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1. Important Dates

February 27 - Rocky Run vs Franklin Basketball Game at Chantilly HS, 5-8 PM

March 12 - PTA Meeting, 7 PM, Library

March 19 - No After-School Program (all students depart at 2:15 PM)

March 20 - No School (Holiday - Eid al-Fitr)

March 27 - End of 3rd Quarter, 2 Hour Early Release, No After-School Program

March 30 - April 3 - Spring Break

April 6 - No School (Teacher Workday)

April 10 - No School (School Planning Day)

2. A Note from the Principal

Dear Rocky Run Families-

It's finally here! Our students and staff are buzzing about the annual Franklin vs Rocky Run basketball game on February 27 at Chantilly High School. You might be reading this message from the stands! It's always great to see banners and posters up in the halls and tshirts worn by staff and students that show Rocky Run school spirit in anticipation of the game. Even though we are separate schools, we are all members of the larger Chantilly community. As such, I want to remind the Rocky Run community to RAISE the Ram at the game. Be sure to be Respectful, Accountable, Inclusive, Safe and Engaged as you represent Rocky Run.

This past Friday was our monthly Principal's Advisory Council (PAC) meeting. Our session focused on elements of an engaging lesson (from a student perspective) as well as "real talk" about eHall Pass. The students provided numerous suggestions that will definitely enhance the experience for all Rams. Engaging the student voice in school issues is important and this year’s group does an awesome job representing their peers and advocating for issues that are important to students.

As the calendar flips to March over the weekend, people throughout the United States will begin to celebrate Women’s History Month and Disability Awareness Month. Both histories are foundational parts of American history. Students deserve meaningful, sustained opportunities to learn about the experiences and contributions of this history year-round, and the celebration of Women’s History Month and Disability Awareness month are opportunities to honor these diverse and important stories.

Finally, I want to be sure that everyone knows that Rocky Run will be hosting the Sully District Budget Town Hall meeting on Wednesday, March 4. Supervisor Kathy Smith and School Board member Seema Dixit will be discussing budget initiatives that impact our students. I highly encourage you to attend this important meeting.

Thank you for your continued support and please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. 

Sincerely,

Peter Kownacki
Principal
Rocky Run Middle School
@pakownacki

3. Action Items for Families

PTA No Fuss Fundraiser

RRMS No-Fuss Fundraiser – Register Now! It’s easy, fun, and stress-free! Set up your student page, pick a goal that excites you, and share your link with family & friends. Every donation counts! Register Here

Steps:

1. Create a student page.

2. Select your correct team.

3. Set fundraising goal.

4. Review and confirm.

5. Share link with family and friends!

FCPS CARES Nominations Want a quick way to recognize an employee or team? Share an FCPS CARES! Families, colleagues, and students are all invited to submit. The FCPS CARES is automatically sent to the recipient(s) and their supervisor, and is posted on fcps.edu. Additionally, each month one school in our region wins a staff celebration from HR. Encourage your community to show our staff that their hard work is appreciated!

🏃‍♀️ Parents, Let’s Sprint into Fun! 🏃‍♂️

Rocky Run Middle School is getting ready to sprint into an exciting Spring 2026 Track and Field season, and we need energetic parents to join us in the action as Assistant Coaches. Practices will be on Mondays and Wednesdays from 2:30 to 3:30 beginning April 7, with Saturday meets starting April 25, times TBD. It is a great way to cheer on our student athletes, enjoy some fresh air, and be part of the fun, fast-paced spirit of track season. If you are ready to help our Rams run, jump, and throw their way to success, please contact Katy Speir, Athletic Coordinator (krspeir@fcps.edu), for more information.

Ramadan Meal Kits

From February 18 to March 19, 2026, students fasting during the school day may request take-home meal kits through a Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) waiver. These kits include a complete school breakfast and lunch, which are intended to be eaten after the school day ends.

Important Meal Kit Information:

• Kits are charged based on the student’s meal status (Free, Reduced, or Paid).
• Students may claim one breakfast kit and one lunch kit per day.
• Students are not eligible for a take-home kit on the same day if they eat a meal at school during the day.
• Kits are distributed at the end of the school day. Students must personally pick up their own kits; adults are not permitted to collect them.

Weekly Request Deadlines:

Parents or guardians must submit a weekly request form via the FCPS FNS website by the following deadlines to receive meal kits for the corresponding week. Forms must be submitted on time.

Please access the form on the FCPS FNS website.

Fasting Rooms and Prayer Rooms

Please remember that if you wish for your child to be able to use the fasting room and prayer room during Ramadan you must complete this form so that we can make passes for them to utilize the spaces during the school day.

Career Day Speakers Needed

Rocky Run's Career Day will take place on Friday March 27, 2026. We need your help to make it a success!

Please use this form to sign-up to share your career or job with Rocky Run students. The event will run from 8:00am-12:00pm, but volunteers do not need to commit for the entire time frame. We will be in touch closer to the date to confirm your available times. Presentations may be to small groups, large groups, on a panel, or in a career cluster fair. At this time please let us know if you are willing and available to present and save the date on your calendar!  

Please reach out to Halissa Jacobson at hdjacobson@fcps.edu or Anna Slevin agslevin@fcps.edu if you have questions or would like more information.  Thank you!

https://forms.gle/PFk33CVm5xUYK46k7

4. Student Celebrations

January Rams on a Roll

Congratulations to our January Rams on a Roll! These students were recognized by their teams for consistently demonstrating all of our RAISE traits and being Respectful, Accountable, Inclusive, Safe, and Engaged.

7th Grade: Jacob Cuti, Quinn Kirby, Sofia Muro, Owen Feigleson, Angel Martinez, and Serena Feng

8th Grade: Charleigh Kinnie, Ian Choe, Evelyn Sexton, Zara Struna, Aurelia Caltagirone, and Meymun Yusuf

Congratulations- way to Raise the Ram!

Punctual on Purpose Zero Tardy Winners

Each week, we randomly select one student from each team who had zero tardies during the previous week! This week's PoP winners were:

Meteors: Palak Shukla

Platinum: Madison Huynh

Emerald: Rendrick Saldana

Kryptonite: Samantha Kelly

Tiger's Eye: Julia Wah

Sapphire: Audriana Try

RAISE the Ram Card Winners

At Rocky Run, students can earn RAISE the Ram cards for exhibiting our RAISE attributes: Rams are Respectful, Accountable, Inclusive, Safe, and Engaged. At the end of each week, we randomly select one winner from each team.

Congratulations to this week's RAISE the Ram card winners:

Meteors: Sophia Rizvi (Accountable)

Platinum: Viraj Chhatre (Accountable and Engaged)

Emerald: Kasim Atwa (Accountable and Engaged)

Tiger's Eye: Anika Motaparthy (Engaged)

Sapphire: Gitansh Golukonda (Accountable and Engaged)

Great job Raising The Ram this week!

5. Student Services Updates

Course Request for SY26-27

As you know, our academic advising process began in December. By now, all students have met individually with their counselor and completed their course selections for next year.

Please review your child’s selections in SIS ParentVUE under Course Request, and contact your child’s counselor if you have any questions.

Students’ course requests directly determine our staffing for the 2026–2027 school year. Once staffing decisions are finalized, it is very difficult to make changes because the number of course sections has already been set. For this reason, course requests should be considered a firm commitment.

RRMS Academic Advising Website

Electives Videos

Grade 7 Course Request Form

Grand 8 Course Request Form

Middle School Math Courses

Curriculum Presentation Slides

Learn More About How Your Child Feels at School

Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) believes in supporting social and emotional learning (SEL) for all students. In FCPS, students use a tool called the SEL Screener to think about their own SEL skills and experiences at school.  The SEL Screener is given in the Fall and Spring to all students.  Rocky Run Middle School students will again be participating in this screener this Spring during the week of March 9^th.

After each screening, results are available in the Documents tab of SIS ParentVUE. Opt-out information was previously sent with the parent notifications and can be updated in the Parent Digital Consent application or by filling out the form that was included with the notifications.  You can also learn more on the Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener webpage.

Summer 2026 Online Campus Courses

Registration for the Summer 2026 Online Campus courses is available until Friday, June 5. Courses are open to middle and high school students who meet prerequisites. The Online Campus provides an opportunity for students to take one high school level course for new or repeat credit over the summer.

Students need to have a computer and make sure their computer is ready for the online course.

Course and assessment dates cannot be adjusted for vacations, travel, etc. Students must complete course work and assessments as they are scheduled.

Online Campus courses and classes may be cancelled if they are under enrolled. If a course or class is cancelled, students will be notified using the registration contact information, and a full refund will be given.

Students will not be able to take online courses using tablets and smartphones.

Please note that students wishing to enroll in a summer course must notify their counselor in order to ensure a seat in the desired course for 26-27 school year. 

6. Instructional Updates

Library Happenings

This week in the library, Mrs. Tatis-Phan’s Spanish I classes have been working in small groups to create their own schools! They have been practicing their school vocabulary and using verbs and adjectives they already know to design a specialty school. Students have various roles in their groups, including project manager who is checking the rubric, artist in residence who creates the visuals, language wizard who checks spelling and grammar, and the mascot generator, who is using all the information about their school to design a mascot using Generative AI in Adobe Spark. Students’ projects are coming out great so far and they are practicing collaboration, resilience, and communication as they work in their groups.

7. After School Program Information

After-School Schedule for the week of 3/2

• NEW Clubs 
  
  • Cursive Club - Wednesdays during 2nd session - no sign-up required
  • Aerospace Engineering - Tuesdays during 2nd session - no sign-up required 

Current after-school club offerings - More clubs will be added throughout the year so check back frequently.

Review the late bus routes that are posted on the After-School Schoology Course

For now, here are some steps to complete:

1. Review this general After-School Information.
2. ALL families must complete the After-School Consent Form (via the Parent Digital Consent System).  Students cannot stay after until this is submitted.  Almost all of our Rocky Run students will stay after at some point this year, so please make sure the form is completed ASAP so your student has the flexibility to participate.

Questions?  Contact Shannon Campbell, After-School Program Specialist, at SLCampbell@fcps.edu. 

Spring Track & Field

• A student interest meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 4, during all lunches. Meeting slides and important dates will be shared with families after the interest meeting.
• Track & Field Registration Google Form 
• Middle School Sports Physical- one page requires a doctor's signature, so do not delay!  If your student submitted a sports physical packet for Cross Country or Basketball, that same packet will work for Track & Field.  Not sure if you submitted one this year?  Email Shannon Campbell to check your student's status.

8. Community Corner

PTA Chipotle Spirit Night

Join us for our PTA Chipotle Spirit Night on Wednesday, March 4, 4:00–8:00 PM at the Fair Lakes Chipotle location. Grab your favorite burritos, bowls, or tacos and 25% of the proceeds will support our school!

• Dining in: Show the flyer at checkout.
• Ordering online: Enter code F8GLYZB in the “Enter a Promo Code” section and don’t forget to click “Apply” before placing your order!

Fairfax County History Conference Student and Teacher Opportunities

The Fairfax County History Commission presents: Revolutionary Ideas: Fairfax County’s American Revolution. What defines a revolution? Join them for #Fairfax250, a community conference exploring Fairfax County’s unique legacy in the American Revolution.

• Discover how our local landscape shaped the fight for independence.
• Uncover stories of famous figures and everyday heroes.
• Reflect on the lasting impact of the ideas that changed history.
• Explore hands-on artifacts and an interactive archeology challenge
• Participate in the “It’s Revolutionary!” trivia show
• Use AI and digital tools for history research
• Find your roots in an interactive genealogy session
• Learn about the African American cemeteries in Fairfax
• View the past and present historic sites
• Engage in interactive research and local history
• Connect with local history nonprofits
• Reflect on student research and poster exhibits

Students, are you a history enthusiast? Sign up to showcase a display tied to your school or community! Please note that middle school students are not eligible to participate in the trivia show.

The conference will take place on Saturday, April 18, 2026, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Fairfax County Government Center.

4400 Stringfellow Rd, Chantilly, VA 20151 | Main Office: 703-802-7700
Attendance: 703-802-7782 or rockyrunmiddle.attendance@fcps.edu 
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