Eventful October

Dear Dranesville Families:

It has been a busy month for me with extra work sessions, visiting classes and talking to families, principals, and PTA leaders.  As the board works with staff on Return to School plans, we must continue to work on the School Board’s regular business such as developing a Virginia and federal  legislative agenda; evaluating the recommendations made during the May expert review of our  Advanced Academic Program; and preparing for next year’s budget.  For Dranesville specifically, I am working with staff to prepare our boundary study materials and community meetings. The goal is to move some students out of McLean HS by fall of 2021.  As soon as information is available, I will share it.

Plans for returning to our school buildings are in the forefront of all of our minds.I have talked to many families through my office hours and emails. I  cannot thank you enough for the work you are doing to help our students succeed in their virtual classrooms, and all the news articles, scientific journal citations and materials from other school districts that you are sending me.  I know for many of you, virtual learning has taken schedule adjustments, work changes and additional expenses. You have worked closely with your school based staff to make the best of a situation that is far from perfect.  Please keep sharing your family’s experiences and all of the information coming.

I again applaud our principals, teachers, and all school based staff for working hours and hours to make virtual learning the best experience possible. I was fortunate to have recent visits to classrooms at Herndon MS, Longfellow MS, Langley HS, McLean HS, Colvin Run ES, and Franklin Sherman ES. I was so impressed by all the methods the teachers were using to keep students engaged and the students seemed to be doing well.  (All I can say is I am glad to not be learning BC Calculus right now--I’d need some serious brush up to succeed in that class! I’ll stick to Algebra!) I am ‘meeting’ with all of our Dranesville principals to catch up on school specific issues and successes.  I purposely let them have the early part of the school year to concentrate on getting virtual learning up and running.  

I am so proud of our school staff for the outstanding job they have done to reach out to every student.  The overall number of students who are not engaging in virtual school is very low.  Staff have been texting using our new Talking Points App in many languages, and occasionally, staff  have gone to student homes to check on them.  For example, when I last talked with Herndon MS, they had just a handful of students they had not reached. 

A huge thank you to the Safe Community Coalition for co-hosting our first set of PTA leader connection meetings on October 19.  Lots of great ideas were shared among these school leaders.  Thanks to all who participated.  We will meet with Herndon ES leaders on Oct 26th. During these meetings, Douglas Tyson, our Region 1 Assistant Superintendent, announced that a set of guidelines for schools and organizations such as PTAs and Boosters to run events outside on school grounds is coming soon. Join your school’s PTA/PTSA/PTO to connect with families, help your school, and learn the latest information regarding physical PTA/PTO events first.

Thanks again for all the work you are doing for your family, for our schools, and our community during this time of COVID. Be well, and please wear a mask and maintain social distance.  We need to keep our numbers low and falling so that we can safely move our children into the schools.

Elaine 

Contacting Me:

Office Hours:  I hold office hours each Wednesday morning and have slots  available through December.  If you would like to have a 15 minute phone call with me, please sign up here.   

Email me here. I read the emails I get. Due to the volume of email I receive, I fully admit I do not get to respond to all of them in a personal or timely manner.  Please be assured that your views are being heard. 

Return to School Plans and the 10/15 School Board Work Session

Here is the most recent information from the 10/15  School Board Work Session where the Superintendent and staff presented an update on Return to School plans (To watch the 10/15 Return to School Report Work Session click here.). Because this was a Work Session, the Board didn't have formal votes, but rather, provided “consensus” to guide the Superintendent’s work.

Here are two of the major topics we discussed:

• Proceeding with a pilot of concurrent learning with up to 13 schools,and the Superintendent will bring an interim report to the Board on November 12.  
• I advocated for  discussions  with teachers to see how this will work and how much planning and training time this will take.   
• I advocated to not vote on this plan one way or the other until we had this experience and data to inform our decisions.  
• Proposed timeline
• We agreed to returning students in Group 5 on Nov 16, and Group 6 no later than Nov 30. (see table below for Cohort definitions) 
• The board asked the Superintendent to re-look at groups 7 and 8 to determine the best timeline for those students. 

•  I advocated for beginning, as soon as possible, some social distanced, outdoor activities for cohorts of students in groups 7 and 8. I am hearing from so many families and students themselves how badly this is needed. 

Please note that groups 1 through 6 represent small cohorts of students that will not mix with other students throughout the day.  Groups 7 and 8 (grade 3 thru high school) move between classes through the day.  That is a big step forward beyond cohort learning and has inherent increased risks.  We will need to see good community health metrics and little if any COVID cases from the in-person teaching of groups 1 to 6 before we can move forward with in-person teaching of groups 7 and 8. 

To watch Dr. Brabrand’s 10/19/20 Return to School Town Hall please click here.

Upcoming School Board Meetings

• Regular Meeting - October 22, 7 p.m. (Virtual)

• Work Session - October 27, 11 a.m. (Virtual) AAP Study Responses and School Year 2021-22 Calendar
• Work Session - October 29, 4 p.m. (Virtual) Program Budget

How to Watch Meetings

• Livestream: Meetings can be live streamed  here.
• Recordings of Meetings: Meetings are recorded and available here.

2020 FCPS Virtual College Week

This year, FCPS will host a Virtual College Week from today through Friday, October 23, 2020.  This event will feature two live virtual sessions each evening starting at 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. During these sessions, FCPS students and families will be provided an opportunity to meet virtually with subject-matter experts and ask questions about college admissions. Students and their families must register here to attend any of the sessions. Here is a flyer with detailed information.

School Counselors, Psychologists, and Social Workers Are Ready and Willing to Help

As you and your family deal with virtual learning and changes as we progress through this school year, school counselors, psychologists, and social workers are here and ready to support you. These professionals work with students in a variety of different capacities, whether through virtual classroom lessons, groups, individual counseling, or connection with community resources to provide support in the areas of social-emotional learning, academics, and college and career planning. College and career planning is also supported by the college and career specialists in each FCPS high school.

Contact information for your student’s school counselor, social worker, psychologist, and college and career specialist (high school only) are available on your school's website under Student Services, found by clicking on the Full Menu button on the toolbar on the upper left side.

Old Firehouse Learning Connection

The Old Firehouse Center is offering a new program! Old Firehouse Learning Connection is a supervised e-learning program held at the Old Firehouse Center, supervised by our staff, designed for students in 5th -10th grades Tuesday - Friday from 7 am to 5 pm.. The sessions run for 4 weeks. There are spots available in their 11/20 and 12/20 sessions. The program will provide a supervised environment for students to complete their school led virtual instruction. Staff will provide limited socially distant recreation opportunities for students during their breaks. Program waivers, participant contracts and additional information will be sent to all registered participants prior to the start of the program.

Registration is open now. See all the details here or  call 703 448 8336.

TJHSST Admissions

Based on feedback from the October 6 Fairfax County School Board work session, Superintendent Brabrand will present a revised admissions process proposal for TJHSST in November. The date is still to be determined.

Where are we now?

The revised Superintendent’s proposal eliminates the admissions test, teacher recommendations, and application fee. It requires that student applicants meet the minimum requirements including a 3.5 GPA (grade point average) in core classes, enrollment in Algebra I, residency in Fairfax County or a participating jurisdiction, a Student Portrait Sheet (formerly the Student Information Sheet) with a section on experience factors, and a questionnaire-problem-solving essay. Experience factors are personal circumstances that potentially impact a student’s education experience, such as special education, English language learner, economically disadvantaged, and enrollment in an underrepresented FCPS school. 

As a result of the Oct 8 discussion, the following consensus issues are being worked on for the November meeting:

• The School Board reached consensus that the TJHSST admissions tests and application fee should be eliminated. 
• With TJ at 84% capacity, look at increasing the number of freshman that would be admitted;
• Bring an approach that considers the applicant pool by pyramid and middle school; 
• Present a holistic admissions process that considers lottery and non-lottery options; 
• Explain how each process proposed will get at a student’s aptitude and proficiency in STEM and potential success at TJ;
• Initiate the revised admissions process timeline for the Class of 2025 to begin no later than the end of January 2021. 

I also advocated for additional public engagement in this process.  I do feel that the outreach to date has been one-sided and did not solicit input from all of our communities.  Unfortunately, this motion did not pass at the Oct. 8 meeting. I have tried hard to speak with many families and groups to hear varying perspectives.  I must say my hardest conversations were with current 8th graders that were ready to apply to TJ through the process they were expecting.  

I will also be advocating moving forward for a strategic view of all of our STEM programming to ensure that we are providing opportunities for all of our students to grow a passion and proficiency in STEM.  I also want our base high school, academy programming, and afterschool programs to be a part of this strategic view. This will provide more STEM opportunities for our students no matter which school, K-12, they attend.  I also asked for data on the capacity impacts to base high schools with any changes in TJ admissions.  

As many of you know, my son attended TJ so I know first hand how special the school and the community is. He was a passionate math and science learner as well as very organized. He was able to not only thrive academically at TJ but also pursued his loves of theater and improv.  That is the trick with a new admissions process--how do we meet both goals of diversity and providing a spot at TJ for those students that can thrive.   

Why did the board vote to eliminate the admissions test?

The current board, myself included, feels that this is a good year to try to not utilize the TJ admissions test.  For me, this is true for a number of reasons.

• Holding an exam during this time of COVID can exacerbate inequities that already exist.  With everyone learning from home, access to resources to prepare for the test is more difficult.

• The TJ test is “preppable” and this makes it hard to be sure the test really tells us which students will be able to thrive in the rigorous courses offered at TJ.

Why are we working on TJ Admissions now?

As much as I agree that as we deal with Return to School, working on TJ admissions is an unwanted distraction, there are a few reasons why we are doing this now.

In January, the VA General Assembly passed as part of their budget, a request for all Governor Schools to submit a report detailing how they are working to improve diversity in their admissions processes.  TJ as a regional Governor School receives approximately $3.5M in funding from the state.  

The VA Secretary of Education started a task force to examine diversity primarily for TJ and Maggie Walker HS in Richmond.  He has stated that he will develop TJ admissions recommendations for the 2021 General Assembly.  I do feel that it is in our best interest to outline how we will make changes to the TJ admission process as opposed to a state crafted TJ admissions policy.  

We are dealing with difficult issues here and I know many Dranesville parents and MS students are waiting for the final decisions.  I will do my best to keep you apprised as we move ahead and to support you as decisions are made. 

To learn more about the TJHSST admissions changes or to share your opinion:

• 10/8/20-School Board Regular Meeting discussing TJHSST admissions Watch  here
• 10/7/20 5:00 pm:  TJ Admissions town hall with Dr. Brabrand. Watch here
• 10/6/20 -recording of the work session discussing TJHSST admissions here
• TJHSST Admissions registration site 
• FCPS is collecting comments at  TJComments@fcps.edu
• Additionally, Virginia Secretary of Education Atif Qarni is collecting community feedback at atif.qarni@governor.virginia.gov

VolunteerFest

The annual VolunteerFest is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 24 and Sunday, Oct. 25. VolunteerFest is a region-wide weekend of service that mobilizes hundreds of volunteers in a variety of volunteer events across Fairfax County. Residents of all ages are encouraged to participate. Due to the pandemic, Volunteer Fairfax has incorporated at-home (virtual) projects from which you can select. Opportunities include making holiday cards, cleaning up yards and assisting with food drives. Learn more.

“Go Paperless” Report Card Option Reminder

Please sign up for “Paperless Report Cards”. To take advantage of the paperless options, parents and/or guardians will need to log into ParentVUE,  sign in then go to “My Account” and select "Go Paperless"  All parents who live with the student and share the same address must have a SIS ParentVUE account and must select the paperless option to prevent mailing of the printed report cards. The “Go Paperless” option will apply to all your associated students, no matter what school level. This will not impact any other mailings from FCPS other than the report cards for secondary students and progress reports for ES students.

Grab and Go Meals FCPS Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) continues to update times and locations for grab and go meals posted on the website. Herndon Elementary School was recently added as a Grab and Go Location. Grab and go meals are available to ALL students. In addition, FNS will offer breakfast and lunch meals for Saturday during distribution on Fridays. Food distribution locations and times are posted and updated frequently on the website:  https://www.fcps.edu/return-school/food

Parent Resource Center

The FCPS Parent Resource Center provides access to information and resources to support the success of all students.  They host a variety of free seminars and have a wealth of free resources, including for those with learning challenges, special needs, and disabilities.  In addition, they are available via phone or email for consults. 

• Webinars are from 10:00 -11:30 am or 6:30 – 8:00 unless otherwise noted. All Webinars will be recorded and can be accessed at the Parent Resource Center YouTube Channel. Register online here.  Registration will be open approximately one month before the workshop date. 
• Tutor Lists and Free Resource Guides Contact us via phone or email to get the list of available tutors.  Additionally, we have free resources on topics such as: Executive Functioning, Parenting & Basic Needs, Adults with Disabilities, Mind in the Making, Mental Health, Fairfax County Government Resources, Military Connected Resources, Kindergarten Readiness, Adapted Sports and Recreation, and many more.
• Contact them at prc@fcps.edu  or  703-204-3941.

Cornerstones Winter Coat Closet-

No One Should Go Without a Coat

Cornerstones, in partnership with the Hunter Mill District Supervisor’s Office, is once again operating the Hunter Mill District Winter Coat Closet for 2020 – 2021 in order to provide free winter coats, hats, gloves, mittens and scarves to all who need them. 

Anyone may come to receive a coat. Due to the ongoing impact of COVID-19, the coat closet will be running on a modified schedule this winter.  All distribution events will be outdoors, and all participants will be required to wear masks to ensure everyone’s safety..  The opener, October 24, is being held at our Cornerstones Food Pantry parking lot at 11484 Washington Plaza West, Reston, VA 20190 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.  After elections are over, we will move for the remainder of the winter season to  the parking lot of the Police/Supervisor’s office in Reston, North County Government Building, 1801 Cameron Glen Drive, Reston, VA 20190. Those dates are 11/14, 12/12, 1/9, 2/6, and 3/6 from 10 a.m to 1 p.m.

Donors can take coats to our main office  between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at:  Cornerstones, 11150 Sunset Hills Rd., Suite 210, Reston, VA 20190.  We need new or gently used men’s women’s and children’s warm winter coats and NEW  ONLY hats, gloves, and scarves. Donations of children’s and youths’ coats (all sizes) and extra-large adult sizes (3X and larger) are especially appreciated. 

To Volunteer:

Saturday, Oct. 24, 2020—8:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m.  Hunter Mill District Supervisor’s Office (Outdoor) Winter Coat Closet Distribution. Volunteers are needed to help set up, run, and take down the coat closet outdoors. The season’s opening date is at Cornerstones’ ASAPP Food Pantry parking lot—11484 Washington Plaza West, Reston, VA 20190.  

Saturdays, Nov. 14—8:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m..—Hunter Mill District (Outdoor) Winter Coat Closet Distribution —Volunteers are needed to help set up, run, and take down the coat closet outdoors.

Questions about volunteering at the Winter Coat Closet? Contact Susan Alger, Director of Volunteer and Community Engagement, at 571-323-1383.

Questions about donating coats? Contact Nate King, Donations and Drives Coordinator, at 571-323-9569. 

Cornerstones volunteer opportunities at Herndon High School

The Cornerstones Opportunity Neighborhood core team would like to share details about a few specific requests we received for this week. Please share and sign-up as you are able to support!

Please use the link below for the Herndon activities. Feel free to let me know if you have questions or concerns. 

Alexandra Stewart Alexandra.Stewart@cornerstonesva.org

Lead Organizer, Reston Opportunity Neighborhood

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d49adac2ca2fec34-herndonreston  

Food for Neighbors Holiday Meals

Hunger is an unwelcome guest during the holiday season. Since 2016, Food For Neighbors has been providing holiday meals to families in middle and high schools throughout Fairfax and Loudoun counties. Can you help make the holidays special for a local family struggling with food insecurity? For every $100 received, FFN can provide two grocery gift cards for families to purchase several nutritious and delicious meals this season. Holiday meals are a special time when families come together. With your generosity, students throughout our community will experience this joy during what has been a difficult year. Thank you for your generosity.  Here is a link to their website:https://www.foodforneighbors.org/home/holiday-meals/

Plan to Vote by November 3

This year’s election is for  President, US House of Representatives, US Senate, and local issues. There will also be four bond referendums on the ballot, learn more about them here. To learn more about the 3 methods to vote and where to vote click here. If you have questions or concerns, do not delay in contacting the Fairfax County Office of Elections at voting@fairfaxcounty.gov.

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: Elaine Tholen  |  Phone: 571-423-1087

Wendy Biliter , Executive Admin Assistant, 571-423-1068, wmbiliter@fcps.edu