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Dear Lee District Families,
Hope everyone is enjoying their summer break.
I wanted to share with you some information from our last Regular School Board Meeting held on Thursday, July 15.
- Superintendent Search
- School Board Chair and Vice Chair
- Updated Student Rights and Responsibilities
- ESSER Funding
- Carbon Neutral by 2040
- Citizen Participation
- Students Build $1M Home During Pandemic
- Lynbrook Elementary School Garden for Local Families
- Upcoming Job Fair
The next Regular School Board Meeting will be Thursday, August 26 beginning at 7:00 pm at Luther Jackson Middle School.
I am seeking Lee District citizens to serve on the School Bond Referendum citizen committee and the School Health Advisory Committee. See details below.
I hope that you continue to recharge this summer and spend time with family and friends.
I look forward to seeing students and families at our upcoming open houses and Back To School events this fall.
Stay well,
Tammy
As you may have read last week, Dr. Brabrand announced that this will be his last year of service to FCPS. I wanted to take a moment to let you know that I am grateful for Dr. Brabrand's four years of dedicated service. I am also very appreciative of his enthusiastic leadership and guidance during his tenure as Superintendent for Fairfax County Public Schools.
I know that with his work ethic, Dr. Brabrand will continue to impact the FCPS community in a positive way over the next year.
Last Thursday, the School Board approved the Request for Proposal (RFP) to identify a search firm so we are in a good place to have our new Superintendent search completed by the end of the coming school year.
There will be more information to come, including opportunities to seek the community's input and participation. As that becomes available, I will keep the Lee District community informed.
Stella Pekarsky Elected Fairfax County School Board Chair; Rachna Sizemore Heizer Elected Vice Chair by the Fairfax County School Board
I am happy to announce that Stella Pekarsky (Sully District) was elected as chair and Rachna Sizemore Heizer (Member-at-Large) was elected as vice chair for a one-year term. The chair and vice chair assumed office at the July 15 School Board meeting; they are elected by School Board members during the Board’s annual organizational meeting. Read here for the full news release
Student Rights & Responsibilities (SR&R)
The School Board unanimously voted to adopt Regulation 2601.35P, Student Rights and Responsibilities (SR&R). Improvements to the SR&R for the 2021-22 school year reflect FCPS’ commitment to ensuring students feel safe, supported, and respected in every one of our schools.
Notable changes include:
- Edited language throughout the document to reflect gender neutrality.
- A new section entitled Notable Changes for Students and Parents that highlights changes in the SR&R from last school year.
- Restructuring of the Rights and Responsibilities Chapter with student rights prominently featured.
- Language that further defines interaction of law enforcement and students.
- Additional terms in the glossary to increase understanding.
FCPS will be sharing a detailed summary of the updates made to this document prior to the return of our students in the fall. In our interest to serve all students, FCPS has also updated our LGBTQIA+ resources page on the FCPS website.
ESSER III Funding
The School Board unanimously voted to authorize the superintendent to develop and submit a formal plan to the state in order to fully access all Federal ESSER III Grant Funds. The School Board will approve the official ESSER III Funding Plan at their meeting on August 26. The FCPS Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER III) funding allocation is $188.6 million for expenses related to the pandemic to be spent over multiple years.
Goal to Become Carbon Neutral by 2040
The Fairfax County School Board accepted the recommendations of the Joint Environmental Task Force (JET) to set a goal for the school division to become carbon neutral by 2040.
Adjustments to Allow for More Citizen Participation
Beginning in February of 2020, public input and discussion began around increasing opportunities for public comment at School Board meetings. The School Board last night approved adjustments to public participation, which will increase accessibility to the speaker slots and topics. This:
- Increases speaker slots to 16.
- Ends requirement for speakers to only speak to items on the meeting agenda.
- Eliminates spots set aside for organizations, and everyone is subject to the same time limit.
- Reserves three spots for current students and three spots for video submissions.
- Selects speakers at random from those who register, making it accessible to those who cannot be online at 6 a.m.
- Retains ability for community members to testify virtually, allowing for greater access and ease of participation.
- Adds two public hearings each year without a preset number of speakers.
Join the Citizen’s Committee Supporting Passage of the 2021 School Bond Referendum
A citizen’s committee supporting the 2021 School Bond Referendum is forming and seeking volunteers. The committee’s general duties will be sharing information that supports passage of the bond to HOA boards, chambers of commerce, and other organizations, and distributing information electronically and in print.
This is an organized, positive, and short-term way to support Fairfax County Public Schools. Along with the distribution of information, volunteers are invited to strategize on approaches and execution at 6 to 9 meetings between July and Election Day, November 2 in the Tyson’s Corner Area.
If you are interested in serving on this committee, please send an email to my assistant, Cheryl Austin. For more information or questions, please contact Jay Garant at jpgarant@fcps.edu.
Seeking Applicants for the School Health Advisory Committee (SHAC)
I am seeking an appointee to represent the Lee District on the School Health Advisory Committee (SHAC). This committee assists with the development of health policy in the school division and evaluates the status of school health, health education, school environment, and health services. The committee meets monthly and appointees serve a one-year term.
If you are interested in serving on this committee, please email a brief statement on why you are interested, along with a copy of your resume, to my assistant, Cheryl Austin. For questions, please call 571-423-1069.
FCPS Students Build $1 Million Home During the Pandemic and Learn Life Lessons Along The Way
 Through hands-on learning, Career and Technical Education students gain real-world construction experience to build a state-of-the-art home in Springfield, VA. Read the full FCPS story here. To date FCPS students have built ten homes in the Spring Village Estates neighborhood. These homes are funded through Fairfax County Public Schools and Foundation for Applied Technical Education, Inc. (FATE), and proceeds are used to fund future projects. More information can be found here.
The Washington Post recently featured this home and all the hard work from our FCPS students and their teacher Ron Meinert. Read the article "Weary from virtual learning, Fairfax students donned hard hats to help build $1 million house" by Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff.
Lynbrook Elementary Turns Garden Plots Over to Families, Who Grow Food for Own Tables
 Lynbrook Elementary School has turned over school garden plots to eight families who are learning from master gardeners, growing food for their own dinner tables, and teaching their children the importance of eating vegetables.
A garden has been a part of Lynbrook Elementary School for nine years now. A special thank you to Rayanne Pirozzi, the school's science resource teacher for PreK through 6 who saw an opportunity to help these families. Read the full story here.
Virtual Instructional Job Fair
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), the largest school system in Virginia, is searching for educators with a strong academic background and a passion to make a difference in the lives of students.
Schools will meet and interview candidates at the FCPS Virtual Instructional Job Fair on Friday, July 23, to fill vacancies for the 2021-22 school year.
The event for elementary schools will be held from 9-11:30 a.m. The event for middle schools, high schools, and centers is scheduled from noon-2:30 p.m. Register to attend.
Instructional candidates interested in becoming a part of a dynamic and diverse community that offers a challenging academic program for all students are encouraged to register to attend one or both events. Candidates include teachers, school counselors, librarians, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and speech pathologists.
FCPS offers support to new instructional employees through a mentoring program, professional development opportunities, and outstanding health and retirement benefits. For more information, please contact the FCPS Department of Human Resources through their online web portal.
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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