| Dear #RPSStrong Family,
Tonight's updates:
I'm dedicating my entire RPS Direct this evening to a recap of last night's 3rd Annual RPS Shines. We celebrated over 100 teachers, support staff, and administrators – and we did it in style!
Before getting to the awards, I need to thank the RPS Education Foundation and our numerous sponsors – 5th Wheel Bowling, Agents of Growth, Bingo Beer Co., Casa del Barco, City of Richmond Office of Children and Families, Children's Museum of Richmond, Garnett's, Gena J. Co., Public Consulting Group, The Richmond Folk Festival, Richmond Raceway, RRMM Architects, The Park RVA, SCOOP, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. I also need shine a huge spotlight on our planning committee: Christie-Jo Adams, Taikein Cooper, Mildred DeLoatch, Jodi Granger, Adrienne Kern, Tamika Massie, Stefanie Ramsey, Rodney Robinson, Alyssa Schwenk, and Deidra Starkes! And last but not least, enormous gratitude to Courage & Co Photography for capturing the essence of RPS Shines. Thank you!
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Teachers of the Year – To kick things off, we honored the 2024 Teachers of the Year from every school, our four 2024 Division Teacher of the Year finalists – Danielle Houdek from Mary Munford ES, LaTriece Haskins from Swansboro ES, Jessica Carpenter from Broad Rock ES, Sharese Williams from Barack Obama ES – and our 2024 Division Teacher of the Year, Tranelle Pollard from Dogwood Middle School. It was such a joy to celebrate them and to showcase Ms. Pollard's impact with this video tribute. Big shout-out to our videographer, Visuals by J. McKenzie, for all the videos you'll see linked!
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New Teachers of the Year – We recognized RPS alumna and second grade teacher Anna Turner from Oak Grove-Bellemeade ES as our inaugural winner of the City of Richmond Office of Children and Families New Teacher of the Year Award. Ms. Turner is devoted to her students and her school community, as evidenced by her work with Bellemeade Park and Girls on the Run. Take a look at the highlight video!
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Lucille M. Brown Impact Award – Louquanda Hines Whitmore, teacher at Richmond High School for the Arts, received the Lucille M. Brown Impact Award for her unwavering commitment to the Bulldog community – in the classroom and beyond. Watch this video to learn more about the extraordinary impact that Ms. Hines Whitmore and her colleagues continue to make every day!
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Rodney A. Robinson Equity in Education Award – Michelle Hackley, exceptional education teacher at Dogwood MS, received the Rodney A. Robinson Equity in Education Award for cultivating an inclusive classroom where students acknowledge and celebrate individual differences and where literacy comes to life! Check out this video to learn more about Ms. Hackley and our finalists.
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2024 Principal of the Year Award – Monica Murray, principal of John Marshall HS, received the Public Consulting Group Principal of the Year Award for truly exemplifying what it means to Lead with Love. Watch this video to hear more from Principal Murray and her colleagues about the awesome responsibility and incredible joy of leading in RPS!
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2024 Support Staff of the Year Award – Chanell Shaw, administrative office associate at Martin Luther King, Jr. MS, received the Support Staff of the Year Award. From her warm greetings and sunny disposition to her organizational skills and mentorship opportunities, she always goes above and beyond to help all students and families feel welcomed and included. Take a look at this video tribute!
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Years of Service – We also honored the remarkable employees who have dedicated 30 or more years of service to RPS! Please join me in congratulating this exceptional group of individuals who have given their entire professional lives to RPS, and who embody the very essence of what it means to Teach, Lead, and Serve with Love.
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Student Speakers – Though we were celebrating our educators, our students were the stars of the night – truly an inspiration! Please join me in expressing our deepest appreciation to our emcees Kaylah Coles and Deon Wright from Richmond Community HS, and speakers Isabella Brownlee from Albert Hill MS and Langston Minter from Bellevue ES. Huge shout-out to Stefanie Ramsey for preparing the students for their big moments on stage!
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Musical Performances – What's a celebration without music?! Many thanks to the RPS All-City Marching Band under the direction of Dominique Reynolds, RPS All-City Jazz Band under the direction of Andrew Miles, the RPS Harp Ensemble under the direction of Kanae Nagata-Foreman, and the Franklin Military Academy Guitar Ensemble under the direction of Kyle Mendez. They brought down the house!
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With great appreciation,
Jason
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Shout-Outs – Please help us continue to inspire and uplift the RPS community by submitting shout-outs to shoutouts@rvaschools.net. Entries can be submitted in Spanish or English!
- Big shout-out to reading coach Ms. Johnson who works tirelessly behind the scenes to support all teachers in all aspects of reading. She and her team have high standards and expectations of their students, who rise to the opportunity, producing admirable results. Thank you for all you do for Lois Harrison-Jones ES!
- I would like to give a shout-out to Ms. Anna Dwyer, 5th grade teacher at Cardinal Elementary School. Ms. Dwyer has a huge heart for teaching and investing in her student's lives every single day! She strives to do her very best and give her students all she has in order to help them grow in academic knowledge and as well rounded individuals. Ms. Dwyer is also extremely helpful when it comes to organizing projects, team events, or simply answering questions. She is a vital member of our team. Thank you, Ms. Dwyer – we are lucky to have you!
- I would like to shout-out Coach R at Cardinal Elementary for all he does. Whether it's giving his students something to look forward to at school or helping parents get their kids during his crossing guard duties, he's always so kind and helpful. He makes gym fun and exciting for his students while teaching them valuable lessons in patience, discipline, and kindness. Thank you for all you do, Coach R!
- I'd like to give a shout-out to our wonderful support staff at River City Middle School. Our office staff is amazing. They assist at every opportunity and take the lead when jobs need to be done in a hurry. We could not function without them! Ms. Johnna Parker, Ms. Yohanny Lizardo, Ms. Jennifer Canas, and Ms. Tyresa Ricks, we love you at River City Middle School!
- I want to acknowledge and congratulate Antoine Anderson, Shirley Harris, and the rest of the MLK Middle School custodial team for receiving recognition for their professional execution in providing a safe and clean learning environment for our primary stakeholders this school year. The custodians throughout the district received recognition as staff members of the year on Tuesday evening. I extend my gratitude and appreciation for your service. Your recognition is genuinely warranted and duly noted. Let this accomplishment allow you to evolve and improve through adversity each year. Great job, custodial team.
- Thank you to Ms. Schlegel at Bellevue Elementary for allowing me to observe ELL students so I can understand how to better accommodate ELLs in my future classroom. Thank you to Ms. Stardust for being a great mentor throughout the year and answering all my questions with assignments, discussions and benchmarks. I cannot thank both of you enough for guiding me throughout the entire year. Thank you, Ms. Teal and Mrs. Fisher, for assisting with the IEP process, giving clarifications on how each step works. Thank you, Mrs. Marrow, for looking over my lesson plans and giving me feedback. Thank you, Mrs. Powell, for searching books on constitutions of Arizona, helping me create videos as an assignment, and making sure I submit on time. Huge thank you to the entire 3rd grade team! I wouldn't have made it throughout the entire year without your support. Lastly, thank you to each and everyone of the staff members at Bellevue Elementary. You may not have realized it but your kind words motivated me to keep going!
- Shout-out to Mrs. Anita Davis, 4th grade teacher from Richmond Virtual Academy, for being an amazing teacher, with her scholars in the center of her heart! She is dedicated to bringing out the most in each child and challenges them to exceed in all areas. She is an asset to RVA and a treasure to those she teaches! Kudos to you, Mrs. Davis!
- I would like to shout-out the following teachers at Maymont Preschool. Your hard work and daily efforts to love, educate, and make the world a better place don't go unseen. You are truly appreciated for everything you have done and continue to do every single day. We won't let your dedication go unrecognized. This shout-out is for you: Ms. Johnson, Ms. Ashley, Mrs. G, Ms. Craddick, Ms. Martin, Mrs. Phipps, Ms. Snyder, Mrs. Thomas, Mrs. Wright, Mrs. Riddick, Mrs. Coley, Mrs. Dodson, Ms. Barksdale, Ms. Simpson, Mr. & Mrs. George, Mrs. Hayes, Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Seavey, Mrs. Parker, Ms. Mosby, Mrs. Watts, Mrs. Marchetti, Mrs. Lewis, Mrs. Nuckols, Ms. West, Mrs. Dore, and Ms. VanArnam.
- I want to let you know about a terrific teacher we have at RPS. Ms. V. Schwarz shared with me a few months ago the quilt her 4th grade students made in honor of Barbara Johns. It is absolutely beautiful. Well, today that same wonderful teacher brought that quilt to Huguenot and gave it to me along with the best card from her students. I am only a small part of the Johns family but I want to have the beautiful quilt displayed at the Moton Museum. I will be talking with my cousins to see if that is possible. Please share this so everyone can know how great Ms. Schwarz and her 4th grade students are.
- I would like to shout-out Erin Campbell, Erin McGrath, Jen Sargent, and Karen Kelly who helped to raise over $4,000 for Open High School's art department by raffling off a variety of amazing items! The variety of items being offered was impressive and the platform they used not only provided great descriptions and visuals of each item, but was also user friendly. It's evident a lot of time, energy, and effort was put into this fundraiser so thank you for your hard work!
- A humongous shout-out to Dr. Eunice Turkson, ICC at River City Middle School! River City is 100% compliance for exceptional education documents! In addition to her strong work ethic, Dr. Turkson spreads joy wherever she goes, and is an absolute delight to work with. Kudos, Dr. Turkson!
- Huge shout-out to all of the CSAs and SSAs in the district for all of their hard work this year. Stay safe and God bless!
- Ms. Turner at Hugenot High School has only been our teacher for a few months but she is wonderful, always willing to help, and always guides us in the right direction.
- We would like to give a big shout-out to Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts and Lucille Brown Middle School teachers and staff for their hard work and dedication with our students. We are the proud parents of not one, but two, RPS students/sisters who were recognized at the student recognition celebration. We are truly proud parents and thankful for PHSSA and LMBMS. Special thanks to Principal Hudson and Mrs. Price at PHSSA and Mrs. Bryant and Mr. James at LMBMS for coming out and supporting our students at the award celebration!
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| Reminders from Previous RPS Directs
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| Decision Day Announcements – Class of 2024, please keep sharing your post-graduation plans with us at outreach@rvaschools.net. Please be sure to include your name and high school along with your plans. Thank you!
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| Three Ways to Pre-K – We're thrilled to offer preschool for eligible 3 and 4-year olds living in Richmond, along with three convenient ways to apply. Don't delay – spaces fill up quickly, and we don't want your child to miss out on this valuable opportunity! To begin your child's preschool registration, just visit our website.
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| #TeachWithLove at RPS – We're thrilled to offer signing bonuses of up to $7,000 for new hires starting in the fall! If you or someone you know is interested in joining the RPS team, please take a moment to visit our website to browse open positions. For more information, please email talentoffice@rvaschools.net.
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