| Friday, November 19, 2021
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| More COVID-19 Vaccination Clinics – As you may have seen in my daily COVID-19 Update, we had NO new COVID cases today! Let's keep this trend going. Our next next vaccination clinic is tomorrow, November 20, at George Wythe HS, from 10 am - 3 pm. Please see below for information about all of our upcoming vaccination events.
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| Yale National Initiative – In September, we announced the eight RPS teachers who participated in the Yale National Initiative (YNI) to Strengthen Teaching in Public Schools. Earlier this month, the inspiring Alani Boyd, 5th grader at Chimborazo ES, spoke to a panel of teachers, school administrators, and Yale professors (!) about her experience with the YNI curriculum unit created by her teacher, Tara McCrones. Alani shared what it was like to learn about immigration, race, and class through the book Esperanza Rising. Alani also shared how this inspired her to research more about social justice and her hero, Michelle Obama. Please take a few minutes to watch the video below – it will make you so proud to be a part of the RPS family!
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| Student Advisory Council Student Spotlight – Enormous gratitude to Anthony Rodriguez-Ortiz, George Wythe HS Senior, for serving as the student representative to the School Board for the month of November! Anthony is a member of my Student Advisory Council (SAC), helping shape policy and decision-making. It was a pleasure having Anthony with us this month and we look forward to hearing more from our student representatives this year.
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| Calendar Reminder – Don't forget that Thanksgiving Break runs from Wednesday, November 24, through Friday, November 26. Classes will resume on Monday, November 29. Please note that Wednesday, November 24, is a work day for 12-month employees.
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| Giving Tuesday – RPS teachers, are you looking for some extra supplies for your classroom? Make sure to create a DonorsChoose project before Giving Tuesday (November 30) when donations will be matched by at least 50%!
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| With great appreciation,
Jason
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- The biggest shout-out ever to Mrs. Janette Hardison, the math interventionist at Broad Rock Elementary. She gave every spare second of her time to help out at the book fair in our media center this entire week! We would not have had as great a week without her! We could not be more grateful.
- I am a first-year parent of RPS and my daughter attends Bellevue Elementary School in Church Hill. My husband and I have been so impressed by the kindness and support of the staff, everyone is so friendly, helpful & engaged. The principal, Ms. Hines, as well as all of the administration, is doing a wonderful job! We love the classroom sizes, curriculum, and our daughter’s teacher, Ms. Anna Moeser. She is simply wonderful & works so hard for her students. We feel very fortunate to be a Bellevue Dragon this year and look forward to all the STEAM programming to come. Just wanted to share our first 9-week experience.
- I would like to shout out Mrs. Edwards at Linwood Holton. My first-grader who could not read at the beginning of the year is now fluently reading, telling me about nouns and proper nouns, along with so much other information!! She is truly an amazing teacher!!
- I would like to send a shout-out and congratulations on an amazing fall play to Ms. Vollmer at Albert Hill Middle School. She has created a beautiful theater community that fosters belonging and creativity!!! After such a hard year, this has been a safe place for so many. Thank you!
- I would like to shout out the following teachers of the Albert Hill math department for putting on a fun and engaging Math Night. Ms. Bridges, Ms. Zbesheski, Ms. Bradford, Mrs. Shepard, Mr. Neitzel, Ms. Medley, Ms. Shenk, and Ms. Newkirk, you guys were amazing! Thanks for exceeding expectations and for all that you do!
- I want to shout out to Amy Blount, the ICC at J.B. Fisher, for not only being so thorough and intentional at her job but also for being the most positive, upbeat, energetic person and school cheerleader ever. She brings so much fun and enthusiasm to the school community and we're lucky to have her here!!
- I'd like to give a shout-out to Nurse John Oliver who came to Martin Luther King Jr. Preschool this week to do training on the EMR used by the Health Service. He also shared expectations and helpful systems. As a new school nurse, his assistance was invaluable! He also proved to be a compassionate and efficient nurse when the need arose.
- Shout out to the awesome math team at Albert Hill Middle School, led by math coach Chaun Newkirk, for coordinating the virtual math night. It was fun, competitive, and full of student engagement. Special kudos to Ms. Shenk’s students for facilitating a session like trained professionals. Thank you, Principal Ivy and AHMS PTA, for supporting Math Night. Shout out to Ms. Russell, Ms. Medley, Ms. Bradford, Ms. Zbesheski, Mr. Neitzel, Mrs. Shepard, Ms. Shenk, and Ms. Bridges for leading our learning with laughter and love.
- I would like to send a huge shout-out to Mrs. Christina Valentine, the compliance coordinator at Chimborazo Elementary. She has not only stepped into an administrative role and is absolutely amazing, but she has also continued to assist her teachers and students in her compliance role! We are indeed blessed to have her at Chimborazo!
- I would like to give a huge shout-out to Kimberly Bailey, a 2nd-grade teacher at Henry L. Marsh, III Elementary School, for effectively planning and implementing the flipped classroom model. Mrs. Bailey presented an exciting EL lesson on fossils in-person to her students while simultaneously engaging students in all second-grade classes through Google meet. Her presentation was interactive, structured, and exciting. With the help of 2nd-grade teachers, students participated in turn-and-talks, productive movement exercises, and investigations. Student responses were heard from every class. Job well done, Mrs. Bailey, and the entire second-grade team: Mr. Walker, Mrs, Jeter, Mrs. Gay, and Ms. Yoon. The Henry Marsh administrative team is so proud of you!!!
- I'd like to shout out two amazing custodians at Lucille M. Brown Middle School! Mr. Taylor and Mr. Rose are two of the hardest-working men in our building. They are responsive to the staff's needs and are always willing to lend a helping hand!
- I'd like to shout out Ms. Ashley Harrison and Mr. Ian Johnson, instructional assistants at T. C. Boushall Middle School, for all of their help with Chromebooks this week! Not only were they helpful, but they were cheerful as well! I'm so grateful for their hard work!
- I'd like to shout out Ms. Delabarrera, office associate at T. C. Boushall Middle School, for her continuous support and positive attitude! Walking into the office and seeing her smiling face is often the only thing that gets me through the bad days! I don't know what I would do without her!
- I'd like to shout out Phoenix Steele, 6th-grade math teacher, and Andria Impson, 6th-grade LEIP and AVID teacher, at T. C. Boushall Middle School for successfully teaching not just their own classes, but filling in for other teachers as well. I know it was tough, but I want you to know that I see you, I'm grateful for you, and that you did a really good job! Thank you for being there for our scholars when they needed you!
- Thank you so much to Mr. Dupont at Overby-Sheppard Elementary. He is truly an asset at Overby-Sheppard. There are just so many ways that he has stepped in to support in all areas. He has truly been helpful today. We see you and we thank you for your collaborative nature and overall presence at Overby-Sheppard.
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| Mental Health Supports for Students – RPS is reallocating $3 million of our federal relief funding to increase mental health supports for our students. Before we make this investment, we want to hear from you. How would you spend these dollars? More counselors? Social workers? Mindfulness supports? I especially want to hear from students so please share the survey link with the young people in your life. Thank you in advance for taking the time to share your perspective on this incredibly important topic.
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| 2021-22 Superintendent's Teacher Advisory Council – TAC is back! If you're interested in serving on my Teacher Advisory Council, please complete the application by November 23. We're looking for a diverse group of educators from all parts of the city to help guide decision-making and identify solutions to make our schools even stronger.
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| River City Middle School Rezoning Committee – If you're interested in serving on the River City Ms Rezoning Committee, please apply by November 28.
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| 2022-23 School Applications – The application window for families to submit Open Enrollment, Specialty School, and Governor’s School applications for the 2022-23 school year is open. Via the Enroll RPS Portal, students may apply for:
- Any specialty school for which they are eligible (specialty schools include Franklin Military Academy, Open High School, Richmond Community High School, Governor’s STEM Academy at Richmond Technical Center, and the IB Diploma Programme at Thomas Jefferson High School (for rising 11th grade students))
- Out-of-zone schools via the open enrollment lottery (maximum of three school choices)
- Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts (charter school) via a separate open enrollment lottery (if eligible)
- Appomattox Regional Governor’s School and/or Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School (the application for CodeRVA is managed separately by that school)
A few important notes:
- Families will have until 4:30 pm on Wednesday, December 1, 2021 to submit Specialty and Governor’s school applications, and until 4:30 pm on Tuesday, February 1, 2022 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.
- Additional information can be found on our website and please email us at enrollrps@rvaschools.net with any questions or concerns.
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| Important Links – Last updated on October 18, 2021.
RPS Links
COVID-19 Links
Crisis Support Links
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