Luther Jackson August 29, 2024

Espanol


Sept 2

From Our Principal:

Raven

Dear Jackson Families,

We’ve just wrapped up our second week of the school year, and I’m pleased with how well our students have settled in! We’ve had less than 10 students tardy to classes this week, and hallway transitions are happening without issue! This week, we successfully distributed Chromebooks to the majority of our students. If your child has not yet received theirs, no worries—they will receive it during Advisory classes next week.

I’d also like to remind everyone that our Yondr cell phone storage pilot program will begin next week. This program is designed to create a more focused learning environment for our students. On September 3rd, students will receive their Yondr pouches during Advisory, and we will kick off the program immediately after.

As a reminder, there will be no school tomorrow or Monday in observation of the Labor Day weekend. I wish you all a safe and fun-filled four-day weekend!

Sincerely,

R. Jones


Upcoming Events :

August 30th - September 2nd-( Labor Day Weekend) - Schools and Offices Closed

Sepemper 17th -.Back to School Night

October 3rd- Rosh Hashanah- Schools and Offices Closed

 


Admin Team:

When students need to miss school, it is important for parents/guardians to communicate those absences with the school.  This can be done by calling the attendance phone line at 703-204-8282 or by using the online reporting form which can be accessed by CLICKING HERE or on our Luther Jackson Middle School website.   Please DO NOT report absences through the Talking Points app. 


Chris

Hello Luther Jackson Middle School community! My name is Chris Butzer, and I am joining you all this year as an assistant principal at LJMS. This is my first year at Jackson and my 20th year working in education. Prior to working here, I was an assistant principal at Westbriar Elementary School. I also have been an instructional coach and a middle school science teacher throughout my career. I am very excited to join you all at Jackson as I started my career in middle school and really missed working with 7th and 8th grade students during my past few years in elementary school. It has been an awesome start to the school year, and I can’t wait to meet more of our families at upcoming events. Please come say hi and introduce yourself…I would love to meet everyone and learn more about what makes your student(s) special. Please reach out any time you have any questions or concerns. And thank you for our ongoing partnership to support our students.


Bradley

Hi Jackson families! I am Raine Bradley, and I am so excited to join the Jackson team as an Assistant Principal this year! I've previously served as a middle and high school assistant principal and SOSA within FCPS.  My passion lies in supporting students and seeing my students find success and reach their goals. I can't wait to get to know you all this year and I look forward to working with you!


LaKenya

My name is Dr. LaKenya Wright, and I am so pleased to join the Jackson community as a permanent assistant principal this year! I previously served as an acting AP at Jackson, and quickly grew to love the community, school, and students. My goal is to ensure each and every one of our students has the support they need to be successful academically and personally. I can't wait to get to know all of you this year and look forward to getting to know you. When I am not at school, I spend my time with my family and my fur babies, Goldie and Oliver. They are the best cats in the world and keep me entertained and energized when I'm not with my students. 


Nick

Hello Tigers! My name is Mr. Nicholas Zubieta, and I’m excited to join the Luther Jackson Middle School community as the Director of Student Services. With over 10 years of experience in Fairfax County Public Schools, I’ve supported social emotional and academic programming across multiple schools. I’m passionate about supervising the Student Services Department, Fine Arts Department and AVID program. Through my experience and passion for working in schools, my hope is to continue uplifting our community. I look forward to meeting and collaborating with our students and their families to ensure a positive and successful school year. Let’s make it a great one together!


Admin Team Information:

Revised

From Student Services:

Thank you to all the families who joined us for Tiger Time on Thursday, 8/15! We had an amazing time connecting with you. If you weren't able to complete the necessary registration forms, please log into ParentVUE and head to the Online Forms tab in the top right corner of the main page. For assistance, feel free to contact our registrar, Ms. Carbajal at smcarbajal@fcps.edu. For address changes, please make sure to come to Student Services to provide appropriate documentation.

The first week of school was a blast, and our students are off to a great start! Our counselors are thrilled to have students back in the building. Please note that counselors are not making elective changes at this time, as students' elective classes are based on their original course selections. Semester-long electives will change beginning January 28th. For any other schedule concerns, please reach out to your student's counselor.


Counselors:

Counselors are assigned by alphabet and your first point of contact for any question or concerns you might have.

capture 3

From Theatre Arts:

drama

 

The Interest Meeting for the fall show, Aesop Live, will be after school on Thursday, September 12th. All are welcome; you don't need any prior experience. You do NOT have to be in Ms. Stacey's theatre classes to participate so come on out and learn about the show, auditions, rehearsals, and more. This meeting is for those interested in participating onstage and behind the scenes (tech crew). Questions? See Ms Stacey room 419 or drop her an email at: smjones3@fcps.edu. Bring a friend or two!

Auditions for the show will be Thursday, September 19th for both sessions. Tech interviews will be the following week (Date TBD)


TJHS Online Application Portal:

The Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology online application portal will open Monday, October 21st, at 4:00PM.  Representatives from TJHSST will be giving an information presentation on Tuesday, September 10th, at 2:30PM in the LJMS auditorium.  The presentation is approximately 30 minutes with additional time for questions and answers.  Both students and parents are invited to attend.  No registration is necessary.  Please note that students attending this information session will need to sign up for a second after school session if they are not leaving school with a parent after the presentation.  Please contact Mr. Tickle at BRTickle@fcps.edu or 703 204 8124 for questions or for help with the application process.  For more information, please go to the TJ Admissions webpage at https://www.fcps.edu/tjadmissions.


Digital

Families,

We Need Your Consent for Select Digital Resources

At Jackson Middle School, our teachers will use a variety of digital resources to support student learning and promote communication and collaboration with students and families. Some of the digital resources your child may use this year will require your consent before they can be used. Please find the link to the digital form, where you can give your consent, here: https://digitalconsent.fcps.edu/ispb/r/is01/pdcp/login?session=17253181329964.  You can find further direction here:  a list of the resources that require parental consent here: https://www.fcps.edu/family-resources/technology/digital-resources/consent.  

Need technical support?    Call the Parent Technology Help Desk at 833-921-3277 (833-921-FCPS). This will be answered by staff members from 7 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.


Lightspeed Parent Report on Child's Device Activity:

FCPS has tools to help parents know more about their child’s activity on any FCPS device. These tools are provided at no cost to families by Lightspeed, the school division’s internet content filtering service.

Parents may sign up for a weekly Parent Report, which will provide a list of the top sites your child visited. The report also offers parents the ability to sign up for free access to the Internet Use Parent Portal. Through the portal, parents may pause their child’s access to the internet on their FCPS device during non-school hours.

Learn more about Lightspeed Parent Reports.


PTA Corner:

PTA Meeting: We are excited to extend a special invitation to you for the upcoming Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) meeting. This meeting is scheduled at 5:30 p.m. before the Back to School Night (BTSN) in the school auditorium on Tuesday, September 17th.

Restaurant Night Sep 24th: Please join LJMS PTA "Taco Tuesdays" at Taco Bamba, Pimmit, Falls Church, on September 24th, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., an award-winning DC-based taqueria! It is a chef-driven, fast-casual restaurant with an extensive menu, including all-day breakfast, a full-service bar, and a comprehensive catering menu. It supports the local community and schools through its collaborative fundraising program, Eat Tacos, Do Good.

Participants can either mention GIVE20 or LJMS PTA upon ordering in-store for credit. When ordering online through Taco Bamba’s website, guests will enter the code GIVE20 in the coupon code area at check-out. It is also possible to purchase a gift card for use on a future visit.

 

Join PTA: The LJMS PTA serves as a bridge between our school's administration, teachers, and parents, fostering a supportive student environment. PTA membership for the new school year is now open, and you are welcome to join and donate online at https://jacksonmspta.org/

 

Would you like to volunteer for the PTA? Contact presidentonmspta.org@jacks

 

Food Pantry: Did you know that LJMS runs a food pantry in the school to support families in need? Please consider signing up for distributions at

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/904084DA8AC2EAA8-ljms2#/