Loudoun County Public Schools

05/30/2020

05/30/2020

05/29/2020

The Loudoun County School Board will hold a virtual meeting at 4 p.m. Tuesday, June 2. All School Board members and staff representatives will participate electronically from remote locations. The LCPS Administrative Building will be closed, and no opportunities for public participation will be available there.

Live public comment will be accepted virtually and aired in real time during this meeting. Online and telephone registration will open through 3 p.m. Tuesday (telephone registrations may be made between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday and 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Tuesday at 571-252-1030).

To participate in the June 2, 2020, School Board meeting, please register here (https://tinyurl.com/y9c7fqde).

The full meeting agenda is available on the LCPS website (https://tinyurl.com/ybwsvxce).

The board will consider three action items during the meeting: Class Rank, a Call for State and Federal Action on Climate Change and a LGBTQ+ Pride Month Proclamation. The agenda also contains three information items. The information items include:

· Recommendation for expenditure of FY20 appropriated, but unspent, funds.
· Policy 7320, Staff Health.
· COVID-19 Update on LCPS Continued Response.
The School Board also is scheduled to have a closed session.

The Loudoun County School Board believes that strong community engagement and outreach are important components of a successful school system, even while the COVID-19 crisis requires special arrangements to safely conduct business while implementing recommended preventative measures. The meeting will be available for public viewing through the live-stream telecast on LCPS.org (https://www.lcps.org/Page/140009), and live on Comcast channel 18 and Verizon FIOS channel 43.

05/29/2020

Spelling the Dream | Official Trailer | Netflix

Spelling Bee Champion to be Featured in Documentary

Ashrita Gandhari, a seventh grader at Stone Hill Middle School, is featured in a Netflix documentary being released June 3.

“Spelling the Dream” highlights the efforts students go to in order to prepare for the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

As a sixth grader, Ashrita was crowned the champion of the Loudoun County Regional Spelling Bee. In a contest lasting four hours, Ashrita successfully spelled “seance” to advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee as the LCPS representative.

View the “Spelling the Dream” trailer at https://tinyurl.com/ya3posw6.

Following four hopeful competitors’ journeys, this documentary explores the trend of Indian Americans ruling the Scripps National Spelling Bee since 1999. Wa...

05/29/2020

Schoology Learning Management System | Updates and Information About Our Schoology Journey

LCPS to Implement Schoology to Enhance Learning Management

Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) will implement the Schoology Learning Management System in fall 2020 to improve the learning environment for students, staff, and families.

Planning for the adoption of a division-wide Learning Management System began in 2017. When the COVID-19 pandemic impacted classroom instruction in March, the district turned to Google Classroom, the digital classroom tool used by a majority of teachers, to support distance learning through the remainder of the school year.

As LCPS plans for potential scenarios for the fall, having access to a full-featured Learning Management System will provide a number of important benefits.

Schoology will provide a seamless learning environment to help LCPS improve student performance, foster collaboration, and personalize learning for every student.

As an integrated division-wide system, Schoology will enable parents to see what their students are learning and how they are performing; teachers will be able to efficiently collaborate and share resources; and administrators’ ability to monitor, track and assess student, school, and division-level performance will be enhanced.

Belmont Ridge Middle School Instructional Facilitator for Technology Steve Norman compares and contrasts Google Classroom and Schoology. "With Google classroom, you go to Classroom and then you pick your class and you're still going into those individual environments. In Schoology, when you log in, you come to your dashboard and you're seeing due dates or things that are coming up for all of your classes in one spot. You'll see anything that's overdue for all of your classes in the one spot. If the principal or I, as an IFT, are trying to push out a daily announcement or a daily communication, you can put it there in that one spot," Norman said.

Family accounts in Schoology will provide better visibility into a student’s assignments and schoolwork, providing parents better tools to be partners in their child’s education. Parent access to the courses in which their students are enrolled includes the ability to see:

Upcoming assignments and classwork;
*Recent assignments;
*Overdue activities;
*Groups their student is a part of; and
*A calendar displaying events and assignments for each course.

Parent accounts in Schoology also allow parents to participate in courses as learners, allowing LCPS to engage and support parents via the platform.

Schoology’s assessment functionality in LCPS will include:
*Enhanced assessment tools and question types;
*Standards-aligned assignments and assessments;
*Selective grade passback to Phoenix Gradebook; and
*The ability to share district-created assessments and assignments if desired.

Schoology also works hand-in-hand with Phoenix, our division’s Student Information System that houses all student records, course schedules, and teacher grade books. Parents will continue to use ParentVUE to access and update important information about their children and see up-to-date information about grades. While ParentVUE continues to provide information about student’s important records and academic progress, Schoology will give parents a new window into the work that is happening in class that leads up to the grades that display in Phoenix.

Park View High School Social Science and Global Studies teacher Liz Thomas speaks to how the platform can empower parents as partners in their children's learning. "The nice thing about Schoology is...parents have a much better idea of the things that are coming up, the things that students are working on right now,” Thomas said.

Teacher sharing and collaboration becomes division-wide in this new platform. Currently, sharing is localized in teams and schools. Division-wide sharing will reduce duplication of effort and save teachers time. It also can be used to provide better access to division-curated content and resources.

More than half of LCPS teachers have already completed training in the use of Schoology, and virtual training continues. Many teachers who have taken the training have provided positive feedback.

Tracking student usage and engagement also is simplified with Schoology. Integral division content and distribution tools will enable school and division administrators to support teachers better, and district management and data syncs will save teachers time.

LCPS is currently exploring three instructional scenarios for fall 2020, including in-person learning without physical distancing; a combination of in-person learning with physical distancing measures in place and distance learning; and distance learning without in-person learning. The Schoology platform will support learning across all three scenarios.

LCPS will provide self-guided and self-paced virtual student and parent training in the use of Schoology over the summer. More information, including user guides and support materials for how to use Schoology as a parent and a student, also will be made available at back-to-school time.

For more information, please visit https://blogs.lcps.org/schoology

05/29/2020

Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) is unable to host its annual Retirement Celebration this year due to the pandemic, but we still want to pay tribute to the 165 employees who have contributed a total of 6,168 years of service to LCPS. Thank you for your service! We appreciate your meaningful contributions and wish you every happiness in retirement!

We’re recognizing several retiring employees each day to celebrate their contributions.

Dorothy E. Warner, Head Custodian, Kenneth Culbert Elementary
“A founding member of the staff at Kenneth Culbert Elementary School, Dorothy will be remembered for her kindness, her smile, and her willingness to do whatever needed to be done to make the school the best learning environment for the students. She has enjoyed learning about so many different cultures and nationalities from the staff, students and families of Culbert ES.”--Monica Edwards, Principal

John S. Wells, Drama Teacher, Loudoun County High School
“John enjoyed working with students over the 4-year span of their high school careers, watching them learn, grow and change. In addition to teaching theater, he also found time to write, produce and publish numerous plays.”--Michelle Luttrell, Principal

Mary Jane Williams, Social Science and Global Studies Teacher, Loudoun Valley High School
“Mary Jane enjoyed working with students and fellow teachers over her 20-year career with LCPS, learning from and sharing with each of them.”--Susan Ross, Principal

Marian R. Zane, Special Education Teacher, Harper Park Middle School
“Marian spent her entire LCPS career at Harper Park Middle School. She especially enjoyed the ‘aha’ moments from her students when they understood the math problem, and the confidence that came with that. Marian’s colleagues at Harper Park will remember her for consistently having a jam-packed room before school, day after day, year after year, for her Math Homework Club.”--Christopher O’Rourke, Principal

David L. Arbogast, Textbook and Digital Resource Specialist, Instructional Programs

Marilyn L. Gingras, Account Technician, Digital Experience Office

Rena E. Leonard, Bus Driver, Transportation Department

Patricia L. LoPreto, Special Education Teacher, Tuscarora High School

Allen M. Shockey, Warehouse Technician, Facilities Management and Direction

Marianne Turner, Principal, Douglass School

05/28/2020

The LCPS Minority Student Achievement Advisory Committee - MSAAC presented its five major annual awards at its Wednesday, May 27, meeting.

The award winners are:

Delegate Award: Kellee Jenkins (Freedom High School Cluster)

Kellee’s husband, David Jenkins, an MSAAC member, wrote this about her in his nomination remarks:

“Kellee has worked tirelessly to improve opportunities and outcomes for minority students in Loudoun County. She first served as an MSAAC delegate in 2014, representing Little River Elementary School, where she began learning about LCPS's resources for minority students and sharing this information with other families. She has since served as a delegate for J. Michael Lunsford Middle School and Freedom High School. Last year, she planned and executed the inaugural MSAAC Awards Gala. This year, she has created the MSAAC Student Representative initiative to bring student voices to the table.

To view full article visit, tinyurl.com/ydephrq6

05/28/2020

The Loudoun County School Board met virtually on Tuesday, May 26, 2020. School Board members and Loudoun County Public Schools’ staff joined the meeting remotely by videoconference.

The full agenda (https://tinyurl.com/y8zpfosa) for this School Board meeting can be found on the Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) website. The video replay of the meeting, indexed to specific agenda items, is also available on that webpage.

Park View High School Principal Kirk Dolson was honored as the 2020 Loudoun County Public Schools Principal of the Year. Mark Muldowney, a fifth-grade teacher at Round Hill Elementary School, was recognized as the 2020 Loudoun County Public Schools Teacher of the Year.

The School Board passed three action items during this meeting: the Exempt Employee COVID-19 Emergency Supplemental Payment initiative; a revision of the Fiscal Year 2021 Adopted Budget; and a Gun Violence Awareness Proclamation.

The School Board heard seven information items:

· Assistant Superintendent for Business and Financial Services Sharon Willoughby presented FY20 Appropriated, Unspent Year-End Funds with the unspent year-end fund balance, possible uses and a timeline for action.
· Ms. Willoughby also reported on the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Cost per Pupil report.
· Assistant Superintendent for Support Services Kevin Lewis outlined a Capital Improvement Program fund transfer for broadband infrastructure.
· Mr. Lewis also detailed a potential award of contract for the construction of Emerick Elementary and Waterford Elementary security vestibules.
· School Board member Jeff Morse (Dulles District) outlined the 2020-2021 grade-level reorganization and increase from .5 FTE to .6 FTE for Middleburg Community Charter School (MCCS).
· School Board member Denise Corbo (At-Large) provided a work plan proposed by the Joint Board of Supervisors and School Board Committee.
· Superintendent Dr. Eric Williams, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Dr. Ashley Ellis, Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Services Dr. Asia Jones and Mr. Lewis provided an update on LCPS’ efforts regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

The School Board’s next meeting will be held at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, June 2.

Live public comment will be accepted virtually during this meeting. Citizens who wish to make live public comment may register by visiting the Citizen Participation link on the School Board webpage (https://www.lcps.org/Page/226240). Online and telephone registration will be open Friday, May 29, and Monday, June 1, (telephone registrations may be made between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Friday and Monday at 571-252-1030).

05/28/2020

Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) is unable to host its annual Retirement Celebration this year due to the pandemic, but we still want to pay tribute to the 165 employees who have contributed a total of 6,168 years of service to LCPS. Thank you for your service! We appreciate your meaningful contributions and wish you every happiness in retirement!

We’re recognizing several retiring employees each day to celebrate their contributions.

Anita E. Richard, World Language and Culture Teacher, Stone Bridge High School
“Anita will fondly remember the friendships that she has made with both colleagues and students. She has many highlights over her 25 years with LCPS, including a trip to China during her 20-year stint at Stone Bridge High School.”--Timothy Flynn, Principal

John T. Scott, Fifth Grade Teacher, Sanders Corner Elementary
“John will be remembered for his friendly grin and sparkling eyes that put the children at ease and made them want to talk to and spend time with him. Over the years John developed long-lasting connections to students and their families, and they would often stop by to catch up with him.”--Michael Jacques, Principal

Gary D. Sharp, School Counselor, Eagle Ridge Middle School
“During his 30 years with LCPS, Gary most enjoyed working with students one-on-one to help set academic and life goals. His colleagues will remember him not only for his loyalty and advocacy for his students, but also his wit and sense of humor.”--Scott Phillips, Principal

Ernest L. Simmons, Technical Education Teacher, Broad Run High School
“From his first day in the school system 35 years ago, Ernest has enjoyed working with his students and colleagues. Every day brought him new adventures in working with students interested in learning about technology, aerospace, and old school tech ed, resulting in some outstanding projects in the classroom.”--David Spage, Principal

William L. Strickler, Music Teacher, Woodgrove High School
“William will be remembered best by colleagues at Woodgrove High School for his sense of humor, for inspiring students, and for keeping things in perspective.”--William “Sam” Shipp, Principal

Jeffrey A. Tanner, Music Teacher, Stone Bridge High School
“Jeff began his LCPS career as a band director, then moved to teaching guitar, founding the high school guitar program and curriculum. He enjoyed leading students from not knowing music at all, through their final successful performance or competition, seeing them proud and excited about their accomplishment.”--Timothy Flynn, Principal

Monica K. Thompson, Third Grade Teacher, Pinebrook Elementary
“During her 18 years with LCPS, Monica helped open Pinebrook Elementary and stayed there until retiring. She enjoyed working with her students, and they must have also enjoyed working with her, as she was voted ‘Turkey of the Year’ for one of Pinebrook’s reading incentive contests.”--Paul Thiessen, Principal

Bruce A. Tiller, Physical Education Teacher, Harmony Middle School
“The relationships Bruce has fostered during his 15 years with LCPS, teaching at Park View High School and Harmony Middle School, have been an enjoyable component of his career. His colleagues will remember him for the big heart he had for his special needs students, always making sure that he spent time with them.”--Eric Stewart, Principal

Stephanie A. Tracy, English Language Learner Teacher, Heritage High School
“During her time with LCPS, Stephanie enjoyed working with professionals who valued the students.”--Jeffrey Adam, Principal

Donna E. Van Wagoner, Kindergarten Teacher Assistant, Lucketts Elementary
“Donna has enjoyed her years interacting with the students at Lucketts Elementary School.”--Carolyn Clement, Principal