official tournament so registration is required for players and spectators. Grand Prize is $300 and a MONOPOLY® Game. Sign up now!

High School Academy Open Houses: FCPS high school academies will hold open houses for interested students beginning in mid-January. A high school academy is a center within a high school that offers advanced technical and specialized courses that can prepare students for postsecondary education and/or career fields. Students enrolling in Academy elective courses will be provided with opportunities to participate in a variety of career experiences including shadowing, mentoring, and/or internships with local businesses. Click here to learn more and find the calendar of Academy Open Houses.

News from Student Services

Course Selection Information: At Annandale, we want to ensure students and families know where to access all the information needed for course selection. Our Academic Advising page has the grade level information presented by counselors and the course selection Google forms that students must complete. We encourage you to visit this site with your student to discuss courses for next year. Here are some questions you can use to engage with your student about course selection:

• Which classes most excite you about next year?
• When looking at your classes, what are your electives and why did you select those?
• What type of diploma are you going for?
• Where would you like to be challenged?
• Where do you think you might need support?

Please reach out to our counselors if any questions or concerns arise. Their emails and phone numbers can be found on our Student Services page. We are here to help and look forward to supporting our students through this process!

College Admission & Financial Aid

FAFSA Info for Class of 2024: The Federal Student Aid FAFSA form is now available (soft launch is working out glitches, so be patient with the website). The application is free and is the largest source of aid to help pay for college or career/trade school. Even if you don't think your family would qualify for financial assistance, you would still want to complete the application because some states and colleges use information from the FAFSA form to determine student eligibility for their grants, scholarships, and loans. If you need assistance, please contact Mr. Yeagley in our College and Career Center or your student’s counselor.

College & Career Planning Google Site: Check out the College & Career Planning Google site, which provides up-to-date information on the college application process; college representative visits; financial aid and FAFSA/VASA workshops; military options; information on apprenticeships; as well as resources for finding a job. The website also provides contact information for our School Counselors, as well as our College and Career Specialist.

Transcript Requests for College Applications & Scholarships: Seniors need to request official high school transcripts one month prior to application deadlines. For example, if a college application is due on January 10, the Transcript Request Form is due on December 10. We will be receiving a very high volume of requests in the coming months, and our Student Services staff needs adequate time to process them. Early Action and Early Decision application deadlines are quickly approaching. For step-by-step instructions and forms for submitting Transcript Requests, go to the College & Career Planning Google site.

Thursday College Application Workshops: Every Thursday from 3:00-4:00pm in Room 90 (near the Cafeteria), Counselors and AVID students will be assisting students with various topics: Making a College List; Transcript Request Form; Common App; Recommendation Requests. Students are welcome to drop in with questions about any aspect of the process. 

Register For College Rep Visits: Are you interested in hearing from college admissions representatives from colleges you are interested in applying to? Please follow the directions below to register. (Juniors and Seniors ONLY). Log into Naviance and click "Student Naviance Login." Click on "Colleges" at the top of the page and then click on "college visits." You will then see a list of all the colleges that are visiting, along with the dates and times. Click "register now" for the visits you would like to attend. Students must show the email to their teacher and get permission to attend. Students who are not registered in Naviance for a college visit will be denied entry. Please note that students are limited to registering for up to six college visits!

News from the Activities Office

Check out the latest information from the Activities Office in their weekly newsletter. In addition, learn more about Annandale High School Athletics and Activities by visiting their website, AHS Athletics Twitter or Instagram page. Please email Brandon Sutphin if you have any questions.

Booster Membership Fee Reduced! The cost of Booster Memberships is now 50% less! The new low price will be Adults $30 and Students $15 (including Elementary, Middle, and High School Students). The Booster pass allows Free Admission to all regular season Freshman, JV, and Varsity games. This price drop will include the last 3 games of the basketball season and include ALL Spring season sports: Baseball, Soccer, and Lacrosse. Check Atoms Athletics schedules and buy your Booster Pass here.

Recap from the week in winter sports: The Atoms team programs head into the last week of the regular season with a lot on the line heading into district tournaments, while many individual athletes competed in their district tournaments this week. It was an impressive week across the board for the Atoms with wins and individuals qualifying for regional championships. Make sure to stay tuned on our website and come out to support our athletes as we wind down the winter seasons.

February 19 - Spring Sports Tryouts: Spring sports tryouts are right around the corner. The dates for tryouts are Monday, February 19 through Wednesday, February 21.

Spring sports include lacrosse, soccer, baseball, softball, tennis, and outdoor track. In order to participate, there are 2 items that need to be completed prior to the first day of tryouts: 1) Sports Physical - Completed and turned in to Athletic Trainers Ryan Hughes and 2) Activity Registration. This is an online submission that encompasses the Emergency Care Form and Concussion Education Training.

Any athlete without a physical and registration on file by Friday, February 16 will not be allowed to tryout on Monday, February 19. Athletes submitting physicals and registration post February 16 will be eligible to tryout the day after the physical and registration have been submitted. For more information about tryouts, check www.annandaleatoms.net.

News from the PTSA

Volunteers Wanted - AHS Pantry: The AHS Pantry needs your help! Each month, the Annandale Pantry distributes bags of food to Annandale families in need. Distribution dates are primarily on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month from 3:30-5:00pm. Please consider volunteering to assist in a distribution. Volunteers can sign up here.

AHS Pantry Distribution Every Second Wednesday: We offer bi-monthly family distributions as well as twice weekly student distributions and emergency needs and gift cards for emergency situations that are tracked and distributed with our AHS clinical staff. We have partnerships with Food for Others and Fairfax Diaper as well as other Community businesses, neighborhoods, girl scout troops and churches.