Back to School 2009
Direct From the Superintendent: Student Achievement, H1N1 Virus, and Budget Top Issues at Start of 2009-10
Welcome back to a great school year with FCPS. I’m pleased to report that last year's student results on the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) tests were excellent. They showed upward trends in both math and reading scores and a narrowing of achievement gaps between all subgroups of students. With results like these, I have to believe that FCPS’ focus on the individual child is working. I invite you to read more about our SOL scores. We look forward to another year of this kind of progress.
In addition, members of the FCPS class of 2009 posted a composite SAT score of 1664—the highest since the SAT went from two sections to three sections in 2006 and the third consecutive year of increases in all three test categories—while continuing to outpace students across Virginia and the nation. ACT scores remained stable despite an increasing pool of test takers. I invite you to learn more about these scores as well. Finally, according to preliminary data released by the College Board, the number of FCPS students taking AP tests continues to rise with almost 500 more students taking AP tests in 2008-09 than in 2007-08. In addition, the total number of exams taken by FCPS students increased to approximately 30,000. The number of AP tests taken in Human Geography and Latin Literature more than doubled while the number of AP tests taken in Economics and Music Theory increased by more than 50 percent.
This year's budget already includes many reductions, including a class size increase. We are already working on next year's budget, and it looks like it will be equally challenging. Fairfax County residents will be offered several opportunities to provide input to budget decisions over the coming school year at a series of community dialogues. I hope that parents, in particular, will attend a community dialogue (PDF file) so that we can consider your concerns as the school system and the county government make the difficult budget decisions that will be necessary.
The H1N1 virus (swine flu) continues to be an issue as we start schools this fall. National, state, and regional health agencies have provided new guidance to schools. We work closely with the Fairfax County Health Department to provide the most accurate and current information and guidance possible to students and their families. Please reinforce lessons on hand washing and on the covering of coughs and sneezes, both of which will be emphasized in school. Also, please remain flexible. As health experts learn more about the virus, we pledge to keep you informed if changes occur. Stay tuned by checking our web page and by signing up to receive Keep in Touch Plus messages. To read more about the H1N1 virus, please see the article directly below.
We will make every effort to keep schools open. Students who do have flu symptoms should stay home until 24 hours after symptoms end. Students who exhibit flu symptoms in school will be isolated from other students until their parents can come to the school to pick them up. Please update your emergency information and be prepared to come to the school if you receive a call that your child needs to be picked up.
Our principals, teachers, and others who work in our schools are ready to start the school year and help every student achieve at the highest possible level. We look forward to welcoming our students and families on September 8 to another outstanding school year.
Jack Dale, Superintendent of Schools
H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu) Update
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is partnering with the Fairfax County Health Department (FCHD) to monitor the progression of the 2009 H1N1 Influenza (swine flu). The Fairfax County Health Department follows the guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and provides recommendations to the school system.
As you may know, flu can be easily spread from person to person. Fairfax County Public Schools is taking steps to reduce the spread of flu. It is the school system's goal to keep schools open to students and functioning in a normal manner during this flu season. But, FCPS needs your help to do this.
Here are a few things you can do to help:
- Teach your children good hand hygiene etiquette. Hands should be washed frequently with soap and water, and hand washing should last for at least 20 seconds.
- Teach your children to cover their coughs and sneezes with tissues. If a tissue is unavailable, children should cover their coughs or sneezes using the elbow, arm, or sleeve instead of their hands.
- Learn the signs and symptoms of the flu. Symptoms of the flu include fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit, 37.8 degrees Celsius, or greater), cough, sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, and a very tired feeling. Some people may also vomit or have diarrhea.
- Keep sick children at home. Any child who is found to be sick while at school will be sent home. It is also important to keep sick children at home for at least 24 hours after having a fever or showing signs of a fever, without the use of fever-reducing drugs.
- Plan now for your children’s care if you or your children become ill with the flu and need to stay home.
- Stay informed. FCPS encourages you to visit www.flu.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO for the most current information about the flu.
For more information about flu in our community and what our school system is doing, visit http://www.fcps.edu/news/swineflu.htm or call your school.
Flu Prevention Video
To watch a video on how to prevent the flu from affecting you and your family, go to http://www.fcps.edu/DIT/streaming/ss17_htg_flu.asx.
New Attendance Policies and Practices in Place
FCPS is implementing new attendance policies and practices, including technology, to encourage consistent student attendance and engage students, teachers, and parents as partners in building positive attendance habits. These changes include:
- Secondary students who have unexcused “class cuts” will no longer receive an automatic F for the quarter. However, there will be progressive consequences, such as a loss of privileges, as a result of missing class without permission. Students remain responsible for all makeup work. Grading is based on work performance and class participation. Students must be present to win academic awards. If students are absent and unexcused, they cannot earn credit for classroom activities or labs missed as a result.
- An automated attendance calling system that calls and e-mails parents the same day an absence occurs.
- Truancy alone can no longer be punished by suspension. Commonwealth of Virginia code 22.1-277 provides further details.
As you know, daily school attendance is critical to promoting high academic achievement. Talk with your student about the importance of regular attendance and active participation in school. Make every effort to ensure that your children are in school as much as possible this year, and notify their school(s) if they are ill. If your child is experiencing an academic or health problem, notify the school as early as possible, because assistance may be available.
For more information, go to http://www.fcps.edu/dss/ips/ssaw/attendance/.
School Bond Referendum to Be on November 3 Ballot
A school bond referendum will be on the general election ballot Tuesday, November 3, 2009. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Residents of Fairfax County may vote if they are 18 years of age or older on Election Day and have registered to vote 29 days prior to the election (by October 5, 2009, at 5 p.m.).
The 2009 proposed bond referendum includes $104.3 million for renovations, including $101.8 million to renovate Marshall High School; $2.5 million for renovation planning at Sandburg Middle School; $65 million for new construction and modulars; and $26.2 million for infrastructure management, including roof replacements, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) replacements, athletic improvements, security enhancements, asphalt paving, and improvements required by the Americans With Disabilities Act.
The 2009 bond referendum includes $50 million for construction of the new middle school in the South County area of Fairfax County and $40.7 million for capacity enhancements at Crestwood, Cunningham Park, Kings Park, Lynbrook, Spring Hill, Springfield Estates, West Springfield, and Woodley Hills Elementary Schools and Whitman Middle School.
For further information about registering or voting, call 703-222-0776, or go to http://www.fcps.edu/news/bond09.htm.
Three Ways to Purchase School Meals: Online Payment, Check, or Cash
Fairfax County Public Schools offers three ways to pay for school meals:
- Online - Using www.mylunchmoney.com - The service is easy to use, convenient, private, and secure. There is a convenience fee of $1.95 per transaction. Once the account is open, parents may check the fund account at any time from computer or phone.
- Check - Write a check made out to (School Name) Food and Nutrition Services and bring the check to the food service manager’s office. A parent who wants his or her check payments to be for meals only (no à la carte items) should write it on the check or tell the manager.
- Cash - Cash may be brought to the food service manager’s office for deposit in student accounts, or students may pay cash for breakfast and lunch on a daily basis.
Parents—Please Note!
- Parents may ask for a printed summary of their child’s account at any time by contacting the food service manager (or by signing on with myLunchMoney.com). You don’t need to use the online account for this service.
- Parents are asked to remind their child or children not to share their personal identification numbers (PINs) with friends.
- A parent who wants his or her payments to be for meals only (no à la carte items or snacks) should tell the food service manager.
2009-10 School Meal Prices
The prices for school meals during the 2009-10 school year will be as follows:
Breakfast |
Lunch |
|
|---|---|---|
| Elementary School | $1.50 |
$2.65 |
| Middle School | $1.50 |
$2.75 |
| High School and Secondary School | $1.50 |
$2.75 |
| Reduced-Price Meals | $.30 |
$.40 |
| Adults | $1.95 |
$3.65 |
| Milk (sold separately) | $.60 |
$.60 |
| Soy Milk (sold separately) | $.75 |
$.75 |
| Kindergarten Snack—Milk or Juice | $.60 |
|
| Milk or Juice Plus Snack | $.95 |
For more information, such as school lunch menus, which are updated monthly, go to http://www.fcps.edu/fs/food/food_at_school/.
What's New With Keep in Touch (KIT) for 2009-10
FCPS has an electronic mass notification system known as Keep in Touch (KIT). KIT has two services: KIT Basic (automatic enrollment) and KIT Plus (subscription).
KIT Basic has automatic enrollment because it draws contact information from the student information system (SASI) and the employee (Lawson) databases. Contact information for KIT Basic may be updated at the school or through weCare@School, a feature of FCPS 24-7 Learning (Blackboard). Employees update their contact information through UConnect. FCPS central offices and schools use KIT Basic to provide families and employees with three types of messages—attendance (new this year), emergency, and outreach—via e-mails and phone calls.
KIT Plus is a subscription service for students, community members, and citizens interested in news, events, and updates from FCPS. Subscribers may select from the following topics:
- Adult and Community Education (ACE) classes and news.
- Current issues (budget, boundary studies, summer programs).
- Delayed openings and school closings.
- FCPS job opportunities.
- Magnet schools and advanced academic programs.
- News releases and media tips.
- PTA, PTSA, PTO information.
- School Board news and updates.
- Special education services.
- Supergram (employee newsletter).
- Volunteer opportunities.
In addition to these topics, KIT Plus subscribers may also receive announcements from up to five schools of their choice. KIT Plus is a self-subscribing, -updating, and -unsubscribing service. FCPS families and employees may receive announcements from both KIT Basic and KIT Plus.
For more information, or to subscribe, visit http://www.fcps.edu/kit.
Important Immunization Requirement: Do You Have a Student Entering Sixth Grade?
If you do, he or she may need a booster dose of Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis). Sixth grade students cannot begin school in the fall without documentation of having had either the Tdap booster or documentation of having had a tetanus-containing vaccine within the past five years. Parents and guardians of current fifth graders should check their child’s immunization records.
- If your child is 11 years old, he or she should get the Tdap immunization, and documentation should be provided to the school.
- If your child is still 10 years old, he or she may receive the Tdap vaccine, Boostrix, which is approved for 10-year-olds or he or she may wait until the 11th birthday to receive the vaccine approved for 11-year-olds.
- If your child’s 11th birthday is after the first day of school, your child must have a medical exemption from the doctor stating when he or she will receive the Tdap immunization in order to attend school.
Documentation that your student has received this immunization should be brought to the school registrar. Fairfax County Public Schools tracks compliance for this state requirement and students who do not meet the requirement by the first day of school will be excluded from school.
Students can receive immunizations required for school at no charge at any Fairfax County Health Department walk-in immunization clinic. The school public health nurse may be contacted for more information about the health department clinic hours. For more information, contact Elizabeth Donaldson, health specialist, Student Safety and Wellness office, at 571-423-4402 or elizabeth.donaldson@fcps.edu.
For more information about immunization requirements, see the current version of FCPS Regulation 2101.
Telephone Parent Information Line Available in Korean and Spanish
Parents who speak Korean or Spanish can call a telephone information line to help them learn general information about FCPS and to receive support if they are having difficulty communicating with their child’s school due to a language barrier.
The Parent Information Line numbers are:
- Spanish - 703-764-7361.
- Korean - 703-764-7363.
A parent may call at any time, leave a message in his or her language, and receive a return phone call in that language from an FCPS staff member within 24 hours.
FCPS Advanced Academic Programs
Fairfax County Public Schools Advanced Academic programs (AAP), formerly known as gifted and talented or GT, offers a continuum of advanced academic opportunities in FCPS that range from part-time services in one or more areas of academic strength to full-time placement in an advanced academic program. School-based services (Levels I – III) are offered in every elementary school and middle school. Decisions regarding school-based services are made at the local elementary and middle school. Full-time placement in an advanced academic program in grades 3-8 (Level IV) is available to students who have been identified by a central selection committee.
Eligibility for Full-Time Placement in Advanced Academic Programs in Grades 3–8 (Level IV)
A countywide central selection committee determines eligibility for placement in a full-time advanced academic program using ability test data, achievement test scores (if available), the Gifted Behaviors Rating Scale With Commentary (GBRSw/C), progress reports, and other available information. The Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAt) and the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT) are administered during September and October to second graders currently enrolled in and attending an FCPS school.
A review of the scores is used by the school system to select a second grade screening pool for Level IV consideration. Students who are not in the screening pool and students in grades 3-7 may be referred by their parents for consideration by submitting the AAP Level IV referral form (available on the AAP web site at http://www.fcps.edu/DIS/gt/forms.html) by February 5, 2010, to the advanced academic resource teacher at their local school.
School Clinics Renamed "Health Rooms" and Clinic Room Aides Renamed "School Health Aides" to Better Reflect Services
In order to provide the school community with a better sense of the type of health services provided in a school setting, the School Health Study recommended a change in the name of the clinic to the health room. It was also recommended that the name of the clinic room aide be changed to school health aide.
The type of services provided by the school health aide will not be changing; only the name has changed. Health room services are still designed to provide basic care to sick and injured students and to notify parents and guardians when further health follow-up is needed.
For more information, contact Elizabeth Donaldson, health specialist, Student Safety and Wellness office, at 571-423-4402 or elizabeth.donaldson@fcps.edu.
Make the College Connection at the 34th Annual College Fair and College Night Programs
Fairfax County Public Schools high school students and their families are encouraged to attend the following two events to explore postgraduation educational opportunities.
- College Fair 2009 at Fair Oaks Mall, Sunday, October 18, 7:30-9:30 p.m. (Note: Free ticket required for admission.)
- College Night 2009 at Hayfield Secondary, Monday, October 19, 7-9 p.m.
Both events provide opportunities for college-bound students and their parents to gather information from a variety of schools. Approximately 400 colleges and universities are represented, including two-year and four-year colleges; military academies; and business, technical, and nursing schools.
In addition, College Night workshops include information on:
- SAT and ACT test preparation.
- Financial aid.
- Considerations for students with disabilities.
- The College Success program: Advancement via Individual Determination (AVID), College Partnership program (CPP), Early Identification program (EIP), Pathway to the Baccalaureate, and Project Discovery.
- Writing the college essay.
- Family Connection: student and parent access to college planning tools and a scholarship search.
- The first step to college readiness—career planning.
For more information, links to participating colleges’ web sites, or a College Fair ticket, go to http://www.fcps.edu/dss/FCPSCollegeFairNight/.
Contact your career center specialists to obtain tickets to the College Fair and to get additional information about these events. Visit the career center web site at http://www.fcps.edu/ss/CareerConnections/resource/fcpscc.htm for a directory of career center specialists by school.
FCPS Is Now on Facebook and Twitter
Fairfax County Public Schools is now on Twitter, where news and information, emergency messages, and information about current issues are posted for those who choose to become followers of the school system. To follow FCPS on Twitter, visit http://www.twitter.com/fcpsnews and click on Follow.
FCPS also has a Facebook page; to follow FCPS on Facebook, visit http://www.facebook.com/fcpsva and select Become a Fan at the top of the page.
Citizens can also receive FCPS news and information by subscribing to the school system’s Keep in Touch e-mail messaging system, or by subscribing to RSS (really simple syndication). To learn more about RSS, visit http://www.fcps.edu and go to the News Releases banner on the right side of the page, then click on the orange RSS logo.
Do You Have a Nominee?
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) sponsors several employee award programs to celebrate excellence among employees and recognize contributions that promote student success. Now is the time to start thinking about nominating an outstanding individual for the following award programs:
- Principal of the Year and the Washington Post Distinguished Educational Leadership Award: The nominee must have at least five years successful experience as a principal, including at least three years with FCPS.
- Nancy F. Sprague Outstanding First-Year Principal Award: The nominee must have begun his or her first assignment as a principal on or after January 1, 2009.
- Teacher of the Year and the Washington Post Agnes Meyer Outstanding Teacher Award: The nominee must have at least five years of successful full-time teaching experience, including at least three years with FCPS.
- Support Employee of the Year: The nominee must be a support employee with at least three years of successful full-time or part-time experience with FCPS.
Any FCPS teacher or staff member, student or former student, parent, administrator, or Fairfax County employee or citizen may nominate a candidate for an award. Nomination information is available on the FCPS web site at www.fcps.edu/DHR/employees/awards/. For more information, call 571-423-3278.
These programs are made possible through the generous support of the Fairfax Education Foundation.
Service Animals in FCPS Buildings
FCPS permits service animals access in all its public areas, to include schools, in accordance with federal and state law. A service animal is “any guide dog, signal dog, or other animal individually trained to provide assistance to an individual with a disability.” A service animal is not a pet but can perform some of the functions and tasks that an individual with a disability cannot perform himself or herself.
Generally, therapy animals are not considered service animals and therefore are not permitted. The ongoing use of a service animal by staff members, parents, or members of the community must be coordinated through the Office of Equity and Compliance. To coordinate a student’s use of a service animal, contact the Office of Monitoring and Compliance at 571-423-4210.
If you have any questions regarding service animals in FCPS buildings, contact the Office of Equity and Compliance at 571-423-3050.
FCPS Directives Available Online
Virginia’s Standards of Quality require all school divisions to notify the public annually of the availability of the school system’s policies. Fairfax County Public Schools policies are available at http://www.fcps.edu/Directives/. A continuous review process ensures ongoing examination and revision of each policy, regulation, and notice as needed.
Any citizen who requests a hard copy of a directive has a right to receive it and should be provided the most current version printed from the web site. The School Board office, at Gatehouse Administration Center I, maintains the historical records of all directives.
