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Parent Information

Cooper PTO Website:

 http://cooperpto.org

2012-2013 PTO Executive Board

President
Karen Collazo
Vice President
Terri Markwart & Lorraine Bucy
Corresponding Secretary
Betsy Shoemaker
Recording Secretary
Kristin Bonacci
Treasurer
Beth Eames
Parliamentarian
Nancy Rau

 

Archived Newsletters

 

Other Important Information

Click on the pictures below to view Today's Tip to Parents and the current issue of Helping Students Learn.

Secondary Age Students
Seconday Age StudentsSchool Success

 

Elementary Age Students
Elementary TipsElementary Success

 

From AtoZ

ATTENDANCE LINE
703-442-5858 - Please call when your child will not be in school.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL NIGHT
Return to Middle School! This evening event is an opportunity for parents to meet their children's teachers and to experience a portion of their school day as they go from class to class. Back-to-school night will normally be held on two evenings at the beginning of the school year. One evening is for the parents of seventh graders and the other evening is for parents of eighth graders. Time with each teacher is limited. Please don't conference with teachers. Individual conferences with teachers and teams can be arranged by contacting the Student Services Department for an appointment. Because of limited space, this is an adults only evening. Dates for each Back to School Night can be found on the Calendar page.

COFFEE WITH THE PRINCIPAL
The schedule for these informal meetings can be found on the Cooper PTO newsletter.

CONFERENCES
An opportunity to meet with your child's teacher/team individually. These conferences may be initiated by parents or teachers. To schedule a conference, please call the Student Services Department for an appointment at 703-442-5812.

COOPER NEWSLETTER
The Cooper PTO Newsletter is a joint effort posted on the Cooper website by Cooper Middle School and the Cooper PTO. This is our contact with you. It lists activities and dates. Watch for the updated links in your KIT emails.

COURSE SELECTIONS
Course selection booklets are distributed to Cooper students through the Guidance Department in February/March. The Cooper Student Services Department coordinates with the Langley High School Student Services Department for rising 9th graders. The Cooper Student Services Department visits all the feeder elementary schools to schedule rising 7th graders. A PDF version of the booklet can be found on the Student Services page.

CULTURAL ARTS COMMITTEE
PTO committee that coordinates with the faculty and plans entertaining and educational assemblies for students.

DONATIONS
Donations of specific items needed by the school are sometimes requested through the school newsletter. Donations are tax deductible.

DRESS CODE
Any clothing considered by a teacher or administrator to be disruptive is not allowed. This includes hats, sunglasses, halter tops, and any clothing that suggests or advertises alcohol, smoking, drugs or inappropriate behavior, language or innuendoes. The FCPS dress code can be found on the FCPS website in the Student Reponsibilities and Rights Guide.

EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
Students can participate in a variety of clubs and activities after school. These are planned according to the late bus schedule.

FAIRFAX COUNTY POLICE LIAISON
The McLean substation of the Fairfax County Police Department is working closely with the community. As part of this effort Officer Michael Hunteris assigned to Cooper to interact with students in a positive manner.

FEEDER ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
Students from the following elementary schools attend Cooper Middle School: Churchill Road, Colvin Run, Forestville, Franklin Sherman, Great Falls, Spring Hill and Westbriar. Some of these elementary schools are split feeders (their boundaries include more than one middle school).

FUNDRAISING
Cooper PTA has one fund-raiser a year. Rather than ask our students to sell anything, we simply ask our families to make a donation to the school. Please support this year's campaign by contributing and/or by volunteering to assist our chairman.

GIANT A+ BONUS BUCKS/ SAFEWAY eSCRIP
Please make sure to re-designate Cooper on your Giant Bonus Card and/or your Safeway Club Card in August. Cooper will only receive credit for your purchases if you reregister your cards. In the past, this program has been most helpful to Cooper.

GRADING SCALE
Cooper uses the FCPS grading scale that was adopted the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year. Below is the basic grading scale. For more detailed information on how the new grading scale will affect your student(s) the full pdf version can be found on theStudent Services page.

A
93-100
C+
77-79
A-
90-92
C
73-76
B+
87-89
C-
70-72
B
83-86
D+
67-69
B-
80-82
D
64-66
F
Below 64

HONOR ROLL
Students who attain an "A" average or an "A/B" average qualify for the Cooper Honor Roll. All "A" students are recognized at receptions throughout the year.

INTERIM REPORT CARDS
Notification from each classroom teacher sent home mid-way during each grading period. The Interim Report indicates the status of academic progress. Dates of distribution are listed on the calendar in the newsletter.

JAPANESE LANGUAGE PROGRAM
Foreign language program for students continuing from the elementary immersion program. Students will receive instruction in a variety of subjects in Japanese.

KEEP IN TOUCH ACCOUNTS (KIT)
Fairfax County Public Schools has a new vendor for the Keep in Touch (KIT) notification system, Blackboard Connect (formerly NTI, Connect-ED).

Blackboard Connect is an award-winning company with years of experience with K-12 education systems, many as large as or larger than FCPS. The system will still be called Keep in Touch or KIT.

Since KIT is used to deliver school system emergency messages such as school closings due to inclement weather, it is critically important that your contact information (e-mail addresses, home phone, cell phone, etc.) be kept up to date so that you do not miss out on any important messages.

A frequently asked question from many parents is: How do I update my Keep in Touch account information? Families have two options:

1. Fill out or update your child’s emergency care information form and return it to the school. Make sure to include a valid and up to date email address.

2. Update your child’s emergency care contact information via weCare@School (you must have a Parent View account). To learn more about Parent View, go to the ParentView page on the FCPS website. For assistance with Parent View, call 1-866-434-8880.

The new KIT system uses your child’s student registration information.

LATE BUSES
Depending on School Board approval, Fairfax County Transportation Services may provide late buses to Cooper. Currently late buses will be scheduled on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. See the Cooper Bell Schedule in the light blue sidebar of this page for further information.

LATE OPENING/EARLY DISMISSAL
Please don't call Cooper. Announcement will be made on FCPS website, local radio, TV, and on the Fairfax County Public School cable TV station, "Apple 21" on Channel 21.

LIBRARY (MEDIA CENTER)
Cooper has a state-of-the-art Media Center. It opens at 7:45 am on school days and is open after school on Mondays and Thursdays. Volunteers are welcome to assist the librarian. See PTO board list on the PTO website.

MUSIC PROGRAM
Cooper has a very active music program. Students can participate in band, strings or chorus. It is part of the elective program and a full year commitment is expected.

REPORT CARDS
Progress reports sent home every quarter (9 weeks). They are usually received at least a week into the next quarter because they are computerized and mailed from a central Fairfax County Public School system location.

SAFE COMMUNITY COALITION (SCC)
Begun in 1995, students, parents, civic and religious organizations, local businesses, and staff from area schools (public and private) came together "to create a nurturing community that is a safe, drug-free environment for our young people". For more information, go to http://www.safecommunitycoalition.net

STUDENT COUNCIL ASSOCIATION (SCA)
Students elect candidates for 8th grade in June and for 7th grade in September. There are elected officers and representatives from each team. The SCA sponsors activities such as dances, food drives, and a spirit week.

STUDENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT
Each student is assigned a guidance counselor. The goals of the Student Services Department include helping students to achieve academic success at Cooper. Students are assigned counselors through their team. The Student Services Department phone number is 703-442-5812.

TEAMS
Like the faculty, middle school students are grouped into teams. There are approximately 130-150 students on a team. Cooper has three 7th grade teams and three 8th grade teams. The faculty encourages camaraderie among teams. They have special assemblies and field trips.

VOLUNTEERS
Cooper has an active volunteer program. The list of areas where volunteers are needed will come home the first day of school and will also be available on Back-To-School Night. Not all volunteer duties are during the school day. There are ways to volunteer in your home and on selected evenings. Please contact the Volunteer Coordinator. See PTO board list on the PTO website.

YEARBOOK (Pathfinder)
Cooper publishes a high quality, hard covered yearbook. Yearbooks and literary magazines are distributed to students the last week of school. No extra yearbooks are available in June. Please be sure your student's order is placed.

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