FCPS This Week - December 11, 2024
Tenth grade students work on a project in a science lab at Marshall High School.
🎓 Save the Date for 2025 Graduation!
The dates, times, and locations for FCPS graduation ceremonies in 2025 have been published.
Course Selection for Middle and High School Students
Beginning in January 2025, rising 7th-12th grade students meet with their counselors to discuss course selection for the next school year. Families are encouraged to actively participate in this important process.
As students choose courses, it is important for them to consider:
- Current academic strengths and habits.
- Graduation requirements (high school students).
- Interests and career and postsecondary goals.
- Personal well-being.
- Extracurricular activities and other commitments that may impact students’ time and energy.
School-life balance is an important consideration for students as they strive for academic and personal success. Families are welcome to contact their student’s school counselor with questions.
🎓 Graduation Requirements and Planning
Planning which courses to take next year — and in future years — must be given considerable thought. Students and families should review the Graduation Requirements and Course Planning webpage to make informed decisions while planning for success in high school and beyond.
The Program of Studies may also be helpful. Students and families should refer to their school’s website for their school-specific course catalog and course selection information.
🗓️ Save the Date: Academy Open Houses Begin in January
Is your child interested in architecture and construction, information technology, or health science? FCPS high school academies will hold open houses for interested students starting in January. Open houses are a great opportunity to visit classrooms and labs and speak with instructors and academy counselors.
An academy is a center within a high school that offers advanced technical and specialized courses designed to prepare students for postsecondary education and/or career fields. Academy elective courses provide students with a variety of career experiences, including shadowing, mentoring, or internships with local businesses. Students can explore more than a dozen career fields through FCPS academies!
Watch this video to learn more about academy programs. View the calendar of Academy Open Houses. For questions, email Bonnie Wannett.
✨ Availability of, accessibility to, and student enrollment in coursework in the arts, STEAM, career and technical education, trades, technology, and world languages is one measure of the FCPS Strategic Plan Goal 4: Equitable Access and Opportunity.
🐦 Student Develops Peer-to-Peer Mentoring Program
Cardinals Care for Cardinals — named for Cunningham Park Elementary School’s mascot — involves sixth grade student volunteers mentoring first grade students in various subjects, especially reading and math. The visits typically occur two or three days a week when the sixth graders are caught up on their schoolwork.
All it took to start Cardinals Care for Cardinals was one student with an idea and a slideshow presentation. A few months ago, sixth grader Ruth Gaffiney helped first graders log into their computers. After teachers commented on how helpful she was, she thought of a plan for a mentorship program. Read more about Cardinals Care for Cardinals.
👩🏫 Join Our Teacher Team!
Are you considering becoming an educator? Do you know someone who would be a great teacher? An in-person job fair for teachers and other instructional positions will be held on Saturday, December 14, 9 a.m.-noon, at Sandburg Middle School. There will be networking and interviewing opportunities with representatives from FCPS schools. Employment offers for the current school year may be presented during the fair.
Registration is required. Register to attend by Thursday, December 12.
Questions? Please contact the Department of Human Resources through their web portal or call 571-423-3000.
✨ Recruiting and retaining a diverse, adaptive, and supported workforce is Pillar C of the FCPS Strategic Plan.
💙 Principal Prioritizes Parent Program: Teaches English to Parents After School
Every Wednesday after school, a special class takes place at Fairfax High School. The students are parents, eager to learn a new language and skills to help them support their children’s education. Principal Georgina Aye is one of the dedicated teachers.
These classes are the heart of Fairfax High School’s Family Engagement Center, a vibrant space dedicated to empowering families and fostering a strong sense of community. Fairfax’s Family Engagement Center is building a bridge between families and the school, creating a shared space for learning, support, and community. Read more about the English literacy parent program.
✨ Building trusting partnerships between home and school is Pillar B of the FCPS Strategic Plan.
📍 Comprehensive Boundary Review Meeting Updates
As mentioned in Dr. Reid’s message to families on Monday evening, the Superintendent’s Boundary Review Advisory Committee met for the first time last Friday. The committee includes two parents/caregivers or community members from each of FCPS’ 24 high school pyramids, school-based and division administrators, teachers, operational staff, and other community representatives.
Each committee member’s unique perspective and insight are invaluable as we work together to follow a process that is transparent, includes significant community participation and feedback, and always keeps students at the center of every decision.
Visit the Superintendent’s Boundary Review Advisory Committee webpage to learn more about the committee and key takeaways from their first meeting.
Community Meetings on Comprehensive Boundary Review
If you have not already attended a Comprehensive Boundary Review Community Meeting, please consider attending one of the remaining events. If you are unable to attend an in-person meeting, stay tuned for details about virtual Community Meetings on Comprehensive Boundary Review coming early next year.
View FCPS’ Comprehensive Boundary Review webpage for information. Sign up for our School Boundary Review newsletter as well.
Dr. Reid Reflects on the Comprehensive Boundary Review Process
In the latest Weekly Reflections, Dr. Reid wrote about the meetings mentioned above. She stressed that no boundary changes have been proposed yet; we are only in the first phase of a review process that will continue until spring 2026.
Read more about the meetings and boundary review process in Weekly Reflections.
🌍 CARES Recipients Coordinate Cultural Exchange
FCPS CARES allows parents/caregivers, staff, and community members to recognize employees for going above and beyond to help others and show they care. Among the CARES of the Month recipients for October are French teachers Elaine Gonzalez from Chantilly High School and Jocelyne Smith from Westfield High School.
A Chantilly parent nominated them for working to bring 22 exchange students from France to the schools.
“We loved hosting the students, learning from them, and showing them our lives,” the parent said. “For my child and family to experience this was phenomenal. The teachers went above and beyond to make this an excellent experience.”
Other FCPS CARES of the Month recipients include:
- Tashima Bradshaw, Stonecroft Transportation
- Paula Prosper, Cooper Middle School
- Heather Murphy and Caroline Taylor, Thomas Jefferson Science and Technology High School
- Lawrence Cooper, West Potomac High School
- John Tourtellotte, Lake Braddock Secondary School
- Jessica Gregory, Hayfield Secondary School
Read about all the recipients.
📣 Every Voice Matters! Inclusive Schools Week
At the latest School Board Meeting, Dr. Reid spoke about inclusive activities at our schools, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and the Family Summit event and resource fair, which will take place on March 15, 2025. View her presentation slides.
✨ Equitable access and opportunity is Goal 4 of the FCPS Strategic Plan.
📆 Calendar Reminders
❄️ Winter Break (Student Holiday)
Winter break is Monday, December 23, 2025, through Friday, January 3, 2025. To help make sure you and your children have a restful break, we have asked that no homework be assigned during this time. Teachers may assign long-range assignments in the weeks before the break, allowing students to practice time management skills, but no assignments will be due immediately after the break.
Classes resume on Monday, January 6, 2025. See the complete school year calendar.
⛄ Winter Resources for Families
A list of resources has been compiled for students and families in case they or someone they know needs assistance while schools are closed for winter break. Please visit FCPS’ winter resources webpage for information on academic support, mental health support, and county resources related to food, clothing, housing, and other needs.
Even If School’s Closed, Learning Can Continue!
FCPS encourages students to take advantage of fun learning opportunities during winter break and snow days. Consider these winter activities to blend education and play for your students during winter break or weather-related school closures.
🗓️ Plan Ahead: Future School Year Calendars Are Available
Visit the calendar webpage for printable calendars of the current school year through 2026-27, lists of key dates, or to subscribe to calendars.
💻 Fairfax County Public Library Loans More Than Just Books
Need to borrow a Chromebook or internet hotspot? Borrow them — or other helpful items — for free from a Fairfax County Public Library. Dozens of items are available to check out from the Library of Things at no cost with your library card. Items such as artwork, binoculars, games, Conserve Energy Kits, early literacy Launchpad tablets, nature backpacks, and thermal cameras are available.
The library’s Family History Kits include everything you need to capture tales from the past and present such as a voice recorder, instructions, and interview prompts in English, Spanish, and Korean.
Visit your local Fairfax County Public Library branch or the Library of Things webpage for more information.
School Building Asbestos Management Plans Available for Public Review
Asbestos was discontinued in most building materials after 1977, and all schools constructed after 1986 should be asbestos-free. FCPS has worked to remove asbestos-containing building material during renovations of older schools.
Per federal requirements for all schools — even schools constructed after 1986 — an inspection for asbestos-containing building material is conducted each year, with an Asbestos Management Plan being maintained for the site.
FCPS has completed the required Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (A.H.E.R.A.) asbestos reinspection and surveillance of all school buildings for Fiscal Year 2024. Updated asbestos management plans for each building are available for review in the main office of every building during regular school hours.
