School Board Member at Large (Kyle McDaniel) | Fairfax County Public Schools

Summer Back to School Edition

School Board Member at Large (Kyle McDaniel) 2 months 4 weeks ago

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Welcome Back!

Click to watch Kyle McDaniel's Back To School Video Message

As summer ends, I hope you can still take some time to enjoy the warm weather while easing back into the routine of a new school year.

Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the back-to-school resources and volunteer opportunities.

I hope to see you at a Back to School event this Fall.

Respectfully,

Kyle McDaniel

Cell Phone Storage Pilot

Earlier this year, the School Board passed my proposal for a pilot program to securely store cell phones in schools.

The rules for cell phones in schools are very simple:

Middle Schools: Cell phones are not allowed to be used at all from the first bell, to the last; this is referred to as a bell-to-bell ban. The exception to this rule is for students with approved accommodations (i.e. medical, IEPs, and 504s).
High Schools: Cell phones are only allowed during lunch, in the halls between periods, and in class only if a principal or a designee authorizes its use as necessary for academic purposes. The exception to this rule is for students with approved accommodations (i.e. medical, IEPs, and 504s).

After the results of the pilot program are presented in spring, 2025, the School Board will determine what if any changes need to be made to the SR&R document, and whether to implement secure storage division wide.

As a parent and a millennial, I completely understand that we have all gotten used to instant communication and disrupting that may be uncomfortable. However, there is a time and a place for focusing on the task at hand, free of distractions. I believe in the classroom is one such instance. The Superintendent and her team have crafted what I believe is a great pilot program, and I am looking forward to the results.

For more information on the pilot program, click here.

Find your Back To School Info Here

All Back to School dates are listed on the individual school websites and each Region website.

Region 1 Back to School Night

Region 2 Back to School Night

Region 3 Back to School Night

Region 4 Back to School Events

Region 5 Back to School Events

Region 6 Back to School Events

TJHSST Back to School

School Year Calendars

2024-2025 | 2025-2026

Get involved in YOUR local school community!

Welcome back! As summer ends, I hope you can still take some time to enjoy the warm weather while easing back into the routine of a new school year.

Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the back-to-school resources and volunteer opportunities. I'd like to highlight the Fairfax County Council PTA (FCCPTA). They represent 170 school PTAs with 40,000 members within FCPS. FCCPTA cultivates meaningful partnerships among stakeholders (i.e., parents, students, school system, and community) while serving as the primary resource for parent advocacy and involvement within Fairfax County.

They have several open positions that can be found on their website. Two urgently needed positions are:

1) Military Families Chair: Connect military families across the county; work with local leaders to develop Military Families Committee and Outreach; Chairs Military Family Committee.

2) Ambassadors: Provide guidance and support to the PTA leaders in your pyramid; Keep local units in your pyramid up to date on FCPS information; Pass on FCCPTA, VAPTA and National PTA trainings, information and opportunities; Share information from your pyramids (challenges, areas of need or successes) to FCCPTA and/or FCPS; Facilitate pyramid wide local unit meetings as applicable, and meet your School Board Representatives, and Regional FCPS leadership. Learn more here.

Interested volunteers should contact [email protected].

Upcoming School Board Meetings

Upcoming School Board Meetings (Luther Jackson Middle School)

Thursday, August 29, 2024, at 7:00 p.m.
Thursday September 12, 2024, at 7:00 p.m.

Upcoming School Board Work Session (Gatehouse Administration Center)

Tuesday, August 27, 2024, at 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday, September 10, 2024, at 10:30 a.m.

All meetings are broadcast live on Channel 99 (Verizon channel 11) and on the FCPS website. Meetings are also recorded for future viewing and posted to the FCPS YouTube channel. Visit the community participation webpage to sign up to speak at regular meetings or public hearings.

The views contained within this newsletter reflect the views of the individual school board member who is the publisher of this newsletter and may not reflect the views of the Fairfax County School Board.

Web | Phone: 571-423-1090
Julie Shepard, Staff Aide, 571-423-1078