Thank you to all our Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) staff who help fuel our students for success each day! Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid stopped to thank Sita Siwakoti, FNS staff at Herndon Middle School, who was preparing to hand out breakfast.
🏆 Celebrating Employee Excellence
FCPS Excellence Awards recognize employees who have exhibited extraordinary achievement in one of four areas: Collaboration and Partnerships, Equity and Cultural Responsiveness, Innovation and Improvement, and Student Achievement and Success. Among those honored for innovation and improvement was Eric Underhill (pictured above with Dr. Reid), principal of Sandburg Middle School.
Two hundred fifty employees were nominated. Of those, 18 individuals and 100 employees across 13 teams were selected as recipients. Nineteen schools and 11 central office departments were represented.
See the full list of Excellence Awards recipients.
🗺️ Congratulations to Our New Global Classroom Project Teachers!
Recently, 20 FCPS teachers completed professional learning to prepare them for the FCPS Global Classroom Project (GCP). These teachers and their students will be participating in a virtual exchange with classrooms around the world, working toward taking collective action on global issues.
The next Global Classroom Project cohort will be held on Thursday, November 7, and Tuesday, November 12. This two-day cohort prepares teachers to implement the GCP and engage their students in authentic learning experiences supporting their content. The GCP is open to all K-12 teachers in any content area. Registration is now available in MyPDE. Space is limited.
✨ A Strong Start for Our Multilingual Learners
At last Thursday’s School Board meeting, Strategic Plan Goal 1: Strong Start Pre-K-12 was discussed. Dr. Reid shared significant progress that has been seen from our multilingual learners toward English proficiency. Read about the improvements in the Goal 1 report (pdf).
📈 2024 Virginia Accreditation and SAT Outcomes
In the Academic Matters portion of the School Board meeting, Dr. Reid discussed 2024 Virginia Accreditation and SAT Outcomes.
As mentioned previously, all 199 FCPS schools have been accredited by the Virginia Department of Education, and the Fairfax County class of 2024 performed well above state and global averages on the SAT. The Fairfax County average score for the class of 2024 (1178) was higher than the state average (1101) and the global average (1024). These results show that the hard work of our students, staff members, and parents is paying off.
✨ Growth and performance on state/national assessments is one of the measures in our Strategic Plan Goal 3: Academic Growth and Excellence.
Dr. Reid provided updates on these topics, and many others, in the latest issue of her Weekly Reflections.
🌎 Bridging Cultures by Building Trust and Relationships
Angie Aldave can remember being intimidated when she first arrived in the United States as a teenager, visiting from Ecuador. She was overwhelmed by the language and the structure and order of systems in the United States. She has been working with FCPS families since 2015 and now serves as interim director of Community Relations.
Angie is mission-driven to help multicultural families access programs, resources, and opportunities within FCPS that many may find hard to navigate — similar to how she felt when she first arrived in the U.S.
This Hispanic Heritage Month, Angie shared that she wishes people would take more time to learn about all cultures. Angie notes that even within the Hispanic culture, “There’s a rich diversity that often goes unnoticed. It's important to understand that we approach life with deep emotion, and our core values are rooted in our families.” Read more about Angie’s experience on the Employee Blog.
✨ Building trusting partnerships with families falls under Strategic Plan Pillar B: Vibrant Home, School, & Community Partnerships.
📍 Boundary Review Updates
At last Tuesday’s School Board work session, staff from Thru Consulting provided an overview of the divisionwide boundary project management plan. Their presentation included a review of priorities, timeline, project governance and management, community engagement opportunities, communications, the role of data, and sample maps and analytics.
Watch the work session. For more information about the boundary review process or to provide feedback, visit the Comprehensive Boundary Review webpage.
💰 Access Thousands of Deals
Savings for Staff on PerkSpot is your FCPS discount shopping platform. It is stocked full of unmatched deals in more than 25 categories year-round. From everyday purchases to big-ticket buys, there are endless ways to save with PerkSpot.
🗓️ Calendar Reminders: Quarter End/Early Release, Diwali/Dia de los Muertos and All Saints Day, Student Holidays
Thursday, October 31, is the last day of the first quarter and a two-hour early release for students.
Friday, November 1, is a holiday for Diwali, Dia de los Muertos, and All Saints Day. All schools and offices will be closed.
Schools will be closed for students on Monday, November 4, for a school planning day, and Tuesday, November 5, for a teacher workday.
See the complete school year calendar and employee calendar.
Staff Staples
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