| Thursday, December 15, 2022
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Dear #RPSStrong Family,
Tonight's updates:
Collective Bargaining – This morning, I was thrilled to announce that RPS and the Richmond Education Association (REA) have reached agreement on our first-ever collective bargaining agreements. All four bargaining units – teachers, instructional assistants, care and safety associates, and nutrition staff – ratified the agreements in votes over the last week and a half. These three-year agreements are the first of their kind in the entire Commonwealth of Virginia!
Our teachers and support staff Teach, Lead, and Serve with Love every day, and we're thrilled to show how much we love them with these historic agreements. They're about so much more than money; they're about respect for the life-changing work our dedicated educators do every day in service of our 22,000 students.
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the REA/VEA leadership team members who were instrumental in achieving this Virginia first: Katina Harris, President of the REA; Darrell Turner, Vice President of the REA; Boaz Young-El, Uniserve Director of the VEA; and James Fedderman, President of the VEA. I also want to thank the representatives of the bargaining teams who spoke this morning: Bernita Williams, Teacher Unit; Joanne Nolen, Instructional Assistant Unit; Edward Gore, Care and Safety Associate Unit; and Shan Lighty, Nutrition Staff Unit. Finally, a big shout-out goes to Michelle Hudacsko, RPS Chief of Staff, who led the Administration's negotiating team. This was truly a team effort – the very best example of how kids win when we, the adults, work together.
So what's in the agreements?! See below for some of the highlights.
Teachers
- Minimum of 12% raise over 3 years (6% in year 1)
- Maintained decompression/annual step
- Compensation of $55/hour when planning period is lost due to coverage needs or testing duties
- Compensation of $27.50/hour when lunch is lost due to coverage needs
- Increased and/or new stipends for additional duties like testing or Chromebook management
- Protection of time to include independent planning periods and time spent on after school obligations
Instructional Assistants (IAs)
- Approximately a 40% raise over the next 3 years to a new starting salary of $30,000 by 2025-26 – reaching the living wage threshold for the City of Richmond for the first time
- Compensation of $100/day when covering for a teacher due to absence
- Maintained decompression/annual step
Care and Safety Associates (CSAs)
- 10% raise over 3 years for security supervisor roles
- 14% raise over 3 years for care and safety associates
- Decompression of the salary schedule and maintenance of annual step
- Increased compensation supplement for care and safety associates serving in a “lead” role
Nutrition Staff
- 25% raise over 3 years for food service assistants to $18.93/hour – reaching the living wage threshold for the City of Richmond for the first time
- 10% raise over 3 years for nutrition supervisors
- 15% raise over 3 years for nutrition managers
- Decompression of the salary schedule and maintenance of annual step
- For food service assistants, two new key benefits: immediate access to health care (do not need to wait a year given non-contracted status) and 3 paid personal days a year (since if they were sick previously, they did not get paid for the day)
- For all nutrition staff, support in accessing RPS retirement match accounts, if desired
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| Lit Limo Winter Schedule – Beginning Monday, January 2, the Lit Limo will be back on the road delivering books to children across RVA! Check out the new schedule below.
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| Community Food Distribution – The City of Richmond is holding a Community Safety & Wellness event with food distribution this Saturday, December 17, from 12-2 pm, at the Richmond City Justice Center (1701 Fairfield Way). All are welcome to stop by! For more information, please contact Heather Anderson at heather.anderson@richmondgov.com or call 804-646-4992.
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| World Cup Lessons – Using the 2022 FIFA World Cup as inspiration, GED teacher Elliott Barr has been teaching his students at the Richmond Alternative School about "sportwashing." Check out Mr. Barr's interview below and read more in Education Week about how he's using the global game of soccer (er, football!) to teach global politics.
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| Citywide Writing Competition – All RPS students are invited to enter the community-led Game Changer writing competition, with prizes up to $500! Poems, essays, and short stories from all grade levels will be accepted. The contest is limited to the first 250 participants, and entries must be submitted by Wednesday, February 1. Be sure to check out the kick-off event this Saturday, December 17, from 12-2 pm, at Great Hope Baptist Church (2101 Venable Street). See the flyers below for details.
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| VCU Men's Tennis Promotes Attendance at Carver ES – Students at Carver ES recently received a surprise visit from the VCU Men's Tennis Team! The team spent time with Ms. Evans' first grade class, where they shared what it's like being a college student and a tennis player. They even taught the students a few words in French and Portuguese! Enormous gratitude to the team for stopping by, and to Head Coach Anthony Rossi and Director of Student-Athlete Development Garrett Knudson, for helping arrange the visit.
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| With great appreciation,
Jason
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| Shout-Outs – Please keep sending them to me at jkamras@rvaschools.net! If you'd like to get a shout-out in tomorrow's RPS Direct – my last one for 2022 – please send it to me no later than 1 pm. Thanks!
- I would like to shout-out the following folks from the Transportation Department: Anita Hubbard Love, Kemya Williams, and Connie Samuels. They are so patient, caring, and dedicated!!
- I’d like to shout-out Mrs. Dargon, Mr. Stout, and Mrs. Schroder at G. H. Reid. They created an amazing holiday concert. The students were so proud to be on stage and performing, and the parents enjoyed every minute. It was a wonderful concert. I’d also like to shout-out Mr. Boone for his hard work preparing the sound, stage, and cafeteria for the show. His hard work is always appreciated!
- I would like to give a huge shout-out to Bonnie Blake, executive office assistant to the interim co-chief academic officers! Her prompt response and clear communication to questions is so appreciated. She was able to provide me with all of the information that I needed, and was willing to give updates along the way. Thank you, Ms. Blake, for all you do!!!
- I would like to shout-out Samara Booker. She is such a positive light in all of the RPS buildings she visits. She contributes to the school culture by making herself available as a guide, mentor, facilitator, cheerleader, and support system to the educators within the district. Her depth of knowledge in all areas academic, social-emotional, organizational, and logistical is both inspirational and greatly appreciated. Thank you for all you do, Ms. Booker!!!
- I want to shout-out Sherrie Brown (HR), Andrew Maples, Oliver Perry, Molly Garthwaite, and Tiffany Galloway for making sure I could get through December after FMLA. I love you all so much!
- I would like to shout-out Maria Hardwick from School Health Services. The entire team, especially the school nurses, works extremely hard to keep RPS students healthy. But Maria's work behind the scenes is truly the glue that holds things together!
- I would like to give a huge shout-out to Ms. Turnage at Linwood Holton ES for all of the amazing work she does with our kids to put on a musical for the school and community. We just finished "A Year with Frog & Toad" and of course it was great! My daughter loves being in all of the Happy Holton Players musicals. I would also like to give a shout-out to Mr. Patterson for working with the students on character development and helping out backstage during all the shows. Mr. Clark, our music teacher, deserves a shout-out for working with the cast every week on all of the songs in the show. We can't forget Mr. Gaskin, Ms. Tam, Ms. Harr, and Mr. Bowles who all stepped up to help with lighting, sound, and backstage during dress rehearsals and performances. I also don't want to leave out Meghann Kennedy, PTA President, who took over the weekly communications with parents, as well as the many parent and community volunteers who helped during the production. It really takes a village.
- A big shout-out to Mr. Rodesney, 6th grade science teacher at Henderson Middle School. Mr. Rodesney has assigned thoughtful and engaging projects that have helped my daughter make real world connections to the curriculum and pushed her to think critically. These projects are education at its best!
- A shout-out to Radshawd Simmons for bringing the gift of music to Martin Luther King, Jr. Preschool! Today, he hosted our holiday assembly where every classroom performed a holiday song. Bravo to the entire school for participating! Hip, hip, hurray to Mr. Simmons for coordinating the event!!!
- Shout-out to Mr. Butler at John Marshall. He has gone above and beyond to help a new student transition into the building. He was very welcoming and intentional in building a relationship with this new student. He believes all students can succeed and he provided the space for the student to advocate for his own support needs to be successful.
- A huge shout-out Dr. Williams, Mr. Owens, and Ms. Santana at Overby-Sheppard! They have worked tirelessly for the past several weeks to support two new students to Overby. They have walked alongside the family to ensure that both students received the appropriate support they needed. Thank you for caring about all students!
- Ms. Golt at Thomas Jefferson deserves a shout-out for her excellent data collection skills! She is accurate and timely in her data collection and effortlessly collects data while teaching on a daily basis.
- Shout-out to our educational technology integrator, Franny Aida, for all of the thoughtful planning that went into creating Hour of Code sessions at Fairfield Court Elementary. Thank you for all you do in service to students and staff. You are appreciated!
- Shout-out to Monique Yates, Sam Banks, and Damion Coleman of Technology Services for always providing just-in-time technology support.
- Shout-out to Gina Powell of Bellevue ES and Wanda Parker of Technology Services for representing RPS so well during a recent statewide conference. They were valuable leaders on the VSTE Conference Planning Committee. Kudos, Gina and Wanda!
- Educational technology integrators are the most creative, caring, and clever people I know. Your hard work and commitment is to be celebrated. I am proud to call you colleagues. Shout-out to Alex Alexson, Arianna Trickey, Bernadette Cruse, Cathryn Myers, Carla Wood, Chris Barna, Franny Aida, Jeff Rew, Joselyn Verdi, Lisa Horrell, Marci Rosenthal, Mark Wenberg, Mercedes Buck, Meredith Ose, Rose Martin-Turnage, Sam Cooper, Stacy Green, and Stephanie Smith!
- I would like to shout-out Mrs. Edwards at Linwood Holton ES. She is a dedicated teacher who pushes her students towards greatness. She supports her students both in and out of the classroom. She creates bonds that are everlasting! Thank you, Mrs. Edwards!!
- Shout out to Jared Forman, speech therapy specialist at Linwood Holton ES. He has been amazing with my 3-year-old. He is alway so happy and always knows the best way to help her. He is helping her reach goals we didn't think were possible. She loves it when we say, "Are you ready for school? Let's go see Mr. Forman." She gets her coat, a flower, and runs!
- I would like to give a shout-out to Erin Brown who leads the RPS Parent Advisory Council. She does a fantastic job of organizing the meetings, she always brings positive energy and she is totally committed to engaging parents from all across the city.
- I would like to shout-out the Fairfield Court ES Leadership Team for being prepared for our academic review on Monday. This can be an intimidating process but when you have a team of educators that collaborate and align all practices to the mission, vision and goals – to include the support teams, such as Encore, Climate & Culture Specialists, Mental Health, CIS, Parent/Student Liaisons, Counselors, SPACE, ESL, others – all pieces of the puzzle fit together. We make the mission possible! Thank you to AP Henderson for leading in my absence with a team that speaks the same language. Proficiency through grappling, differentiating, and a love for our scholars in a warm and loving environment is our why to push forward! Enjoy your much-deserved break, FCES staff!
- Shout-out to Joselyn Verdi for planning an amazing learning day for our EdTech Integrators. Your heart and drive are truly appreciated.
- Shout-out to the entire EdTech Integration team for your dedication to our faculty, staff, and students. Your passion for teaching and learning inspires me daily!
- Shout-out to Kandyce Baker, kindergarten teacher at Fairfield Court ES, for entering our school for sponsorship in a toy drive with Ignite RPS and Happy Movers. Our Kindergarten through second grade students were selected to receive a gift. Thank you to everyone involved to make this happen for our Fairfield Scholars! #MissionPossible
- I would like to give a huge shout-out to the Richmond Virtual Academy Middle School for an amazing field trip to the VMFA. The scholars were kind, considerate and thoughtful! Ms. Hosick, Mr. Miles, Ms. Jones, Ms. Copeland, Ms. King, and Mr. Laurenz all came out to support our scholars and brought so much joy, love, and learning. They made the trip such a meaningful experience for us all. Another huge shout-out to Mr. Mistler for providing a virtual field trip so that all scholars were able to participate in this educational experience! Hooty-hoot!
- A huge shout-out to Chanae McLaughlin, Bre'ana Koger, Kellie Lorish, Imani Tillman, Iesha White, Jashia Paige, Sonata Koger, and Sholonda Bibbs for all of their hard work ensuring the Mary Scott campus was decorated with holiday decor, and to the staff for decorating their doors and getting in the Holiday spirit. I have to also mention that Spirit Week was awesome! The students enjoyed the fun and engaging activities.
- Shout-out to the 2nd grade team at Henry L. Marsh III Elementary for going above and beyond (again) to bring great cheer to the hallways for the students. These fabulous humans stayed after each day and came early to turn their hallway into an extravagant Whoville experience. Extra shout-out to Ms. Bailey for bringing The Grinch to HLMES!
- Shout-out to Assistant Principal Christal Blue, Dean Demyra Gallo, and School Counselor Jacarla Petiford-Hines. They go above and beyond to support our students and our 7th grade team at River City Middle School.
- Shout-out to Assistant Principal Michae Jamison at River City Middle School. We're fortunate to have her lead our English Language Arts team. She takes the time to coach up educators and supports our teachers towards better student outcomes.
- I would like to thank T. Slayton, a Huguenot HS parent, who goes above and beyond to support this school and its teachers. She helped me and my students by donating her time, money and connections. She knows that our school is better when parents and teachers work together.
- The arts are alive at Linwood Holton Elementary School! Last night was the Winter Music and Art Showcase. A big shout-out goes to Brenna Easter (art teacher), Travis Clark (music director), and James Thomas (orchestra director). And extra kudos to Mr. Clark for pinch-hitting as band director in addition to conducting the choir. I am incredibly impressed by the performances and all roads lead back to our incredible teachers. Thank you.
- All of us at Vatex and around the district want to wish Ms. Sheila Battle a very happy retirement! Thank you for everything these last 29 years, Ms. Battle!
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| Richmond Environment Survey – The James River Park System and Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay are creating an Environmental Literacy Plan for Richmond. Share your feedback via their survey in English or Spanish by December 31. Results will be used to better understand the issues facing our community and its environment, and to build a shared definition of environmental literacy in RVA.
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| NextUp RVA Middle School Programs – Winter registration is now open for the NextUp RVA enrichment program for middle schoolers. Students can sign up to learn about coding, cooking, fashion, finance, and more – all for free!
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| Yale National Initiative Open House – The Yale National Initiative will hold an open house for interested teachers on Thursday, January 5, from 5-6 pm, at Mary Munford ES. To register for the open house, use the QR code on the flyer below. Applications are due by 5 pm on Wednesday, January 18. For more information, visit the Richmond Teacher Fellows website or email Valerie Schwarz at vschwarz@rvaschools.net.
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| Moms Demand Action Advocacy Day – Volunteers from across the state will be meeting on January 13 for the annual Moms Demand Action Advocacy Day at the Capitol to lobby for common sense gun laws. Volunteers will have an opportunity to meet their lawmakers, discuss legislative priorities, and network with their peers. If you're interested in volunteering, sign up today!
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| Open Enrollment Applications – The application window to apply for out-of-zone schools via the Open Enrollment lottery is open through February 1 via the Enroll RPS Portal. This is your opportunity to apply for up to three schools outside of your "zoned school," including Richmond Virtual Academy. (Reminder: This is different from specialty school applications for schools like FMA or Community. That application window closed yesterday.)
A few important notes:
- Families will have until 4:30 pm on February 1, 2023, to submit open enrollment applications.
- We unfortunately cannot accept late applications for any reason. Please plan accordingly.
- As long as your application is submitted before the deadline, the timing of your submission will have no impact on the outcome.
- If you have additional questions, please email us at enrollrps@rvaschools.net.
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| Important Links – Last updated on November 14, 2022.
RPS Links
COVID-19 Links
Crisis Support Links
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