Karen Corbett Sanders' Newsletter
Dear Families,
Yesterday the Board received updates from the Superintendent on return to school plans and preliminary metrics for returning to in person learning. Although pleased that more details were provided to the Board, there were lots of questions about how to ensure that the experience in the fall is significantly better for our families than the spring. Particular focus was on the reliability of the technology, network security and privacy, professional development for our teachers and school based staff, engaging students, and ensuring that we have the tools in place to ensure that our students are able to excel in the virtual environment.
Increased resources will be made available for our families in the virtual environment including a help line for parents and students to access technology supports and interpreter services for staff to speak with parents in languages other than English. Tip sheets for supporting student's virtual learning and on demand videos will also be made available this week. Additionally, supports for social emotional and mental health will be available. The materials for the work session can be found on BoardDocs.
Frequently asked questions on the return to school plan can be found at: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The Superintendent also provided his initial thoughts on the metrics that we asked for at the end of July. Although not as detailed as we had initially hoped for, the preliminary metrics provide the beginnings of a framework by which decisions will be made to return to virtual learning when instances of Covid 19 occur in a school. However, the Superintendent laid out his plans for bringing back small cohorts of students at the end of September. The cohorts will be divided into three groups and phased in at two week increments. With this approach, the Superintendent is confident that he will be able increase the numbers of students over time in the safest possible manner, taking into account the 8 metrics that have been laid out by the Virginia Department of Health on the safe reopening of our economy.
The groups that will initially be brought back are Group 1: Preschool Autism and Preschool class-based students, English learners with limited and/or interrupted formal education, and limited Adult and Community Education classes including ESOL, work force training and behind the wheel; Group 2: Key Center and Kilmer Center students, Secondary and Elementary and Elementary students that access the adapted curriculum, elementary comprehensive services sites, newcomer English learners and PreK and Kindergarten Students; Group 3 will include First and Second Grade students and the Burke School elementary school students.
Board members requested that the Superintendent prioritize our special education students to begin earlier and to ensure that the Academy Programs in which many of our students achieve industry certifications and work force readiness skills.
The 8 metrics identified by the Virginia Department of Health include: 1) the number of new Covid-19 cases per 100,000 population; 2) the percentage of tests that are positive (PCR test percent positivity); 3) Rate of Covid-19 outbreaks; 4) Percent of Covid-19 cases among healthcare workers; 5) Rate of emergency department visits for coronavirus like illnesses; 6) Rate of confirmed Convid-19 intensive care unit hospitalizations; 7) Percent of hospital beds currently occupied; and 8) number of hospital’s reporting trouble acquiring personal protective equipment. The specific health metrics for opening our buildings based on health metrics will be detailed further in the coming weeks.
Specifics were provided on the operational metrics that will need to be in place to transition to a hybrid learning model and those necessary for returning to 100% in person learning. The availability of health professionals, PPE, classroom staff, custodial and food and nutrition staff, and transportation needs were laid out. The Superintendent will be updating the board on a regular basis on the status of the metrics.
The Superintendent reviewed the plans for our special education students. Frameworks for our class based early childhood and pre-school autism classrooms, public day and career center programs and general curriculum expectations were provided. Additionally information on how related services, instructional supports, procedural supports and parent training were provided. The Board expressed concerns about the timeframe for teacher check ins with parents (and requested a weekly check in for the first quarter), the need to ensure evaluations of the impact of the closure on students, availability of speech, language and occupational therapy. Additionally, the Board requested that professional development be provided to ensure general education classrooms are inclusive of our special education students in a virtual environment and students are provided executive functioning and digital citizenship training. Supports for our Special Education Community can be accessed through these links:
The Superintendent also announced that having heard from the community and the Board, he is working with the County Executive to obtain the resources to waive middle and high school technology fees. Additionally, FCPS will be launching a help desk for parents, developing a portal to allow our older students to request technology help directly and developing methods for students to manage their Blackboard Collaborate/Google Meet class links in their Google Calendar.
I hope your families stay safe and healthy during this difficult time.
Karen
Dr. Brabrand Return to School Town Halls Scheduled
Superintendent Brabrand will host Return to School Town Halls for the FCPS community each Wednesday beginning August 12 through September 2. The events will be livestreamed on the FCPS website and available on FCPS Cable TV Channel 99. Email questions to ReturntoSchool@fcps.edu before the Town Halls, or call 1-800-231-6359 during the events to ask questions “on the air.” Town halls will be held from 6-7 p.m. Recordings will be posted on the FCPS website.
The latest FCPS information on Return to School can be seen here:
Return to School
Return to School - Frequently Asked Questions for Families
Distance Learning Plan Supports for Students with Disabilities
FCPS Student Health and Safety Guidance document published August 5.
Do You Have A Rising 7th Grade Student?
If yes, a Tdap (Tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis) booster is required for all students entering seventh grade. Seventh grade students cannot begin school in September without documentation of the Tdap booster.
Parents or guardians should ask their private healthcare provider, or the health department, to review their student's immunization record to ensure that their student has received the Tdap booster. Students who have received a Tdap booster at age seven or older will meet the school immunization requirement for Tdap and will not need another dose prior to entering seventh grade.
Virginia Autism Council Offers Free Lunch Webinar Series
The Virginia Autism Council (VAC) is offering a free webinar series on supports and services, transportation, trauma and resilience oriented care, communication with first responders, and a review of the 2021 VAC skills competencies. These free seminars are held from noon to 1:30 p.m. on the third Wednesday of each month. The next seminar is scheduled for Wednesday, August 19, and will focus on navigating supports and services.
SAT/ACT Tests
We are pleased to announce that FCPS will cover the cost of the SAT School Day for any twelfth grade student who wishes to test on Wednesday, September 23. In this unprecedented time, we are making access to this test a priority for our division, and we encourage all of our seniors to take advantage of this opportunity as part of their college and career preparation. Schools will share registration information for the September 23 test date in the coming weeks once details are finalized.
Additionally, we are excited to share that we are moving forward with plans to host the PSAT/NMSQT test for all juniors in October. FCPS will cover the cost for the PSAT/NMSQT for any interested eleventh grade student. Additional details about the specific test date and registration process will be shared by schools in September. We will also look ahead to the spring to offer our tenth grade students the opportunity to take the PSAT, and we will share additional information as we get closer to that time.
The August 29 SAT test will occur at several FCPS high schools and preparation is in the works for weekend testing options for SAT and ACT throughout the 2020-21 school year. Registration for these weekend tests is available directly through ACT and College Board. Changes based on health conditions for future SAT or ACT weekend tests throughout the 2020-21 school year will be communicated directly to registered students by ACT or by the College Board for the SAT.
Free online test preparation is available at the following links: Khan Academy Official SAT Practice and ACT Academy. We encourage our rising seniors to carefully review the admissions criterion for the colleges on their lists, as many colleges are adjusting requirements for ACT or SAT. School counselors and career center specialists will be available in mid-August to discuss postsecondary planning with students and their families.
FCPS Message About Tutoring Pods
Across the country, many parents are joining together to engage private tutors (who are often schoolteachers) to provide tutoring or home instruction for small groups of children. While there is no systematic way to track these private efforts, it’s clear that a number of “pandemic pods” or tutoring pods are being established in Fairfax County. I am happy to see our families being creative and supporting each other during this time. I know it is really difficult to balance work and family life in the best of circumstances and now having school run virtually, scheduling is even harder. FCPS is aware of these tutoring pods and put this information on the website. These instructional efforts are not supported by or in any way controlled by FCPS—for several reasons. Read more.
Donate to "Collect for Kids" and provide school supplies for students!
With school starting virtually in the fall, there is even more need for all students to have basic school supplies at home in order to participate fully in class. The Foundation for FCPS is raising funds to purchase school supply kits that will be provided to the nearly 60,000 students who may not be able to afford to purchase their own.
A $50 contribution to Collect for Kids will provide school supplies for 5 students. Please help us make sure all students have what they need to be creative, and successful, in school. Thank you!
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Teachers Time and Classrooms
Teachers will be allowed to provide virtual instruction from their classrooms at school, if they so choose. We will be surveying teachers to determine how many would be interested in doing so. Any teacher who requests to teach students virtually from school will be required to complete training courses and also complete a health screening questionnaire each day. I am glad teachers will have access to their supplies and materials—this will be particularly good for teachers of lab subjects and other more hands-on experiences.
Superintendent’s Technology Advisory Council Submits Final Report and Recommendations
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) announced the submission of the final report and recommendations by the Superintendent’s Technology Advisory Council (the Council). The final report and road map of actional next steps stem from the collective work of the co-chairs and workstream committees over the past three months and aggregates the Council’s collective thinking and best practices around the role of technology in underpinning FCPS’ ongoing focus. The recommendations are categorized into near-term, mid-term, and long-term time horizons aligned to each of the Council’s seven workstream areas.
The Technology Advisory Council was composed of a diverse group of 27 members, including many of the nation’s and region’s most prominent leaders across technology, education, and business, as well as FCPS School Board officials and administrators, academia, teachers, and students.
“It’s been our honor to serve FCPS, its students, and our community by establishing a foundation for success with a road map for the future,” said Greg Baroni, Chairman and CEO, Attain, and Co-Chair of the FCPS Superintendent’s Technology Advisory Council. “We know that FCPS is a model district on so many levels, and these comprehensive recommendations will help ensure that the school system is at the forefront of the technology curve.”
A full listing of Council members can be found online.
The Council’s final report is available online.
Support Staff
The Superintendent is working hard to effectively deploy our support staff (bus drivers, cafeteria workers, technicians, etc.) during the period in which students will be learning virtually. These staff members will assist with tasks like laptop distribution, family engagement, maintenance, etc. As we are able to transition to having students in our schools, they will be redeployed to their usual work assignments. There are no furloughs of FCPS staff planned at this time.
Facilities
The Department of Facilities is in the process of completing air flow assessments in nearly all schools and centers and will report back to the School Board upon completion of this effort. Schools are designed to ventilate outdoor air throughout the day to reduce the buildup of pollutants and odors. Maintenance staff conduct routine and preventative maintenance on all mechanical, electrical, HVAC, and plumbing systems – including replacing air filters. In areas where an indoor air quality concern is identified we use high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) fan/filtration systems to enhance air cleaning.
Additionally, FCPS participation in the ENERGY STAR program requires that buildings be tested for proper ventilation, certified as passing ventilation rate requirements by a Professional Engineer who both signs and stamps the application to indicate their testing, and then the data is reviewed and independently certified by the Environmental Protection Agency. We have been, and continue to be, a leader in the nation for the number of schools certified as Energy Star schools (operating within the top 25% energy efficient in their building class).
Although we are seeing some savings in heating and air conditioning costs and fuel costs for buses, we are also seeing increased costs in cleaning supplies and decreased revenue in community use and purchased lunches. Other departmental costs are increased due to purchases of computers, virtual learning software, increased translation costs, etc.
Bell Schedule Update: Returning to Pre-closure Schedules
The bell schedule for virtual learning will more closely resemble the start and end times of our schools’ 2019-20 bell schedules before the school closure. The goal is to provide as much of a sense of normalcy in our daily schedule as possible in this most unusual of circumstances. We are able to follow these schedules in a virtual environment because we are not required to limit capacity on our buses and thus adjust bus schedules in the virtual environment.
- The virtual high school day will be from 8:10 a.m. – 2:55 p.m.
- Secondary schools will follow the high school schedule.
- Middle school day will be from 7:30 a.m. – 2:15 p.m.
- The bell schedule for elementary schools varies.
- Individual schools will share the specific start and end times of instruction for their elementary students.
Full Day Fully Virtual Elementary Schedule - Sample
Full Day Fully Virtual Middle School Schedule (Grades 6-8 or 7-8)
Full Day Fully Virtual Secondary and High School Schedule (Grades 7-12 or 9-12)
Although, there has been some talk about changing the middle school start times for the virtual environment, the decision was made to maintain the current schedule to allow for an easier transition back to in person learning.
Virginia High School League Announces Sports and Activities Plan for 2020-21
The Virginia High School League (VHSL) Executive Committee, met on July 27, and voted to move forward with Model 3 that delays all VHSL sports and activities until December 14.
Model 3 – Condensed Interscholastic Plan:
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Season 1 (Winter) December 14 to February 20 (First Contest Date–December 28): Basketball, Gymnastics, Indoor Track, Swim/Dive, Wrestling.
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Season 2 (Fall) February 15 to May 1 (First Contest Date–March 1): Cheer, Cross Country, Field Hockey, Football, Golf, Volleyball.
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Season 3 (Spring) April 12 to June 26 (First Contest Date–April 26): Baseball, Lacrosse, Soccer, Softball, Tennis, Track and Field.
More information is available on the VHSL website. Marching band season has been postponed. If students are able to return to school this fall or winter, we will consider possible marching band performance opportunities that do not conflict with the concert band assessments.
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
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