Archive 2006-2007

Honor Code Survey

The Honor Code Committee is currently conducting a survey of the opinions of MHS parents in regard to the MHS Honor Code. All answers are anonymous. Thank you for your participation. Your opinion as parents of McLean High School is a very valuable part of this process. If you would like to participate in the survey, please click on the link below. The survey will be available until midnight, Nov18th. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=ARk7i_2bx5JAW6wl5yvauDlw_3d_3d

Safe Teen Driving Presentation

The Partners for Safe Teen Driving presentation will be held on Monday, November 17 in the Cafeteria at 7:30 pm. Information will include: driver education and the licensing process, insuring the teen driver, important traffic laws, and parent tips for coaching the teen driver.

Winter Sports Parent Meeting

This is a reminder that there will be a WINTER SPORTS PARENT MEETING for all parents of students participating on a Winter Athletic team on TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18^TH at 7:00 p.m. IN THE CAFETERIA

Volunteers Needed to Assist with Senior Ethics Day

We still need at least 20 parent volunteers--no matter what grade your teen is in!--to serve as "table leaders" at the MHS annual Senior Ethics Day event at Marymount University on November 11 (the Veterans Day federal holiday), which all MHS seniors are required to take part in. The event involves student discussion of ethical dilemmas within smaller, assigned groups that are facilitated by an MHS student "McLeader," with the assistance of a parent volunteer. Lunch is provided for everyone. There will be a training session for table leaders Monday, November 3, at 7:30-8:30 a.m. The Senior Ethics Day program wraps up in the early afternoon on the 11th, in time for students to return to MHS at the close of school. If you can help out with this important program--no prior experience is needed!--or if you would like more information, contact Jennifer Kobylski at tpkoby@aol.com or Betsy Smith at bletsmith@aol.com, by October 23.

SLEEP UPDATE (Start Later for Excellence in Education Proposal)

The School Board made important decisions on our issue at its Monday Sept. 8 Work Session. We are moving forward, but there is more advocacy to be done if later start times are to become a reality in fall 2009.

With the latest version, a second draft, estimated to cost $4.3 million a year, way down from the first version, the Board asked that staff look at ways to save more money and give them a third draft. SLEEP supports this and believes it’s possible to turn later start times into a cost-saver.
The Board also asked staff to give them a “drop-dead” date for when they would have to make a decision in order to implement later start times in fall 2009. SLEEP supports this as guidance for Board action.
The Board postponed public input from this fall to early next year, after they get through a long series of budget hearings. SLEEP would have preferred to see the 3^rd draft in October and public input in November.

Come and meet members of the Administration Team and Guidance Staff to learn about what is happening and have your questions answered. 9^th and 10^th grade parents will meet at 7:30 a.m. on October 30^th ; and 11^th & 12^th grade parents will meet at 7:30 am on October 31^st.

The SCC will present a parenting program featuring nationally renowned ethics expert and author Rush Kidder. The program, “Good Kids, Tough Choices, Ethical Parenting in a Messy Age,” will take place on October 30, at 7:00 pm at Redeemer Lutheran Church, 1545 Chain Bridge Road, McLean. As the attached flyer details, parents of middle and high school students will have the opportunity to return on Friday, October 31 (10:30 – 12:00 noon for middle school parents, and 12:30 – 2:00 pm for high school parents) to participate in focus group discussions which will assist Dr. Kidder’s research for his new book.

Fairfax County Government FY 2010 Budget
Community Dialogue Meetings

Fairfax County is projecting a budget deficit of more than $400 million for FY 2010 (beginning July 1, 2009) which must be addressed through a combination of spending reductions and other strategies. Fairfax County Government and Fairfax County Public Schools will host 20 community dialogue sessions to gather comments from the public. There are several meetings that will be held in or around the McLean area: Tuesday, October 21 at Marshall High School (7:00 –9:30 pm); Saturday, October 25 at Tysons-Pimmit Regional Library (9:30 am – 12:00 noon); and Wednesday, October 29 at the McLean Community Center (7:00 – 9:30 pm). For more information on how to register to participate in the Community Dialogue meetings, please visit the Fairfax County Government website at http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/government/budget/.

The McLean High School Annual Golf Classic will be held at the Reston National Golf Course on Thursday, October 24th. Click here to view the flyer and registration form
or contact Cyndee Cannon at cyndeecannon@juno.com.

The week of October 14 leading up to Homecoming is Spirit Week at McLean. Students have been asked to show their school spirit by participating in the following theme activities each day:

The Homecoming football game (against rival Thomas Jefferson High School) will take place on Friday, October 17 at 7:30 pm. Classes and clubs have been working on their banners for the parade. We hope everyone will come out to support the football team and enjoy the award-winning Highlander Marching Band at half-time.

The Homecoming Dance will be held on Saturday, October 18, from 8:30 pm – 11:30 pm in the Gym. The theme of the dance is a jungle theme: “Take a Walk on the Wild Side.” Tickets are $15.00 per person and must be purchased in advance during lunch hours in the cafeteria. (Tickets will not be sold at the door.) Parents, please remind your students to act (and dance) responsibly – not too wild – and be safe!

Parent volunteers are needed to help chaperone and man the coat check at MHS’s “Take a Walk on the Wild Side” homecoming dance this year, on October 18. If interested, please contact Ms. Wagoner at Lori.Wagoner@fcps.edu.

The Class of 2010 is selling INNISBROOK WRAPS for their Fall Fundraiser. The entire fundraiser is being conducted ON-LINE. The sale runs from August 20 to October 3, 2008. Proceeds from the fundraiser will be used to defray the cost of the Jr./Sr. Prom. Please support our efforts by sharing the Innisbrook catalog with family, friends and co-workers. Every orders helps us—we receive 50% PROFIT on each order. Go to www.innisbrook.com, fill your shopping cart and when prompted, enter McLean’s customer number 108809. Your order will be shipped directly to your home—no pesky school pick-up required! If you have any questions, please contact Parent Sponsor Gayla Hassett at 703/534-7480 or ghassett@cox.net.

The Virginia PTA and Enough is Enough present an Internet Safety Town Hall Meeting on Monday, October 6, 2008 at in the Russell Theater, Robinson Secondary School (2035 Sideburn Road, Fairfax). PTA members and the General Public are invited to attend. Registration and Refreshments 6 – 7 p.m. Internet Safety 101: Empowering Parents presentation 7 – 9 p.m. Online registration is available through http://www.novadistrictpta.org/events/EIEtownhall.htm For more information, you can download the flyer

On Back-to-School night at 6:00 p.m. all parents are invited to an online database information/training session in the Library. The McLean librarians, Mrs. McCarthy and Ms. Cuccia, will be conducting a half hour session to familiarize parents with the online subscription databases and online catalog that are available to students 24/7.

The PTSA Ad Hoc Committee on FAIRGRADE invites the McLean High School community – in particular, families with seniors – to an evening dialogue with Sara Pacqué-Margolis. Sara, one of the FAIRGRADE co-founders and a parent of two current MHS seniors, will update families on the status of FAIRGRADE and the FCPS response. We want to encourage an open, informal conversation that will provide insights for the current senior class applying to colleges, as well as share strategies for how you can continue to support FAIRGRADE this fall. All are invited to attend the session, which will be held in the Lecture Hall at 7:30 pm on September 22. Please visit FAIRGRADE’s updated website at: www.fairgrade.org.

Senior parents and guardians are invited to the annual Senior Parent Night, Monday, September 15 at 7:30 pm in the McLean High School Auditorium. This is a parent/guardian program only as your students will be attending their grade level unit starting September 22. Hear about the resources available to you and your student as you navigate the college admission process and post secondary planning. Meet with your student's counselor in small group discussion. Please contact Mrs. Rahn in the College Career Center at Isobel.Rahn@fcps.edu if you have any questions.

At its March 10 meeting, the McLean High School PTSA voted to endorse and support the mission of FAIRGRADE: “…to revise FCPS grading policies so that FCPS students are no longer at a disadvantage in competing for college admissions, merit-based scholarships, and admissions to honors programs…”.

FAIRGRADE was created in January 2008 to advocate for major revisions of the current grading policies in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). The four Co-founders include a former Admissions Officer for Georgetown University and Admissions Reader for Duke University, a demographer, a former FCPS special education teacher, and a longtime FCPS volunteer and current president of the Fairfax County Association for the Gifted.

FAIRGRADE supporters believe that FCPS' current 6-point grading scale and weighting disparities between Honors and AP/IB classes hurt our kids. FAIRGRADE's immediate goal is to persuade FCPS to join the majority of American high schools who have implemented the more commonly used 10-point grading scale with added weights for Honors and AP/IB classes or a straight numeric scale with added weights for Honors and AP/IB classes.

FAIRGRADE's extensive research shows FCPS' current grading policies put FCPS students at a disadvantage for the following:

Following initial refusals from FCPS officials to address FAIRGRADE's findings and concerns, FAIRGRADE took its research directly to PTA's and PTO's in Fairfax County schools in the spring of '08. After successful presentations at numerous FCPS schools, hundreds of parents flooded the FCPS Administration with e-mails and phone calls and a grassroots movement was born. As a result, FCPS Superintendent Jack Dale assembled an FCPS research team to provide analysis about how FCPS grading policies compare to other school districts regionally and non-regionally, the impact of these policies division-wide and to determine what, if anything, supports current FCPS grading policies. FAIRGRADE participated in an FCPS Forum on Grading Policies at Luther Jackson Middle School on August 25th. Click here to read the Washington Post article about this meeting.

FAIRGRADE Co-founder Marcy Newberger appeared on the Kojo Nnamdi Show on WAMU 88.5FM– The Politics Hour – on Monday, June 16th. To listen to the segment click here.

All 9th grade students and families and new 10-12th grade transfer students and families are invited to attend a potluck dinner on September 12, at 6:00 pm in the Cafeteria. This will give everyone a chance to meet members of the PTSA board, administrators, and class parents, and learn more about McLean High School! There will be an opportunity to have your questions answered. Please bring a dish to share that will feed 8-10 people, along with a serving spoon. For last names beginning with: A-K - main dish or pasta; L-R - salad, vegetable or fruit; S-Z - dessert. For questions, please contact: Sally Evans (703) 556-8624 or Susan Hekking (703) 827-9054.

Click here to read the September 2008 PTSA Newsletter which includes welcome notes from MHS Principal, Dr. Deborah Jackson, and PTSA President, Susan Perla; information on fall activities and promotions; and the membership form to join the McLean PTSA.

Parent Volunteers are needed to help with the Freshman Orientation on September 5. The students will be going off-site to the Capital One Bank building for this program. Capital One is located at 1680 Capital One Drive, McLean, VA 22102 (right off 123 near the Beltway). Parents are needed to help serve box lunches, etc. from 10:00 am - 1:00 pm. Parking will be available, but we need to provide the list of parent names to Capital One for parking and security. If you can help, please RSVP to Susan Perla via e-mail by Wednesday, September 3 (susan.perla@gmail.com).

In addition, volunteers are needed to help sort the many forms that come back to school with the students on the first day of school. Sorting will take place in the conference room in the main office (near the kitchen) starting on Wednesday, 9/3. Volunteers can come any time - no RSVP is required.

Roundtable on research of FCPS Grading Policies

At 1:00 p.m. this Monday, August 25^th, FAIRGRADE is participating in an FCPS sponsored Roundtable panel discussion regarding the impact of grading policies on college admissions and scholarships. This event is open to the public. Questions may be submitted in advance at the FCPS web site and the public may question the panel following the Roundtable. Your attendance is STRONGLY encouraged. This issue makes news because of concerned parents like you.

The Roundtable is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. in the auditorium of Luther Jackson Middle located on Gallows Road at Route 50 in Merrifield. The address is: 3020 Gallows Road, Falls Church. Go to the FCPS homepage to submit questions and for additional details: www.fcps.edu. You may copy FAIRGRADE with your questions at: fairgrade.fcps@gmail.com

FAIRGRADE needs students and parents like you for a pre-Roundtable Rally. Many television and newspaper cameras are expected to cover the Roundtable. This is your opportunity to personally show the press and Fairfax County officials how much this issue means to you. Don't leave action to others. Please get involved. Make signs and come rally with other students and parents at NOON in front of Luther Jackson Middle School located at Gallows Road at Route 50 in Merrifield.

The time and effort you invest now could save you thousands when your child goes to college.

The address for Luther Jackson Middle School is 3020 Gallows Road, Falls Church. Please email FAIRGRADE Communications Director, Catherine Lorenze at clorenze@verizon.net to notify us of your intention to rally outside of the school.

FCPS is collaborating on a research study of FCPS grading policies. A roundtable with college admission officers is planned for Monday, August 25, 1 p.m., at Jackson Middle School. It is open to the public. Details.

Parent and student volunteers are needed for the Back-To-School packet stuffing on August 19 at 8:00 am in the Library. Community service hours will be given to students. Please join us and help get the year off to a great start!

We need 12-15 parent volunteers (no students please) to help stuff Guidance Packets on Tuesday, August 12, at 8:00 am in the College and Career Center. The project will likely be finished by noon, but your assistance is appreciated even if you can only stay for an hour or two. Please email susan.perla@gmail.com if you're able to assist.

The Fairfax County Park Authority is sponsoring a bike camp called Lose the Training Wheels, a program where children with disabilities learn to ride a standard 2 wheel bicycle without training wheels. This life changing program will run for three weeks during the summer: July 14-18 2008 at Fairfax County Criminal Justice Academy in Chantilly and July 21-25 & July 28-August 1 at Herndon High School. They are recruiting volunteers to commit to at least one 75 minute session for at least one week to be one of two roles: spotters or administrative. They have a greater need for spotters. The session times are:

Additionally, they are looking for individuals to assist with the loading and unloading of bikes and equipment for the weeks of July 21-25 and July 28-August 1st for the times of 7:15-8:15 am and 4:30-5:30 pm.

This is a great volunteer opportunity for groups, families, and individuals. You can really make a difference in a child's life. Volunteers receive lunch, RECenter passes, and a Lose The Training Wheels bike camp t-shirt as a token of appreciation for their hard work.

The 12^th Annual Safe Community Coalition (SCC) Teen Summit was held on February 5, 2008. Over 100 teens discussed problems facing the teens in our community and brainstormed solutions using the following framework: 1) What can I do to help myself? 2) What can my family do to help me? 3) What can my school do to help me? 4) What can my community do to help me?

Following the Teen Summit, the SCC established task forces in each of the six topic areas: Academic Pressure and College Stress; Alcohol, Drugs and Smoking; Values Clarification; Safe Social Alternatives; Mental and Physical Health; and The Internet and Technology. The task forces will include SCC members, parents, teachers and school administrators, students, and community members. Parent volunteers are needed to serve on the six task forces to help respond to the needs and suggestions developed at the summit.

If you would like to volunteer for one of the task forces, please contact SCC Board Member Laura Zoll at laurazoll@hotmail.com. You can learn more about the Summit and read the students’ statements by visiting the SCC website www.safecommunitycoalition.net

The Fairfax County School Board believes that later start times would be beneficial for high school students and is looking into the possibility of changing school start times to better correspond with children's sleep cycles. The primary reason for the change would be to improve student health and academic performance. A Transportation Task Force composed of parents, principals, teachers, coaches and representatives from a wide range of community groups recently proposed changes to transportation and bell schedules. The Task Force considered an incredibly broad range of issues related to these subjects over a 6-month period. To review the recommendations presented to the School Board, please visit:

The Fairfax County Council of PTAs (FCCPTA) has asked us to help promote a survey they are doing to learn more about parent perspectives with regard to school start times and the daily schedule. Please take a few minutes to fill out this survey http://www.fccpta.org/trans_survey/ start_time_survey.htm It takes about 3 to 5 minutes to complete—depending on how much thought you put into your answers.

Background: Here are some items to keep in mind as you take the survey:

~ Bell schedules (start and end times of the school day) are based on using buses to make more than one trip.
~ Now, buses are used 2 or 3 times each morning, so start times are staggered across three basic time frames.
~ Elementary schools are in all three time frames from 7:50 am to 9:25 am.
~ If bell schedules change, elementary schools would still be in all three time frames, but more elementary schools would start between 7:50 am and 8:55 am.
~ Some elementary schools would still be in the latest time frame, starting between 9:00 am and 9:40 am.

The Fairfax County Council of PTAs (FCCPTA) would like to know about your student's school-related habits and your views on this issue. Responses are anonymous. Please submit one survey per household. If you have questions, please contact the FCCPTA School Start Survey Coordinator.

Archive 2008-2009

Roundtable on research of FCPS Grading Policies