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January 5-12: No After School and Late Buses
January 12: Curriculum Night
January 12-16: LAST CALL for 2025 LOST AND FOUND, 7:30am - 3:30pm
January 14: No After School and Late Buses
New Friends in the Courtyard
If you hear a bit of extra "chatter" in the courtyard, it’s for a good reason! Our community is officially welcoming three chickens to Irving Middle School. They have a lovely new setup in the courtyard, and they are already bringing so much joy to our students. Beyond being a delightful addition to our campus, our new feathered friends will offer unique, hands-on opportunities for our students to learn about responsibility and stewardship.
Dear Irving Middle School Families,
Happy New Year! I hope your winter break was restful and that you enjoyed quality time with your loved ones.
It has been an invigorating first week back on campus. There is a renewed energy in our classrooms as students reunite with friends and teachers, and I have been so impressed by the focus and curiosity our students have brought into the building to start the 2026 semester.
As we look toward the months ahead, I have several exciting updates to share regarding our leadership, our campus environment, and our academic planning.
Welcoming Ms. Quigley
I am very excited to announce that Ms. Quigley will be joining the Irving family as our Interim Principal starting this Monday. We are thrilled to have her leadership and expertise on campus, and I know you will join me in giving her a very warm Irving welcome as she steps into this role to support our students and staff.
Reminder: Curriculum Night – Monday, January 12th
As we settle back into our routines, it is also time to start looking toward the future. We invite all families of rising 7th and 8th-grade students to join us for Curriculum Night:
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Date: Monday, January 12th
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Time: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
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Focus: Come ready to hear about our diverse course offerings and academic pathways for the upcoming school year.
This is a vital opportunity to ensure your student is set up for success in the next grade level, and our staff will be on hand to answer any questions you may have.
Thank you for your continued partnership and for making Irving Middle School such a vibrant, welcoming place for all our students. Let’s make this a fantastic semester!
Danielle Tillman Assistant Principal
Irving Middle School
Rising 7th & 8th grade Curriculum Night
If you have a student who will be in 7th or 8th grade next year at Irving, please plan to attend our Curriculum Night on January 12th from 6-8pm. We will have sessions about core classes, our Multilingual services, Special Education and you will be able to visit elective classrooms to learn more. Clicking on this link will allow you to download a PDF with the schedule of the night.
Rising 9th grade course selection for current 8th graders
Our 8th grade students received a course selection sheet during their Advisory class on January 7th. Students will have until January 16th to return their completed course selection sheets to their advisory teacher. Please plan to attend the Curriculum Night at West Springfield High School on January 15th with your rising 9th grader to get more information and details about courses offered at the high school and help guide your child’s course selection. Information was sent from WSHS with details about this event.
Strengthening Online Safety and Focus for Our Students
As part of our commitment to provide a focused learning environment, Irving Middle School is partnering with FCPS’s Department of Information Technology (DIT) to implement additional restrictions to student internet access through our content filtering application, Lightspeed.
The updates to our Lightspeed filter are designed to help minimize digital distractions during instructional time, allowing students to have access to the educational resources they need while blocking sites and content that are not appropriate for, or related to learning.
As we work through this pilot phase, some educational websites may be blocked by default. When/If that occurs DIT will review and allow access to appropriate educational websites as they are identified. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we fine-tune these settings to best support teaching and learning.
If your student encounters any technical issues with the internet or web filtering service after this communication, please report them to your school's technical support staff, or open a ticket on the FCPS Parent Technology Support site: https://go.fcps.edu/ParentTechnologySupportRequest/
Thank you for your cooperation and support as we work to provide the best possible digital learning experiences for our Irving students.
Please Return Cross Country / Track Jerseys
We are getting ready for track season and need all jerseys returned to the main office. Please send your student’s clean jersey with them this week so our spring athletes are ready to compete. Thanks!
Library News:
Happy New Year, Irving! It has been fun to talk to some students about what they read over the Winter Break. I’m always encouraging students to have a supply of books on hand in the wintertime in case we are blessed with a Snow Day!
One fun activity we’re doing after the break is displaying Lego creations that students and their families built over the break. Students may still bring in their builds through next week. The Lego sets will be locked up while on display and the sets will be returned to students around the end of January.
Mary Ann Monk, Irving Librarian
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Yearbook Orders:
Order your student’s yearbook now. Early orders help us. It is easy to order online at yearbookforever.com
The 100-page, full-color yearbook costs only $25 and will be delivered to students in early June 2026.
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The After School Program is designed to support academic achievement, foster personal interests and talents, and initiate positive social experiences for all students.
The After School Program runs 5 days a week unless noted. Monday through Thursday, our clubs and activities will run in two activity blocks (2:25 pm to 3:25 pm and 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm) with late buses; late buses arrive after 4:30 pm; FAB Fridays are 2:15 pm to 3:30 pm (please view the schedule on All Parents in Schoology). The club schedule will vary by day and week, the most up-to-date schedule will be posted in the “After School” section in the student portal and Schoology. Students may not leave school and return for the after school program.
In order to sign up for a club, students must sign up using the Weekly Signup located in the After School Program folder located in the Schoology All Students Course and the After School section of the student portal.
Students may participate in as many clubs as they want. We encourage them to try something new as part of the After School Program!
ALL athletic activities and clubs require athletic footwear to participate, locker rooms are not accessible during the After School Program.
Coming Soon:
Volleyball Clinic, begins Tuesday, January 13, 2nd block
Boys’ Volleyball Club, begins Monday, February 9, 2nd block
Crochet/Sewing, began Monday, December 8, both blocks
Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), began Wednesday, December 17, 1st block
Math Counts, began Thursday, December 4, 1st block
Fab Friday, DOES NOT meet on Friday, January 16
** When picking up students from After School programs, please use the front loop (not the bus lane in front of the main entrance) - students will come out the main entrance.**
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Save the Date: Join us on Friday, March 13th for BINGO NIGHT! Keep watch for more details to come! If you are interested in donating gift cards or prizes, please email irvingmspta@gmail.com. |
Congratulations to our Reflections Art Contest Winners!
Irving Middle School Winners:
Music Composition: Frist Place: Ruby M "See A Sound"
Visual Arts: First Place: Rose C: "All belong and different if you look"
Join us for Virginia PTA Capitol Day!
Join us in Richmond on Friday, January 23rd! You'll have an opportunity to meet your Legislator; Share your perspective on how policies and funding decisions impact your student and school community; and listen to bills be debated in Committee and on the House Floor. If you are interested in attending, let us know!
Join the WIMS PTA!
Membership dues are $15 per parent/guardian, $14 for additional family members, and $10 for staff/faculty. Signing up is easy—simply copy and paste this link into your browser: https://irvingms.memberhub.com/store/
Washington Irving Middle School PTA
irvingmspta@gmail.com
https://irvingms.givebacks.com
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram!
Reid Reflects: State Standards and the FCPS Budget Story
In her latest Weekly Reflections, Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid thanked every member of our community for supporting FCPS as it remains fully accredited. Referencing a news release on accreditation, Dr. Reid noted how FCPS needs funding to support and maintain this excellence.
As we shared last week, Irving Middle School was recognized as being On Track.
Visit the Budget Story webpage to learn more about the FCPS budget and the funding challenges that schools across Virginia, not just FCPS, face because of outdated state funding formulas.Read more of Dr. Reid’s Weekly Reflections.
Make Your Voice Heard!
Look for opportunities to share your ideas about funding public education and encourage your neighbors, friends, and community members to follow the FCPS budget process. Several key decision dates and engagement opportunities are listed below:
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Thursday, December 18, 2025 - The Virginia Governor introduced the Fiscal Years 2026-28 state budget.
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Wednesday, January 7, 2026, beginning at 10 a.m. - There will be virtual regional public hearings on the governor’s proposed 2026-28 biennial state budget.
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Thursday, January 22, 2026 - Dr. Reid will present the proposed FCPS budget to the School Board.
Visit the FCPS budget webpage for more information.
FCPS This Week
In case you missed it in FCPS This Week, the school division shared updates on the following topics:
Read FCPS This Week to learn more about these topics. If you are not already receiving this weekly newsletter, please sign up today.
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