Stella Pekarsky's Newsletter

Dear Sully District Families,

Happy Fourth of July! Please enjoy this special musical tribute performed by my husband, a National Symphony violinist, and my son, a 2020 Westfield HS grad:

https://youtu.be/uHt-ZPasQNI

The past few weeks have been difficult and I have appreciated you sharing your thoughts, questions, and concerns. I have received hundreds of emails. Please know I read every email I receive, but it is taking me extra time to respond individually to all of them. There are many questions I cannot yet answer, but these are sent to FCPS to incorporate into their communications. For immediate help, you can always contact me via phone: 571-253-4522. 

The Superintendent sent an enrollment letter about the options available to students this fall. A copy of this enrollment letter was also sent by the U.S. mail. We encourage families to choose their option based on health and safety concerns rather than on the availability of course or program options. School schedules, available courses, and participation in school activities may be limited in either option. However, both options will meet all state standards of learning and graduation requirements.

I realize the decision that the Superintendent has presented to our families and staff between a hybrid in-school and an all-virtual option is a hard one. Neither is perfect and neither meets 100% of everyone’s needs. Both have many unknowns and details yet to be figured out and presented to families. Staff is working to answer as many questions as possible before the July 10th deadline so that you can make informed decisions. Updated information will be shared frequently here: 

https://www.fcps.edu/return-school/return-school-questions-and-answers. 

I have been asked frequently “how do you even begin to plan and make decisions for next year?” My answer is that I try to evaluate all options based upon the following: 1) safety of our students and staff is the number #1 priority. 2) in-person school is the most effective learning environment for kids 3) all decisions have to be made with the best available data and in accordance with medical advice and expertise. 4) ensure our families and staff have as much flexibility as possible to make the choices that are right for them 5) be flexible and prepared to respond if there is a resurgence of disease in our immediate communities. 

Dr. Brabrand will be holding another Town Hall Meeting on Monday, July 6 at 6:30 pm and will be prepared to answer as many of your questions as possible. 

On July 1, Virginia moved into Phase 3 with less restrictions as our state’s COVID hospitalization rates have fallen and our percentage of positive tests continue to trend downward. In some states, this has resulted in increasing numbers of positive tests and hospitalizations. Please know that if there is a resurgence of the COVID-19 in Virginia that requires a closure of schools, all students would participate in online distance learning. 

Please join Drainsville District Representative Elaine Tholen and me for a Town Hall discussion on July 28th, 7-8:30pm. You can access the link HERE: or paste the link below into your browser:

https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/78dc00ba622f47f8a3aac14d64849d76

Thank you for your continued patience,  

Stella

Welcome To Our New Principal!

Andrew Blount, who currently serves as assistant principal at Centreville Elementary, has been named the new principal for Greenbriar West Elementary, effective Monday, July 6. Congratulations to Mr. Blount and the Greenbriar West community! 

School Board Selects Centreville HS Student as Recipient of 2020 Character Award

Daniela Pereira Flores, a 2020 graduate of Centreville High School, has been selected as the recipient of the 2020 Fairfax County School Board Character Award.  

Flores is recognized by nominators as “a tremendous source of hope and inspiration for the Centreville High School community. Daniela immigrated to the United States and initially struggled to adapt. She did not speak any English and left behind her friends, family, and community. Daniela worked hard, and became stronger, more independent, ambitious, and persistent through her immigrant experience.” She is praised for her dedication and persistence that enabled her to advance from ESOL (English for speakers of other languages) classes in middle school to earning As in honors and Advanced Placement English classes in high school. A nominator says, “… she embraces rigor, works incredibly hard to gain new skills, and is tireless in her pursuit of knowledge and academic success.” At Centreville, she works with students individually and in groups in the ESOL department to support them in their education and to help them locate resources. 

Flores is also praised for her involvement in the community. She is a regular volunteer at the Latina SciGirls Program, the Hispanic College Institute, and the Word of Life International Church. She has donated her time and skills to support the Centreville Immigration Center and the Consulate of Guatemala; she is also completing an internship at the Immigrants First PLLC in Manassas. Flores has also been selected to participate in the Jennifer Wexton High School Leadership Program and the Hispanic College Institute Leadership Program at Virginia Tech.

The award was established by the Student Advisory Council in 2001 and is given to a junior or senior who demonstrates a continuous record of high morals, strong integrity, and good character, and who is recognized as a role model for students in Fairfax County Public Schools. The Apple Federal Credit Union Education Foundation has funded the $500 award since 2007. 

Fifty-One Schools Recognized With 2020 Highest Achievement, Continuous Improvement Awards from State Board of Education

The Virginia Board of Education recognized 51 Fairfax County public schools for high student achievement or continuous improvement under the board’s exemplar performance school recognition program. The awards are based on performance and practice during 2018-19 and prior years.

Schools recognized for highest achievement were Accredited during 2019-20 (based on performance data from 2018-19) and demonstrated high levels of success across all of school quality indicators, including success in narrowing achievement gaps. Schools also had to meet the Level One accreditation benchmark for reading, mathematics, and science based on the student pass rate, not including growth or progress on assessments taken by English language learners. Schools must also have had no more than a 5 percent achievement gap—for schools with two student groups, or a 10 percent gap—for schools with three or more student groups—between the lowest-performing group and all other students in the school. In addition, schools must have achieved at Level One on all other applicable school quality indicators.

Continuous Improvement Awards were presented to 375 schools statewide, based on the following criteria: Schools recognized for continuous improvement were rated Accredited or Accredited with Conditions for 2019-20 and met at least one of the following four criteria based on performance during 2018-19:

• A 10-point increase in the combined rate in reading and math, and in the pass rate in science;
• A 10-point increase in the combined rate in reading and math for two or more student groups across three years;
• A decrease in the chronic absenteeism rate for three years; or
• For schools with a graduating class, an increase in the Graduation and Completion Index and a decrease in the dropout rate for three years.

VDOE Continuous Improvement Awards were presented to 47 Fairfax County schools, including Chantilly High, Cub Run Elementary, Navy Elementary, Rocky Run Middle, and Westfield High.

The Board of Education approved the criteria for the exemplar performance awards in April 2018. The recognition program is aligned with the board’s accreditation standards and replaced the Virginia Index of Performance recognition program.

Free Summer Learning Opportunities

FCPS is offering free optional virtual opportunities this summer to support student learning throughout the summer months. (Due to building closures face-to-face summer learning opportunities are cancelled.) Click HERE to learn more. 

Free courses are offered in:

Mathematics and Literacy Continuity of Learning (Grades K-8)

Mathematics and English Continuity of Learning (Grades 9 - 12)

i-Ready (Grades K - 6)

Fine Arts Summer Learning Program (K-12)

Middle School Value in Prevention (VIP) (7-9)

Tech Adventure Camp at Home (2-7)

Language Arts and Math Essentials Summer Practice Books

Language Arts and Math Essentials Summer Practice Books will be mailed home to FCPS students enrolled in grades K-8 during the 2019-20 school year. Books will be mailed to all families enrolled as of June 12, including those families opting out of receiving printed distance learning packets. Practice books will begin arriving on June 26. The books are currently posted to the FCPS 24/7 Learning Distance Learning Support site for staff. The ESOL and special education offices are also developing practice books that will be mailed to select elementary, middle, and high school students and posted to FCPS 24/7.

New students registering after June 12 will not receive books in the mail. Please email the files and/or print the books for new families at your school as needed. Practice books can be printed from the following folders in FCPS 24/7 Learning: elementary, middle school, ESOL high school.  

Universal Screener

FCPS Plan for Return to School

At their June 23 meeting, the Fairfax County School Board agreed on a plan to offer students and staff a choice in how they return to school in August.  Parents were sent an enrollment letter so that they can state their preference.

The plan offers families two choices: 

• Full-time online instruction. Students will take part in virtual, face to face instruction four days a week.  Details.

• Students will receive at least two full days of instruction in school each week. Students will be engaged in independent study and work on the days they are not in the school building.  Details. 

One day each week will be set aside for teacher planning and extra support for some students.

Reopening Schools Plan - Full-time Online Instruction

The Reopening Schools Plan offers families the option of a full-time online instruction as a replacement to in-person instruction within FCPS school buildings. Family decisions to participate in this model are made based primarily on concerns about the potential for virus exposure with attendance at a school site. This option is available for any family with the commitment to continue full-time online instruction for the entire school year. If health conditions improve that would allow FCPS to resume in-person instruction for all students, the division will reassess its operating status and any additional options for families at that time.

Schedules 

This model involves four days per week of teacher-directed/synchronous instruction and one day per week of independent/asynchronous learning. Students taking courses through this full-time online model are likely to have larger class sizes than their peers taking the same course in-person with social distancing at the school. Specific schedules for online instruction will be finalized and communicated in mid-August 2020, as family intent forms are collected and processed, allowing schools to assign students to specific classes.

Reopening Schools Plan - In-Person Instruction with Social Distancing

The Reopening Schools Plan offers families the option of in-person instruction in FCPS school buildings with social distancing protocols, per the current CDC and VDH guidance. In this model, students attend classes at their school a minimum of two days per week, with additional days offered as feasible based on health and safety guidelines. Students are automatically enrolled for in-person instruction if their families do not submit their preferred instructional model by July 10, 2020.

Social Distancing

FCPS building access is limited in accordance with health and safety guidelines, and visitor access is restricted. Six-foot separation is maintained whenever possible for both staff and students, and efforts are in place to limit mixing groups of students. Buses enact new capacity limits and seating guidelines, per health and safety expectations.

Schedules 

To ensure students and staff can meet physical distancing requirements, instructional delivery under this model requires a reduced schedule of in-person learning. Students participate in virtual learning on days when they are not present in a school building. This structure involves a rotating day schedule for in-person and virtual instruction with groups of students attending at their school on assigned days each week. The example schedule below illustrates how it might look to serve half of the students at the school on Tuesdays and Thursdays and the other half at the school on Wednesdays and Fridays. Students who are not attending in-person on any given day participate in asynchronous online learning, using digital curriculum resources and instructional tasks assigned by their teachers.   

For more information, click HERE.

School Board Considers 2021-22 Calendar with Four Additional Religious Holidays

The Fairfax County School Board is considering a 2021-22 Standard School Year Calendar that was developed with a focus on instruction and learning for students and includes four religious observance holidays.  Two options for the 2021-22 school year were presented to the Board at its business meeting on June 18.

Prior to taking action on the 2021-22 calendar, the Board plans to gather feedback from families and staff members via a survey that has been sent to every family. Final action on the calendar is scheduled for July 23.

Version A has the school year beginning on Monday, August 23, 2021, and ending on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Four religious holidays would be observed: Rosh Hashanah on September 7, 2021; Yom Kippur on September 16, 2021; Diwali on November 4, 2021; and Eid  al Fitr on May 3, 2022. Thanksgiving holiday would run from November 24-26, 2021; winter break is designated for December 20-31, 2021. Spring break would run from April 11-15, 2022. Nine teacher workdays are built into Version A, and seven professional development days are included in Version A.

Version B has the school year beginning on Monday, August 23, 2021, and ending on Friday, June 17, 2022. It has an additional student holiday designated on Monday, October 11 paired with a professional development day-student holiday on October 12; otherwise, it is identical to Version A with the same holidays, breaks, and teacher workdays.

A draft of Version A of the 2021-22 Standard School Year Calendar.
A draft of Version B of the 2021-22 Standard School Year Calendar.

Upcoming School Board Meetings

Special Electronic Forum Topic - Thursday, July 9, 2020 at 3 pm

Special Electronic Regular  Meeting - Thursday, July 9, 2020 at 3:30 pm

Special Electronic Work Session - Monday, July 14 at 1:30 pm

Special Electronic Lee HS Renaming Community Meeting - Wednesday, July 15 at 4:00 pm

Special Electronic Public Hearing - Renaming Lee HS - Wednesday, July 22 at 4 pm

Special Electronic Forum Topic - Thursday, July 23, 2020 at 3 pm

Special Electronic Regular  Meeting - Thursday, July 23, 2020 at 3:30 pm

For agenda, handouts and virtual meeting access, click here.

Members of the public are welcome to attend virtually via at https://www.fcps.edu/tv/ch99.

For latest updates from FCPS regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, please click HERE. 

As always, the safety of our students, teachers, and staff is our top priority. If I can be of assistance in any way, please do not hesitate to call me at 571-253-4522.

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.

© 2020 Fairfax County Public Schools, Fairfax County, Virginia

E-mail: Stella Pekarsky |  Phone: 571-423-1085

Lisa Madeja, Executive Admin Assistant, 571-423-1055, emadeja@fcps.edu