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11.06.09
 Fairfax Community : On Tuesday morning, I participated in a parent-teacher conference. What was most interesting about this conference for me was that I was the parent. My wife Allison and I met with our daughter’s kindergarten teacher. Sitting in very small chairs, I found myself feeling a need to share my knowledge and pride of my daughter with the teacher. While I always start meetings with parents assuming that their participation will be guided by their love for their children, I had never lived that assumption until now. I am excited to simultaneously be a principal and a parent of a school-aged child, as I know it will provide me a valuable perspective in both roles. Report cards were scheduled to be mailed out today but difficulties with county printing will delay that until at least early next week. I hope you had discussions with your children when they brought home the interim reports a month ago. At that time, I suggested that you help your child reflect upon his or her efforts and habits, and how he or she could be successful in each course. These report cards offer you an opportunity to measure your child’s progress since the interim reports. Please don’t let your child define themselves at a specific achievement level, such as being a poor writer or strong math student. Achievement or mastery requires consistent effort and focus, and an understanding that learning is not a linear process. To help you collect important information about your child’s learning and how your child can meet course expectations, we will be holding the first of our two Rebel Roundups this year in the Field House on Wednesday, November 11 from 7:30 am until 9:30 am. Rebel Roundup is an opportunity for parents for short conferences (2-3 minutes) with their child’s teachers. It is our expectation that parents will respect these time limits. Maintaining this time limit is necessary to allow all parents to have short conversations with all of their child’s teachers during this event. If you need additional time to speak with the teacher, please call or email the teacher directly for further discussion or to set up a conference. If you want to meet with more than one teacher, please speak with your child’s counselor in the Field House to set up a conference. I have been very pleased to receive so many positive emails from parents who have received regular communications (including e-mailed grade reports) from their child’s teachers. I applaud our teachers who have taken the time to make frequent contact with so many families. I expect that the mini-conferences at Rebel Roundup will build on this positive and constructive relationship. Parents will have the opportunity to enroll in ParentView to monitor teacher sites on Blackboard as well as access the Family Connections college and career planning program. Coffee will be available, compliments of the Fairfax High School PTSA. I hope to see you Wednesday morning. The Virginia High School League recently honored two of our school’s student presentations. The school’s newsmagazine, the Rebel Roar, was awarded first place. The Matrix won a second place award in the Virginia High School League Publications Evaluation Contest under the category of Literary Art Magazine. The magazines are judged on the categories of general appearance, functional aspects, layout/design, and literary selections. Submissions are taken from high schools around the state and awards are given based on the rating through the evaluation process. The girls’ field hockey team narrowly lost in the regional semifinals Tuesday night in overtime, 3-2, to South County. They left it all on the field, coming from behind twice. Unfortunately, in sports, the deserving do not always win. The girls’ efforts made me think about UNC women’s soccer coach Anson Dorrance, who wrote that sports don’t build character, but reveal it. The passion, commitment, and effort the girls showed Tuesday night and throughout the season offered us a window into who they are as people, and we are all very proud of them. Our football team ends its regular season with a home game tonight against Jefferson. With a current record of 5-4, our team has a chance to finish with its first winning record and potential playoff position in 10 years. Tonight’s game is also Senior Night, and seniors in the marching band, cheerleading squad, cross country team, dance team, golf team, color guard, football teams, and student trainers will be honored before the start of the game. The football team’s return to winning ways under the leadership of coach Chris Haddock was reported in this week’s Fairfax Times, and can be accessed at http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/cms/story.php?id=517. I hope a large crowd will be there to lift the team to victory. The band will be there to rally the crowd. Under the leadership of director Meghan Benson, the Marching Rebels band has truly developed standards of excellence. This year’s band is perhaps our school’s highest-performing band in recent memory. The seniors, who had never experienced victory in marching band competitions, have led the band to victory in all three competitions this fall. This past weekend, the band received straight Superior ratings at the VBODA State Marching Festival, including a superior rating in 24 of 25 possible sub-categories. I look forward to seeing you tonight to support the football team in making history as well as celebrate the important contributions made by our senior athletes. I can envision the bleachers packed with FHS fans. I can hear the band and the cheers, but this week I want to hear MORE COWBELL!
Best,
Highlights from the week and upcoming events: Reminder from the PTSA If you have any questions, please email me claij@cox.net or call me at 703-830-8699.
DECA Induction Ceremony Michele Webb, Fairfax High School Marketing Dept. Chair Career Center News REMINDER: Fairfax High School’s Financial Aid Night is Thursday, Nov. 19 @ 7:00 pm in the Multi-purpose Room. Speaker: Mr. Bill Brosseau, Director of Graduate and Professional Programs, Sallie Mae and previously with Georgetown University’s Financial Aid Office. College Visits to FHS: Tuesday, Nov. 10 (Blue Day): New England College (11:00), Ferrum College (12:00) Wednesday, Nov. 18 (Blue Day): Albright College (10:30), Maryland Institute College of Art (10:30 in Ms. McDermott’s Room, B139), Penn State (12:00) and University of Rochester (1:00) To sign up for a college visit, go to Family Connection (through your Blackboard account), visit schedule. Sign up for the visit to receive a pass. You must ask your teacher's permission to be excused from class AT LEAST 24 HOURS BEFORE THE VISIT. Friday Nov 13: Scholarships & Financial Aid No sign up required. Just come to the Career center on the above dates for a mini-workshop on these topics. Local Information Sessions: Morehouse College Information Session and On-site Admissions College Night in Virginia Leadership Opportunity for 10th Graders: Scholarships: Levine Scholars Program at UNC-Charlotte ($137,000 scholarship) Community Dialogue Meetings About the Budget: Community dialogue meetings will be held as follows:
Citizens who are unable to attend the community dialogues can pass along their comments and suggestions by calling 703-324-9400 or by completing a budget feedback form at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/budget.
AND FROM THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT: SPORTS PHYSICALS AT FAIRFAX - November 11! Volleyball: Field Hockey: Golf: Cross Country: Cheer: WINTER SPORTS BEGIN ON NOVEMBER 16TH – You MUST have a current VHSL physical form to try out for a sport! If you still need a physical – come to FHS on the 11th!! Basketball will need parent volunteers to man the snackbar!! The Fall Athletic Banquet is November 23rd!! PLEASE CHECK THE WEBSITE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON TOURNAMENTS, SCORES AND TEAM CONTACTS –www.fairfaxhighsports.org |