| Tuesday, December 19, 2023
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Dear #RPSStrong Family,
Tonight's updates:
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Ninth District School Board Seat – With Board Member Nicole Jones slated to begin serving on the City Council starting in January, the School Board is officially launching the process to select a replacement who will serve until the regularly scheduled election next year. Please see below for eligibility criteria and key dates. If you have any questions, please contact School Board Clerk Patrece Richardson via email or call (804) 780-7716.
Eligibility
- Eligible individuals must be registered voters in the City of Richmond and reside in the Ninth District.
- Applicants must submit (in electronic or hard copy form) a letter of interest, a resume (including the home address and telephone number of the candidate), and proof of residency in the Ninth District to School Board Clerk Patrece Richardson no later than 4:30 pm on Tuesday, January 16, 2024. Candidate submissions received after that time will not be considered.
Applications may be submitted via USPS or email to:
Clerk of the School Board
301 North Ninth Street, 17th Floor, Richmond, VA 23219
Email: schoolboard@rvaschools.net
Timeline
- Tuesday, January 16 – Deadline for candidate submissions (no later than 4:30 pm)
- Wednesday, January 24 and Wednesday, January 31 – Candidate Interviews
- Monday, February 5 – School Board vote on interim appointment during regular meeting
- Friday, February 9 (tentative) – Interim appointment takes oath of office
- Tuesday, February 20 – First School Board Meeting for Ninth District School Board appointee
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Construction Site Visit – Yesterday, we hosted the media at the site of the new Richmond High School for the Arts. In addition to having a little fun in the enormous storm water pipes :), we had the opportunity to see firsthand the progress being made on this state-of-the-art facility. Many thanks to the RTD and Anna Bryson for the front page coverage!
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Accelerated Pay Schedule – Due to Winter Break, December pay dates for RPS employees will be accelerated. The final payday for 2023 will be this Thursday, December 21. The next regularly scheduled pay date will be January 12, 2024. Please plan accordingly.
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Attendance – Don't forget that we have school every day this week, including Friday, December 22. We look forward to seeing all students and staff throughout the entire week!
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Winter Resources – To ensure all RPS families have the support they need during Winter Break, we've put together a resource guide that includes local food distributions, mental health supports, community resources, and more! Please be sure to bookmark the page and share it with your community.
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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!
- I want to give the biggest shout-out to our school's CIS site coordinator, Ms. Cathy Hite. Today, due to her generous donors, she was able to provide the staff with both breakfast and lunch to show some appreciation for the continued hard work we do here at Carver. Ms. Hite, you truly are the heart and soul of Carver and we greatly appreciate you.
- Shout-out to our fabulous substitutes at Cardinal Elementary, who are loved by our students and give us such reassurance when we must be out. Just know how much you are appreciated by our teachers – no names – you know who you are! Sharing some love to our custodial crew at Cardinal Elementary. It is a huge school, with a huge population to keep up with. But it’s vital to have clean spaces and a welcoming environment. Thanks for all you do. And shout-out to the clinic team at Cardinal. They stay busy and they stay calm and kind to the kids and teachers. Sometimes I think the kids just want to get some reassurance and special attention from these awesome ladies. Thank you.
- Thank you to Ms. Flemings for her support and assistance with the Woodville band. Her seasoned experience in both concert music and classes has been a great help. Whenever she can come to assist I'm definitely appreciative of her time at Woodville.
- Shout-out to Ms. Coley, Ms. Thomas, and Ms. Mosby at Maymont Preschool. My kids are greeted every morning with a big hello from these three ladies and a huge hug from Ms. Coley as they enter the building. It makes them feel so welcome and speaks to the amount of care they receive during the school day
- I would like to shout-out Ms. Bland, our ICC at Overby Sheppard. She does a fantastic job of keeping everything organized for all of our meetings. Additionally, she goes out of her way to try and make sure the members of her team have the time they need to complete assessments. Most importantly, she is a strong advocate for our students.
- Shout-out to the music department at Franklin Military Academy and their students for putting on a fabulous performance at Bellevue Elementary. My third grade students really enjoyed listening, paying attention in the front row with excited faces, and some were even inspired to want to play certain instruments later in middle school. Thank you for spreading your holiday cheer! Shout-out to Ms. Sawyer at Bellevue for always offering a helping hand and being an awesome team player! Shout-out to Ms. Jarvis and Bellevue Elementary for all her help with our students in 3rd grade! Shout-out to Mr. Beekman at Bellevue Elementary for putting together a fantastic holiday concert. It was a joy to see the students dressed as elves and so happy!
- Shout-out to Mary Smith at Huguenot HS for her amazing commitment and diligence. She is our World History I teacher for ELs and stops at nothing to reach them where they are and makes sure that they pass their SOLs so that they have a higher chance of graduating. This is huge for our ELs and we could not have done it without her!
- Mrs. Lofton-Pickens, your role as instructional compliance coordinator at Richmond Virtual Academy is truly appreciated...showcasing your unique gift of advocacy for scholars with exceptionalities and your colleagues alike.
- A big shout-out to Mr. Dante Chambers and the Teejay Marching Vikings for coming by the Dogwood MS attendance pep rally! The students thoroughly enjoyed themselves! Also a big shout-out to Student Support Specialist Zazmene Green and the Teejay Cheer Squad for coming and supporting Dogwood as well! They showed up and showed out! It’s always great when the high schools collaborate with the middle schools!
- I would like to shout-out the behavioral specialist at Carver. She is appreciated more than she may know. She has helped so many students and is extremely supportive to staff and her presence is felt across the building. Anytime I need support, she is always right there to help. Thank you Ms. Chelsea
- I would like to shout-out the wonderful librarian at Cardinal Elementary, Ms. Ribble! Ms. Ribble joined the CES team this school year, and the students have shown a renewed excitement for books! I have students who have struggled with reading in the past and say they love the library now, and others who purchased a book from the book fair (which was a great success) for the very first time! One thing all of my students have in common is that they love Ms. Ribble. Thank you for sharing your love for books with our students and helping them find their own excitement for reading!
- We would like to send our sincere thanks to Mrs. Lofton-Pickens at Richmond Virtual Academy for her exceptional leadership and dedication to scholars with exceptionalities. She is a supportive servant leader for the entire school community.
- Thank you to the parents, staff, and community members that participated in paint night at RCEEA. What is better than painting, music, food, and fun right before Winter Break? Amiri Richardson-Keys, a professional visual artist and alum of John Marshall High School, facilitated the event.
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- We are grateful to the men of Mt. Gilead Full Gospel International Ministries for greeting our students at Woodville ES and reading to all homeroom classes!
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- Special thanks to our special guest, Miss Virginia 2023 Katie Rose, for stopping by Maymont Preschool to read to our mini Peacocks. She also participated in our attendance assembly to recognize our students that had excellent attendance for October.
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- Last week, Melanie Agee-Wade shared this great photo of her fellow JL Francis Crossing Guard, Maurice Robinson. Their work as crossing guards is so appreciated that a parent surprised Mr. Robinson with this beautiful holiday gift basket. Our crossing guards are doing such an incredible job this year.
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| Reminders from Previous RPS Directs
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| 2024-25 Approved Calendar – The approved calendar for the 2024-25 school year is currently available on our website. The school year will begin on Monday, August 19, 2024. Our RPS200 schools (Cardinal ES and Fairfield Court ES) will begin on Monday, July 22, 2024. Calendars will soon be available on our website in Arabic, Swahili, French, and Kinyarwanda! To stay up to date, please be sure to bookmark the calendar page.
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| 2024-25 School Applications – The deadline for families to submit open enrollment applications and applications to the Governor's STEM Academy for CTE at RTC for the 2024-25 school year is February 1, 2024, at 4:30 pm.
A few important notes:
- 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.
- If you have additional questions, please email us at enrollrps@rvaschools.net.
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