Shout-Outs!

• Shout-out to the amazing students at Huguenot High School in Ms. Turner's class who have participated in creating and presenting digital portfolios! You all did a fabulous job and are going to change the world with your positivity! Special thank you to Ms. Turner, Ms. Williams, and Ms. Nancy for helping support the process and fostering the classroom community. Another big, big thank you to our partners at Project PEACE for being collaborative partners and helping our students find their voice. 
  
• Congratulations to the Richmond Community HS Band led by Mr. Noah Mason. Their spring concert last night was outstanding! They played a great mix of old school, new school and an original composition. Mr. Mason takes time to get to know his students and helps them grow as individuals and musicians. Great job. 
• Heartfelt and gracious shout-out goes to the one-of-a-kind, amazing and committed instructional compliance coordinators (ICCs) within the Exceptional Education Department! These individuals have persevered all school year and have worked diligently to enhance building procedures in their respective schools. Through the ups, downs, twists, and turns, these individuals have continued to prioritize community partnership and represent collegial responsibility among themselves as a cohort and as leaders within their departments. The role of an ICC can be challenging and, at times, a very thankless position because they serve in an "in between" capacity which involves supporting both administrative initiatives and instructional priorities among their schools. We want them to know just how integral they are in the successes of RPS and the families we serve each day. Special recognition goes to Mrs. Sherina Gilpin (Amelia Street School), Mr. Norvell Ewing (Broad Rock ES), Mrs. Robin Best (Henry Marsh, III ES), Dr. Marquita Jones (Linwood Holton ES), Mr. Ryan Bennett (Lois Harrison-Jones ES), Mr. Derrick Bates (Miles J. Jones ES), Mrs. Zina Harper (Oak Grove-Bellemeade ES), Ms. Angelique Bland (Overby-Sheppard ES), Ms. Danielle Taylor (Southampton ES), and Mrs. Tomorrow Lofton-Pickens (Richmond Virtual Academy).
• Huge thank you to the amazing staff at River City Middle School who helped make the 2024 talent show a success! Thank you, Ms. Woodson and Ms. Sims-Stephens, for taking on this task, organizing, and making sure it happened. Thank you, Coach Mack, for being the best MC ever! Thank you, Coach T., and the amazing Red Tail Step Team. Thank you to Coach Evans, Coach Smith, and Coach AJ for your support during this event. Thank you to all of the elective teachers for making sure students' talent is showcased in the best light. To the amazing River City Scholars participating in the talent show, thank you for sharing your amazing talents. Standing on stage in front of your peers is stressful but you all did an amazing job! Continue to soar!
• Big shout-out to Ms. Marchetti at Maymont Preschool. She is truly an amazing and loving teacher!
• Shout-out to Ms. Grant from Dogwood Middle School for leading and organizing the 8th grade moving on ceremony, along with the countless other events this year. Your organization and thoughtfulness make such an impact for our scholars. Shout-out to Mrs. Barr and Mrs. Bryce from Dogwood Middle School for planning and executing the SOL movie celebration for scholars that passed and/or made growth on at least one SOL. This was a joyful event for students to celebrate their hard work. Huge shout-out to Mrs. Barr at Dogwood Middle for making the "Lights, Camera, Action" movie event possible. Our students really enjoyed it and we are grateful for Mrs. Barr’s dedication to joy and celebration in our building. She is the best in RPS.
• Shout-out to out to Ms Goodnight for hosting a 1 mile run for our students in the G.H. Reid Elementary community. Also, shout-out to her volunteers, Mrs. Gorno and Mr. Boone, for helping to make this race fun and enjoyable for our youth. I look forward to coming to this again next year.
• I would like to express my gratitude for Ms. Cynthia Taylor at Blackwell ES. She is my daughter's 1st grade teacher and has really taken the time to help her flourish in reading and math, and it is much appreciated. It is so important to have teachers in the education system who actually care and Ms. Taylor is nothing short of amazing! 
• The Start on Success program honored five graduates this week for their hard work and dedication. All five students completed a sixteen week paid internship at the Delta Hotel. Students worked in various areas of the hotel, from accounting to maintenance to the front desk. All graduates shared what a life-changing experience this was. We are proud to share that all 5 participants have been accepted into one of the following colleges/universities: Virginia State University, Virginia Union University, Reynolds Community College and Richard Bland College. We are grateful to Kelly Ligon with VCU for her administrative support all year, to the Delta Hotel for allowing our students this opportunity, and most importantly, to Ms. Nicole Turnage from RHSA. Ms. Turnage has served as the program instructor for the past seven years and works tirelessly to prepare and oversee the students. Thank you to all for your dedication to the success of our students.
• Dr. Cyndi Robinson, the proud principal of RVA, needs to be on a poster for how to #LeadWithLove. She models this expectation while holding the staff accountable for high expectations – no easy task! She is the best principal ever! Mrs. Loftin-Pickens at RVA is the most supportive person ever! She is the greatest cheerleader for everyone. She advocates for the scholars ensuring they are first in all we do, and she advocates for the staff as well. She is a team player and does her job well!
• The leadership team at the Virginia Treatment Center for Children Education Program would like to thank our teachers – Mr. J. Richmond, Mrs. T. Gregory, Ms. D. Schultz, Mrs. J. Testerman, Ms. S. Taylor, Mrs. K. Vaughn, Ms. K. Denmark, Mr. M. Lewis, and Mrs. S. Seaward – for their dedication. Words cannot capture our appreciation for their passion for teaching and nurturing young minds. 
• I would like to shout-out the terrific teachers at Fairfield Court! We are a dedicated group of teachers who provide meaningful instruction to our students. Thank you for all that you do!
• The child study team at MLK Middle School is amazing. They are committed, talented, diligent, conscientious, and very hardworking. Most importantly, they always keep the student's needs at the center of whatever they are doing. I could not have been more impressed by their work and their dedication. 
• I wanted to thank the Moving Up committee of Maymont Preschool for the hard work and dedication they put into this program. Parents and families of our tiny Peacocks have been raving about the opportunity to celebrate their accomplishments of this past year. What people witnessed at our three programs was the result  of a great deal of preparation, planning and dedicated teamwork behind the scenes. Thank you all.
  

Reminders from Previous RPS Directs

Important Links

• RPS Website
• Family Support Line: (804) 780-6195
• Enrollment Portal
• RPS Love Store
  
• RPS Opportunities Hub
• Breakfast & Lunch
  

• Richmond Behavioral Health Authority (Child/Adult Mental Health) – (804) 819-4100
• ChildSavers Immediate Response Helpline (Child Mental Health) – (804) 305-2420
• YWCA Greater Richmond (Domestic Violence) – (804) 612-6126
• Virginia Child Protective Services (Child Abuse) – (800) 552-7096
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – Send a text to 988 or call (800) 273-8255
• Financial Navigators (Resource Contacts for Various Needs) – (804) 646-6673
• Latinos in Virginia Empowerment Center (24/7 hotline in Spanish) – (888) 969-1825

• Richmond & Henrico Health Districts (Immunizations & Physicals) – (804) 205-3501