Centreville Students, Families, and Community,

First, my thoughts go out to the students, families, and staff that have been impacted by the tragedy that occurred last week on the Potomac River. In difficult times, we must lean on each other a little more. If there are any students who are struggling with processing these recent events, please do not hesitate to reach out to a member of our Student Services team. 

As we shift into February, we celebrate Black History Month, a time to honor the achievements, contributions, and central role of African Americans in U.S. history. This year’s theme, "African Americans and Labor," highlights the impact Black workers, entrepreneurs, and leaders have had in shaping our nation’s economic and social landscape. At Centreville, we believe Black history is American history, and we remain committed to providing students with meaningful opportunities to engage with these important stories—not just this month, but all year long. 

In addition, this week marks National School Counseling Week, a time to recognize the incredible impact school counselors have on student success and well-being. Our counselors play a vital role in supporting students academically, socially, and emotionally—whether through classroom lessons, group sessions, or individual guidance. I encourage students and families to reach out to our counselors this week to share your appreciation. A huge thank you to our counselors for all the ways, both seen and unseen, they support our students!

Thank you and Go Wildcats!

Dr. Erik Healey

Principal

Centreville High School

Upcoming Events

February 3-28 - Academic Advising Meetings

February 3 - Career Speaker Series

February 3-7 - National School Counseling Week

February 10-18 - WIDA Testing

February 11 - PTSA Meeting - 7:00 PM, CVHS Library

February 13-15 - All-District Chorus, West Springfield High School

February 17 - Presidents Day, No School

February 18 - START on Time Initiative Begins

February 19 - Black History Month Kickoff Celebration (New Date)

February 24 - Spring Sports Begin

February 28 - Ramadan Begins

February 3-28 - Individual Academic Advising Meetings: Students will meet one-on-one with their counselors to discuss academic goals and finalize their course selections for next year. These meetings will occur during students’ English classes. We this week with our current sophomores until February 14, and will conclude with current freshmen from February 18-28. 

February 3 - Career Speaker Series Begins: Our College & Career Specialist, Ms. Stamper is proud to bring back the 3rd annual Career Speaker Series. Students in all grade levels are encouraged to attend to hear about the education and training required, daily responsibilities, successes, and challenges in each career field. Here are some of our speakers in the upcoming weeks:

• Nurse Practitioner & Midwife – Monday, Feb. 3 during PLUS 8 in the Auditorium: Meet CVHS parent Ms. Magenheimer who will share about the advanced clinical education and training Nurse Practitioners need to perform physical exams, diagnose and treat diseases, and prescribe medication. She will also detail her career as a Midwife, working with women through pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care. This is a great session for anyone interested in the healthcare field!

• Attorney – Wednesday, Feb. 5 during PLUS 2 in the Lecture Hall: Meet CVHS parent Ms. Chin, a Partner in a local law firm and a leader in family law advocating for clients through divorce and child custody cases. Learn about law school requirements as well as the essential skills needed to provide compassionate and effective legal representation during challenging times.

• Police Officer/Detective/Teacher – Tuesday, Feb. 11 during PLUS 2 in the Auditorium: Hear from CVHS Criminal Justice Teacher Mr. Urps about his career as a Police Officer and Detective investigating crimes, examining evidence, questioning suspects and testifying in court. Learn about the education and training needed to work in this law enforcement field and about his transition to teaching.

February 3-7 - National School Counseling Week: This week is National School Counseling Week, which highlights the tremendous impact school counselors have in helping students achieve academic success and planning for a 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 partnership with parents to support the needs of our students. We cannot thank our counseling team enough for all their hard work and dedication to the welfare of our students!

February 10-18 - WIDA Assessment Testing: Beginning February 10, both current and former ESOL students are scheduled to complete the four-part WIDA annual assessment. Federal law (ESSA) 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 (domains): Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking. Each domain is a separate test and students must complete all 4 domains to meet the testing requirement. This assessment is used to determine 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. Participation in this assessment is a critical part of how we measure our students' growth and progress as well as plan for their continued success.

February 11 - PTSA Meeting: Please join us for the monthly PTSA meeting on Tuesday, February 11 at 7:00 PM in the Centreville High School Library. We invite you to join the Parent, Teacher, Student Association (PTSA) to help foster a positive and inclusive school climate. By working together we can build stronger connections that support our students' growth and success. Collaboration between teachers, parents, and students is key to creating an environment where everyone thrives. Your involvement in PTSA is an opportunity to strengthen relationships and make a lasting impact on our school community. If you are not a member of the CVHS PTSA, learn more about membership, donations, and information from previous meetings here.

February 13-15 - All-District Chorus: 25 CVHS singers auditioned for and were selected to participate in the Virginia Choral Directors Association’s District XI Honors Chorus! These students have been learning some challenging music and will rehearse with a guest conductor at West Springfield HS February 13-15. The event will culminate in a concert at 1pm on February 15. The concert is free and open to the public.

February 18 - START on Time Begins: At Centreville, we are committed to ensuring all students are in class regularly and on time to maximize instruction and learning. START on Time is an initiative that works to reduce tardiness and improve transitions between classes, which will lead to improved school climate and increased time dedicated to learning in the classroom. Our goal is to improve student attendance and timeliness, and we want to partner with families to emphasize the importance of this goal. 

February 19 - Black History Month Kickoff Celebration:  After careful consideration, we have decided to postpone the Black History Month Kickoff event, originally scheduled for Wednesday, February 5th. The event will now take place on Wednesday, February 19th. 

As many of you are aware, the Fairfax County Public Schools community has been affected by the tragic airline incident that occurred at Reagan National Airport. In light of this devastating event, we want to provide space for our community to grieve and heal during this difficult time.

FCPS invites students and families to attend the Black History Month Kick-Off Celebration on February 19 from 5:30-7:30PM at Woodson High School. The celebration includes performances that inspire and celebrate Black history and culture and opportunities for reflection on the contributions of Black history and culture.

Wonderful Wildcats

All-District Band: Congratulations again to Vivien Berg, Daniel Ahn, Joey Ho, Mallory Smith, Jordan Hall, Aileen Shin, Seth Witte, and Jayden Choi who successfully auditioned for and participated in the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Associations’ District XI All-District Band this weekend. These students represented Centreville incredibly well, and we could not be more proud of their accomplishments. Thank you Ms. Hall for your dedication to our students and our band program.

All-District Chorus Selections: 25 CVHS singers auditioned for and were selected to participate in the Virginia Choral Directors Association’s District XI Honors Chorus! These students have been learning some challenging music and will rehearse with a guest conductor at West Springfield HS February 13-15. The event will culminate in a concert at 1pm on February 15. The concert is free and open to the public. Congratulations to the following singers:

Impact of Words Student Panel: Fatih Eren, one of Centreville's Student Equity Ambassador Leaders (SEALs), participated in a student panel at Liberty Middle School last week on the Impact of our Words. The student assemblies were conducted to increase understanding of the harmful impact of slurs and their connection to prejudice and hate, develop empathy and perspective-taking, promote respectful communication, and create shared responsibility to cultivating an inclusive environment. We are proud of Fatih for his leadership and his dedication to equity work across our pyramid!

Science Fair Winners: On Thursday last week, 25 CVHS students participated in this year's Science Fair. Of the 25 projects submitted, 20 of them will advance to the Regional Fair at Robinson Secondary School on March 21-23! We are incredibly proud of all the science and engineering research conducted by these students.

Wrestling Senior Night: Congratulations to our wrestling athletes and managers on a successful senior night! Our team showed incredible support for one another and high-levels of sportsmanship. Our team came away with victories in seven of the 11 matches last Wednesday evening.

Important Information

Advisory Committee for Students with Disabilities Seeks Nominations for First-Class Awards: First-Class Awards are presented each year to individuals who support, design, and/or implement inclusion activities that result in positive outcomes for students. The Advisory Committee for Students with Disabilities (ACSD) is seeking nominations for the 2025 First-Class Awards. This is a great opportunity for the community to recognize and celebrate the inclusion efforts of educators, administrators, and students who demonstrate the inclusion of students with disabilities in all facets of education.  Nominees should model excellence in their role relative to special education, have a positive impact that benefits disabled and non-disabled students alike, and be committed to creating an inclusive environment and mindset. Nominate an administrator, staff member, student, or community partner who has made an exceptional contribution to inclusive practices in Fairfax County Public Schools. Nominations close Wednesday, February 19.

Application for the 2025 Student Representative to the School Board: The School Board student representative represents the interests of Fairfax County Public Schools students. The student representative is not a member of the School Board but serves in a nonvoting, advisory capacity. Students currently in grades 9, 10, and 11 are eligible to apply. 

Watch this video to learn about the student representative experience from the current representative, Megan Sawant. 

Application Information and Deadlines

To be considered for the election, students are required to provide:

• A written component, which is due Monday, February 24.
• A 30-second candidate video statement, which is due Wednesday, March 26. Candidates will be emailed a link to record their video on Monday, March 17.

Both application components are required to be considered for the election. Read more about the election process.

Community Boundary Review Meetings: The Superintendent’s Boundary Review Advisory Committee held its second meeting on December 16 at Gatehouse Administration Center. View key takeaways from that meeting and access the meeting agenda, slides, and other materials that committee members received.  If you did not get a chance to attend an in-person Community Boundary Review Meeting, please consider participating in one of the following virtual meetings: Monday, February 10, 2025, 6:30-8 p.m.  Language interpretation will be available.  All virtual meetings will follow the same format as the in-person meetings that were recently held, and the same information will be shared. Please stay tuned for details on how to register. Visit FCPS’ Comprehensive Boundary Review webpage to learn more. Sign up for FCPS’ School Boundary Review newsletter as well.

Kiss & Ride Reminders: At the mid-year point of the school year, we wanted to send some reminders about the Kiss & ride procedures. 

First, there are two areas for parents/guardians to pick up and drop off students. One is past the stadium where students can be dropped off near the cafeteria, and the other is in the front of the building in the parking lot. We ask parents/guardians to refrain from using the bus loop to pick up or drop off students. 

Additionally, we ask parents/guardians to move through the Kiss & Ride line continuously and safely. To the greatest extent possible, we ask parents/guardians not to park in the spaces to drop students off. We have limited parking for staff and we want to keep them open for when our staff arrive. We thank you for your ongoing cooperation to have a smooth process for students to arrive and depart from school safely.

FCPS’ Proposed Construction Projects Offer Community-Wide Benefits: Fairfax County Public Schools’ updated plans for new school construction, capacity enhancements, and renovations are outlined in the proposed FY 2026-30 Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Projects include constructing two new elementary schools; renovations at 18 elementary schools, two middle schools, and two high schools; and relocation of modular buildings. The proposed CIP was presented to the School Board at the January 14 work session. A public hearing was also held January 14. The School Board will take action on the proposed CIP at its Thursday, February 6 meeting.  As we move forward in our renovation process, there will be regular updates on the status and timeline for staff, students, and families.

Student Rights & Responsibilities Cell Phone Policy Survey Coming Soon: All FCPS families and middle and high school students will be receiving an email invitation on Tuesday, January 21, to participate in a survey about FCPS’ Student Rights and Responsibilities (SR&R), cell phone policy, and cell phone storage options. The survey will be available from January 21 to February 3. Please take a few moments to share your feedback and help FCPS make informed, inclusive decisions for all of our schools!

News from Student Services

College Partnership Program (CPP) Application:  Do you have a student between grades 8 through 11 who wants to go to college? If so, they should consider applying to the College Partnership Program (CPP), which offers support from exploration to application! The deadline to apply is February 28, 2025. CPP offers programming to help prepare students and families from 9th grade all the way through applying to and enrolling in college, including: Academic counseling College visits Help with completing college and scholarship applications Monthly meetings A summer overnight experience on a college campus   News and information related to colleges and careers via Schoology All students are eligible and encouraged to apply to this program, and are expected to meet the following requirements: Maintain a GPA of 2.5 or higher in core classes Attend monthly CPP meetings  Are willing to pursue advanced coursework Demonstrate leadership in school or community activities The goal of the program is to systematically mitigate the impact of barriers to access and opportunity, and support students who are from populations that are historically underrepresented on college campuses. This includes students who are the first in their family to attend college in the U.S., Multilingual learners, students who are economically disadvantaged, and students with disabilities. Application Link: https://tinyurl.com/u2e3hme3  The application is only open to students using their FCPS G-Suite account. Make sure to do this application on a computer not a phone! All applications will be submitted ONLINE ONLY.  No-Cost Virtual Therapy for High School Students: Virtual therapy sessions are available to FCPS high school students at no cost to provide a safe space to address concerns such as: Mood/behavior; changes, motivation, grief/loss; Anxiety, worry, fears; Social skills, bullying, peer and family relationships; Academic stress. You may refer your child by calling 571-749-2940. Visit the FCPS Teletherapy webpage for more information. Graduation Requirements and Planning: Careful consideration is essential when planning next year's courses. We encourage our students and families to review the Graduation Requirements and Course Planning webpage to make informed decisions while planning for success in high school and beyond. Reviewing the Program of Studies may be helpful as well.

6001 Union Mill Road, Clifton, VA 20124 | Main Office: 703.802.5400
Attendance: 703.802.5419 | Web | Twitter | Instagram