| Thursday, December 1, 2022
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Dear #RPSStrong Family,
Happy December! Tonight's updates:
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| Winter Health Town Hall – Thank you to everyone who joined us last night for our discussion about staying healthy this winter! Special thanks to Dr. Elaine Perry, Director of Richmond and Henrico Health Districts; Dr. Tiffany Kimboroug, Director of the Mother and Infant Unit at the Children's Hospital of Richmond; and Na'Keisha White, RPS Coordinator of Health Services. If you missed it, you can check out the recording here. A few critical takeaways:
- Richmond is currently experiencing a spike in flu and RSV cases (see charts below).
- RSV stands for Respiratory Syncytial (sin-SISH-uhl) Virus. According to the CDC: "RSV is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms. Most people recover in a week or two, but RSV can be serious, especially for infants and older adults. RSV is the most common cause of bronchiolitis (inflammation of the small airways in the lung) and pneumonia (infection of the lungs) in children younger than 1 year of age in the United States."
- The best protection against respiratory illness is to get your vaccines (flu and COVID – there's no vaccine for RSV), wash your hands frequently, cough into your arm (Dracula style!), spend time outside or in well-ventillated areas, wear a mask, and stay home when sick. Thank you in advance for taking these measures.
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| Bike Safety – Our partners at Greater Richmond Fit4Kids are raising funds to purchase a truck to transport their bike safety education trailer around the city. This will help them teach more RPS students to learn to ride a bike safely. If you're interested, you can learn more and donate here!
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| Parenting For Black Lives – On Saturday, December 10, the Center for African American History and Culture (CAAHC) at Virginia Union University and The Well Collective are hosting a workshop and conversation with Destini Ann Davis, parenting coach and author, on intentional parenting. Reserve your spot today!
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| George Wythe Reimagined – Please join us for our next community meeting to discuss the interior design of the new George Wythe HS. We'll be in-person at Wythe from 6 - 7:30 pm on Tuesday, December 6. You can also watch the livestream in English or Spanish. Hope to see you there!
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| Dropout Prevention Program – George Wythe HS's new dropout prevention program – Credits, College, and Careers – is making a big impact. Led by one of the school's LIEP teachers, Dr. Coggin, and Wythe's Future Center Navigator, Mr. Camp, this program uses research-based strategies to engage students and get them prepped for graduation and beyond. Nearly 90% of the cohort is on track for graduation and has already submitted college applications. We're so proud of these students and so grateful for the work of Dr. Coggin and Mr. Camp!
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| With great appreciation,
Jason
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- Shout-out to Principal Jones, CSA Shenequa Hill, and the Woodville ES Crisis Management Team! They did an outstanding job on a safety drill and the debrief to ensure the safety of students and staff.
- I want to give a shout-out to Mrs. Rhodes and Nurse Andrews at Henry Marsh Elementary School. They decorated our front office for the holidays and it looks so lovely!
- Shout-out to Mr. Pennie at Oak Grove Bellemeade for putting out the traffic cones and safety signs for parent and daycare van drop-off. Thanks for helping out to keep our students and staff safe!
- To AOA Mrs. Angelique Rhodes and School Nurse Mrs. Astrid Andrews for the awesome job. Beautiful decorations inside and outside at Henry L. Marsh III ES.
- Thank you to the admin team at Henry Marsh – Mrs. Cook, Ms. Leecost, and Mr. Parker – for not only caring for the students and families but also promoting an environment where staff can flourish and feel supported.
- Thank you to the office staff at Marsh – Ms. Rhodes, Ms. Henderson, and Ms. Robinson – for being the first people students and parents typically see and providing them with support and guidance, with smiles on their faces.
- Thank you to the encore team at Henry Marsh – Ms. Meehan, Mr. Pearson, Ms. Hill, and Ms. Moore – for taking the lead, on such short notice, for the Fall Fun day. Another huge thanks go to Ms. Ramirez for taking on the refreshment station; it brought a smile to everyone’s faces.
- I want to give a huge shout-out to our RTR teachers at Marsh, Ms. Mitchell, Ms. Wharton, and Ms. Fountaine. You ladies have blown me away with your ability to connect with your students, collaborate with staff and teachers, engage with community and family events, and exhibit an overall positive attitude, even on the toughest of days.
- As a part of our efforts for inclusion and positive influence for our scholar graduation goals, we are shouting out Mr. Mosley at the THRIVE Academy for kickstarting the THRIVE Super Store to encourage thriving for excellence! Mr. Mosley was able to receive a large number of donations using his social media platform! Kudos, Mr. Mosley, for going above and beyond!
- Shout-out to Swansboro's SBIT Team for their hard work in ensuring students receive the interventions and supports necessary for a successful learning experience. Thank you, Dr. Kennete Lee-Anderson, Amber Bebbs, Daija Monroe, Tavaris Turner, and Twanya Jones.
- Thank you to the Swansboro Encore team for their collaboration and dedication to ensure students have a robust, exciting, and excellent experience. Thank you, Wallessa Jones, Shahar Smith, Diane Glover, and Latriece Haskins.
- Shout-out to Kimberly Thomas and Patricia Hughes for going beyond the call of duty each day. Additionally, thank you to Sarah Sheets and Deborah Holliday for consistently creating a welcoming environment in the main office by building relationships daily.
- Thank you to Nurse Crystal Glover for keeping the health of students and staff first.
- I would just like to share a compliment for the 3rd grade teacher at OGBES, Ms. Brown-Kidd. She always shows love and compassion for her students and makes time in her busy schedule to collaborate with other staff in the building around ways to help her students achieve, grow, and succeed. I feel lucky to work alongside such an amazing educator. Thank you, Ms. Kidd!
- We would like to shout-out Rosy Wagoner and Zach Gibson, our Child Savers clinicians at Oak Grove-Bellmeade Elementary! They are phenomenal at what they do! Supporting and advocating for students in need, being a listening ear to students (and staff!), and just being all-around wonderful individuals! Your hard work does not go unnoticed. Thank you for all you do for the students on your caseloads! We appreciate you both so much and are thankful to have you both!
- I would like to shout-out Shirley Maxwell on the Substitute Team. She is professional and patient. She always assists me in finding a solution to any issue I stumble across. I would like to congratulate Ms. Maxwell on her new position.
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| Important Links – Last updated on November 14, 2022.
RPS Links
COVID-19 Links
Crisis Support Links
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