April 1, 2009

Next Issue: April 15

Deadline for Articles: Wednesday, April 8

Thank you for working to provide a quality education for all children in FCPS.

School Board Votes to Keep Existing School Start and Dismissal Times

The Fairfax County School Board has voted to confirm the existing school start time structure for Fairfax County Public Schools. Generally, under this existing structure, high schools open first, then middle and elementary schools. The Board rejected a possible bell schedule, known as Iteration 3, which used a three-tiered approach that would have started some elementary schools first, high schools second, and middle schools and other elementary schools last. (get details)

Communications Corner: Crisis and Critical Incidents

Crisis and Critical IncidentsSpring is here. While that usually means the birds are singing, the flowers are blooming, and the sun is shining, it is also a time when crises are more likely to happen in schools. The Department of Communications and Community Outreach provides resources on FCPSnet to help staff members in crisis management, crisis communication, and crisis intervention.

People on the Move

Learn who has been promoted, recently hired, or transferred to a new location. (get details)

Partners in Education and MentorWorks Award Nomination Deadline Is April 17; Celebration Set for May 14

Honor your exceptional business partners and mentors by nominating them for a Partners in Education award. Nominations are currently being accepted to recognize the many valuable contributions being made by business and organization partners in Fairfax County. The deadline is April 17. (get details)

Books 24x7 Featured Title: E-Mail in an Instant: 60 Ways to Communicate With Style and Impact

E-mail in an InstantShowing you how to improve your e-mail efficiency, this book helps you gain mastery over your electronic mailbox and be more effective at getting your messages across with style and impact as well as managing and responding to the messages you receive. (get details)

About Our People

Read about your colleagues' accomplishments. (go)

2009 NVSWCD Seedling Sale Orders Due by April 13

The Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District (NVSWCD) is again holding its annual seedling sale. Orders are due by April 13. (get details)

FCPS Online Classifieds System Free for Employees

Online ClassifiedsThe FCPS Online Classifieds system is a free way for employees to post ads for personally owned items that they are seeking to buy, sell, rent, or give away, to find a roommate, or to share a ride to work. (get details)

ERFC Annual Report Posted Online

The Educational Employees' Supplementary Retirement System of Fairfax County (ERFC) has published its
FY 2008 Annual Summary Report. The report is posted in the publications section on the system's web site at http://www.fcps.edu/ERFC. To request a printed copy, send an e-mail to ERFCComm@fcps.edu.

Other News and News of Continuing Interest

  • The Department of Professional Learning and Training (PLT) is seeking coaches for the elementary and secondary Great Beginnings programs for the 2009-10 school year. The deadline is April 24.
    (get details)

  • The Outstanding Performance Award (OPA) Committee will meet on May 21. All unified-scale employees (except school-based administrators) and instructional assistants are eligible for nomination. The deadline is May 1. (get details)

  • The Department of Professional Learning and Training (PLT) is now accepting proposals for summer leadership seminars. Registration for these seminars will be offered through the new online leadership publication PLT COMPASS. The deadline is April 28. (get details)

  • A new case of child abuse or neglect enters the Fairfax County Domestic and Juvenile Relations Court system once every 30 hours. Fairfax CASA is seeking volunteers to advocate on behalf of these children and help ensure that they grow up in safe and permanent homes. (get details)

Francis "Buck" Payne Named FCPS 2009 Teacher of the Year

Francis “Buck” Payne, a social studies teacher and program coordinator of the AVID (Advancement via Individual Determination) program at Falls Church High School, has been named the Fairfax County Public Schools 2009 Teacher of the Year. Payne will represent FCPS in Virginia’s Teacher of the Year competition; the winner will be announced in fall 2009. (get details)

FCPS Support Employee Recognition Week to Be Held April 20-24

FCPS recognizes all support employees by designating one week (the third full week of April) each year as FCPS Support Employee Recognition Week. This year, Support Employee Recognition Week will be held April 20-24.
(get details)

Teacher Transfer Opportunity (Transfair) to Be Held May 5-7; Vacancy Lists Available April 30 on UConnect

This year's Transfair will be held May 5-7 at Marshall, Lee, and Centreville High Schools. A vacancy list will be posted on UConnect on April 30. (get details)

Spotlight: Inch by Inch Reading at Key Middle School

Reading at Key MiddleSee how students at Key Middle School learn to love reading as they add to a list of total books read by their classmates throughout the year.
(watch video)

Service Awards to Be Delivered in June

FCPS is built on the efforts of the men and women who have dedicated many years of service to its success. These people are the heart and soul of our school system. In order to thank them and recognize their length of service, FCPS issues the service awards yearly. This year's service awards will be delivered to eligible employees in June. (get details)

Call for Coaches

The latest position openings are posted. (go)

Want to Learn New Skills at Your Own Pace? Try eLearnIT! eLearnIT

The Department of Information Technology’s eLearnIT program provides, via the Internet, skills development training that is available free of charge to any employee of Fairfax County Public Schools.
(get details)

VPN Available to All Employees

FCPS uses a virtual private network (VPN) to allow its employees to access school system computer network resources when they are not at an FCPS site. Every FCPS employee now has permission to use VPN, but a small piece of software is needed. (get details)

TMPC and Education Library to Reduce Hours During Spring Break

Spring break is coming, and, with that much-anticipated event, a temporary change in hours at the Sprague Technology Center’s walk-in services facilities will occur. (get details)

InsightThis Week's "Insight"

To view a promotional clip from this week's show, click here. Or, to view any of this week's stories, go to the Insight web page.


Important Notice for Supergram Article Submissions

Article submissions for Supergram should be sent to Andy Grunig at andy.grunig@fcps.edu. If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, Grunig can be reached at 571-423-1212. Please Note: The Job Opportunities publication and web pages are provided by the Department of Human Resources.

FCPS by the Numbers

Percentage of Nonschool-Based Administrators
Less than one percent of FCPS staff members are nonschool-based administrators. (get details)

Quote to Note

"When you resort to attacking the messenger and not the message, you have lost the debate." 

Addison Whithecomb