Superintendent's Weekly Reflections
Hello Team FCPS,
We are fast moving into the month of December ... I trust the Thanksgiving holiday weekend provided a joyful respite to each of you in your busy lives. As many of us traveled over the holidays, patience was certainly a must these past few days ;>) As I have had a bit more quiet time these past few days, I have had the opportunity to do some reading and reflecting. I really enjoyed rereading Oprah's recent text, The Wisdom of Sundays which includes one of my favorite of her quotes; "When you acknowledge and are grateful for whatever you have, it allows more to be drawn to you and changes the way you experience life." I continue to be so grateful for having the opportunity to serve you and this incredible community of students and families. Together, all things are possible...
Congratulations to FCPS alumnus Dale McCord for being named the 2024 Washington Commanders Fan of the Year! Dale attended Mantua Elementary, Frost Middle School, and Woodson High School. He was part of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing program and graduated in 2009.
According to the team announcement about his award, “Dale McCord has had Washington season tickets in his family since his grandpa first purchased them in 1981. He loves nothing more than tailgating and sharing his passion for the team with others. As a member of the deaf community, he strives to provide a more inclusive environment for Washington's fan base. In 2017, Dale was inducted into the Pro Football Ultimate Fan Association, becoming the first deaf member. Through this organization, he works to promote fellowship with all fan bases and support charitable organizations, like facilitating the inclusion of deaf and hard-of-hearing children at the Kids Tailgate Party held during Hall of Fame weekend. Dale has also served as a fan captain for the Commanders, working to provide closed captioning in the stadium and sign language interpreting during the National Anthem for the deaf and hard-of-hearing fans. Dale constantly spreads his love of the Commanders and has proven to be a quiet leader in promoting camaraderie with opposing teams, always accepting everyone with open arms.” Way to go, Dale! He received tickets to the 2025 Super Bowl and now has a chance to be named the National Fan of the Year. Thank you Principal Ellen Reilly for sharing this great news!! Also, great win today for the Commanders!!
Monday evening, I met with the newly created Military-Connected Youth Family Advisory Council. As someone who grew up in a military-connected household, I have a deep appreciation for those who have served and continue to serve in our armed forces. These meetings help identify and address unique challenges faced by military families, such as frequent relocations and deployments, by advocating for targeted resources and policies. By working together, we can create a more inclusive and supportive environment that benefits both military-connected students and the broader community. Many ideas were shared and plans made to support our military connected students.
Tuesday morning, I took a trip to Bailey’s Upper Elementary School to be a part of their Move with Compassion flash mob, a group dance that took place on the school’s playground and celebrated compassion and kindness. School Board members, Mr. Ilryong Moon and Dr. Ricardy Anderson, joined me in participating. Dance Teacher Becky Sorto choreographed and organized this exciting event, and the passion and talent of the students and staff was evident. Never has it been more important to move with kindness and compassion. In speaking with students, this purpose was clearly shared. Go Tigers!!
Later on Tuesday, I took part in the joint meeting between Fairfax County Government and FCPS. This meeting is when both groups, the county board of supervisors and our elected school board members, discuss their forecasts for the next fiscal year and set the stage for the upcoming budget cycle. I will present the FCPS Fiscal Year 2026 Proposed Budget on January 23, 2025, and the County Executive will release his Advertised Budget on February 18, 2025. You can see the slides from the presentation online.
This week in Advancing Literacy, I’d like to extend kudos to our many elementary schools who have hosted Literacy Nights for families! Thank you to our schools and staff for finding fun and educational ways to partner with families on these important foundational skills for our students; this work matters.
I hear that the event at Bonnie Brae Elementary School was very well attended this year! Kids came in pajamas to a camping themed event featuring math stations in the cafeteria and reading stations in the gym. There were tents and (paper!) bonfires decorating the space. Students earned stickers for activities including performing plays, practicing writing skills, and making reading guides to help with comprehension. The event was organized by the creative Jessica Warr, a music teacher, along with a team of specialists, coaches, teachers, and a student teacher from George Mason. Their work and collaboration obviously paid off — thank you for helping kindle ;>) a love of reading in our young learners! Go Scotties!!
And thank you to all our staff across FCPS who are finding innovative and creative ways to bring our Benchmark Advance curriculum to life. Be sure to send your recent literacy activities my way so that I can share them in an upcoming Advancing Literacy segment. Go Team FCPS!!
To continue our dialogue about the new Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) 2024 Accountability System, I want to take just a moment to focus on chronic absenteeism as a part of school accountability. A student is considered chronically absent when they miss 10% or more of their enrolled days in the school year for any reason – that’s only two days a month. A school’s chronic absenteeism rate is measured by calculating the percentage of students chronically absent out of all enrolled students in each school. Chronic absenteeism is one of only two areas of the School Performance and Support Framework (SPSF) common across elementary, middle, and high schools. Knowing the impact of chronic absenteeism on student engagement and academic achievement, the VDOE currently allows schools to help students recover missed hours through a program called in-person flexible instructional time. While make-up hours are not a direct replacement for missed instruction, they can offer students an important opportunity for additional practice and teacher support. The VDOE has requested that in-person flexible instructional time be allowed to adjust chronic absenteeism calculations for SPSF. This request is currently pending a decision from the U.S. Education Department.
For fall 2025 SPSF accountability reporting, chronic absenteeism will make up 10% of overall framework points for elementary and middle schools and 5% of overall framework points for high schools. The strategies combating chronic absenteeism that I shared in the November 14 School Board Academic Matters presentation will support our schools in addressing the state’s accountability expectations. Thank you for all that each of you are doing to support our students regularly attending school. This work matters!!
Our next Boundary Review community meetings will be held on Monday, December 2, 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Westfield High School, and on Tuesday, December 3, 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Lake Braddock Secondary School. I encourage you to attend a meeting in your region to learn more about the boundary review process and provide input. If you are unable to attend your region's meeting, you may attend another. All meetings are in person and will follow the same format. Registration is not required but does help us plan. You can also sign up to receive the School Boundary Review newsletter by email. I look forward to seeing you there; this work matters.
And so, as I am contemplating the coming days, I came across this quote and am reminded of its power for us today … “When you know who you are; when your mission is clear and you burn with the inner fire of unbreakable will; no cold can touch your heart; no deluge can dampen your purpose. You know that you are alive.” -- Chief Seattle (1780-1866) Leader Of The Suquamish and Duwamish Native American Tribes. I trust that each of you will experience a joyful and abundant week ahead and I look forward to seeing you in the coming weeks. What an amazing journey we are on ...
Take good care,
Michelle Reid, Ed.D.
Superintendent
Fairfax County Public Schools
