| Dear #RPSStrong Family,
Tonight's updates:
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RTC Open House – Everyone is encouraged to check out the great things happening at the Richmond Technical Center during their upcoming open house. Stop by tomorrow, March 13, from 6 - 7:30 pm, to learn more about opportunities available to students in our Career and Technical Education program. Also, be sure to check out our recently updated 2023-24 Career Pathways Handbook before heading over.
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Atlas Residency – The deadline to submit applications for the ART 180 2024 Summer Residency is this Friday, March 15. Ten students will be selected for the summer-long art experience, during which they'll work alongside peers from across the city and two immensely talented teaching artists. Participants will receive a $1,350 stipend, art supplies, and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to expand their portfolio. Students currently in grades 9-11 are encouraged to apply!
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Richmond Black Restaurant Experience – Now through Sunday, March 17, make sure to enjoy Richmond Black Restaurant Experience – a week celebrating Richmond’s Black-owned restaurants, food truck/cart operators, caterers, and local chefs! Check out the flyer below for a full list of participating restaurants.
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Student Artwork – From now until March 31, artwork from students across the division will be on display at Artworks. Also, be sure to mark your calendars for the Manchester Fourth Friday celebration happening on Friday, March 22, from 6 - 8 pm. Hope you can make it!
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Girls in Gear – Girls five and up are encouraged to register for the Girls in Gear Life Skills Through Bike Skills program, which uses biking to build self-confidence and promote wellness. Riders of all abilities are encouraged to join. Scholarships (including bikes and helmets!) are available, no questions asked! To register, visit their website.
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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!
- Sending lots of love and gratitude to Christie-Jo Adams and Julz Suder for planning and organizing the most amazing RPS Fine Arts Festival ever! These women have enormous energy and care and they believe that arts are vital to our children's lives and our culture! Brava to them both!
- This past Saturday was our RPS Fine Arts Festival at Huguenot High School. Thanks to Mr. Jacob Sanford, music teacher at Oak Grove Bellemeade Elementary School, ten students got to participate. Mr. Sanford arranged to have bus transportation for these students, and also carried several music stands for our orchestra musicians. We sincerely appreciate his generous help!
- Sharing so much gratitude for Dr. Michael Massa, principal of Huguenot High School, and Mr. Richard Farquharson, coordinator of student activities, for hosting the 7th annual Fine Arts Festival on Saturday, March 8.
- Thank you to all the Fine Arts teachers, from Visual Art, General Music, Band, Orchestra, Guitar, Dance, Harp, and Theatre, who were involved in making it the best Fine Arts Arts Festival yet! Your hard work during planning, set up, take down, supervising students during the day, and spending your Saturday showcasing your program and the talent of your students is more than appreciated! You are the heartbeat of the Fine Arts in RPS and without you this day of celebration would not be possible. Thank you to the principals and administrators who visited this weekend to support their teachers and students!
- Thank you to the custodial team who worked the Fine Arts Festival on Saturday: Mr. Spencer, Mr. Carr, My. Mayo, and Mr. Williamson. Your hard work, teamwork, and kindness were much appreciated! Thank you for helping us shine! We appreciate the security team led by Ms. B. Corbin who kept us safe and secure! Thank you to Kimberly Tucker, Peggy Morris, Robert Crosby, Sabrina Pollard, and Mr. Beazley.
- Big shout-out to Judy Deichman, coordinator of Library Media Services, and Lynn Pleveich, coordinator of Gifted Services, for bringing the Lit Limo to the Fine Arts Festival this weekend and passing out hundreds of books to students and families who attended! Thank you for sharing your love of literacy!
- Shout-out to the amazing RPS Facilities team led by Bobby Hathaway, Mary Gresham, and Damone Harris, for their support delivering chairs, harps, and display boards for the Fine Arts Festival. Without you, this celebration of creativity and talent in RPS would not be possible. Thank you!
- Thank you to Ryan Claytor, Huguenot HS dance teacher, for running concessions this weekend at the Fine Arts Festival.
- The Fine Arts team recognizes and thanks our community partners – the Visual Art Center of Richmond (Tesni, Liana, Tess, and Duffy) and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (Natalie, Menley, Hannah, and Dan) – for attending the Fine Arts Festival and running art activities for our RPS families. We appreciate your partnership and love!
- Thank you to the following organizations for adjudicating elementary, middle, and high school Fine Arts Festival artwork: James River Art League, led by Jan Schreiber; the Visual Art Center of Richmond; and Oakwood Arts. We appreciate your support of our talented students and teachers!
- Major recognition is needed to the following art students from Huguenot High School who volunteered to help set up the Fine Arts Festival on Friday. Your kindness made a big difference! Thank you to: Logan Velasco-Fuentes, Mychelle Vasquez, Makayla Samuels, and Otis Lynch!
- Big shout-out to Richard Rebmann, Dogwood MS band director; LaMonica McFarland, River City MS band director; and Choir Psi Phi for your support with stage transitions, set up, and tear down during the All-City concerts! You made a huge difference at the Fine Arts Festival!
- Big thanks to VCU Art Education students Claudia Martino, Samisha Warrick, Shelby Switzer, and Marie Bonenfant for the hours of support they provided on Friday during the setup of the Fine Arts Festival! The RPS Fine Arts team appreciates you! Thank you to Dr. Sara Wilson McKay and Dr. Veronica Hicks for their partnership.
- I would like to say thank you so much to Mrs. President from Summer Hill Preschool. She is so nice, a good coordinator, and always cheerful, even if she's having a bad day. She never forgets to say "hi" with smile. My son and I will miss her when he goes to kindergarten. Thank you so much, Mrs. President, for each and every thing you've done at the school.
- Quiero agradecer a las maestras de mi hijo, la Sra. Privott y la Sra. Foskey, por todo el gran trabajo que hacen para ayudar a mi hijo que tiene autismo. Me siento muy orgullosa porque mi hijo ha progresado mucho y me han ayudado mucho. Me siento agradecido con ellos. (I want to thank my child's teachers, Mrs. Privott and Ms. Foskey, for all of the great work they do to help my son who has autism. I feel very proud because my son has made a lot of progress and they have helped me a lot. I feel grateful to them.)
- Thank you to Nurse Andrews for leading the way in helping our school to take the steps to earn a Project Adam safe school designation.
- Shout-out to our School Librarian Mrs. Ashley who not only gets kids excited about reading but does a wonderful job documenting all of our beautiful students and takes photographs at all of our school events!
- I'd like to shout-out Ms. Copeland, social worker at T.C. Boushall Middle School, for being an amazing advocate for our scholars! She is one of the kindest, most patient and smartest people I've ever met. I feel so lucky that she landed at our school!
- I'd like to thank Lynn Pleveich and Alan Gonzalez for all of the blood, sweat, and tears that they've put into making the high school application process more equitable for all RPS students. I'd like to thank Lynn, especially, for always picking up the phone no matter what! And Alan, for making spreadsheets so that we can keep it all straight! I'm so grateful for the both of you! Many, many thanks!
- I'd like to thank Carter Humphries, who is now the extension agent for 4H in Chesterfield County, but is always there for RPS. She has been invaluable in our embryology program! Whether it's finding us equipment, answering questions, or providing support, she is only an email or phone call away! Thank you, Carter, for being the ultimate "chicken coach!"
- A big shout-out to Mrs. Broomell, librarian, and Mrs. Mason, reading specialist, for an amazing Read Across America Week! These ladies put together a book tasting with such fun activities for the students that encouraged them to want to read daily and discuss their reading. It was a great week of reading and learning and you all truly represent Carver nation!
- I would like to shout-out Henry L Marsh's two favorite school social workers, Ashley White and Natia Smith! Ms. White is an exemplary social worker who makes it a point to get to know all of our students and their families. She is a go-to whenever anyone needs supportive resources or to talk through a tough day. Ms. White is extremely thoughtful in her role, always comes prepared, and goes above and beyond for students, families, and staff. Ms. Smith is new to RPS, but has hit the ground running. She came in to give some added support to our school, as she has many other schools already. Ms. Smith quickly volunteers to support after-school activities and quickly formed supportive relationships with our students. She is knowledgeable of outside resources and brings a fresh set of eyes to our meetings. They both have positive energy and easily connect with others. We are so lucky to have both social workers at our school this year. Happy School Social Work Week!
- I would like to shout-out the phenomenal Read Across America committee at Summer Hill Preschool. The staff really came together and made it "do what it do!" Things went smoothly, and the students and staff really enjoyed themselves. Thank you, Ms. Hill, Ms. Hunt, Ms. Easter, Ms. Bailey, Ms. Kelli, Ms. Milligan, Ms. Emogholtz, and Principal Doxey, for your hard work today! It was successful because of you!
- RCEEA recognizes today as International Women's Day. We take a moment to express appreciation to the women who uniquely contribute to the success of RCEEA's all-star students. RCEEA recognizes women as children's first teachers and at RCEAA, they teach, nurture, and empower students to grow, not only as students but as young adults.
- I feel like I could find a reason to shout-out Ms. Chloe Grant at Dogwood at least every week. I am constantly amazed at the effort she puts into making sure each student is getting the proper attention and that their work is as exciting as a middle school English class could be. She is one of the best teachers my children have had at any level and in any class.
- I would love to give a shout-out to Mr. Turner at MLK Preschool. Mr. Turner uses his incredible musical talents to engage and empower his students. What a gift! Thank you, Mr. Turner.
- I would like to give the warmest shout-out to our school social worker, Ms. Morley! You are one of the most proactive, solution-oriented, kind-hearted humans I have ever worked with. The kids feel safe with you and always come out better when they are with you. Thank you for being the voice for those who won't speak up and being a beacon of light in our students' lives. You are a wonderful human being. Keep up the great work! I would like to also shout-out the Carver staff as a whole! It has been a very trying school year, with heavy turnover and so many changes with many people in and out of our building. For those of us who show up each day, if you aren't told enough...you matter and you are appreciated! We got this!
- Shout-out to Swansboro Elementary School's awesome office manager, Sarah Sheets. She is dedicated to helping with student attendance through the incentive program “It Pays To Come To School.” Students are not only receiving rewards for showing up to school, but also for how to count money and whether to save or spend for bigger prizes. Contributing to the growth of our children is everybody’s job, and Mrs. Sheets is doing an amazing job.
- Congrats to all of the RPS cheer squads for a phenomenal competition this past weekend hosted by the John Marshall cheer squad and Middle School Athletics at Armstrong HS. Thank you to all the coaches, admin, and school staff for preparing their teams, and to those who came out to cheer on their squads! Congrats to Armstrong High and Richmond High on their performances! Our champions: MLK, River City and Henderson MS!
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- A huge shout-out to Jackie Small, the awesome art teacher at Bellevue Elementary School! Their display at the Arts Festival showcased beautiful art! Great job, Mx. Small!
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| Reminders from Previous RPS Directs
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| 2024-25 Preschool & Kindergarten Enrollment – Preschool and kindergarten enrollment will begin on Monday, March 18! We're thrilled to offer preschool for eligible 3 and 4-year olds, and kindergarten for all 5-year-olds living in Richmond. Please note: if your student is currently enrolled at an RPS preschool, they will still need to register for kindergarten. For more information, please email enrollrps@rvaschools.net.
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| School Immunizations – RPS Health Services will hold school-based immunization clinics on Thursday, March 14, at Richmond Alternative School and Dogwood MS. If you would like for your child to be vaccinated, please return the completed consent form to your school nurse in English or Spanish. These immunizations are mandated by Virginia law so please make sure to take care of them ASAP. See the flyer below for locations and times.
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Tutor Recruitment – Are you a retired teacher, college student/recent grad, or community member interested in supporting the academic success of our students? We're currently accepting applications for academic tutors to support our high-intensity tutoring program. If you or someone you know is interested in joining the RPS team, just visit our website to apply or scan the QR code below with your phone's camera. This work is going to take #AllofUs!
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