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Hello Bush Hill Families,
What an incredible first week of school! It's been wonderful to have our hallways and classrooms filled with the energy and excitement of our students. We've seen so much positive engagement as students reconnected with old friends and made new ones.
We've already started the year strong with our academics. Our K-6 students have been diving into data collection in math, gathering information to get to know one another better. In language arts, we're building a community of readers and writers, and it's been so encouraging to see the students share their stories and ideas.
A highlight of the week has been introducing our school-wide Panther Pact—which stands for Appreciate, Include, Empathize, We all Belong. This pact is our commitment to creating a respectful and inclusive environment where everyone feels valued. Our students have been so enthusiastic about learning what it means to be a true panther. We were also thrilled to welcome the rest of our preschool classmates this week, including both our returning students and many new faces.
As we settle into our routines, a couple of reminders:
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Kiss & Ride Tags: Please remember to have your Kiss & Ride tag ready for dismissal. If you still need a tag, please contact the main office to get one.
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Arrival & Dismissal Safety: For the safety of everyone, please do not drop off children or park on Westchester to cross the street. This poses a significant safety risk, and we appreciate your cooperation in keeping all of our students safe.
Thank you for a fantastic first week! We look forward to a wonderful school year ahead.
Upcoming Events
- Friday September 12, Ice Cream Social, 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.
👋 Volunteers Needed – Help make this a Fantastic School Year!
We’re getting ready for an amazing year at Bush Hill, but we need YOU to help make it happen! The PTA is looking for volunteers to join our committees—whether you can spare a few hours each month or are interested in taking on a leadership role, your time and talents make a big impact.
💡 Why Volunteer?
- Connect with other families
- Support fun and meaningful school events
- Make a difference in our school community
📋 Interested? Fill out our survey to let us know how you'd like to get involved!
❓ Questions?
We’re happy to chat! Please reach out to us at via email or givebacks.
🎨Enrichment Programs are coming this Fall! 🏃 The PTA is excited to offer a variety of enrichment programs for Bush Hill students and families this fall. There’s something for everyone to enjoy in the afternoons!
More details will be shared soon, and registration will be handled directly through the program vendors. In the meantime, here’s a preview of the offerings so you can start planning ahead.
Let Me Run - boys running (grades 3-6) Your Best Chess - chess (all grades) Kidcreate Alexandria - art (K-2) + (3-5) STEM ExCel - coding (grades 1-6) iCook - cooking (grades K-5) Odyssey of the Mind (all grades, split into teams) Learn Music Now - music (all grades)
Lego Challenge League - robotics (grades 4-6)
Sports - sports spectacular, cheer, tennis (K-6)
Improv - acting and improv (grades 2-6) We need parent/teacher volunteers to be coaches for Let Me Run and for the Odyssey of the Mind teams. If interested email the PTA at ptabushhillelementary@gmail.com.
🍦 Ice Cream Social
Save the date for our annual ice cream social Friday, 9/12 from 6:00-7:30 p.m. in the Bush Hill cafeteria.
📣 Follow us on Facebook
Want to stay in the loop on all PTA events, updates, and volunteer opportunities?
Be sure to follow us here: https://www.facebook.com/BushHillES/
🎉 Become a PTA Member Today!
It's easy! Click here: Join_PTA
Support our school community, have your voice heard, and help make a difference.
Membership is open to all parents, guardians, and staff—join us and be part of something great!
Ideas, thoughts, questions; want to volunteer or assist? We take donations via Givebacks and always need help from volunteers!
Ensuring Student Safety: Register for Volunteer FCPS At Bush Hill Elementary, our volunteers are a vital part of our school community. We deeply value the time and care they give to our students. Recent updates that FCPS has made to the volunteer process focus on one primary goal: keeping students safe. These updates — such as checks against the sex offender registry and, in some cases, criminal background checks — are safety measures that will help us maintain a secure and supportive learning environment for every student in our care.
We encourage all our parents and community members interested in supporting our students by volunteering at school to visit Bush Hill's Volunteer FCPS site, click “Learn More,” and then “Sign Up.” After you create a profile, you will view an orientation video and complete a volunteer application.
Volunteer FCPS ensures a safe, consistent, and welcoming environment at all of our schools. All volunteers must be registered in Volunteer FCPS. This includes individuals who volunteer to chaperone on field trips, work at book fairs, and help out regularly in classrooms, libraries, or cafeterias. Volunteers who work unsupervised with students will also be required to undergo a background check.
We understand these changes may seem disruptive, especially for long-time volunteers. Our intent is to ensure that our students feel safe and supported with each and every person they encounter at school.
As a reminder, all volunteers — and visitors to a school — are required to sign in by scanning their ID at our visitor kiosk. Visit the Volunteer FCPS Frequently Asked Questions page to learn more.
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SCAN to Volunteer!
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🗓️ Calendar Reminder: Labor Day
Friday, August 29, and Monday, September 1, are school holidays for Labor Day. Virginia legislation requires that schools opening before Labor Day must be closed the Friday immediately before Labor Day.
We hope everyone takes the long weekend to celebrate a strong start to the school year and enjoy time with family and friends. See the complete school year calendar.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has set Tuesday, September 9, 2025, as the date for a special election in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District. Because more than half of our schools serve as polling locations, the Fairfax County Office of Elections asked us to consider closing for the day. After careful review, we have decided that it is best to close all schools to ensure the safety of our students and staff.
Therefore, all FCPS schools will be closed on Tuesday, September 9, 2025.
We made this decision because the expected volume of voters would cause significant disruption to the school day. Key challenges would include, but are not limited to:
- The closure of essential spaces like cafeterias and gyms.
- A lack of adequate parking for staff and families at many locations.
- Building access challenges, as the law requires polling places to remain unlocked and openly accessible.
I believe closing schools is the best way for us to keep our community safe, minimize disruptions, and ensure our buildings are ready and accessible for voters.
I appreciate your understanding and cooperation. This day serves as a meaningful opportunity to talk with your child about the importance of voting and civic responsibility. If you are eligible, I encourage you to vote in the special election.
Take Good Care,
Dr. Michelle C. Reid
Superintendent
Early release Wednesdays will start in mid-September. On these days, most students will be dismissed at 12:55 via their normal dismissal route. Information about early release Wednesdays is located on the FCPS website.
Bush Hill's Early Release Wednesdays for the 2025-26 School Year are:
- September 10
- October 29
- November 12
- December 10
- February 18
- March 18
- April 22
- May 13
Required Digital Consent Form:
The Early Release Wednesday Childcare Form is located in your Beginning-of-Year (BOY) Digital Consent App. All families are required to log in and indicate whether their child will need childcare on upcoming Wednesday Early Release Days. The consent form serves as a year-long commitment to either opt in or opt out of childcare.
Directions to Complete the Form:
Log in to the Parent Digital Consent to review and provide consent to a variety or resources/services to include Early Release Wednesdays Afterschool Form
⇒ OPT IN if you have a childcare hardship and require childcare until 3:55 p.m. on our limited Early Release Wednesdays.
⇒ OPT OUT, if your child will go home at the early release time, 12:55 p.m.
⇒ PM SACC Student, OPT OUT, they will go to SACC
Deadline:
The deadline to submit your consent is September 1. After this date, any changes must be communicated directly to the Bush Hill Main Office at 703-924-5600. If your needs change during the school year, please contact the office at least two weeks in advance.
Everything You Need to Do in SIS ParentVUE
Get ahead of the back-to-school forms and checklists! Make sure you have a SIS ParentVUE account for your family and log in to find important forms and updates.
If you do not have a ParentVUE account, contact your child’s school for an activation code and follow the directions on the SIS ParentVUE Account webpage.
☑️ Update Contact Information: Get Weather Closings, Bus Delays, Attendance Alerts, Etc.
Be among the first to know about weather closings, bus delays, and other critical communications from your school and FCPS by providing your cell phone number and email in SIS ParentVUE. To update your contact information in SIS ParentVUE, click the “Online Packets” tab in the upper right of the screen, then click the “Online Verification/Update” icon.
Parents/caregivers who do not have a ParentVUE account should either contact their school for an activation code to create an account, or print and complete the Emergency Care Information Form and submit it to their child’s school.
☑️ Submit Absences
Parents can submit daylong absences through SIS ParentVUE. Log in to the platform and click “Report Absence.”
Note: Partial-day absences and changes of transportation should still be reported directly to your school’s front office.
☑️ Review and Submit Immunization Forms
Parents and caregivers can check their child’s immunization records and submit updates in SIS ParentVUE. Records may also be delivered to a school’s front office.
If needed, families may provide other immunization documentation including a health care provider’s written statement of a permanent or temporary medical exemption or a notarized Religious Exemption Form.
Please visit the FCPS How to Submit Immunization Documentation webpage for step-by-step instructions.
Quick Links
SIS ParentVUE
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